Slide of the Month: Watch-works

  August 2025

  Time to make: 3 hours

  Finishing: 1 hour

 
  Boy's Life October 1963, page 59

 
  Original design:  Hi Sibley



This slide finishes all the "Slide of the Month" neckerchief slides I know about from Boys life (now Scout Life) magazine. I started this project back in 2009, 14 years ago this month. From this point I'll move forward as if the Slide of the Month had continued with a combination of friends, my own, and other designs that interest me. It would be my hope that the "Slide of the Month" would return to Scout Life as there is a whole community of neckerchief slide makers still making slides. (Some of these are even offspring of contributors to the original "Slide of the Month" articles.)

Made from some of old pocket watches parts I ordered from Fire Mountain Gems, the first part that interested me was the watch face that I knew would become the center of focus. The original slide article called for the gears to be soldered to each other but I decided to use super glue to connect each up to the bridge at the top of the slide. I also glued the hand point to the 8 on the face of the watch (which is our troop number).

While many ask which is my favorite slide, that like asking a parent which is their favorite child but this slide is certainly in my top 10.

Slide of the Month Extra: Philmont Segmented Peaks

 

July 2025

Time to make: 3 hours

Finishing: none

 
Original design:  Philmont/Bill Macfarlane







I love trying to bring Philmont themes to something unexpected. When I saw the Philmont Peaks Segment Patch I knew there had to be a way not only to make the slide but to also to make it modular so I could add my own segments for my time at Philmont.

Working with Tinkercad I laid out a 6 segment circle with an inner circle then 3D printed the parts.  Next I printed out the patch (and a few extra locations) on some presentation paper, cut them out, and glued them to the segments using contact cement.  I then designed a thin base, 3D printed it and super glued small magnets into the holes I had made in the base. Lastly I used some thin metal tape (made for use with magnets) to mount to the backs of the segments.

The final build is simple as the segments stick to the baseplate and are easily changed. In fact this is so easy I got a couple of other designs that will be coming soon.

Slide of the Month: A Crow's Skull

 

July 2025

Time to make: 2 hours

Finishing: 1 hour

 
Source: Indian and Camp Handicraft

by W. Ben Hunt

Page 62

Original design:  Ben Hunt

Update: Bill Macfarlane

3D file: Crow Skull by Meligati on Thingiverse: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4121798

Ben Hunt (Whittlin Jim) made a lot of slides and not all of them were in Boy's Life. This slide was in one of the many books he wrote and during the coming months I plan to track as many down as I can.

The original design called for a real crow's skull but I don't see many dead crows around area and the thoughts of cleaning a real skull is not on my list of must do's. Enter a 3D printer and the file listed above.  

Using white PLA filament,  I printed the skull and then carved away the inner walls of the eye socket like Ben's article instructed. I then painted the skull using paint pens. 

Slide of the Month : NOT FOR SALE

 

WARNING: Some scam (IMHO) web stores claim to have "authentic" products from "trusted suppliers"

Channeling Whittlin Jim does not sell or license the slides I make!

Important Notice Regarding the Thunderbird Rosette Slide

Recently, I discovered that several online stores are displaying the Thunderbird Rosette slide designed by Whittlin Jim and made by me, even using a photo taken directly from my blog—without permission.

Let me be absolutely clear: if you purchased a Thunderbird Rosette from one of these sites and actually received something, it is not authentic and was not made by me. In my opinion, most of these sites are fraudulent and are simply trying to take your money without delivering anything at all.

To set the record straight: I have never sold the Thunderbird Rosette or any slide. The only slides I’ve ever given away were sent free of charge, and I even covered the postage myself.

After doing some research, many of these stores appear to be scams. Please exercise caution before making any purchases and know I do not sell slides!

Lastly, the screenshot shared here, which includes my original image, is used under the Fair Use doctrine (Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act) for the purpose of commentary and public awareness.

Slide of the month: Shell

June 2025

Time to make: .5 hours

Finishing: 1 hour

 
Boy's Life April 1980, page 76

 
Original design:  Wayne Mason













Sea shells are fascinating as nature creates some of the most beautiful thing. Now most folks wont find this Scallop Shell to be that great but what makes this interesting to me is I found it digging in my back yard. (I'm no where near the ocean and we are not big shellfish fans.)

Easy slide to make as all I had to do, after cleaning it up, was to glue a loop to the back of the shell.

Slide of the Month Extra: Leather stamping-Bear Paw

 

May 2025

Time to print: 1 hour

Time to make: .5 hours

Finishing: .5

Original design:  Bill Macfarlane

Initial 3D print: Viking Bear Paw by Kenny Reniff

veg 

A friend of mine and fellow Wood Badge patrol member was complaining why I wasn't doing more Bear slides. (Yes I'm a good ole Bear.) So Ron, this one is for us. 

The bear paw here has four claws and represents the four of us in the Bear patrol who had a great time at NE-II-192 Wood Badge.  

The process of creating this slide uses a piece of tooling "veg tan" leather, a 3D printed stamp, and a method of pressing the stamp into the leather. I started by editing the Viking Bear Paw in Tinkercad to add the letters to the final stamp. 

After 3D printing the stamp, I cut a piece of leather to size based on the size of the stamp. I dampened the leather, placed the stamp on the leather, and squeezed the two of them together. Now there are many methods to do this like an arbor press, H-frame press, or C-clamp (G-clamp) home made press I found on the Scout Woggles Facebook page by Julian Ashcroft. After letting the leather dry, I treated the leather with Fiebing's Tan Vintage Gel and polished the leather with a soft cloth. Lastly, I stitched the ends together with waxed string to form a loop. 

This was a very cool method and I'll probably be making more leather slides in the future.

Slide of the Month: State

May 2025

Time to make: 2 hours

Finishing: 1 hour

 
Boy's Life: April 1984, page  71

 August 1994, page 48

 
Original design:  Bill Andrews         Jeff Springer

It's not the first time I've seen a slide idea repeated in Slide of the Month but maybe the first time I've given credit to both contributors.  Massachusetts, like many states, is a loaded with area with their own regional flavor. From Boston to where dragons live (insert Harry Potter reference here) there is a lot to do and see here.

Carved from a piece of maple, I liked the challenge of cutting the shape of Massachusetts into the wood because of the intricate detail of the outline. With the state raised above the base and ready for finishing, I had a hard time trying to decide what to put on this slide.  A Red Socks emblem (I'm a Mets fan), Mt Greylock,  Basketball Hall of Fame... to many choices so I went with a representation of the state flag. 

I used flat white spray paint to paint the background, a paint pen to outline the state and water slide paper to do the lettering.