Hey, all. I originally found this forum searching around the internet in pursuit of a dream: To emulate the run of the 3 hunters, five and forty leagues ere the fourth day has ended--135 miles, on foot, in less than four days, over rough terrain, with passable Strider kit. I have never given up on t...

Welcome back, and thank you for sharing. Speaking without shame about our emotional challenges dispels stigma and makes those who struggle in silence feel less trapped and alone. I'm in therapy for my depression and anxiety and am considering medication to help me manage my turbulent moods. Stories ...

Certainly we do see silk in Middle-earth, though admittedly generally small quantities and in the hands of fairly well to do people (and arguably the Galadhrim, though we don't know if that's silk as we know it). Do we not? I was under the impression that the cloth of the Galadhrim was unambiguousl...

...And that's all I know. Thanks a ton. The 'hot, but not too hot' part also seems key--I accidently overheated a pouch by just a hair today in the dye bath and it almost ruined it. Got a relatively nice color to it, but the texture suffered. I like your combination idea...I've experimented a littl...

Here's my water treatment solution. It's the lightest and most compact option other than chemical purification. Some filters come close, but I've had horrible luck with micro-filters clogging even with crystal-clear water. Additionally, this is much more freeze-tolerant than a filter. One nice thing...

Heya. I've been doing a fair bit of sewing and leatherworking recently. I was delighted to read that black walnut dye was useful, because I have a very large number of black walnut trees and they're in season! I made myself a batch of dye based on what I could find on the internet and...was pretty u...

a refined silk oilskin, if that's possible, would probably come out like rougher version of a modern tent fabric, it's a fascinating idea Interesting. The raw silk yardage I'm looking at seems to run about 5oz/yd, whereas a fairly sturdy charmeuse is only half that. I think 90% of the benefit would...

In the picture of the rain coats it looks slightly transparent and more refined I haven't been able to find any pictures of oiled silk garments. The 'evolution of the waterproof jacket' page has a picture of two Aleutian gentlemen in transparent coats, but those are whale intestine. That said, the ...

Ha, reminds me of my travels in Iceland. Every time I came to a stream--remove pack, take off boots and socks, roll up pants, pick up pack, ford stream, remove pack, wait for feet to dry somewhat, replace footwear, pick up pack... I eventually just hung my boots on my pack and hiked a few miles to t...

There's a maxim among ultralight hikers that if you're trying to lighten your kit, start with the heaviest thing and go from there. The heaviest thing in my kit that isn't specifically listed or implied as something Strider carried is my tarp. 6 lbs of waxed canvas...good lord, it's a bear. But what...

Well, thus die my dreams of a candy-apple red patent leather cuirass studded with chromed spikes... Thanks for the clarification, Udwin. Your reasoning seems unassailable. Thinking about metals, I also noticed the absence of pewter. It could probably be understood to fall under the category of 'tin'...

Oof. Definitely a bit less chintzy, but a bit more...5x the price.

Thanks for all the feedback. I'll look into those one-piece rivets, Peter, though making a backing washer and peening the nail almost seems like it'd be easier than cutting a nail lengthwise, if historical tools were all you had to work with. I could be wrong. As for brass...it's been interesting to...

Well I'll be damned. Badass folding frying pan, here I come!

Is the "Medieval folding frying pan" actually by any stretch medieval? I like the concept, but it looks...barely pre-industrial, to my eye. I've been surprised by the antiquity of certain designs before, but does anybody know if this is actually a thing?