Lessons learned: What not to do

[FishyFolk]

Last year I stuck one of my fire steels in a tackle box I use for boat fishing in case I had to ditch on some islet and needed to make a signal fire (sounds very dramatic). Anyway, some salt water hit the fire steel, probably just a few drops clinging to a fishing hook or lure that I put back in the box, and this is how I found it a few weeks later:

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I guess this year I will use a separate, water proof container for that one :-)
Lessons learned

[Primerib]

Oh wow! Didn't know that! Thanks for sharing! Maybe there is a new kind of bacteria that cause Firesteel cavities! :o

[FishyFolk]

Oh wow! Didn't know that! Thanks for sharing! Maybe there is a new kind of bacteria that cause Firesteel cavities! :o

Yes, but what about your mistakes!

Come on, share your bloopers for others to learn from :happy-clapping:

[Primerib]

Uuuhm...oh yeah I had something good! While fishing I a had a nice pike on the line round 70 cm (something around the size of the one on my picture) and it took a while as it was putting up quite a fight! Meanwhile a small crowd had already formed behind me watching me (it was sunday and popular lake for retired people to go for a walk). As i finally had the pike within reach and bent down to grab it with a finger between the gills my mobilephone dropped out of my shirtpocket into the water and in the same friggin moment the hook lost it's grasp and the pike took of leaving me with a broken phone, pissed of because of the lost a good fish and a highly amused crowed behind me.

So in one instant i learnt several things the hard way.

- Don't put your phone in your front pocket of your shirt ...just don't
- don't go fishing were a lot of people are watching
- don't go fishing without a net

:jumping-joy:

[Marvell]

I learnt to focus and calm on demand after failing to reverse dock the lifeboat onto a trailer six times in a row with a huge crowd taking photos and videos.

[Martin]

Last year I stuck one of my fire steels in a tackle box I use for boat fishing in case I had to ditch on some islet and needed to make a signal fire (sounds very dramatic). Anyway, some salt water hit the fire steel, probably just a few drops clinging to a fishing hook or lure that I put back in the box, and this is how I found it a few weeks later:

4161

I guess this year I will use a separate, water proof container for that one :-)
Lessons learned

I guess you could always coat the firesteel in candle wax before you put it in your tackle box?

Martin

[KaiTheIronHound]

I learned not to lend sharp tools to people who dont understand the need for sharp tools. 5 minutes of use and my nice razor sharp mora came back feeling like it had been hammered into concrete. At least it wasnt one of my customs i guess!

[Primerib]

I learned not to lend sharp tools to people who dont understand the need for sharp tools. 5 minutes of use and my nice razor sharp mora came back feeling like it had been hammered into concrete. At least it wasnt one of my customs i guess!

Woooord! So many people need to learn how to cut properly! Also do not give knives to people who have the opinion that they know how to sharpen knives. Last time a showed a brand new Solingen Löwenmesser to my uncle in law and talked about sharpening. Unforunately his wife heard that, snatched knife and pulled out her roundsteel kitchensharpener. "Oh, I'll show you how to sharpen a knife! 'ere you go, son!"The blade came back more or less blunt and the sides of the blade totally scratched up. Before her battering with the steel the blade shaved...:zombie-fighting: It was hard not show the inner pain I was in. Something i have also often encountered is that unknowing people who use the roundsteelrodsharpening thingies ...what's them called in english (?)...tend to think that the faster they do it the more pro it will look and the sharper the result. They definetly watch to much jamie oliver sharpening knives "chef-style".

[Humakt]

I learnt that going into hyperspace ain't like dusting crops, kid.

[CanadianMike]

I had worse done to my first firesteel about 4 years ago, had used it a dozen or so times, and left it in the outer pocket of my EDC backpack, and because it was EDC it'd get rained on, bashed around on buses, etc. So after about 6 months or so I went to grab something out of that pocket, only to find a massively pitted firesteel! So, lesson learned, since then after I use my steel, when I get a chance before storage, I'll coat the rod with clear nail polish to keep it waterproof.


Last year I stuck one of my fire steels in a tackle box I use for boat fishing in case I had to ditch on some islet and needed to make a signal fire (sounds very dramatic). Anyway, some salt water hit the fire steel, probably just a few drops clinging to a fishing hook or lure that I put back in the box, and this is how I found it a few weeks later:

4161

I guess this year I will use a separate, water proof container for that one :-)
Lessons learned

[El]

Not bushcrafty..but.....I Was cutting a junior school play field with my tractor..the kids/whole school.. were standing in the play ground watching me..
It was a hot day so I had opened the back window and taken my jacket off and placed behind my seat, I did one lap cutting the headland as I got level with the play ground to start my second lap I noticed that one of the gang mowers had not cut anything..I got out the tractor and realized my jacket had fallen out of the window and got tangled in one of the gangs..
I had to pull out what was left of it..to the cheering of the kids and dinner ladies..but what made my day complete was that my car keys were now shredded metal..and I had no spares...moral if your being watched by a crowed..something is gonna go wrong and and up on youtube!:mad:

[happybonzo]

I learnt to focus and calm on demand after failing to reverse dock the lifeboat onto a trailer six times in a row with a huge crowd taking photos and videos.

Glad that I'm not the only one...

[Kernowek Scouser]

I learnt that going into hyperspace ain't like dusting crops, kid.
:D

I'm still learning, so I've made a fair few school boy errors.

I think Steve's lifeboat docking response can be applied to general outdoor situations. When thing go tits up, try not to panic, strive to be calm, focus on the problem at hand think you way out of the situation, then act.

A more specific lesson learned, when transporting meths in a Trangia burner (or copy) always, ALWAYS, check the cap is tightly screwed on, to ensure the meths does not leak out all over your pack.

[FishyFolk]

:D



A more specific lesson learned, when transporting meths in a Trangia burner (or copy) always, ALWAYS, check the cap is tightly screwed on, to ensure the meths does not leak out all over your pack.

After an incident in the army I never store anything meant for cooking, together with the fuel. The Norwegian army uses this stove, the Optimus 111 burning kerosene, and we pre-heat it with meths.

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Anyway I was in signals, and one of our squads was going to be plunked down on a mountain top with a chopper, to establish a relay station for a NATO excercice. To save on trips back and forth between the chopper and their pile of kit, they loaded the kerosene in their food container...it must have leake da few drops into their food, becouse within 24 hours they all had the runs, and had to be airlifted out (and my squad had to sit on that %#"%&"%& mountain top for the reminder of the excercise...

Anyways, after that I don't let any fuel, kerosene or meths, anywhere near my food. They go in separate places in my bergen, rucksack, whatever I carry my stuff in...and never into my cooking container. And I never ever keep fuel in the trangia burner either while moving.