Profile of master bladesmith Bob Kramer
Jerry Bowen, of CBS’s Sunday Morning, visits master bladesmith Bob Kramer. Kramer is one of allegedly only 114 master bladesmiths in the world. Kramer Knives More: Toolbox: Knives out!
Toolbox
Cool Tool’s “Enthusiast Sources Contest”
Our pals over at Cool Tools are running a contest: I am looking for the best sources for enthusiasts. These online sources would be the best website that offers a deep selection in a very narrow field, with fair prices and service. Often (but not always) these specialty stores are also valuable sources for information, […]
Cloak camera bag
Here’s an interesting design for a camera bag where you don’t have to take the camera from the bag to shoot. I’m not really a photographer, so I’d like to hear what others think of this idea. Cloak Bag
In the Makers Market: Golden ratio calipers
New Zealand-based Weirdsky Industries offers these unusual three-legged calipers which express the golden ratio (Wikipedia), dividing the distance they span into two sections such that
The golden ratio is ubiquitous in the natural world, and in art and architecture at least since ancient Greece.
The calipers are made from laser-cut stainless steel, hand-assembled using brass rivets, and are produced in three standard sizes, with custom sizes available on request.
How-To: Make micarta from blue jeans
“Micarta” (Wikipedia) is a genericized trademark that refers to a rigid composite material made from laminated paper, fiberglass, cloth, or other material impregnated with a plastic resin. It is commonly used as an electrical insulator and as a tool handle, particularly for knives.
Cliff Fendley of Fendley Knives, together with fellow knifemaker Mike Carter of Carter Crafts, set out to make some “micarta” of their own using scrap denim and epoxy resin. Even better, they documented their efforts with a detailed series of photos so others can play along at home. Kudos to both makers for “open-sourcing” a method they could easily have kept under their hats as a trade secret. [Thanks, Alan Dove!]
In the Makers Market: Dead drop spike
For those of you who aren’t up on your tradecraft, a “dead drop” is a place where spies or other clandestine-y folks drop off items for later retrieval by other agents. A “dead drop spike” is a particularly ingenious little container devised for the purpose. Basically, it’s a hollow metal spike, with a threaded watertight closure at the top. You put your top-secret microfilm or whatever inside the spike, take it to your dead drop, and stomp it into the ground with your foot. Then you cover it up with a rock or a piece of trash or whatever. The lid has a pull-loop built into it, so that when your contact comes by later to clear the drop, he or she can grab the spike by the loop and yank it up out of the ground again.
When I first learned about dead drop spikes years ago, I had a bit of a nerdgasm and decided I had to have one. I scoured the tubes, but alas, no one was selling them. Imagine my delight when, a couple years later, I discovered that Brian Dereu of Hollow Spy Coins had added a custom-machined dead drop spike to his inventory. I ordered one immediately, and could not be more pleased with its quality. That was at least a year ago, and as far as I can tell, if you’re in the market for a dead drop spike, Hollow Spy Coins is still the only place you can get one online.
How-To: Build a sandbag-filling jig
I am glad that, so far, in life, I have not had to join the ranks of those umpty-many folks who, at one point or another, have suddenly found themselves needing to fill a whole lot of sandbags in a hurry. Hopefully, I will never be in that situation, but when and if I am, I’m going to try to remember this tutorial by Instructables user RiverOakRanch. The jig they describe allows one person to fill six tubes at once, helps to insure equal filling, and, most importantly, frees up another laborer who would otherwise have to stand there holding the bags open.
