Friday, July 28, 2017

Slide of the Month - Backpacks


Scout Camp 2017

Time to carve: who cares it's Scout Camp

Location: Rotary Scout Reservation #rsrbsa

Finishing: at home 1.5 hour


Summer Camp is one of those times when time passes effortlessly and I can just let the whittling knife take me to the things hidden in the wood.

I brought a piece of  9 x 1 3/4 x 3/4 inch piece of scrape maple from another project with me to summer camp with the intent of making a slide while I was there. Well three slides later I present the Backpack series. The first was a design in the Feb. 1984 Boys Life  Slide of the Month ( page 68) by Bill Andrews and consists of the carved backpack and an attached dowel for the sleeping bag. I painted the typical khaki color of BSA backpacks of the time and yellow  to match  the trim in the picture.




The second was a design found on the Internet but I can no longer find it so I cant give you the link. Based on a 60s backpack (I think) a sleeping bag strapped to the top and tent on the bottom. Its carved from a single piece of wood








The third design is based on the pack I used as a Boy Scout and still have today. If I remember correctly, this pack was a present and purchased in the early 70's most likely at the Big N (anyone remember those stores?).  An external frame nylon workhorse that has seen many miles and outlasted many a pair of boots. A brown dome tent (bought in the 80s in first go round as a Scoutmaster) is secured under the top flap. My sleeping bag in a stuff bag is strapped underneath. The one other item of note is the Knox Cannon Trail Relay patch. This slide is also carved from one piece of wood.


All the backpacks were carved from maple, painted with craft paints, and given a couple of coats of Poly.


Friday, July 14, 2017

Preview Backpacks



Scout Camp 2017

Time to carve: who cares it Scout Camp

Location: Rotary Scout Reservation #rsrbsa

Finishing: TBD










Just a quick preview of a set of backpack slides coming up that are being carved right now while at summer camp with our Troop. Its being carved from a piece of maple I had from another project and you might notice I haven't  cut the slide off the stock yet. This allows for a good hand hold and keeps my hand away from the carving. This slide is one off the Internet and the author wasn't sure where he had found it. Another pack (not shown here) is a Bill Andrews "Slide of the Month" #boyslife from February 1984. The final pack is one of my own design and mimics the pack I use as a youth.


Saturday, July 1, 2017

Slide of the Month July - Apollo and LEM


July 2017

Time to design: 2 hours
Time to print: 2 hours (your times may vary
Finishing: 2 hour
Original design: Tinkercad
Original designer: xmbrst
Try it yourself: Mini Apollo Mission


Another in my 3d printed space series, the Apollo mission captured the imagination of many including myself. Today I find it even more impressive considering the computing power of both combine craft was less than a Timex wrist watch today. The fact we could go to the moon, land and return safely is testament to the thousands of folks dedicated to the mission and the astronauts who's quick thinking saved many a mission. For a great set of articles on Apollo 11 mission, check out the NASA webpage



I found a few designs out there but I liked xmbrst design because of the modifications he did to reinforce the LEM legs and to make the rocket nozzles solid which could have been a problem when printing. The funny part is when these were printed, I did have some issue with the Apollo capsule breaking loose when printing and the rocket nozzle on the service module was a bit deformed. Well since I was gluing the parts together, it really didn't matter to me that the capsule's heat shield did not print since you would not be able to see it. As to the rocket nozzle, I used a UV activated glue (like these) as filler and then shaped it with sandpaper.  All the parts were glued together using super glue and I drilled a couple of holes in the back for a wire loop.  I used paint pens and home printed water slide decals to detail the slide.