Middle Earth Ranger Forum

As to-do items get checked off my list, I finally got to one of the last things I've been wanting to replace for ages- my old bedroll carriage.

I'd always meant to do a proper Dunedain replacement for my Colonial setup, especially since Greg's brisk morning outing solution of the skinny-bedroll. After four (!!!) years, I finally made the time to actually craft a new burden strap. In fact, I've tried a number of iterations.


They've all had only light use so far, but I've definately got some opinions already.
All this assumes a skinny-roll setup, as I've yet to really get the hang of horseshoe rolls. So - here we go.

Option One: Simple D-ring
This was the simplest: I took a spare piece of already-prepared leather (I think originally slated to be a quiver strap) and just sewed a couple of my strap anchors to the ends. I looped a thick leather thong over one end and tied everything up Mark Baker style, like I'd always done.

Simple, quick... maybe it was too easy.
Cargo: an old commercial wool blanket, walnut dyed and wrapped in my goatskin bedroll cover. Looks absolutely awesome, but it's a bit light and there's no waterproof shelter at all. Still it was enough weight to get a feel for the carriage.

Option Two: Tumpline style
This was my first dedicated attempt at something new. I'd always wondered about those super-long tails on native tumplines, and finally found a good demo of how they were used:
(starts at 10:55)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OuTf5pOlG8U&t=10m55s

I approximated the same thing here: I purchased a new wide 2" strap, and specially asked that it be relatively thin (~7 oz rather than the usual 9) so as to hopefully conform to the body better and distribute weight. I stuck another set of anchors on the ends, and sewed some thick leather straps to the ends to approximate the functionality of the native tumps, albeit hopefully with a more Dunedain flair.

.... honestly I was underwhelmed. At first I was really hoping the long ties all together would solve the perennial "potential lost things in the leaf litter" problem the old fashioned Mark Baker method had - and it did! Unfortunately, the price for that was having to be a lot more particular about where to set the ends of the strap inside the bedroll, and a lot of excess knottage going on outside.

Worst of all, Valar help you if you want to adjust the fit of the carriage on the go.

I may try it a bit more to be sure, but I expect eventually I'll just cut the tails off. Perhaps it will work better once the tails work in and are more supple, but I'm not optimistic.


Cargo: The blanket is a simple army blanket wrapped in my first oiled linen groundcloth, and nothing else. SUPER light, it feels almost costumey. I'd not count on it in a sharp chill evening though.

Option Three: Double ring
This was an item that's looong been on my drawing board. A strap with two rings on each end, one for the bedroll, one for the front snapsack Greg came up with. Originally I'd intended a somewhat more complex arrangement loosely based on Boromir's shield strap with two layers and a buckle.

The wide d-ring at the end was originally intended to use a sort of horse-tack cinch in the middle for the bedroll to wrap around. I thought a rope "cinch" would be wide and sturdy, quite light, and - perhaps overcomplicating things -it could be an extra source of string if worse came to worse.

Eventually I binned that idea as too overdone. I still had the strap hardware though, and thought if I simplified my original "Boromir" model it might still work out. I also splurged on a strap was as wide as I could get to really spread out the load - 3" tapering down to 2" at the ends.

The wide "cinch" anchors are piggybacked with a set of the original 1" anchors. I looped some linen cord around a ring to approximate a "cinch" and - running out of materials - simply tied the ring to the anchor. It worked okay, more or less. At least it was still adjustable for fit.
The carriage is quite robust, easily answers to everything I'd originally intended, but it's heavier than the other options. Between the thicker leather and all that extra hardware, just the strap is a noticeable weight just on its own. It's not terrible of course... but everything adds up.

Cargo: This is admittedly responsible for some of my souring on this rendition - I loaded it with my oiled linen tarp and good hand-woven blanket, and tossed my browse bag and a short length of rope in for good measure. While a more realistic out-in-the-weather load perhaps, it's beastly to actually carry any distance.

Conclusion:

As I probably should have learned by now - simpler is better. A simple strap with an anchor at each end is the way I'll be going after all. Maybe with that cinch in the middle, maybe just a tie like before: but regardless the long tails and extra hardware are out of the running I think.
I mentioned a bonus, right? The sharp eyed will have seen glimpses in the photos already - but here's all the details: Quiver and Gear: a Ranger's Snapsack

Some great ideas there, thank you for sharing

Great attention to detail. Thanks for the inspiration!

I like what you've done with the snapsack concept...you're really putting it through its paces. I've definitely under-engineered mine from the start, but I've been thinking about some functional tweaks myself and your drawstring concept alone has me thinking it could use a bit of streamlining.

I do worry about the strain of the weight of both the snapsack and bedroll being not only on one strap, but both being across your back. I've found in the past over longer distances a minor loss of circulation and a buildup of sorts in the shoulder under the single strap that turns into a pile of knots after a trip, hence my move back to the horseshoe roll and hanging the snapsack from the quiver strap. I'd definitely say keep a cloak or a hood mantle beneath that strap if you're going to be wearing it for awhile. Looking forward to some reports on further testing/use!

I do worry about the strain of the weight of both the snapsack and bedroll being not only on one strap, but both being across your back. I've found in the past over longer distances a minor loss of circulation and a buildup of sorts in the shoulder under the single strap that turns into a pile of knots after a trip, hence my move back to the horseshoe roll and hanging the snapsack from the quiver strap.

Oh, that does sound familiar!

The last long trip (18 miles in a day, give or take?) I did some time back was with a colonial style setup: light knapsack with two shoulder straps, but the bedroll on a single leather strap. The single shoulder strap definitely had the issue you mention, but I could ameliorate it by moving the load around over course of the day: left shoulder a while, right shoulder a while, across both shoulders a while - wearing the strap across the shoulders/collarbone was surprisingly comfortable! Therefore I made certain I could do the same with these. We'll see how it works out in real use though.

The reason I've never taken to the horseshoe roll is just that I've never managed to keep it from getting floppy and wanting to come undone, especially with stuff wrapped up in it. Got any pointers?