How one person can construct a simple realistic Jungle Shelter My humbl...

Shelter Construction in the wilds

As I've said many times, one "BushCampingTool" we can't buy in a store is what knowledge we have in our brain, our most important tool when it comes to survival or even situations which border on being able to survive, whether in the wilds or in the office!

Unlike in the "office",  in the wilds knowing how to construct some sort of shelter could help to save your life or at it's simplest, keep important equipment safe from water etc. Here in this 12 min or so video I present my views on shelter consruction. It is of course NOT a new idea but I try to emphasize what I consider some of the important things one has to consider and or know whilst out and about in the wilds.

Extrema Ratio T4000C Review

A quick Introduction!

Extrema Ratio's T4000C

Extrema Ratio's T4000C follows after the series 3000 of Tanto pointed knives ( the 3000 series is now discontinued- see here). The "T" stands for Tanto and the "C" stands for compact and that's exactly what you have, a compact Tanto style knife, very Japanese-like. The T4000C comes standard with a well made nylon fully Molle compatible

 or can be worn traditionally on a belt, simply by adjusting the Molle strap on the back of the scabbard. The double press studs securing the blade can be reversed simply by disengaging securing Velcro on the scabbard and  reversing this strap.

The T4000C features a blade alloy of N690 martensitic stainless cobalt steel, hardened to 58 HRC. Mil Spec finish in black oxide.

There is a tapering fuller/blood groove below the spine to reduce the overall blade weight. Blade thickness varies from 6.22mm thick tang which extends a distance of approximately 120mm at it's longest axis towards the tip. The actual blade has a maximum thickness of 3.69mm stated as "4mm" on Extrema Ratio's site (which is of course correct). There are 2 lanyard holes and the usual singe fixing bolt which can be removed either by a flat headed object or an allen driver. The handle is their "iconic" design but reduced in scale from their other fixed blade line up. The material is FORPRENE, which put simply is super tough stuff.

The T4000C has been designed and is intended as a combat knife. As such careful engineering aspects of the "blood groove" have been incorporated to avoid sharp corners which could lead to failure. I'll be looking at how well this blade penetrates different material as well.

Now as I said the handle/grip is the same shape as the non-compact fixed blades from ER, it's size has of course been reduced in order to classify this knife as "Compact". That being said, it will easily accommodate a hand size from about 8 to 9. If you have a larger hand than 9, then you may find this knife is a bit small. It really depends on personal choice here. You can't have a truly compact knife with a full sized handle. The handle is, like it's bigger brother, just as comfortable and grippy and why wouldn't it be? It is after all just a cut down version (no pun intended!).
 Small knives enable one to deliver a lot of power as the power transfer will be much more in push cut strokes than an equivalently designed longer blade as the force is going to distributed over a greater length of blade than a compact blade and that means more pressure/stress on the wrist.

The business end!

I measured the cutting length  as close to 100mm as possible. Unlike it it's predecessors in the 3000 series, the T4000C has a much more pointed tip, much better for penetrative cuts and cutting tasks. The main blade has a slight  convex curvature to it. It's a full flat grind and the edge has been hand sharpened like all Extrema Ratio knives. Mine came deadly razor hair cutting sharp out of the box. Speaking of which this knife is also individually serial numbered and comes with identifying manufacturing "lot number" and maintenance instructions.

Anyway, I'm going to test the T4000C out on weekend camping trips as it's weight for me is a huge advantage and compact size makes it ideal for the 2 to 3 day out wilderness trip for some hunting and or fishing.

So stay tuned to BushCampingTools for the video reviews of Extrema Ratio's T4000C!