GEAR REVIEW - ONTARIO RAT 1

The Ontario RAT 1 is easily one of the best value blades I have found. When it comes to features this knife compromises in the right places and still offers a blade with great quality.

Length:

• Overall: 8.62"
• Blade: 3.6"
• Closed: 5"

Weight:

• 5.037 oz

After two years of testing it's still one of my favorite knives to carry every day. Coming in at under $30 you wont feel guilty putting it through the gauntlet. Although this blade may not offer premium materials you will find in knives ten times the price, it does offer features you usually can't find at this price point. The quality of materials and craftsmanship at this price are pretty unbelievable. This is one blade I can highly recommend if you are looking for a great value that will stand up to hard use.

Pro

• Price
• Looks awesome
• AUS 8 Stainless steel strong and holds a decent edge
• Great blade shape
• Stainless steel liners
• 4 way adjustable clip
• Dual thumb studs
• Comfortable ergo grip
• Lanyard hole

Con

• AUS 8 Steel can rust
• Zytel nylon scales are a little slick
• Liner lock
• Blade finish chips easily
• Made in Taiwan

MADNESS

I finally got the time this weekend to put up a video that I have been wanting to upload for over a month. In September my brother and dad made some time to getaway for the weekend to go fishing together. It's something I wish we could do more often and I'm always grateful when we can. Thank you to Ron and Catherine for your hospitality and to our wives for letting us have some unsupervised play time!

HOMEMADE ULTRA-LIGHT BACKPACKING STOVE

I came up with this project last year when I was helping a boy scout leader plan an inexpensive gift for his troop. This design is a perfect light weight solution for short backpacking trips for the minimalist. I love this kit because everything you need is self contained and it's very sturdy. With a little tweaking you will be able to balance the efficiency and power to out preform many high end stoves. The instructions below shows you how to make a stove that can boil a cup of water in 3 minutes with half an ounce of fuel. I believe this could be further improved with a little tweaking of the ports and a windscreen which would make a great light weight addition.
 

SUPPLIES

• 2 oz. Shallow Seamless Tin
• 16 oz. Seamless Tin 
• 1 oz. Flip-Spout Bottle Translucent
• Hand Rivet Tool with Rivets
• Denatured Alcohol
• J-B Weld Cold Weld
• 1/4inch Hardware Cloth
• Hammer
• Needle or nail
• Wire snips
• Pliers
• Drill 

 THE BUILD
Measure a length of hardware mesh to fit inside the large tin.
Cut the wire with the prongs extending past the length needed. This will allow you to bend the sharp points inward locking the circle and keeping the edges more smooth so that you don't get cut when handling the mesh.

Punch eight holes along the top rim of the small tin lid and 4-7 holes around the inside ridge of the lid. I actually angled mine inward to concentrate the jets to the center. 

The version pictured burned 50 minutes, but does not show the additional inner holes that I recommend for most cooking applications. Experiment with an unsealed tin and adding holes in various locations on the burner. You will see how even small modifications affect boiling time and fuel consumption. Try to find the right balance between power and burn time for your purposes and how much fuel you plan on taking.

To create the fuel port on the stove you will use a drill to make a pilot hole for a small rivet . Make sure the lid will close when the rivet is seated flush with the top. Its important to get your burner holes set before this step because it will be difficult to hammer once the rivet is inserted. After the pilot hole is drilled insert a rivet and crimp it down. This took a little practice for my first few. Mainly because the aluminum rivets are cheap and easy to mess up. Once you can thread the screw in and it fits correctly we can seal the tin.

Mix both parts of JB weld together per the instructions. Use a paper plate and plastic knife. Everything it touches will be ruined. Apply the compound to any gaps around the outside of the rivet on the underside of the lid. Be careful not to get any on the screw or fuel port hole. Next apply it around the inside lip of the lid. Seal it thoroughly or fuel will leak out as it begins to boil. The stove will be ready for use in 15 hours once the compound has cured.

When you test your stove BE CAREFUL! It will be very hot and may ruin or melt whatever you place it on. Take proper safety precautions as you would with any open flame. Also, be careful with the alcohol. It will strip the lacquer right off of your table. I guess I should also mention... NEVER EVER DRINK THE DENATURED ALCOHOL it is toxic. There, you've been warned!

FIRE IT UP
Set the burner on the large lid. This will serve as your priming pan. Fill the port hole of the stove with fuel. Save a small amount of fuel to prime the stove. Place the fuel port screw back and set the hardware cloth inside the large lid. This ring will serve as your pot stand.

When you are ready to light the stove pour a small amount of fuel on the large lid to prime the burner. You don't want to waste fuel, so it will take a little practice to find the right amount to get the fuel inside the stove boiling.

Once you put the priming fuel on the lid place the pot filled with water on the stand and light the stove. You will want to be prepared because the alcohol evaporates very quickly.

If you have any questions or improvements leave a comment on our Facebook page. We would love to see your version and hear how it worked.

Bait to The Plate - Two Recipes for Wild Boar part 2

If hunting or cooking isn't your thing but you enjoy the eating part you can skip this read and make your reservations at Bonell's Fine Texas Cuisine.

I enjoy both so I will share a recipe from one of my favorite local chefs.  This recipe can be found in Chef Bonell's book Fine Texas Cuisine. Check out his bookstore for this and other delicious recipes from Venison Carpaccio to Margarita Cheesecake.

Rack of Wild Boar with Pomegranate Rum Sauce

Sauce
1 tablespoon chopped shallot
1 clove garlic
1 teaspoon canola oil
4 table spoons fum
8-10 pomegranate seeds
1/2 teaspoons pomegranate molasses
1 1/2 tablespoons veal demiglace
Pinch of kosher salt
1 tablespoon butter

Wild Boar
1 frenched wild boar rack
1 tablespoon Bonnell's Southwestern Seasoning (below)

Pomegranate Rum Sauce
In a medium saucepan, saute the shallot and garlic in canola oil for 1 minute. Add the rum and allow to flame off: then add all remaining ingredients, except the butter, and simmer together until the sauce thickens slightly. Add the butter ans swirl until the butter is melted and incorporated into the velvety rich sauce.

For an added degree of flare, add 1 tablespoon of 151 proof rum add the last second to the pomegranate sauce while in the pan. Flame and pour over the chops. Be careful doing this step, as serving flaming dishes can be quite dangerous. Never pour alcohol directly from a bottle into a hot pan. Pour from a glass instead.

Rack of Wild Boar
Rob the rack of wild boar thoroughly on all sides with the seasoning and allow to marinate for one hour. Roast the boar in a 375-degree F convection oven until the internal temperature reaches 130 degrees. Remove from the oven and allow to rest 5 minutes before cutting. Slice the boar rack into individual chops and pour the sauce over just before serving.  
Serves 2

Bonnell's Southwestern Seasoning
5 tablespoons iodized salt
2 tablespoon granulated garlic
2 tablespoons fine black pepper
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
3/4 tablespoon dried thyme
3/4 tablespoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon onion powder
1/2 tablespoon dried basil
1/2 tablespoon cumin
2 teaspoons coriander
2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 tablespoon dry mustard powder

Mix in a bowl and store in an airtight container.
This seasoning goes great with steaks as well.

Let us know what you think and Like us on Facebook or subscribe to our Youtube for more updates.

Bait to The Plate - Two Recipes for Wild Boar part 1

For the first recipe you will be fermenting deer corn to make sour corn. The amount of ingredients varies based on the amount of bait you need and the number of days you plan on hunting. It's not an exact science and you cant mess it up as long as you follow these simple guidelines. If you have fresh signs of wild hogs on your land this concoction will bring them in.

This Wild Boar was taken in West Texas and weighed in at 380lbs after he was field dressed. That's a lot of bacon!

Fermentation is the process of turning sugar (found in grains and fruit) into alcohol. In the most simple explanation is that living yeast eat sugar, breathes oxygen, and excrete alcohol and C02. Think about that next time you have a beer!

You will need:

• A large bucket or cooler
• Deer corn
• Water
• Yeast Packets
• Sugar

Put your container in the place you want to store it. Once you fill it up you aren't going to be able to move it easily.  Choose a place cool and dry that animals will not get into it. The garage is usually a good spot. You don't want the mixture to get extremely cold because the yeast will be less active and fermentation will take longer.

Fill the containers with corn leaving room for it to expand as it absorbs the water. Pour sugar into the container next. Think cups not teaspoons, remember this is what will be converted to alcohol. The amount will vary depending on the size of your container. You really cant mess it up because this isn't for drinking, it's the smell that will attract the hogs. I estimate about 3-4 cups for a 5 gallon bucket.

Next add a few packets of bread yeast. Some hunters also add fruit or jello packets. If this sounds good to you put them in now. Fruit also has sugar in it and natural yeast.

Next cover the ingredients with water. Don't forget the corn will expand and you also want to leave a little room so it doesn't spill over. It will bubble when the yeast become active because they are releasing the C02. It may also be worth mentioning that you do not want to use a sealed container for this reason. Now you can cover it with a towel or lid and let it sit. At this point you don't want to disturb your mix. Just let it sit. It will start to bubble in 24 hours in most cases sometimes a little longer in cooler weather. Your sour corn will be useable in just a few days. A week is a good amount of time for a batch.

When you are selecting a spot to bait. Go somewhere with fresh signs of hogs. They move in and out of areas and can travel miles. You may have seen them a few weeks ago, but they could be in another county this week.

When you find your spot remember wind direction for your blind and also safety. You never know how many may come in and you don't want to meet the business end of Hogzilla! When we bait an area we sling it into the trees to get the smell wafting over the ranch and then dig a hole or place it into a feeding device so that they don't gobble it all too fast. Some hunters will also mix kerosene with the corn to keep raccoons out of the corn. They claim the hogs don't mind and that it deters other pest. I haven't tried this because we've never had a problem with them.

Stay tuned for the next post which will be Chef Bonnell's recipe for rack of wild boar with pomegranate rum sauce!

If you have any questions feel free to leave us a comment or message and don't forget to Like us on Facebook.

Broken Bow Trout Fishing in August

As promised here is a short video to give you a taste from our trip to Broken Bow in August.

If you missed it, here is the fishing report from that weekend.

Wall of Shame

By popular request by the fellow Redditors at /r/flyfishing/

I'll keep it updated ongoing (hopefully infrequently)...

Caught on a size 20 Zebra midge

When I text this to my brother he said "That's the biggest fishing pole I've ever seen." What a guy!                                    

Caught on a size 12 Stimulator