Make an Improvised Wire Saw for Wilderness Survival?

This post is a perfect example of why it’s so important to try out wilderness survival skills in the comfort of your own back yard rather than wait until you’re in a life and death situation to find out that something doesn’t work.  I recently watched a survival show in which one of the participants showed how you could take a piece of wire and twist it into a wire saw to use in a survival situation.  Seemed like a great idea, and I thought it had a pretty good likelihood of working.  I have, after all, seen a plumber use a piece of nylon twine to cut PVC pipe, and this seems like kind of the same idea.  So, I did an internet search on how to do this and I only found one short video on the subject and, even though it did kind of work, I can’t say that the results looked all that impressive.  Strange, I thought, usually when a skill this awesome presents itself there will be a lot of posts, discussions, and videos about it.  Well maybe this truly is a new skill, I thought.  I’m going to see how it works.  So I took a roll of snare wire and a couple of short sticks, and this is what I did: Pictured below: snare wire

First I cut a piece of wire that was about two and a half times as long as I wanted the finished saw to be.  Then I cut a couple of short sticks for the handles.  Pictured below: wire and handles

Next I twisted the ends of the wire together to make a loop.  Pictured below: wire ends joined into loop

 I then took my sticks and stuck them up into opposite ends of the loop.  Pictured below:  sticks inside of wire loop

After a bit of twisting I had a nice tightly wrapped wire saw blade with a wooden handle on each end.  Pictured below: finished saw

I took my new wire saw and went to work on a green sapling that was about two inches in diameter.  At first it seemed to bite right in, but as soon as I got past the bark it felt like the blade was just rubbing back and forth rather than cutting in.  After about five minutes of sawing, I had cut about three sixteenths of an inch deep.  At this point the wire broke right in the middle.  It was very warm to the touch.  A lot of friction; not much cutting.  Pictured below: top, cut in sapling made by improvised wire saw; bottom, broken wire saw

I thought maybe I had picked a particularly tough tree, so I got out my store bought wire saw and went to work.  In about eight minutes I had cut through the sapling.  Pictured below: top, store bought wire saw; bottom, cut sapling

Maybe somebody out there can tell me how to do this.  I’d love to hear from you, but pleased don’t offer advise unless you have done it yourself.  There’s to much false information on the internet because somebody reads how somebody else did something, assumes that it works, and then passes it on as gospel.  I try to never post anything about a survival skill that I haven’t done or experienced myself and this article is a good example of how that turns out sometimes.  So, until I can make this work myself, I am not recommending that you rely on it as something that you can use in a survival situation.  My recommendation is to carry a pocket knife or a multi-tool with a saw blade, and use your snare wire for setting traps.

Survival Saws

A saw can be a really handy thing to have in the woods.  You can use a hatchet and a knife for a lot of stuff, but there are some things that a saw just does better.  There are many different kinds of survival type saws ranging from the very small to the fairly large.  I always, repeat, always have a saw with me.  In the woods, at work, at the grocery store; I have a saw with me.  Now you may thing that I look like a real wingnut carrying a saw everywhere, but the fact is it's not even noticeable.  You see, I'm talking about the saw blade on my Swiss Army Knife.  It's small, but it is so very, very useful.  I use my saw to cut arrow shafts, I use it to cut bamboo for bundle bows, I use it to cut the nocks in arrow shafts, I use it cut out bone needles and fish hooks, and many other things.  Here are a few of the different kinds of survival saws that are available today:

Pocket Saws

As mentioned above there are several different kinds of small saws that can be carried in you pocket at all times.  Several models of the Swiss Army Knife, and similar type knives, have a saw blade attached that is very useful for small jobs.  Many multi-tools have saw blades.  Be aware that the quality and functionality of these blades vary widely.  The Swiss Army knife, for example, has a good quality blade made of good steel.  The blade also functions smoothly without binding up in the cut.  I have a less expensive copy of a Swiss knife that does not work well at all.  The steel is good enough but the spine of the blade is wider than the cutting edge.  This causes the blade to bind after you have cut a little way through a limb.  I would suggest that you spend the extra money and get the real thing.  Multi-tool saw blades also vary widely in quality.  I have a Leatherman that works quite well, but I have seen others that are not so good.  Pictured below:  Swiss Army Knife and Leatherman Multi-Tool

 Wire Saws

I keep a little wire saw in my survival kit.  A wire saw is basically a piece of flexible, heavy gauge wire that has serrations in it.  The wire has a metal ring attached to each end where you can grip the ends and saw back and forth with the wire.  I have cut down some fairly good sized trees with a wire saw, maybe eight inches in diameter.  I have also had wire saws break while in use, so I wouldn't say they are intended for any kind of regular or long-term use.  One thing I can tell you from experience is to not try and use a wire saw by sticking you fingers through the rings.  This is very tough on the fingers.  the best way to use a wire saw is to get a couple of sticks that will fit through the rings and then grip the sticks.  Much easier on the fingers.  Pictured below: wire saw

 Folding Saws

Folding saws work very well but they are not convenient to carry.  They generally need to be carried in a belt holster or inside of a pack.  They are also relatively heavy compared to the saws mentioned above.  The only time I carry a folding saw is when I know I will need it for a specific task.  For example, if I am going out into the woods to cut some saplings or to work on one of my trails, I'll carry my folding saw.  Otherwise it stays in my truck.  Pictured below: folding saw

Belt Saws

There are several different types of non-folding saws that can be carried in a sheath on your belt.  I don't personally own one of these because it's not something that I would carry.  It might work for you if you use a saw a lot.  

Survival Saws as a Component of Another Tool

Some sheath knives and machetes have saw teeth cut into their spines.  If a sheath knife or a machete is something that you carry anyway, why not make it multi-purpose by having a saw blade on it.  The Southern Forest that I live in becomes very dense in the summer; almost like a tropical jungle.  In the summer I always carry a machete when I'm in the woods.  I used a file to cut saw teeth into the spine of my machete so that it can double as a saw.  Pictured below: Two views of my machete with homemade saw blade

I have a couple of little folding shovels that have saw teeth on one side of the blade.  I never carry a shovel unless I know specifically that I will need it, so the saws rarely get used.  Neither of the ones I have are very good as saws, but then again they are not the highest quality shovels that you can buy.  Pictured below:  Folding shovel with saw-tooth edge

In summary, I think that the most practical survival saws are the saw blade on a folding knife or multi-tool, the wire saw, or the saw-tooth back of a sheath knife.  Other types of survival saws are functional but not particularly convenient to carry.

Survival Trapping and Fishing - A Numbers Game

As I have stated in a previous post, it is difficult to survive in the wild by only gathering wild plants.  Unless you can gather nuts or mature seeds it is hard to come up with enough protein to survive.  You will almost certainly have to turn to animal protein to meet your body's needs. 

Hunting, in most instances, is one of the least efficient ways to gather animal protein.  If you are hunting, that's all you can do; and you will probably have only one chance to either succeed or fail.  Fishing with a pole in your hand presents the same problem.  You must remain totally occupied with this one task, and you will either catch fish or you won't.

Traps and trotlines offer multiple chances for success at the same time, and they will work for you while you take care of other tasks or even while you sleep.  The thing about trapping and trotlining is that they are both a numbers game.  If you just set out one trap you might as well go hunting.  If you just set out one hook you might as well stand on the bank and fish.  The idea is to set out as many hooks and traps as possible so that you can maximize your chances of securing food.

Let's talk about fishing first.  It takes considerable cordage to set out a trotline.  If you have fifty feet of para-cord you could cut off ten feet, remove the outer sheath, and have seven, ten foot long pieces of 50lb. test nylon to cut up into drop lines.  If you don't have any fish hooks, you can make fifteen or twenty gorge hooks in a fairly short time.  If you don't have any cordage, then I would abandon the idea of a traditional trotline.  It would take hours and hours to twist up enough cordage to make such a line.  If you have to make your own cordage, then I would recommend that you go with drop lines.  A drop line is just a short piece of cordage with a baited hook and weight.  Locate an area where low trees and /or bushes hang out over the water, and tie a drop lines to various branches.  This won't get you out into deep water like a trot line stretched across the river, but it will get hooks into the water.  You will have to turn up grubs, earthworms, and other insects or larvae to bait your hooks the first time, but if you make a catch you can use fish entrails for subsequent baiting.

Traps can be time consuming to make, but just one trap does not have much chance of securing food.  I think that I would set out fishing lines first, then gather materials to make traps around the fire at night.  The figure 4 deadfall and the rolling snare are both pretty easy to make.  The real time consumption comes when you are selecting locations for your traps and preparing the sets.  I would try and set at least ten good traps, and twenty would be better.  The more you set, the better your chance of making a catch.  If you set baited traps you will have to forage for the initial bait, but once you catch the first animal you can use entrails for subsequent traps.

Make a Bamboo Canteen

It only takes a little bit of work to turn a bamboo cane into a very practical canteen.  To make a bamboo canteen you need to locate the largest bamboo you can find.  Make sure that it is not split or damaged.  Cut a piece of bamboo down.  Cut or saw a section of the bamboo leaving a solid joint on each end.  Pictured below:  top, large piece of bamboo; bottom, one section cut out with end joints

Now take your knife point and begin drilling a hole in the side of the bamboo toward one end or the other.  Pictured below: hole in bamboo

Bamboo has a membrane that grows inside of each section.  If the bamboo is dry this membrane will flake of and mix in with any water that you store inside the bamboo.  You can remove some of the membrane by dropping a handful of small stones into the bamboo, adding a little water, and shaking vigorously.  Pour the water and stones out and rinse.  Personally, I don't bother with this.  You will never get all of the membrane out, and you will probably get some of the stones that won't come out. 

Next step is to carve a plug to fit into the hole.  Any wood will do.  Carve a tapered plug that will make a good friction fit into the hole.  Pictured below: plug carved out and ready to insert

You can call the job done at this point, or you can do as I have done and make a carrying strap.  I twisted this one up out of split yucca leaves. Pictured below: canteen with yucca belt strap

Track Identification Flow Chart

The following flow chart is my attempt to illustrate the thinking process that I go through when I am trying to identify a track.  I don't know if anyone else has come up with anything like this.  I haven't seen it if they have.  I am including this file as a jpeg so you can copy it, paste it into a word document, and print it if you would like to have one for your own use.  I try to freely share knowledge that I have gained over the years, but please do not start printing these off and selling them at the next gun show or what have you.  You do not have my permission to do this.  If you would like to post a link to this article or include the flow chart on your own web-site, you may do so, but please credit my site.  Thanks, Hank.

Track Identification and Tracking

I'm going to be adding a post from time to time about tracking.  Let me say up front that I don't claim any extraordinary skills as a tracker.  The FBI does not have me on speed dial to track down fugitives from justice.  I am a better than average tracker, thanks to the efforts of my teacher; and I will attempt to share with you the things that he taught me many years ago.  I will tell you right now that tracking takes a lot of patience and a lot of practice.  I, as most folks, don't have the time available that it takes to become a great tracker; but a little knowledge of techniques and a little practice will improve anyone's tracking abilities.

Tracking really consists of two main skills.  The first is track identification, and the second is tracking itself.  That is, the ability to follow a series of tracks and other signs in order to determine the direction of travel and/or location of the critter that made the tracks.  This may involve anything from tracking down a wounded deer, to determining the location for a snare trap, to rescuing a lost child.

Track identification is the ability to look at a track and determine what animal made the track.  Track identification is to tracking, as knowing the alphabet is to writing a story.  You can't write a story without knowing the alphabet, but knowing the alphabet sure doesn't mean that you can write a story.  I'm not going to include a lot of pictures of tracks in my posts.  There are dozens of good books and hundreds of internet sites that have pictures and drawings of animal tracks and these are a good place to start learning about track identification; but be warned, no amount of looking at pictures is going to make you good at track identification.  It is rare thing in the field to find a complete and clear track.  When I first started learning to identify tracks in the field, my teacher and I would take a canoe down the Sabine River and stop at each sandbar to identify the tracks of animals that had come down to the river to drink.  This was an environment where tracks were often very clear.  He would have me carry a notebook and draw pictures of the various tracks that we found.  Then we would make plaster casts of the tracks to study later.

If you are going to learn to identify tracks I would suggest that you do the following:

1. Get a good book on track identification, like a Peterson Field Guide to Animal Tracks, and learn to identify tracks from the pictures.  Don't worry about learning the different gaits at first.  It gets a little overwhelming.  Just learn to identify the tracks.  You can download pictures of tracks off of the internet and make yourself a set of track flash-cards to help you study.

2. Next, get out into the field.  If you have access to a river with sand bars, that's a good place to study tracks.  A pond or lake with a sandy beach or soft soil on the banks is also pretty good.  If you don't have access to anything else, you can build a tracking pit.  Building a tracking pit will be the subject of another post.  Take a notebook and draw pictures of the tracks that you find.  Don't just draw the full, clear tracks.  Draw the partial tracks also.  Drawing the track will force you to study them more closely, and little details about the tracks will emerge. Don't just label the tracks with the name of the animal that made them; record the season, time of day, location, and type of soil that you find each track in.

3. Learn to make plaster casts of tracks and start your own collection of tracks.  Record the season, time of day, location, and type of soil that you find each track in.  Making plaster casts of tracks will be the subject of another post.

My teacher taught me that different families of animals have similarities between their tracks.  For example: rodents have four toes on their front feet and five toes on their back feet, members of the weasel family have five toes on both front and back feet.  I have organized this information into a flow-chart that, more or less, traces the mental process that I go through when identifying a track.  In my next post I will include a copy of this flow-chart to help you identify tracks in the field.

Make a Basket Quiver for Your Blowgun Darts

If you are going to take the time to make a handmade river cane blowgun and a nice set of thistle or raw cotton darts, why not take an extra hour or two and make an authentic looking quiver to carry your darts in?  Pictured below:  Darts in basket quiver

 Before you make your quiver you will need to gather the raw materials.  The quiver that I am making below is made of honeysuckle vines, so you will need to locate some honeysuckle, pull down the vines, clean them, and put them in water to soak for a day.  The soaking will soften the vines and make them more pliable.  Pictured below: top, Honeysuckle vines; center, Cleaned vines; bottom, Vines soaking in water.

After the vines have soaked overnight cut four pieces for the warps of you basket.  Three of the pieces should be about 32 inches long, and one piece should be about 18 inches long.  Pictured below: Warps cut to length

Take the three long warps and tie them together in a start shape using any string that you have available.  Tie in the shorter warp with about 2 inches sticking across the point where the other warps are tied together.  The knots don't have to be pretty.  This is just temporary and will be cut loose once you have the basket going.  Pictured below.  Warps tied together

Now we can start weaving in our weft.  Select the longest piece of honeysuckle that you have and start your weaving where the warps cross.  Push the weft down under one warp and then take it over the next warp.  Go under the next warp and over the next warp.  Continue weaving around and around the basket.  Notice that because of the odd number of warps that your weft will go under a warp one time and then over the same warp the next time around.  Keep your weft pushed in tight to the layer below it so that you don’t have gaps in the wall of the basket.  Pictured below: Weft woven around warps

After you've made a few turns around the basket with the weft, it's time to start turning the sides of the basket up. Pictured below:  Ready to turn the warps up

Continue weaving the weft while bending the warps gently in so that the basket will form a narrow tube.  Pictured below:  Warps turned up to form sides of the basket

Continue weaving the weft until the basket is tall enough to hold your darts.  If the weft ends while you are weaving just cut it off so that it is held in place in back of one of the warps, Then back up two warps, start a new weft in back of this warp, and continue weaving..  Pictured below:  This is as tall as this basket quiver needs to be

Now it is time to finish out the top of the basket.  The warps are probably pretty dray by now, so you will want to soak the basket in water for a couple of hours to soften it back up again.  After soaking, select any warp and gently bend it over as shown below.

Cut the end of the warp off so that you have about an inch and a half more warp the you need to reach to the hole next to the second warp away.  Now gently bend the end of the warp down and insert it into the hole next to the second warp away.  Pictured below:  Ready to push warp down to finish basket top

Do this with all of the warps except one.  Pictured below:  Two views of the finished basket rim

Leave the last wart long enough that you can push it down into the hole about 3 inches and still have a loop sticking up above the basket rim.  Pictured below:  Belt loop on basket rim

Shred up a little cedar bark and pack it down into the bottom of the quiver.  This will protect your dart points and keep the darts from slipping through any holes in the bottom of the quiver.

You're done.  Strap it on your belt, and your blow darts will look great in this authentic looking quiver.