Thrifty Alternatives ..Building Foam Campers

[GPW]

Gosh, I love those mag fire starters !!! I’ve always carried one in my "fire bag" , that and a handful of tinder...

If you haven’t tried a Rocket stove yet , you’re in for a treat ... http://solarcooking.wikia.com/wiki/Rocket_Stove Watch the videos to see how easy they are to make ...

[eaglesdare]

Hey if cheating is good for Captain Kirk, its good enough for me.

[GPW]

You guys ever make a campfire with a fire drill (very old school) ? Tricky , and not all that effective if the climate is wet ...
If you like matches , an old trick is to fill the matchbox up with wax (parrafin) then empty out the excess , which makes a block of waterproof matches that you just peel off one at a time , the extra wax makes it like a mini-candle , adding more fuel to the fire ... ( I like those big Kitchen matches , JMHO)
(Safety) : You just have to make sure you don’t heat the wax up hot enough to ignite the matches ... which can be easily tested by just sticking a match in it ... heating the wax in a double boiler assures the wax doesn’t get too hot ...

[Wobbly Wheels]

Since we've gone through pets, punkin chuckers, and frozen turkey...why not firestarting ??

Thought I'd throw this out there...
I was digging a trench to run conduit and ran across a chunk of a solid root so I threw it into the truck...but I had a reason... It's from a tree that dies naturally and all the sap runs down and settles in the roots. It crystallizes in the center and makes fantastic slivers for firestarting. Mostly it's fir around here, but pine burns like a plastic. Even this stuff gives a thick black smoke.




Click pic for short video.


When you shave this stuff into fluff with a knife it burns like tar.
Look up 'fatwood' to figure out how to find it. As well, "char cloth" is a great way to use up untreated canvas and is great for catching sparks...

[wagondude]

Well now that we are on fire starting, I like to use flint and steel. With a little practice it is nearly as fast as any other method. I need to make a steel striker. When out troop does it's next blacksmithing camp, I will make one. I played cook at the last one, so I didn't get to play in the forge.

[GPW]

Where do you find Flint ??? .... No rocks around here.... (all mud)

[Mary C]

I have been down the road using all sorts of fire starters( with Boy Scouts). Now I use a hunk of fire starter wood. Y'all can go with your primitive fire building. I have done them all, I have used dried moss, flint, fire drill, waxed coal lumps, drier lint, and fatlighter, you can have fun but in the end the hotdogs and marshmallows taste the same. I appreciate all of the different ways to build the fire and for some it is lots of fun and I earned a fire building Merit badge when I was 5 years old.. My brothers were Boy Scouts and "Little Sister" had to go with them on several campouts so I got to do the things they were doing. When my own two boys were out camping my husband and I taught them, then when the boys were in Boy Scouts they did it again so. I have built fires the primitive way now I use a butane lighter and the fire starter. So that's cheating, I used to tell my husband remember that when your tush is cold and I have a raging fire and the what you thought was flint or fatlighter is not and the wood is damp, You are welcome to warm it up by my fire. Redhawk, Eagle and BOGO have it right, cheating makes a great fire and fast and at my age less effort. But I too know how to start a fire in the event I needed to for lifesaving purposes but it just doesn't happen that often in suburbia or in a state camping park.


Mary C.

[ghcoe]

Y'all can go with your primitive fire building. I have done them all, I have used dried moss, flint, fire drill, waxed coal lumps, drier lint, and fatlighter,

Ahh, but have you tried a "fire piston"?

This is a neat one because it also includes a place to carry dry lint, and a fire steel.

http://www.survivaldepot.co.uk/-Pyro-Pi ... 01174.aspx

Video of it in action towards the bottom.....

[GPW]

Managed to try the Gripper today .... Nice stuff , very smooth and paint like ( well it is paint init? ) Laminated some foam meat tray parts (RC Foamie’ ) and letting them cure for 24... just a test... Even did some parts joining with it , just to see if it works for butt joints..

[Mary C]

Thanks GPW I will be looking out for your results. for...I will be needing to glue up in just a few days. I will be cutting a few notches in my 1x4s to lay strength to my base then lay down a piece of flat 4x8 board. What ever I have on hand then after attaching that I will be ready to start playing with the foam. I found another piece of some type of board and I will use some of it to make a few ribs for the hatch I will coat them in the mixture before i glue them on then I will be ready to glue and glue it all together. My HD has gripper so let me know did you by chance to some wood to foam too?
By the end of april three weeks from now I should be canvasing the top and a week after that putting in my shelves and coating the inside with maps, material, then newspapers and brown bags on the floor. I am being thrifty using what I have. when that is done I will put some carpet on the floor then a mattress. I will finish up putting locks on the doors and hasp on the hatch and it looks like it will get done I have a date in mind the 5th of May. I worked so hard yesterday turning the trailer over, I had lined up a friend to help but they did not show so I took off the axel and wheels and turned the trailer over and then raised it up till i got the tires back under and re attaached. then I put the V on now I am missing the wheel covers but that is eight bolts and 9 nuts. Got to keep my since of humor!!!!

Hey the fire piston looks like fun but I think I will stick to my fire starters now, at my age seems like fast and easy is my ticket. I like fast hot heat. If I go for a hike that would be great to take along with my fire starter, flint and steel and Wait........ I forgot steel wool and a battery.........I knew there was another way we started fires. A bottle of propane and a grill doesn't sound bad for grilling steaks either. but I will use charcole too.

Happy Easter every one!!!!
Mary C.

[GPW]

Mary , just checking my glued parts in it’s 20th hour of drying , it would seem the Gripper glued the butt joins solid too , so it Would be Good used as a Glue ... This is very interesting ... The laminated pieces are solid and secure ! ... The only consideration with the butt joins is they were close fitting , so the Gripper would not be good for gap filling on sloppily fitted parts , as the GG or GS is ...
There is now no doubt in my mind that this will be Super for sticking the canvas down to bare foam ... apparently no pre-sanding is necessary ...
One for the Gripper !!!

[bonnie]

Even more interesting. Thanks, GPW.

[GPW]

Bonnie , it’s just reassuring that this stuff works as advertised ... as you know , we Have to personally test everything here before we decide if it’s Foamling’ compatible ... Now it appears that if you fit your panels together carefully or slot the foam for the panels like George did, then the Gripper should be perfect as an assembly glue too ... and reiterating the main point , the skin/sock , as always, is the Main thing holding everything together!!! So it’a all good !!!

Ps. Didn’t use much Gripper either , just painted on a thin uniform coat , so it should go pretty far ... More Thrifty!!! And it appears now to be even better (more “grip” ) than the T2.. Absolutely no doubt it would glue foam to wood ...

[ghcoe]

It would seem the Gripper glued the butt joins solid too , so it Would be Good used as a Glue ... This is very interesting ... The laminated pieces are solid and secure ! ... One for the Gripper !!!

So are you saying that the gripper appears to be fully drying between foam layers too? I know that there was a question to whether it would dry or not. Seems strange for a latex paint. I just looked at the Glidden site and it turns out that Gripper is mildew resistant too!

[Wobbly Wheels]

So are you saying that the gripper appears to be fully drying between foam layers too?

That's exactly my question too. You did make up a couple pieces for destructive testing right ?
You gotta have destructive testing....