Richard Proenneke

Richard Proenneke Using only hand tools to build his life in the Alaskan Wilderness.



I just had to share this video, it's got everything from log cabin building, to furniture making and even some spoon carving - and all with only very basic hand tools. Amazing!...

Two other films about this remarkable man are also available to view.

New Axe Fun

Just a quick post...

I have been playing with my new Axe and 'carved' a basic cooking spatula and kitchen spoon. Neither of which are finished yet, so this is more of a progress report really. 

The wood is from a small Ornamental Cherry tree that I cut down from the garden a few weeks back and is soaking wet green. I don't really know much about Green Wood Working (yet), so I imagine I have to leave things to dry out before they can be finished? Any advice from readers would be appreciated!

The cooking spatula is functional from a 'Bushcraft' perspective but that's about it!

I should have paid more attention to the small knots, the main one causing problems is on the side and there is another tiny one in the center of the 'blade' - A lesson learnt. Once the wood has dried out I will try and sand a finish on it and oil it properly.

As for the spoon, well these pics are straight off the axe I haven't touched it with a knife yet.

I have tried to keep the handle of the spoon the same design as the spatula as if by some miracle this little project was a success then they would make a nice matching pair. I don't have a Crook knife yet so I cant even begin on the bowl of the spoon. 

One thing I am very wary of and that is not getting too attached to these little creations. The 'baton mallet' I made last week has self destructed in the warmth of the central heating. Not so surprising I guess, Green Wood + Warm House = Cracked Wood. This is quite extreme cracking though!

Oh well - it still works (for now)...

 It's certainly fun to just be able to sit down and hack into a piece of wood with an axe and make something 'vaguely' recognisable. It's surprising how quickly you learn different techniques according to the accuracy of the cuts required. I am looking forward to getting some better wood as these pieces are just what I had in the garden. I'd love to try a bowl out of birch or something similar. 

If the spoon and spatula don't 'self destruct' while drying out or before I acquire a crook knife, I'll get these finished and post the results despite how bad they look - It's all part of the adventure!

Lack of Motivation

Another post ...at last!... Sadly again without in any real useful or interesting content.

Lately (as regular readers can probably tell), I have been lacking motivation in the wood working department - for a number of reasons. 

Firstly,  I don't have any wood around that's suitable for any of the things I'd actually like to make - such as a tool chest. My 'Timber Investment' is still drying out in the shed and wont really be ready for anything other than really rustic work and gardening projects for a little while and I am too tight to purchase more premium cost wood from the timber yard.

Secondly, in my quest to escape the timber merchant, I have been trying to process the raw billets of Oak and Walnut with a lot of frustration! While my little bench was fine for pre planed wood, it's simply not man enough to handle the rough 'scrubbing' of the billets down to usable dimensions. The poor thing racked so violently, it almost fell to pieces!

The base twisted so badly that the bottom shelf fell out and I swear the bench tried to escape from me by smashing through its supporting wall! Anyway, ... I will try and brace the bench up and bite the bullet and make it as low as possible to see if that helps with planing, while I try and ignore the obvious - Make a PROPER BENCH!

And I thought everybody was building Roubo benches just because they were just fashionable!

Lastly, being as OCD as I am, I find it really hard to obsess about more than a single topic of interest at any one time and lately that topic of interest has been gardening.  The gardening obsession was born through my overall interest in 'Self Sufficiency', which in turn has led me back to wood working, albeit of a slightly different nature this time. As I have cut down a few small trees in the garden lately, I find myself  staring at their small trunks and wondering if there's any usable wood inside...

I found a guy selling really cheap (less than £30 inc P&P) Froes on Ebay. It's not hand forged or anything fancy but it's certainly good at it's job. I really wish I'd had this tool while in France playing with the Oak and Walnut logs. I 'carved' a mallet for it from one of the small trees, to save my Beech chisel mallet from being ruined. I have also 'invested' in a really nice Wetterlings hatchet, which is hand forged and lovely. 

A Hook Knife is still on the shopping list.... Spoons, Bowls and Kuksas here I come!... And, you don't need a bench!

More to come...

2000 Page Views

Wow 2000 page views - another 1000 in just over a month! 

Now I feel really guilty due to my lack of posts over the past few weeks. So what's been happening? ...

Not a lot on the wood working front to be honest. I have been spending my time doing a little DIY around the house, building the raised beds and getting the garden ready for Spring. Lots of digging, collecting of manure and compost preparation etc.

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The new 'Timber' has been stored away in the garden shed as it's a bit wet, not 'tree wet', but rain wet. It was soaked on the day of delivery, probably due to being stored outdoors at the wood yard, so I'm giving it time to dry out a bit. This could take some time with our damp weather over here in the UK, once Spring arrives and the sun starts to heat things up a bit I'm sure things will improve.

I did bring a board or two straight indoors to see how they might handle being dried faster due to our central heating. I had rough cut a 6ft board into three 2ft pieces for the beginnings of a project once it had dried enough. However, this resulted in deep cracks appearing predictably in the centre of what would be the core of the tree trunk.

I ripped out the cracked 2" wide centre from each 2ft length resulting in the following wastage.

After some planing I now have 'saved' the following 'good' outer pieces. Even with such wastage, the wood still costs a lot less than buying it straight from my normal wood yard. I will continue to keep an eye on these smaller pieces and put them to good use in the near future.

Anyway, more of a catch up post really, wood working will resume shortly I promise...

Raiding the Woodshed

I am currently away from home and visiting my parents in France for the festive period. So while away from my workshop and tools I certainly didn't expect to be making blog posts. 

Lately, I have been reading a lot of stuff by Peter Folansbee. Peter uses predominately Oak which is not sawn but rived by splitting and it inspired me to go and have a rummage through my parents woodshed. 

Walnut - which I think was felled early 2011

Oak of around 1.5ft diameter which was felled late last year 2010

While there are a few Oak & Walnut pieces, unfortunately, everything has been cut to firewood size lengths, but ... with some determination I might be able to get some stock for small boxes. 

The Walnut looks like it would be amazing once dried, planed and finished!

Time to start 'playing' - what tools have my parents got I  can use?

Attacking a likely piece of Walnut - first some mark up.

Using a wedge to scribe all the lines before splitting anything. First lightly, then again to a depth of about 1/4 inch.

First split I am using an old axe head as it's wider than the wedges. It's also as 'dull as dishwater!'

Look at that grain! Once I trim the pith and sapwood I'm sure there will be something usable...

Ok they are small but I'm determined to use them for something

I wish I had a scrub or fore plane handy...

Next culprit - the mighty Oak. Marked out for eighths.

Again I deeply 'scribed' all the lines before splitting.

Hmn ... not what I was expecting.

All splits completed. It helps to not separate each 'slice' after its been split. This keeps the whole thing together and more stable until all the splitting is done. The hatchet is then used to cut the final fibres and release the slices.

Straight grained Oak - I wish these pieces were three times as long! I could easily get 2"x2" lengths for a joined stool

The haul - An hour or two's work with a hammer and wedges. I further re-split each eighth of Oak into sixteenths.

If I had a froe Im sure this Oak piece would split cleanly again into 32nds.

All in all it's been a fun afternoon and I have actually learned something useful. I was surprised how accurately the wood can be split if scribed first. In most cases I 'split the line' and couldn't have been more accurate with a saw. I will see how this stock dries out and see if it inspires me to build something. If not - mum has already been eyeing it up for the fire. It's such a shame that the trees were cut down and 'logged' before I started this wood working journey. 

There are still a couple of Walnut and Oak trees on the property which my parents are thinking about removing - rest assured it will be me with the chainsaw  claiming first 'dibs!' This fun little exercise has given me the confidence that I could produce usable stock from a complete tree trunk with very basic tools. Imagine breaking reliance on the Timber yard! - From tree to furniture, now that's a satisfying journey!

Merry Christmas everyone!...