By: Bears Butt

There was a recent contest to put together a cool video and submit it for a chance at winning $30,000 and some other great prizes.  I don’t know what the contest rules were but in the end this man’s video was randomly selected as the winner out of thousands of entrants.

If this was a random selection like it shows in part, I’d sure like to see some of the other contestants videos.  This one is so much a part of reality and extremely well done.  Please take 30 minutes out of your busy day and look at it.  No, look at it doesn’t do it justice, “study it”, ya study it.  It’s really a good video.

http://searchingforwest.com/

Bears Butt

August 23, 2012

 

Written on August 23rd, 2012 , Uncategorized
By: Bears Butt

With the deer hunt just around the corner I thought I would post up a link to the top 40 mule deer bucks taken that are in the Boone and Crockett club book.  The top 20 typical bucks make my mouth water and my heart rate increase significantly.  How would it be to see one of these monsters close enough to take with your muzzy rifle?  I’d probably get buck fever so bad I would miss the shot big time.  How about you?

http://www.outdoorlife.com/photos/gallery/hunting/big-game/mule-deer/2011/10/top-40-typical-and-nontypical-mule-deer-all-time?photo=0#node-1001349565

Enjoy!

Bears Butt

August 23, 2012

And with the upcoming muzzleload hunt comes a need for each of us to do some practicing.  I recall shooting quite a lot before my last limited entry buck hunt and when it came time to shoot my animal I did not hit where I thought I was aiming, and I had a solid rock as a rifle rest when I took the shot.  What went wrong?  I will never know, but I plan on shooting that same load at the range before this seasons hunt and just see what the bullet does.

I ran across a very interesting article about muzzleload hunting and a lot of information that will help even the most seasoned of us.  If nothing else it will act as a reminder to us all about the ethics of taking long range shots.

http://www.whitemuzzleloading.com/myweb2/images/whiterifles/effective_black_powder_hunting_d.htm

It’s a very good read!

Bears Butt

August 23, 2012

Written on August 23rd, 2012 , Uncategorized
By: Bears Butt

Some say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but this old dog learned a good one not so long ago….remember the use an orange to light a fire?  Well, I learned from that one quickly.

So, I have heard of another way to start fires in situations where you may not have very dry twigs etc.  Only this time, before I blurt out the hows and wheres and why, I am going to try it first and then I’ll let you know, but only if it works.

Stand by for the upcoming event and I will post whether it works or does not work.

Bears Butt

August 22, 2012

Later:

So, I opened up the cupboard and pulled out all the chips we had.  Sour Cream and Cheddar chips, Original chips, Doritos Scoops (small), Fritos, Ritz and even some mini marshmallows.

I grabbed an old metal pan and some strike anywhere matches.

Temp 83 degrees, slight breeze, humidity high for here at 32%

Starting with the Original chips, I put two on the metal pan, stacked but slightly off center to give a broader area.  Struck one match and held it to the wind side of the chips…almost instant fire on the chips.  I layed the still burning match on top of the two chips and observed.  The wind fanned the fire into and under the two chips.  The fire reached approximately 4 inches high at the highest point.  As it burned oil came running out and around the chips.  Total burn time was just under 2 minutes.

Next came the Sour Cream and Cheddar flavored chips.  I used 2 medium sized and 2 small ones.  Again spacing them one on the other and in an arc to catch the wind underneath them.  Lit another match and it to caught fire almost instantly.  I layed the match on top of the chips and observed.  It burned for almost 2 minutes and had oil coming out from around the chips when it stopped burning.  The flame was about the same height as the Original chips, 4 inches at it’s peak but the chips did not completely burn like the original did.  However, there were glowing portions of the chips up to one full minute after the flame went out.

It was now Doritos Scoops time for testing.  I stacked 4 of the smallish chips on top of each other, but not one inside the other, they were off set.  Lit a match and it was almost instant flame.  The breeze blew the flames in and under the small cup like chips and really heated things up.  The flames reached nearly 10 inches high at the peak and the chips completely burned up.  It burned higher and hotter than either of the other two tests and about the same amount of oil as the Original chips produced.

Ritz crackers came next.  These little round bad boys should prove to be real winners.  Bigger than the other test guys, thicker and they have to have more oil in them.  Seven matches later they had chard edges but did not burn.  I’d say at this point to save them for the Kipper Snacks.

Fritos is up to bat now.  7 of the little guys were stacked so I had some space underneath to catch a flame on the edge and the fire could go into and under them.  A very quick flame, not as quick as the Dorito Scoops, but still pretty quick.  They burned for just at 2 minutes with about a 7 inch flame at the peak, they burned completely up and had about as much oil around them as the Doritos.

Lastly, I had the mini marshmallows to try.  My cute little dog had snuck in and eaten my test samples while I was watching the Fritos.  So I had to go get 5 more.  I stacked them close together and lit a match.  The first match only charred one edge.  A second and then a third match finally got them burning but the fire went out quickly.  I stacked 8 matches on top of them and lit another match.  They burned while the matches burned and then went out leaving a very sticky melted mess on my pan.

My conclusion.  Doritos Scoops or Fritos should be included in your survival packs.  Seal them in air and water tight containers and guard them with your life.  They should be enough to dry out tinder or smallish twigs and save your life.  If you try these, I suggest you put some twigs underneath them to catch the oil that is coming off of them as they burn.  It just might be enough to catch fire and save your bacon.

But, even though I am voting for the two that burned the hottest and highest any of the other dry chips would work as well.

Good luck out of doors and I hope you never have to put these to the true test.

Bears Butt

August 22, 2012

Shopping in a store I saw a package of fried pork skins and thought I might try them and see how well they burned.  The conditions were similar to my last experiment and so I set up the same way.

10 strike anywhere matches later and burned edges on two stacked chicharrones proved they do not work.  Don’t waste your time burning them just eat them.

August 29, 2012

Written on August 22nd, 2012 , Uncategorized
By: Bears Butt

When you come onto this site you get the impression that all I do is sit here and type up dumb stuff.  Quite the contrary.  After all, how in the world could I work over my hunting trailer and be sitting here as well?  Of course my staff is constantly working and I am not always sure what they are up to.

We had a little gathering one evening over behind Windy’s house.  He had built a fire and invited the kids all over for smores.  I don’t like smores.  Sorry.  But I was sipping my favorite beverage while watching the process unfold.  The kids were happy with their marshmallow cheeks and chocolate mustaches and that is really all that matters.

Earlier in the day I had awaken with thoughts of a Native American chant in my head.  My thoughts were on the real thing and what were they saying when they do their drum chants and dance around.  Whenever I have heard some of the chants they are saying the same things and so even though it might sound like gibberish to me, it has meaning to them.  So, I too can make up a chant that has meaning.  And I did.

That evening around the smoking embers I shared it with my family and they all rolled their eyes when I was done.  The neighbor next door was quick to dash into his home, however, because he just knew the next thing would be a long spear coming in his direction (he said so the next day at church).

For you coming to rendezvous next week, I plan on sharing my chant with you around the fire.  You can decide then just how well I did at creating something spectacular, or normal, or dumb, or stupid, or not worth doing again.

Here is the opening line:

HEEYYYAAAAHEEYYYMMMAAA  HEEYYYAAAAHEEYYYPPPAAA  HEEYYYAAAHEEYYYMMMAAAA  HEEYYYAAAHEEYYYPPPAAAA

Come to rendezvous to hear the rest.  You have to admit it has a very interesting beginning and the ending is, well….you will like it even if you are just glad it’s over.

Bears Butt

August 21, 2012

Written on August 21st, 2012 , Just more stories
By: Bears Butt

National Spumoni Day.

I have to admit I had no idea what Spumoni even is.  So I Googled it to find out.  Come to find out it is just three different flaovors of ice cream with extra stuff tossed between different layers that makes it Spumoni.  Whipped cream is also put in between the different layers and then nuts, fruits, chocolate chips (whatever) is placed in with the whipped cream.  To serve it, the different ice creams are positioned so that you can see all three of the flavors standing up in the bowl.

Originally an Italian dessert and now it’s spread far and wide across the globe.

I thought that somewhere there must be a “spumoni capitol of the world”, but was unable to locate a spot that claims to be.  But I did find that there are a whole lot of restaurants and small cafe’s and coffee shops that are touted as having the best spumoni around.

I think just plain old vanilla will still satisfy my palette.  I don’t need the extra fattening stuff just to say I have had it and that is probably something I inherited.  That is also probably the reason I didn’t know what it even was.  The name itself sounds like some sort of sinus stuff, but I’m off course with that.   Now it doesn’t even sound like a good idea to go try.

So you sophisticated folks can enjoy your lunch of spumoni and maybe even an italian sausage.  I’ll have some chips and a beer.

Bears Butt

August 21, 2012

Written on August 21st, 2012 , Uncategorized
By: Bears Butt

A new butcher shop has opened in South Willard.  I stopped by and talked briefly with the owner Troy Bird and asked if he did wild game processing.

His prices for Deer is $15 to skin it and $60 to process the meat.

Elk is $25 to skin and $.60 p/pound to process.

Not bad prices if you ask me!

They are located on the East side of the highway at:

8195 S. Hwy 89, in Willard

Call them at: 801-782-6550 or by cell 435-830-7821

I went on their website www.wwmeatsutah.com which is in its infancy and signed up to receive emails once they get rolling.

I asked him about donating something for our rendezvous and he said he would put a package together and I could come by next week and pick it up.

Bears Butt

August 20, 2012

Written on August 20th, 2012 , Uncategorized
By: Bears Butt

I have a 1973 Prowler camp trailer that is 18 feet long.  Everything works and it is a wonderful thing to have on a hunting trip.  Heat, refer, stove, hot water and a toilet.  Well, I say hot water, I have to get a new control box in order for that to work, but it worked the last time I used it and connected the hot water tank up.

I decided to do a little renovation work this past month because when I opened up the bathroom door the back wall paneling was laying against the side of the toilet.  A problem I have seen coming for several years.  It used to leak and now the results of wet wood are showing up big time with dry rot causing the ceiling to “frog mouth” and the paneling coming off.

Keep one thing in mind throughout this story, I am a cheap guy.  If I can scrounge it I will and if it doesn’t cost any money that is even better.

So, beginning in the bathroom area I pulled down the ceiling and wall paneling.  I left the metal shower walls in place as well as the inside walls of the room.  They are holding up just fine.  I fixed the framing which was in incredibly good shape and repaired the ends that had come away from where they were supposed to be connected.  I used Gorilla Glue and that stuff is incredible.

Then I cut new sheet wood and screwed it to the now repaired framework.  Ceiling first, walls second.  Caulked it all with a 35 year paintable caulk and then painted it white.  Will this trailer last 35 more years?  I highly doubt it.  This picture shows a portion of the bathroom walls and ceiling repaired.

The sheet wood was some left over from a home repair job a couple of years ago.  Reluctantly I had to break down and buy some caulking at $2.35 /tube.

Bathroom Fixed

 

I also cut out the closet so it is one large open area.  Replaced the back wall and ceiling in that area as well, paneled and painted it, added a metal shelf and that area is ready for a test this hunting season.  The paneling was provided by a young lady just down the street who kindly gave me 3 full 4X8 sheets.  I chose to mount them without the finished side out so that the paint would stick to it.

Storage Area With Shelf

As for the shelf, it is a really good one sold in Home Depot stores, extra braced, lightweight and very stiff.  I was on my way home from town one day and low and behold it was sticking up out of someone’s garbage can on the side of the highway.  I quickly turned around and scrounged it up!  Free is a good thing!

Storage Area

 

4 Light Lightbar, nothing short of the best from my hunting friends.

The black lightbar you see there was picked up at the local Deseret Industries thrift store for $2.  Ya, I had to put in two AA batteries, but those little round lights can be directed to shine on where you want to see.

Finally the area at the other end of the trailer needed to have its Frog Mouth fixed.  That meant taking down the overhead bunk first.  That didn’t take long and with some more framing work fixed, up went new paneling and a fresh paint job.  I chose white paint throughout the fix as it will make the place brighter and seem bigger.  Besides, I had almost two gallons of bright white paint in the basement that would just get hard over time.

No rain will come in on me now!

For a few years I have noticed the on/off water faucet to the toilet was getting stiffer and stiffer to turn on and so I replaced it with a new one.  The place I went to did not have one of the newer 1/4 turn ball valves in the size I needed so I bought an old fashioned screw type valve (Ouch, $5.98).

So here is the deal, the pipe coming into the new valve is 3/8 inch, the water going out is 1/2 inch.  Actually the valve goes on backwards from how they normally do because that is how the previous owner chose to fix it once.  I just followed suit.  The half inch side has a reducer in it that reduces it back to 3/8 inch.  Then that pipe is fitted inside a rubber hose that is nearly 1/2 inch outside diameter and that eventually connects to the back of the toilet.

So, there you have the plumbing end.  When I turned on the valve (of course I have put water in the tank and the pump is on), the pipes would rattle and vibrate and make one heck of a noise!  Meanwhile water was spraying out the front of the toilet from under the seat!  WOW!  Floodsville!

I thought, “this is not good”!  And I figured because things had been sitting dry for over 7 years that perhaps the pipes etc. just needed to sit overnight with water in them to get it to work.  NOT!  This morning it still did the same thing.

Thinking back I could never recall ever having water come spraying out the front of the toilet.  It just sort of ran in and down the back of the bowl and would eventually fill to a level of desired depth.  The key word here is “eventually”!  So, without knowing it, I guessed the rubber hose was kinked enough to only allow so much water to flow through into the toilet and not come gushing forth like a jetted tub.

I had to test my theory, so I got my trusty little locking pliers and headed to the trailer.  Turned on the pump and clamped the pliers to the hose, hard enough to shut it completely off.  Then I turned on the valve.  Of course nothing happened because the water could not go anywhere.  Then slowly I released the pressure on the pliers and sure enough out came water without the banging and clanking of pipes.  When the pliers were completely released the pipes were howling and banging like a banchee.  But I had the problem figured out and now just needed to figure a good old country (redneck) solution.

To the garage for a large hose clamp and screwdriver and I was onto the solution quickly.  I pinched the hose back onto itself and put on the clamp, again tightening it until no water could come out.  Then I slowly turned the screw on the clamp until water flowed at a rate that seemed rather normal to me.  And there you have it.  No more banging of pipes and howling of water screaming into the toilet bowl.  My guests will thank me later for that.

And here is a picture of the fix.

Redneck Fix Job

The trailer is going to get a shake down come next week, as it’s rendezvous time and I have offered the use of it to my mountain man friends.  It will sleep up to 4 if one of them is small and can fit on the over head bunk.  I will call it “Bears Butts Lodge for Wayward Mountain Men”.  It will be better than sleeping in the back of the pickup or on the ground after too many bubbly drinks.

Bears Butt, “the solution man”

August 20, 2012

 

Written on August 20th, 2012 , Just more stories, Uncategorized
By: Bears Butt

It’s not that I have not thought about the national holidays of the day, it’s just that I have been sooooo very busy with other things that I have not written about them.  Trust me, there is a national or international “something” for every day of the year.  Today is August 19 and it is National Potato Day!

I, for one love potatoes and so I will include at least one in my daily consumption of food today.  Perhaps I will have pototoes with breakfast, lunch and dinner!  That would suit me just fine!

A bit of history about potatoes is no doubt something you want to know.  Potatoes are the fourth largest crop grown in the world!  4th!  That should tell you about the importance of the potato in the world.  Everyone seems to be eating them.  I read about a diet of nothing but potatoes to be eaten for 60 straight days.  And the guy claims to have lost weight without suffering from any malnourishment of other daily essentials.  I question that one.

Potatoes have always been in my diet and I just love them.  Potatoes for breakfast in the form of hashbrowns or cubes, potatoes for lunch in the form of potato chips or french fries, potatoes for supper cooked either boiled or baked.  I am not going to have any trouble celebrating todays national holiday at all.  There is still some potato salad in the fridge from yesterdays lunch.

I cannot imagine a world without potatoes.  Spuds!  Grow them, weed them, water them, dig them and eat them!  Heck, some people even shoot them out of home made guns!  And when I was much younger we could buy little guns that you poked the end of the barrel into the potato and then shoot that little bit that stuck in it.  There was even (and probably still is) plastic inserts that made a potato look like a character “Mr. Potato Head”.  There are hundreds of uses for potatoes besides just eating them, but it seems like such a waste of a good thing.

Growing up in the 60’s my friend and I would make beer from his grandpas famous recipe and it contained cut up potatoes.  To this day I do not know the purpose of the potatoes in that recipe, but it called for them and so we put them in it.  By the way, the beer never did turn out tasting anything like beer and we had more bottleS blow up than we ever had stay in tact.

In Ireland once there was a “great potato famine”, where the potato crops all got a disease that yielded them inedible and so the entire crop for a few years had to be destroyed!  A terrible thing.  Can you imagine your St. Patricks day celebration without potatoes?  Green beer, Corned beef, Onions and Carrots.  The thought of no potatoes in that pot of goods just isn’t right.  I think I need another beer to wash down that thought.

I also read where there was a movement of a bunch of short sighted folks who banned together to try and keep potatoes from being imported and grown in Britain.  They called themselves “The Society for the Prevention of an Unwholesome Diet” (TSFTPOAUD).  With an acronym like that it’s no wonder they failed.  And it’s obvious by the popularity of the spud and all of the nutritional value we know is in a potato today that they did not do their homework before making up their signs and marching around.  In actuality the acronym was shortened to “SPUD” based on this groups name.

If I was to form a group it would carry the same acronym but the groups name would be “Society for Potatoes Used Daily”.  Sort of makes more sense to me.

Well, there you have it.  National Potato Day, I reckon I’ll go stir up a batch of hashbrowns, bacon and eggs.  Maybe even burn some toast!  You enjoy your day and have a baked spud on me!

Bears Butt

August 19, 2012

Written on August 19th, 2012 , Uncategorized
By: Bears Butt

It looks like the hummingbird migration is over for this year, 3 weeks early.  Does that mean we can expect an early winter?  Three weeks ago we were getting ready to go on a camping trip for a few days so Sherry made up a special batch of hummingbird food and added another feeder to the two she already had out.  When we got back they were nearly full still.

The birds came through in a flurry and now are out of here.

This video was one I took at the peak of the migration.  We had over 50 birds feeding on the feeder and they could drain it in one day.

Migration

Bears Butt

August 18, 2012

Written on August 18th, 2012 , Uncategorized
By: Bears Butt
Dry Dog, the famous one who buys lots of muzzy rifles and shotguns, called me today to inform me of Thompson Center Arms companies new policy.
A few years back the good company of Thompson Center Arms was purchased by Smith and Wesson Company, a very fine company producing high quality weapons.  As with any business that wants to stay in the Black on their bottom line, they have made some major changes with company policy.
One is to quit producing primitive weapons as we know them.  Two, they will utilize the parts they have in stock to repair those weapons that are sent in under the “lifetime guarantee” that Thompson has always been noted for.  But, when the parts are gone, they are gone and that guarantee will no longer be able to be fullfilled.  Sorry.
Currently, they have NO stocks for the Renegade model rifle.  They still have a few of the Hawken style, but they will probably go fast.  So, if your Hawken style rifle has a crack in the stock you best be sending it to them quickly (after rendezvous).  Other parts as well.  If it’s missing and you need one, order it through them.  Once again, when the parts are gone, they are gone!  Plain and simple.
They told him that in some cases, if you find a part on ebay or some other site, they MIGHT be convinced to reimburse you for that purchase.  I’d check with them first if you plan on going that route.
Also, they closed the Rochester N.Y. portion of their operation and only have their plant in Springfield Mass.  So, don’t send your old gun to the Rochester address, instead send it to
Thompson Center Arms
2100 Roosevelt Ave.
Springfield, MA 01104
Dog, If I have forgotten anything you wished me to tell everyone, I apologize.  The website for customer service is:
http://www.tcarms.com/customerService/contact.php

Thank you one and all.

Bears Butt

August 17, 2012

Written on August 17th, 2012 , Uncategorized

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BearsButt.com | Stories, Ramblings & Random Stuff From an Old Mountain Man

Just some of my old stories, new stories, and in general what is going on in my life.