This is the end product. Just giving you a taste before we get into it. A European Beech (this is in Hungary) came down all on its own and took another tree with it. This is where the bulk of the building materials came from. Using my Tom Brown, Jr. Tracker T1 knife to do the bulk of the work. I'm creating the outline of my structure to see how many more pieces I need. Doing more chopping. There was a lot of chopping. Finished outline. Can you guess what I'm making? The T1 is a draw knife as much as a hatchet. Marking my territory. Did you guess "quick-and-dirty deluxe digging stick"? if so, you were right. For next time, I will make my digging stick sharper and maybe fire harden it. At this point, the clay-packed soil was really dry. I am singing the bottom foot-or-so of the posts. It's supposed to make them last longer in the ground. The Y-sticks will hold the interlocking roof in place. Just finishing the inside diameter of the wall. This is a double survival vice. Super simple, but it frees up both your hands to work on something. Getting ready to put the main pieces of the roof in place. Maybe I'm just slow, but I found setting up 8 beams this way to be a bit of a brain teaser. Making the final adjustments. View from the top. Stress testing it. This is what accounts for some of the "straight cuts" some think can't be made with a knife. Can you guess what tool I'm making here? I used cut up deer hide for the lashing here. This is an ancient design for a hoe. Except, a shoulder blade would be used instead of the wood. The two distinct walls are coming together. Making flat-braid cordage from ivy to help me haul my sticks from a short distance away. I had no idea this is how I was going to do the outer wall at first. I'm glad I thought of it. This is where the rammed earth is going to go. Ramming that dirt real good to get the air pockets out. Every stick layer you see, I had to pass around the hut once. I'd be sometimes dizzy a little. Fun fact: the dirt that come out of the center was the exact amount I needed for the wall. The ceiling came together nicely. I really wanted a zero-cordage solution to keep the debris up on top. The solid wood also will also help any sparks from the fire away from the dry debris. For this shot, I put my phone down in the mud. :) Basically, the only live vegetation used was the vine I harvested here for the chimney chute. They don't give in easily. Sticking the main spokes in the ground to serve as the base. Round and round again. This will be my chimney. I was surprised how sturdy this thing ended up being. The chimney is slightly off-center, so I have more room on one side of the fire. I'm going to spoil this one. It's a rake. You'll have to guess this one, though. Tied only in three places, the rest is woven in. Yes, a travois! Ding, ding, ding. You're a gentleman and scholar, sir. Your cigar is on its way. With a debris roof, it is crucial that you layer each pass. The angle is also very important. Forty five degrees and over will shed water like a charm. Celebrating with a fire at the end is becoming my thing, I guess. That ugly looking things blocking the doorway is a (poorly) tanned deer hide. I will need to redo that at some point and smoke it. That ceiling isn't looking half bad, and it's holding up very well. There is way more mass on there than just my body weight. The sticks on the ground are temporary, and no, they are not a major fire hazard if you know what you are doing.
That's a lot of effort for what will become a puddle fort.
All these videos will never be as good as the original /r/PrimitiveTechnology
Edit: Thanks for the gold kind stranger! I’ll take this moment to plug our National Parks
Look at the cuts on the timbers. Dude obviously used a chainsaw for most of those.
That's not a knoife. This is a knoife.
Trusty knives are the biggest backstabbers.
How long until that thing goes up in flames?
He got the green top tho?
The only thing I see is the camouflage pants with a red shirt. I have no idea why I find that hypnotic.
It's like modern day dadaism.
I would just need help making one is all I could not do it by myself I don’t think