From Old to New: Fishing Kit

April 2017

Time to make: 1 hours
Boys Life "Slide of the Month"
Sept. 1951, page 37
Original design: E.F.S

...and now for another new part of the blog "From Old to New" were I will attempt to update older neckerchief designs from "Slide of the Month" to updated versions. First off the a film can fishing kit to my versions. I remember my dad having a few of these aluminum 35 mm film cans around the house but by the time I was taking pictures the metal film cans became plastic film cans. (see below)

The can was painted with model paint made for metal and a fly was glued to the front. The slide piece was a piece of aluminum flashing pop riveted to the can and then bent into a loop.  The inside includes fishing line, hooks, sinkers, flies, and a cork for a bobber. It all fits very nicely into the can.

Here is the plastic film can

Updated version

Time to make: 1 hours
Original design: Bill Macfarlane

When thinking about an updated version of this slide, I had a couple of options that came to mind. The first was the Altoids Smalls tin and the second was a contact lens cleaner (see below). Altoids tins of all sizes have been a favorite with hobbyists for a few years now and these make great slides.
I spray painted the outside of the tin white and, once it was dry, I pop riveted a piece of aluminum flashing loop to the back. The fly on the front was printed on white water slide decal film. The insides were also updated with day glow fishing line, a piece of foam rubber for a bobber , and a plastic lure. It also includes sinkers, hooks and flies. The same pieces also fit into the contact lens container.

Forget me Knot - Royal Carrick Bend

April 2017

Time to tie: days

Finishing: none though I might try Mod Podge

Designs from: Clarke Green
Website: scoutmasterCG.com

Knot Website:Royal Carrick Bend






How did I forget to post this knot with the others? Well my friend Clarke Green posted this neckerchief slide back in the summer of 2014 and it's had me gnashing my teeth for a while. I finally got it one night while staying at a hotel in Springfield, MA. (My apologizes to hotel staff who might have seen me carrying a coil of nylon cord, duct tape, and a utility knife up to my room. Nothing weird going on really.)

The first thing to do is to head over to Clarke's site and find the Royal Carrick Bend infograph. Next cut a good length (five feet is what I used) of nylon or paracord.  Now here is the part that just about drove me crazy, lay out the first weave of the knot. I found it was really hard to follow the pattern because the rope was sliding all over the place as I was trying to tie it. This is where the duct tape came in to play. Using small pieces of the tape, I taped each section down to the table as I worked so it would stay in place but also allowing for me to pass the next level through. Once you have woven the knot twice, pick it up and put the center around something round like a 3/4 inch dowel (or a hotel shampoo bottle) and begin to tighten the knot. Once it is tight it becomes a really intricate looking knot neckerchief.  Cut off the excess cord and fuse it with heat or leave on some tails for frayed ends. On mine, I tied the ends into a carrick bend (not shown) and fused the ends.

 For those of you who have never heard of Clarke Green, his Scoutmaster blog, or the Scoutmaster podcast, you really need to find him on the net! The Scoutmaster's Oracle, the podcast Commissioner and really nice guy, Clarke shares his thoughts, wit, and wisdom weekly to the folks that follow him world-wide. Always happy to answer a question for Scouter, his answers are spot-on relying on his many years of Scouting experience. On his site he shares his wisdom and thoughts on Scoutmastership, gear reviews, highlights some of the best books on Scouting, program ideas, and information on high adventure areas. 

Slide of the month April 2017 - Fusion Knots

April 2017

Time to tie: 3 hours

Finishing: 1 hour

Designs from: Decorative Fusion Knots
Author: J.D. Lenzen

Website:www.fusionknots.com

Available from: Amazon, iTunes, Barnes & Nobel or your favorite book seller




No its not an April Fools day joke, these are all knots I found in JD book and had lots of fun tying each of these miniature marvels.

Using some nylon cord, I tied each of these using the instructions I found in the book. Next I  either sealed the ends, using a lighter, or left them frayed. The mounts are Formica samples and the loops are nylon webbing fastened to the samples with pop rivets. I use a clear epoxy to mount the knots to the background.

Knots from left to right

Jolly Roger Knot

Cloud Knot (I think its upside down)

Pipa Knot

Challenge Knot, Bloody Knuckle Knot, Maedate Knot

Triskelion Knot front and back

Triple Barrel Knot