Tiny update about leuku review.

Well some of you might hve been waiting for my leuku review and i just dropped by to tell you that its still under work and sadly a bit late, but i think that at the end of janyary or at early february ill "publish" it. The makers providing leukus are way busy now and that makes a tiny delay but hey, it will happen.

Heres a few teasers again.

Making a campfire from fresh frozen lapland birch at winter.

Heres a few pictures, that i took a good while ago while we were on ski trip, in lapland,  for a week, to participate reindeer round up in actual work, that only by watching etc. We got to see butchering, pelt removing etc, and we stayed in foxholes dug in snow, plus a surplus army tent, with occasional fire in the stove if we managed to gather enough wood. You know, the wood...the trees there are like a Bonsai trees, tiny but still old, birch growing almost along the ground, instead of rising to the sky above. Its waste of time, to wish and search for huge 8 inch birch in most areas. Anyways, at one day (yes, its daytime, but at december, theres light only for 3-4 hours, if not even that, and then its again pitch black everywhere ) we wanted to make a fire outside, to fry sausage and just to have a stable light  instead of various headlamps going here and there in the darkness.

This aint nothing special, no, not at ll, but its usefull in my opinion to have some training to ge the fire going. Birch, that we cut and gathered, by walking in waist  deep, or deeper snow, with and without snowshoes (well, someone had the brains to haul those heavy snowshoes with him...). You dont cut any twigs and branches off from them, you just drag em in the camp as they are.  Axegeek  is back ? Nope,leave it home, its just useless in tundralike areas. Instead, use a leuku, a  smaller saw is good too, or as i did, a billhook. The material is barely 3 inches in diameter, so it cuts with a slash or two, with a billhook or a saw.

After you have brought a few full birches, you start to cut off the branches. This is where the detail work starts.  While you cut the braches, start to put the similar sized pieces with same diameter in their own piles. The thicker ones to their own pile, and the small ones to the pile of tiny stuff. Some 3-4 piles with different size stuff in their own piles, will do.

Then you remove and gather, All the possible bark of birch trunk, in one hopefully large pile,or stuff it in sack, in your overalls etc, to keep it safe from blowing wind and to dry it a bit from possible ice cover around the material.

Ok, so now you have your stash of removed bark and a good few piles of actual wood. If theres not much of snow,  then try to dig in it, all the way to the ground but remember to do it in a wide area, not just where the fire will be, as when the fire gets going, it radiates heat that melts the snow....that eventually will drop....in to your fire. If there is a deep snow cover and you cant use anything to shovel it, then try to stomp the ice in to tight pack, and then arrange some of the thick wood pieces, as a mattress, in the place of future fire. It helps a lot at start, atleast.

So, now you lick your finger a bit, and stick it up in the air to notice where the wind comes from if theres not much of it. If there is, well, you know that without freesing any spit covered fingertip:). Put two, large wood pieces, so that theres a something like 20-30 cm gap between em, so that the wind comes and blows between them. This helps the air to pass, in fire, without never ending man performed air blowing in to ambers.

Then you carefully place all your bark, between the two branch pieces mentioned above. You better kneel while doing this, back against the wind, as the bark might fly away in to the darkness. After that, place the smallest, 2 to 4mm twiglike stuff, loosely on top of the bark. Then you put the stuff thats a step thicker, on top And around the pile of tiny stuff.

Then you put two of the largest sized wood, similar to the first laid two ones, so that they are on top of the first ones,but with smaller gap between em. This, gives the "# " shape to to firewood when you look it from top off it. Then just add more wood, so that theres always a layer of thicker material, on top of smaller. This way, the bark, will set the light on the tiny twig sticks, and as it sets in fire, the flames and heat, will allow the next upper layer of thicker material to dry a Bit, before catching in to flames, and then to dry and light the next,  thicker bunch. Simple and effective, as long as you get enough bark and that thinnest material on bottom of it. Now, some of you might be yealling all over about "processing" of wood, but as this is an old emergency way to do it, and performed in snow and cold, theres not always even the tools, nor time, to star to play with axes and batoning etc, if youre gone all wet, or something, lost your big camp knife and such and you have to do it with few matches and a small basic puukko. Plus, the snow.....its pretty hard and even annoying to try to baton a piece of 2" birch, against a meter deep snow, as the wood will only sink in to snow.....yes, you Can definetely use some of the wood to help, bu keeping it under the batoned one, but, this is how its usually done. The american, german, swiss, etc, ways might be different indeed, but this is a genuine ,old, lapland peoples way familiar from older hiking & survival books and courses.

Happy indepence Day, fatherland.

Finnish independence day, is tomorrow.



I am proud to celebrate that and i like the fact that theres no multinational European Union flag in our flagpole, and i hope we will never go to that.



Ill be heading to cabin with few friends, to heat the sauna and enjoy some deer roast with shot of Mannerheim´s special drink.



I owe to everyone who has fought, for our indepency, especially to ones in the actual field service and i´d rather see veterans and real people in independence day parties, thatn television celebrities and business men ready to sell our land for any profit.



Eventhough the indepence starts, from 1917, and we fought to get and keep it, on later times too, in bigger scale, i personally connect my thought, to the times of WWII and fighting against Russian invaders. Political games and business,thats not my bag. I dont like Finland, in which, our leaders tend to say " our opinion is a stong maybe". Its a shame. I would take a bullet, defending my working class, common man, the average joe, women and children. To keep our land somewhat beautiful as its now, to see forests remain, and to prevent our nature. But, for greedy leaders, jacket turning, double talkin´ elite, no sir. I am maybe a nationalist,but, not a racist, but still, i´d rather see our funds and time, to be guided to our own people, homeless and the poor, than allow foreign "refugees" come in, when theres enough to do, to get our own people to have better life. Theres absolutely nothing wrong to be Finnish and proud of our own national culture. I hope the schools would teach our kids, that as well, instead of passing on the lectures of how to sell our land and imitate foreign MTV-lifestyle crap,as it seems to go nowadays. Its good to tolerate different people, but hey, keep a limit to that as well. We dont need any drug dealers, child molesters of any nationality nor race,may it be Finnish or any other. Take the kids to see and Hear veterans of our wars, while they are alive, tell em to take the hat off while inside the house,to wonder in the woods..theres million ways to show em what we are and where we came from.



Anyways, tomorrow, is a meaningfull day to me and i wanted to tell that to you as well.

IF you find this post offensive and take me as a right-wing extremist or any neonazi sympathizer, youre wrong. I just happen to love my country, as you might love yours, and we both have the righ to feel so.

Rakovalkea, a gapfire or maybe a longfire.

 Someone asked, about a fire he had seem a few times on Finnish films. Its this, the "rakovalkea", that translates in to "gap-fire" but i´ve seen similar named as "longfire´s".   Here, its long fire, if it has only TWO ( 2) logs, the three log fires are different story. Very traditional fire for staying over night in the woods,especially  under cover of tree´s and in lean-to´s. Few different ways to do it, but this one, is one thats even a secure, safe one, as it has the supporting poles, made from fresh wood, to prevent the logs from dropping to ground just like that. Usually if you sleep by fire, you put a smaller branch of thin log between you and fire, to stop possible dropping burning log from rolling against you, and preventing you to roll too close the fire, in sleep. You should sleep sideways, so the fire will warm your feet and head, but its ok too, to sleep feet towards the fire.

 I think that youll get a good idea of longfire´s construction from that picture. Just remember to carve a groove in to the lower log,and fill it up with the whittlings, small sticks, maybe tarwood and birch bark, juniper bark will also work. Plus, the sticks, between the logs, that make the gap, they should be fresh, and moist wood so they wont burn as fast as the logs, and if possible, whittle the sticks, in shape of wedges, tapering ones, so you can push and pull the stick wedges, to adjust the gap,to keep it small, so the fire will burn slow, but hot, for hours. A properly built, longfire with 8inch diameter logs, can burn for some 8 hours or so. And traditionally,  the measures are :

-1 inch in diameter is an hour, in burn time, but this depends alot, from the type of log,weather etc. I think you should not build longfires fromwood thats thinner that 4 inches but you can offcourse, do small miniatyre longfires, from any sticks, just to learn it etc. Commonly, however, the 8 inch log was popular size.

-1 meter in length  per person sleeping around it. In some cases, and for obvious reasons, it wasnt rare habit to measure the log, so that there was a length of axe, per person,and in finland, back in the days, the most common axe measure, was from 50 to 65cm, in most of cases, it was 50 to 55cm. The "meter" length came later when people started to carry devices to measure :), before that the "jack" measured everything with comparing to tools and arm/finger etc measures. Even today, it works, the fever for accurate measuring, in the bush, is weird. Theres about nithing that should me measured in tiny tolerances like millimeter on centimeter. And a meter, its all the same, if its 99cm meter or 102 meter  there :)..."About" will do just fine.


There are also older methods, without supporting poles in the ground, but  i´ll show you one, during winter when i´ll be making one. Meanwhile, you can try to build your own versions of it. As long as you can adjust the gap between TWO logs , its close to longfire that we use here,and as i said, theres many many ways to do it.





Rakovalkea, in finnish.
Different campfires, as shown by Björn "Nalle" Corander.

Almost ready. The blade, that is.

Its taken again a small step ahead and still, i like the fact that it done with files, sandpaper, rasps, hammer, etc, with as less electric tools as i can. The holes are made with electric drill yes, sorry :) but other than that, its more handmade to me, than the grinder & cutter made blades. Only thing ill be doing to it is to file the bevels clear, and shape em the way i want. Then to the handle making..

I got pretty good tips, for heat treatments from few blacksmiths that i am proud to know, and my fear of ruining this during quenching etc, was unnecessary. It did not crack or bend, and after ovening it , seems like a good blade indeed. After ovening hours, i sunk the bevel area in icy water and used an gas torch to make the spine more softer than the edge will be.

Still pretty low on stock removal.

Its not 100% percently intact no more since i have gone and drilled one hole, that is sort of stock removal, not forging :). If i could have,i would have made the hole by piercing with some punch-like tool but i didnt have any idea how to make one from the scrap metals i had on my hands.

Other than that, everything so far, made by forging. I just cleaned the future bevel area with steel wire brush on angle grinder. If thats stock removal, then ill be damned. I donno what to call this knife yet, but i think i like the looks at least my self. It has a hole on the tip, reminding me from cleavers that i like, as well as a bit curved handle with flared butt, plus a choil with a finger groove to choke from. A curved overall edge might be good for chopping and slicing and it has also a bit of sharper tip at the and of the edge, if i have to stick something with it, to punch a hole or use it as a crude drillbit. Surely its not a whitlling tool, but a mix of things that i like, and i tried to mix em so that the knife would not be so ugly either.

More handle shaping to come, plus few this and thats and then i hopefully get the heat treatmets done without breaking the weird blade. The next one, i´ll be making will be made from another bearing race, next to the blade in the picture. Thats just what the blade in the pics, started from, but the next one, will have whole different,more demanding shape, with sharp, more knife like tip and dual bevels, i think.

How original. Another knife post :)

Heres a few shots of a knife i started to work with. I dont honestly have no idea, what kind of it will be when ready, but im sure it will be bigger one. Ive been playing with images of blade sports knives, tracker / wsk knives, cleavers etc, but we´ll see how it will it end up, or will it at all :).

It started its life as a SKF ball bearing race, about 10 centimeters diameter, 35 mm wide and 10mm thick. I red heated in two times, before i could cut an opening to it with angle grinder.


I didnt remember to take pictures of the progress as i was having a hard time, beating that race, on the horn of anvil, to open the gap in race till i could straighten it all the way, on the anvils straight surface, to form about 30 cm long, 35mm wide and 10mm thick blank. And i tell you that  getting that blank to 5mm thick, took some time as well , this material aint as soft as spring steel you know.

But, after 2 hours or so its looking like this without any material taken away with any grinder & cutter. I try to form the shape now, as much as i can , with forging only, before the actual finishings. The handle will hae more contoured shape, and the blade shape.... i dont know at all,as i said :).  As i own a T.O.P.S Tracker, i do have my opinion about it and i´d like o design that a bit further, maybe, from this piece of steel. But i also like all sort´s os seax knives, hukari´s, etc. Plus, i do love the oearlier style of R. Marchand, and also, many works of Tai Goo, so i am bit lost, you know....

While the big blank was heating i made a quick knife blade from an old Opel coilspring. Its not ready, sharpened etc in the pic, but you´ll see that its bit like some old scout knives that were common here once. It has a diamond / coffin cross cut shape, and a 12 cm blade, that starts from 20 mm and in its widest point before the tip its 23 mm. Thickest part, is about 5mm under the spine, and its 5mm. The spine itself is 3mm.
I think this will have a brass bolster and a leather stack handle, just as the scout knives have.

At home, i had nothing to do so i started to build handles to my laminated big blade that Kotavuopio did to me. It was supposed to be  pretty muhs like leuku with just a full tang but i went and made the handle a bit different after all.

                                           Lots of fitting, trying, removing for grinding, and then again, screwing the handle slabs on again....repeat several times.

In this pic youll see the tubing that i used as a rivet, acting also as a possible hafting point and a lanyard hole, which i see as a good aid especially on harder chopping. Theres also those holes in handle, drilled to lighten the total weight of knife a bit, and more than that, to make the blade better fro chopping-like tasks. I usually like all my knives to be front weighted than balanced equally.

I don thave any special tools nor equipment at home, not to mention a real working table, so i messed up my own mancave room with oak dust, epoxy, leather etc, but i got the handles done.

Then i sanded the handles a bit. Not too much, this is a working tool, not a showcase item by any means. Then a mixture og gunstock oil and red dye, let it settle a while after good scrubbing in of the oil, followed by hard woolsock "polishing". And were good to go, just after i get  a shetah done.

Ahma arrived a few days ago

Well, the Ahma puukko that T.Kotavuopio made to me, arrived a few days ago. I have been using it andit works like a dream. I hope i´ll be able to take some pictures of it in few next days, but all this frigging non stoping rain we´ve had in several days in a row, rain seems to ruin cameras. Well, anyways, its been used now, from basic sausage stick whittling :), and firewood prepping, to prepping fresh fish that i have been getting from lake almost every day, plus, i loaned to my friend who dropped a moose and tried Ahma for skinning,cutting and cutting of the game, and he wanted tobuy it from me immediately. I think it tells me, that this knife is pretty good for game use, as i wanted to have a more game capable puukko.

Heres few pics of it.

First of all, it fits just perfectly in my palm, and offers few different, and yet comfortable grips. The knife has a bit longer handle, compared to most common handle sizes as i have a big hand, plus, its still offers a lot better grip to me, even if i am wearing gloves, so i dont have to, take gloves off everytime i need knife for some quick cut.

The handle, is also, quite thin as you can see. Usually Finnish puukko´s have pretty round and fat handles, but as this is to be used with wet, maybe bloody hands, its better that the handle is flat, as it prevents the knife from starting to spin inside the fist. Still, the handle has rounded edges, so its not like something i see in various fulltang knives that have sharp corners in the handles, that are more like pain in the butt, and force you to think about using gloves while using the knife, to make the grip more comfortable.

 The sheath is just what i asked for. A simple, no-nonsense leather piece with sturdy wooden liner inside. Still, i am Not complaining about that nicely done decoratioon Tero went and did, as its about in every knife he makes, in way or another. I asked that the beltloop should be large and bit wider. This because i usebit wider belts usually, and i just happen to like loops a bit wider. It has a soldered brass o-ring as a swivel, to the sheath folds away if i am sitting in the car or similar. The rigid loop aint my choise,as the sheath tends to stick everywhere while sitting.

 The front bolster, is hand filed for snug fit, from harder, thick piece of copper, instead of the usual brass, and it even looks nice with that red hardwood handle, i think. The tang goes thru the handle, and its then riveted, against a 4mm think piece of brass thats pressed in the wood. Pretty rugged construction overall, and i do know that the tang is pretty large compared to many tangs that ive seen so far.

The blade, has measures like 11cm length, 30mm "height", 5mm thickness and its hand forged, all the way, including the bevel shaping, from a bar of K990 steel.

By the way, as i was taking these quick shots, SNOW started to fall on the ground ! I know it wont stay on the ground, but it gives me hope, that the winter might be coming. after all, how great !

C´mon WHERE´s the winter....?

Its not here, at my home beach,i dont see any serious signs of fall ending and winter starting, and i have been waiting for more subzero nights and more morning frost....Theres still even flowers rising and in bright colours, the birch has tiny green buds...its all mixed up, the swans stay still here, at fields and bays, you dont need ice auger to to fish....Please give me a harsh winter. They are forecasting -3c for tonight but we´ll see about that.

And it sure doesnt look like a promising early winter even in lapland.... Well they have bit of ice in some smaller ponds and lakes able to carry a regular size guy to walk on for a while, and -3 temps but....last year, two weeks from this date, there was feet high snow, over -30c temps...so theres just that two weeks for the gods of weather to sort it out and give winter there too.

THIS is what i want to see for the next..lets say...5 months:

Little heads up, about the upcoming leuku review.

So, i mentioned a few days ago that i am trying to do this post, about the ever fascinating topic, meaning leuku knives. First i was trying to gather up some, do a bit of testing, take pics and such, to be posted just after christmas, but i have to stretch that a few weeks. So i´ll be posting it at january, as soon as the last of the leuku´s arrive to my possession. So far i think i have even succeeded with this, as it sure looks like i´ll be able to show you some 5 leuku´s, atleast, if not more. All of them being made here in finland, from forged carbon steel, with quite traditional looks and all. I have asked from few bigger well know companies as well, but sadly without any kind of reply back. But hey,  i am very happy to show you these 5 spanking new knives, thats a good amount indeed !


Heres already two teaser pictures, showing you one of the leukus, by T.Kotavuopio.   If i get more project pics, ill add em here !

So far i can thank following makers for their friendly attitude towards this topic that i started to work on, after receiving a good few suggestions to do more stuff about leukus, with pricetags that just about anyone can afford.

T. Kotavuopio.

I. Seikku 

J. Ryynänen.

P. Hurttila / Hurttilan Paja.

A. Mäkinen / YP-Taonta

My Ahma / Wolverine puukko is ready.

And i am excited to get it on my belt. I like that simple deep sheath with obviously sturdy liner in it.

Well, , i must return to writing now. I have soo many thoughts and i´d like to  make it easier to read so it takes some time still.

Back On-Line.

Finally i have found my way back on the wonderful world of internet. I hope it doesnt mean that i´ll be nerding in front of screen so much but i really like the fact that i can write my blog again. Luckily the time-out didnt take weeks or months :).

I havent been doing anything special so far, as unboxing my possesssions and putting em back on their new places has taken time and nerves i tell ya . But, i had my last bird hunt last weekend, and we stsarted to build a forge in the old forest rangers place where i spend my time. I hope it gets ready before x-mas but i am still missing a lot, a sandwheel and a BIG anvil and i still have lots of hammering and sawing, insulating etc to do and with a super limited budget, as always, i am hunting for others scraps and such, from which i can build my shed with effort, sweat and re-cycling.


What else... Oh yes, if it all goes smoothly, ill be publishing one topic that i am trying to write well and all. It might be interesting to all of you who are in to leuku knives. I think, that there will be from 3 to 5 handmade leukus all in one story, in same pictures, from which you can easily do your comparings and decide, if you´d like to order one for yourself, from one of the few bladesmiths that make this topic of mine, possible. Lets hope this project goes well !

Last post for a while ,i am afraid.

So, this might be the last one here, as i move in tomorrow morning. I dont have any clue,when do i get the wireless connection to web working, if at all,but if i do, youll see more post here immediately. The "bad" web connection is about the only downside, on this moving to countryside,but its actually annoying too,a si like to blog and reads my emails, but at the same time, i remember that i havent even had an internet connection,nor a computer,before......well i maybe bought  the connection and pc, about 5 years ago. And before that i spent more time outside and among crafts. So, if i get the web working, i still hope that ill spend more time making items, hiking etc than hang so much in front of computer. Still, i cant deny that i will miss my blog-time a lot before i get it going again. Yet, it might take anything from 4 days to 4 weeks or so, sorry.

 Well,  i still have plebty of small crafts that i can do at home and loads of movies and books. I have to finish in example, this laminated, bainite treated 220 x 40 x 7mm full tang leuku Tero did to me, loads of ideas, to work from leather and such. And as i get my metal working gear brough to new place, i can forge, weld, cut and play with steel in various forms too. The geese hunting is about to be at its best moments too,and such. If i get that outdoor work that ive been discussing about, ill have also a better income. So maybe this all turns in a good way.

The Ahma / wolverine puukko, by the way is missing only its sheath,and then its fully ready to be used.

If you have something important to say to me, you can put it in the comments to this post. I wont publish any personal messages,but i will publish the not-personal ones, here too, when i have chance to read 'em someday somewhere.

I hope the winter, real winter would quick and make end of this rainy weather.

Well, thats about it for now, and we'll see again.

Moving....

Well, now i have packed up all my stuff in movingboxes, and ive left only a daypack that has all i need tfor next 2 nights here. Then well move to the new place and i already know that it will last for some time, before i have my own internet connection as no phone operator etc,offers any adsl service there, it seems to i have to try various wireless and slow connections, if there is one that would allow me to even slowly write in to blog and check out my emails. I am not quitting, thats for sure but moving to tiny woodstown comes with issues like this.

Anyways, keep those comments coming when ever you want, i like to read em when ever i can get my butt in front of web connected computer.

Tomorrow, if i have time, i will post something before taking the computer in my pack.

Just a quick puukko progress update, part 2 or 3.

My Ahma puukko by the hands of T. Kotavuopio, is just about ready. I think its only missing the wolverine paw mark done, and sheath.

Pretty sleek aint it. It has a big long handle, but the length of the blade, makes it all look so well balanced.