Woodland winter moccasins

[Dane]

Hi all. Here is my first pair of moccasins. I was lent a great video, Constucting Woodland Moccasins with Michael Galban. and highly recommend this video. He makes it very easy to follow along. He gives instruction for the lower center seam style and this high top style.

I used cowhide instead of buckskin for this pair, just in case I blew it, and sewed it with artificial sinew and a glover's needle. It took perhaps 3 hours to make. It was a suprisingly easy project.

They seem very comfortable, but i have to still tromp around in the woods to properly test them.

Thanks for looking,

Dane

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[half eye]

Very nice....do they have the reinforced soles or the style where they packed grasses into them? They look like most things woodland, ie: practical.
Rich

[mullet]

  Nice, Dane. Those look like mine.

[Dane]

Thanks, Rich and Mullet.

No reenforced soles. I wonder what kind of life expectancy these things have? I was just reading about the Lewis and Clark expedition. They made mostly eastern style mocs, and generally wore them out quickly, sometimes a pair a day. They are easy to make, so perhaps they aren't intended to last for a long time?

Dane

[makenzie71]

well it looks interesting but they don't seem practical at all.  Considering the life expectancy, my $30 Wal-Mart boots with Nitto 555RII rubber nailed to the soles are fancy.

[Dane]

So, what is the life expectancy in a woodland setting? I should have ammended my comments to point out that the L&C guys were using woodland mocs in environments they were not really designed for.

And in any case, this kind of footgear, unlike your cheap Chinese boots, will not end up in a landfill for 50,000 years.

Dane

[makenzie71]

That seemed to be a bit of a defensive response...and my earlier post seems to be bit of an offensive post.  I assure you it wasn't meant as such and I should have worked to word it properly...or not have posted.  I do apologize.   The boots do look interesting and I like anything crafty and natural...I just have always had questions about the practicality of moccasins in these modern times.

I do, however, assure you that no part of my boots will be in a landfill for any period of time nearly as long as 60% of the car you drive or 95% of the computer you're posting from...except for my soles.  My soles will be around as long as your tires and computer parts.  I have allergies to certain synthetics...doesn't matter where they're made.  My boots are 100% leather and cotton...except the Nitto 555RII part

[Cromm]

I like them. Let us know what they are like out and about if you do go out in them??
Thanks for your time.

[searcher]

why does something as simple as a pair of moccasins seem to cause friction in the "brotherhood of bowmen, hunters, and woodsmen ?

[M-P]

Howdy,   I purchased a pair similar to these from a Hudson Bay trading outlet back in 1972.  They're made out of smoked moose braintan.   When I bought them I was also sold a pair of thick felt insoles.  The outlet manager said the native americans he purchased from, routinely used similar moccasins and snowshoes to run their traplines in the winter.  I never needed snowshoes to run my trap lines ,  (Hip waders were more the order of the day.)  But I have used them for slippers on cold winter days and occasionally in the evenings on camping trips, nearly 30 years.    Not exactly heavy use but definitely long lived!!!
I hope your new moccasins give you at least half the pleasure I've gotten from mine.
Ron

[Dane]

Thanks Mackenzie. Guess we were both having a bad day? Your comments really didnt bother me much, actually, and the written word sometimes can give the wrong impression, something we can all be wary of.

There was this show a while back on History Channel about what happens if humans vanish overnight. Cars, books, buildings, bridges, all of it will pretty much vanish, and there will be little trace of us within a thousand years.

In a way, it is too bad more inorganic stuff was used by the ancients, so we would have a better archeology record of our ancestors.

Dane

[Dane]

That is a long time, M-P. Wearing them will tell me what I need to know regarding wear and tear. Thanks for the posting.

Dane

[mullet]

 Dane;

 Here is a pair of smoked, braintanned moose Mocassins I bought in Manitoba last year. The other pair I made about 10 years ago. I copied a Seminole pattern and used deer hide with the hair on. I've hunted in and wore them quite a bit in ten years, look at the sole. In the winter I put a sheep fur liner made by Dr. Scholl's in them.

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[El Destructo]

Now I know what to make with the Hair On Hide I have in the Garage...too soft for Quivers...would make a good pair of Moc's...

[Dane]

Mullet, those are excellent looking footgear. Thanks for showing them. The low fur out mocs are fantastic. Sometime this summer, I'm getting some brain tan buckskin, and will make some more mocs. Nothing else is like the real stuff.

Dane