Don't have an account yet? You can create one. As a registered user you have some advantages like theme manager, comments configuration and post comments with your name.
I guess my methods are more DJ oriented as that's almost all I build but what do you guys like to use for tools and/or do you have any special tricks?
For us we can get most anything done with:
- flat nose shovel w/ long handle - heavy is better, used for final cutting/shaping, and packing the shit out of lips and landings. The slapping method is the best method we have found to get stuff packed and smooth
- round nose shovel w/ long handle - I've found good fiberglass handled ones for around $10. Lighter ones seem to work best. Good for cutting through layers of dirt and getting things started. Also works well to cut smaller roots. Can be used for some packing and shaping but not for finish work
- Steel rake - cheapo is fine, used mostly to remove brush, leaves. sometime for a primary packing
- Mattock - good for removing a thick roots, small stumps, etc
I try to buy decent shovels but they get stolen and or break so I keep it to around $10-15. If I only had to use one tool - the flat nose long handle is the easy winner. It can do pretty much anything decently and does finish work the best.
The packing method is very tough and I'm still learning it - the guys that I dig with have it pretty much mastered and their stuff looks perfect and rides smooth. Pretty much you just beat the shit out of the lip and landing but also shaping at the same time. The face is the most important but the side should be packed as well. Good dirt conditions make this a lot easier. Loose sand will not work - damp clay will
campmor or a local camp store, they have a camp shovel that folds up small, you could probably fit it in a large camelback or a cheap day pack, it unfolds to a shovel or you can fold it 90 deg. for a hoe type tool and has a pick axe type attachment.
Home depot has childrens yard tools very cheap and small can be carried to the trail without too much hassle, better than losing a decent full size shovel in the woods. I carry a childs spade, rake and a small bow saw in a old day pack up to the trail and usually hide it where I'm working for the season.
I do more trail type work but a small log with flat end will tamp soil real tight, probably work for jumps too.
Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2003 9:27 am
kunfus1on
Burner
Joined: Feb 27, 2003
Posts: 415
Location: Macon, GA
hmm shovel...
Re: go to a palce like...
Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2003 9:51 am
don
All-City
Joined: Sep 6, 2002
Posts: 1733
Location: Red Bank, NJ
ghostrider wrote:
campmor or a local camp store, they have a camp shovel that folds up small, you could probably fit it in a large camelback or a cheap day pack, it unfolds to a shovel or you can fold it 90 deg. for a hoe type tool and has a pick axe type attachment.
Home depot has childrens yard tools very cheap and small can be carried to the trail without too much hassle, better than losing a decent full size shovel in the woods. I carry a childs spade, rake and a small bow saw in a old day pack up to the trail and usually hide it where I'm working for the season.
I do more trail type work but a small log with flat end will tamp soil real tight, probably work for jumps too.
ahh, just what I was looking for - thanks for the tips ghost. That multi-function tool from campmor sounds rad.
the flat end of a small log packing trick is cool - I'll have to use that - thanks!
I don't know about DJ trail building, but for DH trail building around here, your best friend is the pulaski tool. That's a tool used by forest firefighter. It's a tool used for very heavy duty work.
_________________ If the milk turns out to be sour, I ain't the kinda pu$$y to drink it.
Posted: Sat Jun 07, 2003 12:34 pm
don
All-City
Joined: Sep 6, 2002
Posts: 1733
Location: Red Bank, NJ
flipside - I thought those were call Mattocks? One side is an axe - the other a blade the can either cut smaller roots in one swipe or break up rocky/hard soil.
Hummm... I think you are right. A Pulaski tool can also be called a mattock.
Definitly check those. They are most valuable tool for trailbuilding IMO. Especially when you have to dig to loosen up some dirt before using a shovel, get rid of roots or rocks, etc. It is a very efficient tool for the initial hard work when building a new trail.
_________________ If the milk turns out to be sour, I ain't the kinda pu$$y to drink it.
Posted: Sat Jun 07, 2003 2:42 pm
T. Zapel
Burner
Joined: Jan 15, 2003
Posts: 113
Long handled round shovel, and a good sharp axe are my two favortie tools. But that polaski or whatever looks damn fine
_________________ It's All About Fun.....And Having IT
Posted: Sat Jun 07, 2003 8:01 pm
Kalem
Kingpin
Joined: Sep 8, 2002
Posts: 2007
Location: Melbourne, Aus
yeah post hole shovels are the do-all machines, mattocks are primo also, those two and you can build anything! Pity my whole town and surrounding areas are allll SAND
_________________ sing with me
if you really want a tool....
Posted: Sat Jun 07, 2003 9:04 pm
ghostrider
Bomber
Joined: Sep 10, 2002
Posts: 59
Location: NJ
get the maxax, costs a lot though. Heres the pick shovel at $8.00 pretty cheap and can be carried easy.
http://www.campmor.com
Re: Favorite tools/methods
Posted: Sat Jun 07, 2003 9:40 pm
axel
All-City
Joined: Sep 14, 2002
Posts: 1140
Location: conway, ma
don wrote:
I guess my methods are more DJ oriented as that's almost all I build but what do you guys like to use for tools and/or do you have any special tricks?
For us we can get most anything done with:
- flat nose shovel w/ long handle - heavy is better, used for final cutting/shaping, and packing the shit out of lips and landings. The slapping method is the best method we have found to get stuff packed and smooth
- round nose shovel w/ long handle - I've found good fiberglass handled ones for around $10. Lighter ones seem to work best. Good for cutting through layers of dirt and getting things started. Also works well to cut smaller roots. Can be used for some packing and shaping but not for finish work
- Steel rake - cheapo is fine, used mostly to remove brush, leaves. sometime for a primary packing
- Mattock - good for removing a thick roots, small stumps, etc
I try to buy decent shovels but they get stolen and or break so I keep it to around $10-15. If I only had to use one tool - the flat nose long handle is the easy winner. It can do pretty much anything decently and does finish work the best.
The packing method is very tough and I'm still learning it - the guys that I dig with have it pretty much mastered and their stuff looks perfect and rides smooth. Pretty much you just beat the shit out of the lip and landing but also shaping at the same time. The face is the most important but the side should be packed as well. Good dirt conditions make this a lot easier. Loose sand will not work - damp clay will
shovels and dirt are your friends
my favorite tool for building DJs is my tractor of course! but that only gets the dirt there, to shape i use a long handle round nose shovel to get a basic shape, then a short handle flat nosed shovel(i would probably use a long handle one but short is the only one i own and i dont feel like buying another when mine works fine) and then my feet, ive found that packing jumps with your feet actually works pretty well, you still need to slam them with a shovel, but to smooth things out, feet work pretty well.
_________________
Re: Favorite tools/methods
Posted: Wed Sep 17, 2003 6:06 pm
Lurch..
All-City
Joined: Sep 7, 2002
Posts: 676
Location: At your front door
We found a really good way to do take offs and landins is while ur piling the dirt up soak it at regular intervals. Soak, pile, soak, pile and so forth. then when you have the rough shape of the take off roll or bike up and down it to shape it further. THEN to get them ass smooth soak it for ages till its a muddy, clayey mess then lay some we carpet (smooth side down) over it and whack it with a shovel, feet, hands and roll ur bike up it again with some force behind it. Through all of this keep on wetting the carpet. the i ur really fussy get out and just run ur hands over it like ur making a clay model to get any ridges or un-even urfaces out of it. Even slap it like ur slapping a strippers ass. we did that and found that once it had dryed it was rock hard and needed minimal shaping before riding.
_________________ The party's over Fredrick, pack up the circus and get on your tricycle. The office is now closed for repairs.Penguin! Penguin! Penguin!
THERE IS A FLY IN MY ICECUBE>>>>>--------<<<<
Re: if you really want a tool....
Posted: Sat Sep 27, 2003 2:09 am
GIZMO
Tagger
Joined: Jul 11, 2003
Posts: 42
ghostrider wrote:
get the maxax, costs a lot though. Heres the pick shovel at $8.00 pretty cheap and can be carried easy.
http://www.campmor.com
i used to have one of those ......it broked in no time
Re: Favorite tools/methods
Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2003 6:39 pm
Lurch..
All-City
Joined: Sep 7, 2002
Posts: 676
Location: At your front door
Ahaha, that looks very cheap. If my shovels at home tonight ill snap some pics. Its a WW2 vintage from the New Zealand army. The things been in Africa, Egypt, Monte Casino all for wars. Now it gets used for peacefull things It really is the shit. Has a spade, pick, axe, wire cutters, nail remover, bottle opener. My pop said they sharpend the ends of the spade up and used it for trench warfare
_________________ The party's over Fredrick, pack up the circus and get on your tricycle. The office is now closed for repairs.Penguin! Penguin! Penguin!
THERE IS A FLY IN MY ICECUBE>>>>>--------<<<<
Re: Favorite tools/methods
Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2005 8:54 pm
Prometheus
Burner
Joined: Nov 7, 2002
Posts: 367
Location: Home: Long Island, Work: NYC
I dont pay for tools when clearing bushes and branches. First find a decent looking tree that you can kick down. Then brake the branches of so you just have a trunk section. Take the trunk and proceed to go ape shit and "gash" down all obstacles in the way of your trail. Best workout and stress relief you can get at the same time. Warning destroying nature by using nature might be a patent pending technology called "Hoeyification" by my friends. You have to see it in action in order to understand.
Posted: Tue Jan 25, 2005 12:23 am
Tiltmode
All-City
Joined: Dec 10, 2003
Posts: 745
Location: Burlington VT/ Newton MA
the best tool Ive found for trail building is this vintage shovel deal I found in my garage. It has a long wooden handle, with a stout metal plate attached at a 90deg angle. There are large, 4'' tall triangular spikes attached to it. Just hack away at the ground to loosen most any soil. IT will cut up any underbrush and litterally just peel it up like you are peeling up a carpet. It hacks through all the baby saplings and leaves and forest carpet crap till you get to real dirt.
after that, its just pointy for digging/piling, and flathead for packing.
for lips, I get a wheelbarrel full of the best soil I can find in the area, mix it with a bunch of water so I get a very thick goopey mud, it has to be thick enough to spread without it dripping or falling down. Then just dig your hands into it, pull out fist fulls and just start forming a healthy square lip, which you can shape as you go with a spade.
Hcor.net Features
Pictures and Videos
Home
Members :
