Beautiful custom built bikes. I saw a few of Jeff’s finished products today at a bike swap/show and spoke with him for just a minute.

He makes all of his bike frames from USA produced 4130 steel. They are fitted to you, and totally custom. Check out his Gallery to see some of his finished bikes.

Fe Cycles Blog

Fe Cycles

GR ECHO is sleek and sexy but just as tough as all GORUCK gear. Stash the essentials and stay organized while moving around town by foot, metro, or car.

The smallest of their packs.

GORUCK

Today I have a guest post from a group that does something quite unique for the products they sell.

Handing off to Amanda from WisconsinMade.com:

I’m Amanda and I blog for the online gift store, Wisconsinmade.com.  When Ryan asked me to do a guest blog post, he mentioned that he likes how Wisconsinmade.com has information about the people who make all of the products and he thinks every website should share that information. The Artisan Info, as we call it, gives shopper the opportunity to read the story about the people who make each gift.  From the cheesemaker who pampers his cows like princesses to the craftsman who designs gifts from a variety of Wisconsin woods, every artisan has a story, and Firl Industries, our log carrier manufacturer, is no exception.

In a world where labor is outsourced or done by robots, Firl Industries is unique. The company has been manufacturing canvas products since 1965. The log carriers featured on Wisconsinmade.comare made, not by foreign laborers or machines, but by a qualified sewing staff in Fond du Lac,Wisconsin.  Most of the Firl Industries staff has been employed at the company for more than 20 years. Not only can you feel good about supporting an American company that takes care of its workers, but the functionality of the bag itself is exceptional. The design keeps dirt and wood off the floor, distributes weight evenly for easy lifting, and folds neatly and compactly for convenient storage. With two sizes and six colors to choose from, you are sure to find the log carrier that fits the décor of your home or cabin.  From functional to fun, Wisconsinmade.com is always adding new USA made products, so stop by often to see what else is new.

I hope you enjoyed the guest post, Leave a comment and Let Amanda know what you think! At the very least, Stop by the WisconsinMade.com site and pickup some goodies.

I bought some hiking socks from wigwam after doing some reading about the benefits of hiking with a sock designed for hiking.

What a difference it has made. I’ve been on a couple long hikes while wearing the “Cool-Lite Hiker Pro” and they keep my feet dry and blister free. The socks seem to be lightly padded and very well made.

Check out the Wigwam Amazon Store for more Wigwam products that are Made in the USA.

As always, Shop local.

Long time no see, huh? Ha! I’m back.

I was looking for a kayak for about a year. I’ve been researching and I found a couple companies, thanks to Americans Working, Jammer Canoe and Kayak and Old Town Canoe and Kayak.

On further research, I ran across Emotion kayaks, I must say, they make a beautiful kayak. They were, unfortunately, out of my price range.

I was looking around for a 12′ kayak that could hold some gear for overnight river adventures. I ran across the Loon 120, from Old Town,  at a Cabela’s… Though I don’t like buying from big chains, they had an unbeatable price on the kayak. Unfortunately… I did purchase a paddle and life jacket of unknown origin I feel kinda crappy about this.. I’ll try to make it up in the future.

Took the loon out last night for it’s maiden voyage. Kayaking is wonderful. It reminds me of fly fishing, it keeps the mind focused on one thing and the rest of the world is put on hold. So relaxing… I may have to try them together! Fly fishing from a kayak sure sounds fun.

I went kayaking with my dad a few weekends ago in his kayak, It seemed a lot of people were sporting old town kayaks.

Also, as a side note, I had been looking around for used kayaks for about 6 months. Nothing turned up on the craigslist that was what I wanted, in my price range. I prefer to buy used if possible. Saves me money and gives money to someone local.

I recently began geocaching. It’s a lot of fun, keeps me out of the house, and I’ve been places I’d never have seen without it.

To do geocaching, you just need a GPS device and a coordinate. The GPS device I started with was my cell phone but I wanted something durable that I didn’t need to worry about dropping. My phone wouldn’t survive a drop from 4 feet, The Apisphere Geomate.jr sure will.

Over 250,000 caches, 2 aaa batteries last 12-hours. The accuracy is as good (if not better than), my phone. The build quality of the Geomate Jr is impressive. Simple, shock resistant, and very smooth. Best of all, Made in the USA.

Happy Geocaching.

Finally!! I’ve been searching all summer, maybe longer, for a Maul Made in the USA.

Council tool, a 123 year old company manufacturing out of Lake Waccamaw North Carolina, makes a huge selection of axes.

Take a look at this beauty. General purpose, RC 45-55, Natural steel finish. I need one of these for my truck.

Not to mention the rest of the stuff they make:

• Brush Clearing Tools
• Clamping Products
• Forcible Entry Tools
• Forged Bars
• Municipal Firefighting Tools
• Picks/Mattocks/Gardening Tools
• Sledge Hammers
• Tradesmen Hammers
• Wildland Firefighting Tools

Get ready for splitting wood for your fireplace or stove. It’s going to be a cold one this year.

It seems there are always options out there. I was buying some fishing tackle this weekend at one of those giant outdoor shops. They had an amazing selection of everything. For example, fishing hooks primarily were made elsewhere.  I happened across some, for the same price, Made in the USA. Bobbers were another example. There were all kinds made in the US, and at very competitive prices (even cheaper than foreign made stuff in some cases).

I am a big stickler for quality. I generally will put Quality over Origin. But 9 out of 10 times I’ve found the USA made products wins in that category, anyway.

∞That’s your mission if you choose to accept it. Let us know what you bought instead of something else.

Costco had a package of Maglites the 2-AA LED, and a 3-D Cell LED. I have this weird thing for flashlights.. so I had to get them.

My hose nozzle cracked last winter so I needed a new one. Gilmour has a Zinc Pistol Grip Nozzle for a reasonable price at Lowes.  Be sure to check the label, Most of Gilmour’s products are made overseas. They do all seem to be of reasonably good quality.

Starting today I’ll be providing you with missions for the upcoming week. Click here for your Mission.

I checked out a Pelican case at a local Outdoors store (Alpine Shop).  The Pelican cases are very well built and have some great features. For example The Pelican i1010 Waterproof Case for an iPod has the usual crushproof and water resistant case with a headphone jack built in. So you may listen to your tunes while in a kayak or hiking, without worry.
They also carry a full line of cases for anything you could imagine (within reason). I have a DSLR Camera I’d like to take with me on a trip to Japan. The Pelican 1300-000-110 Small DSLR Camera Case ought to work perfect.

Another great selling point, everything is backed by Pelican’s Legendary Lifetime Guarantee of Excellence, “You break it, we replace it…forever.”™

Pelican Products are made in Torrance, California.

Buy Pelican on Amazon

∞Pelican