MSB Week In Review Episode 002
Here is this weeks MSB insiders video of our week in review. We want to make these videos really cool for members of the Support Brigade, so after watching it please be sure to leave questions and comments for what you want to see in next weeks updates.
The purpose of these videos is to give MSB members a behind the scenes look at what we do at the the Spirko homestead and with the operations of the TSP business itself. This will generally be things that we are reserving for our private members only.
All the videos are posted to Vimeo and are password protected. The pass code will be the same for all videos and it is prominently displayed on the main page of your MSB Private Area. You will see it as soon as you log in. You can’t miss it. It is in BOLD RED at the top of the page when you log in.
Our latest MSB Week in Review covers…
- 3 Guests coming this week
- What beer Jack is drinking
- Lessons learned with freedom ranger chickens
- Our initial results with sprouting grains for our poultry
- What you have to do to get Dorothy on camera
- TSP and all our sites are moving to a new server
- Why it will be “rerun city” in Oct for TSP
- How you can always find the new MSB only videos
- Questions on our aquaculture system
- Thoughts on picking up and “petting” geese
- Customizing moras and sheaths are coming to the gear shop
- Wild crafting at the TSP homestead
- What did we eat this week, we really went “off the reservation”
- Why our video looks so much better, and a secrete only some will understand
- The geese do make a guest appearance once again!
You can view this weeks video at https://vimeo.com/75701412
Thanks for doing this. One of the reasons I’ve been an MSB member since the beginning is because it makes me feel a little bit like I’m helping out in the mission. The behind-the-scenes updates that slip in from time to time make me happy.
Ok I’ll bite. I would like to see Dorothy on camera. Lol
Good video btw. Thanks for what u guys do!
Loving these, Jack! Thanks for doing them.
Hello! I’m unable to view the MSB video using my msb password or my e-mail address. My msb pw has worked for everything else. IDK what I’m doing wrong. Help!
Well you are not reading what it says to do. There is absolutely no way everyone could use their individual passwords on Vimeo and it would work, from the post.
“All the videos are posted to Vimeo and are password protected. The pass code will be the same for all videos and it is prominently displayed on the main page of your MSB Private Area. You will see it as soon as you log in. You can’t miss it. It is in BOLD RED at the top of the page when you log in.”
So you need to go into your MSB account and look for the video password and instructions at the top of the main page when you log in, you can’t miss it as it is in bold and red. Once you have the password you can jot it down somewhere and it will always work for all MSB only videos.
looking forward to checking these out
Hey, a new like/dislike comment system, too. Great addition.
I had to chuckle at the geese – everything is on their terms, lol.
(At least, THEY think so.)
So Glen has some kind of filming deal going on with 299 days?
I like the videos. Is definitely a behind the scenes look. The nice thing I’m already seeing is the quick candid “this worked, this hasn’t worked” kinda thing. Its basically a quick hippocket blogging on things you guys are trying. We always hear little things about that things are going on, but no details. Now, we git a bit more info.
The issue with chickens is one of the reasons why i say that I don’t really want to deal with chickens, but I know its something I need on the property. (Bug eaters, diggers, scratchers, poopers). I’m not entirely sure what I’ll have to do to keep the peace amongst the birds whilst not having to go with purely purchasing only hens.
What strategies are you currently doing, and possibly looking to play with in the future when it comes to cockrels, hens, and the sort? Running two different flocks separately?
Mike keep in mind the birds with the hostility issues are quick growing broilers, Freedom Rangers. They are all cockerels and now that we have them on a larger area they seem to have quelled down pretty good.
On the laying flock we have 8 hens and 1 rooster, they all do fairely well and no real issues. Two of the hens are Egyptian Fayoumis and I DO NOT recommend them. They suck, too flighty and the rooster is sort of abusive to them at times.
One with fully clipped wings, way beyond what we do on the others still gets over a 4 foot cross fence. If they were not so damn small I would have culled them by now. I can’t say it clearly enough, do not select this breed.
The balance of the flock is a mix or red sex link pullets and rhode island reds. The rooster is a RIR as well, he is the most awesome rooster you could have. He is calm and never gets aggressive with people. He always calls the girls when he finds good eats and will give them the best bugs. I can pick him up and though he doesn’t love the idea he never bites or tries to spur. I would go with RIRs or perhaps a buff orpington for a flock rooster based on my experience.
We do have one more laying hen, I thought she was a white leghorn but she turned out to be a bird only Tractor Supply sells. It is called Tetra Tint, I may breed some, well, I would try, Tetra Tint and RIR crosses since that is what I have.
The Tetra Tint is from a RIR Rooster crossed with a White Leghorn. The birds are small almost as small as the Fayoumi and they are fast and not cuddly like the other birds, they don’t like to be picked up but are not mean. Because they are small they don’t eat much. They lay fricken HUGE eggs, like typical supermarket jumbo size and that bird almost never misses a day.
At first I thought she was dirty, a white bird with slightly dirty feathers but then I looked into it further and found that TSC sells these birds. Which is where I got her.
Because I know the Rooster breeds her and I can tell her eggs I have thought about incubating some to grow the egg flock with. My concern is the cockerels. As light as these birds are they would be crap as meat birds.
Anyway don’t worry about the birds fighting a nice flock of hens has a pecking order but gets along well. One rooster can manage a flock of up to 20 quite well and in fact more hens make the rooster and his “needs” easier on the girls.
@Jack
Great information man. I saw the tractor supply chickens this past spring and wanted to get some (but wasn’t even remotely setup at the time). The fact that you’re saying a clipped bird is getting over a 4 foot fence is an automatic no go for me. I’ve already priced out an electric net fencing system (like ben falk’s) and there’s no way I have any ability to deal with flighty birds.
What’s wrong with white (light) birds as far as eating? Do they just not get as big?
So would you recommend getting the cheaper straight run, and splitting up the females (with a single male) and the males into separate “flocks”?
It all depends on what you want to do. Those Tetra Tints would be poor meat birds because they are small, they would be GREAT layers because they lay daily and lay large eggs, because they are small they eat less, they are fast and better at avoiding predators due to speed. This isn’t all white chickens it is the one breed I mentioned Tetra Tint.
The White Leghorn and the Rhode Island Red (RIR) are both decent dual purpose birds. For some reason when you cross the RIR rooster and the White Leghorn hen though the resulting bird is a small bodied bird but it lays a shit ton of eggs.
I have to say though I absolutely love my RIR and Red Sex Link layers. If I wanted maximum egg production that Tetra Tint is hard to beat. I like her but the other girls are just calmer.
If you want egg layers (long term residents) don’t go strait run, buy pullets. If you want a rooster buy two cockerels and cull out the one you like least, or buy one and roll the dice. I have to say it is great having a rooster in the flock. He does a lot to keep the girls protected.
If you want meat chickens it is a whole other ball of wax. People do males because they grow larger faster. But as I said I had quite a few conflicts break out. With the Cornish crosses they are so lethargic I guess it doesn’t happen much. Ben Falk raised all male “Kosher Kings” and no issues with fighting.
All I can say is with my Red Rangers they did get pretty heated. A few birds died and three others pretty badly wounded. The wounded ones are doing fine now and all together and getting along separated from the rest of the flock.
Next round to minimize this I will do all hens. I will just give them a few extra weeks to mature and I will be doing less birds, 25 vs 50 and I also won’t be starting them when it is so hot.
Again this is all about what do you want a laying flock or a run of broilers. I really can’t tell based on your comments so far.
@Jack
The wife told me to get back on here and respond to you hah. Always keeping me in line…
Well we are definitely looking at doing meat birds. Getting high quality chicken meat where we are, can be a hassle. There are (now) two people who do chicken at the farmers market, of which both are cornish cross, which isn’t too surprising. I have asked one of them how he raises them and I think he’s basically just tractored/pastured birds.
I need birds for the function that they can provide (tilling, eating and clearing) but would definitely would like to have fresh chicken meat occasionally (and freeze some). Like I said I’m looking at keeping them in a 4 foot tall electric net fencing, they’ll have access to a live stock guardian dog, and depending on the setup, I might have goats with them as well.
I think I wouldn’t mind a layer or two, but as of right now, I am not looking to get involved too much in layers. We’ve got quite a few egg producers that are pretty good and it doesn’t cost too much. I think once we have kids, and/or eggs become more in use I’ll consider doing egg layers a bit more seriously. A few fresh eggs a week would be nice.
Then there is always the situation where I wouldn’t mind getting into raising my own (I’ll eventually need experience in that), but that’s not any kind of immediate desire. For one I’m also looking at creating the least amount of infrastructure necessary to just move birds around on the property, so obviously no hens = no laying boxes and so on.
Thanks for the help, you’ve definitely already started narrowing down the choices.
HHHMMMM beer of the month, I like the sound of that. So who has the honor of being the Jack Spirco approved club? sorry but I have to know haha.
thanks for everything that you are doing for the community!
Yeah i forgot to ask about this. It made me immediately think i should check out something around here. Problem with a beer of the month club, is i’ve probably already drank the majority of them. hahaha.
Also there isn’t a whole lot of great selections (although its definitely improving).
@Mike you would be surprised, most of them are pretty regional.
That’s always a good situation. Louisiana is still coming along, but I’m surprised by the number of beer varieties that have come up just in the last year since I got here.
I will admit that they’re beer varieties aren’t my absolute favorites (the darker, more english style beers). But that’s ok. Abita Springs Brewery is getting ready to come out with Macchiato Espresso Milk Stout in November…. My god i can’t wait. In fact I might have to stock up because it’ll be a temporary thing.
My one dislike in the club is they send a lot of IPAs, which I like, in the fall, winter and spring, but damn I wish they would lay off them in the fricken summer. Strongly hopped IPAs in 105 degree weather are like eating a damn pine cone.
@Jack
I tell you what Abita makes a damn fine strawberry ale and its perfect for the heat. In fact I’ve had it at a restaurant after working outside all day, and I nearly chugged it because it was so refreshing. That is a VERY rare thing for me to do (with a beer). I doubt you’d be able to get it but the super local brewery Covington (the name of the city we live near) also makes an even more… refreshing Strawberry ale… Phew. Unfortunately its more of a spring thing than summer.
I do IPAs with buffalo wings. I was not a fan a long time ago, but I’ve drank enough of them to give a thumbs up at the hoppiest of the hop bombs possible. Although I did try the 120 minute IPA from Dog Fish Head (its 20% ibv) http://www.dogfish.com/brews-spirits/the-brews/occassional-rarities/120-minute-ipa.htm. Its battery acid. Also I think I bought one 12 ounce beer for either 12 or 20 bucks, i can’t remember. Not worth it…. Yuck.
I keep checking them out online (beer of the month clubs) but have yet to pull the trigger. Recommendations????
Jack, in the video this week we where able to see the garden from a ways off and it looks great. I was wondering if one of the videos in the future could have a bit of a walk through to show the progress and any thoughts on how your results this season will impact what and where you plant next season.
Not sure if the comments here are the best place to make such a request but thanks for the videos.
I vote for Dorothy on vimeo!
so jack & the new mike…. would either of you recommend a beer of the month club?
thank you
Here you go, this is mine, http://bit.ly/xoqhJn
Sorry brother I have no idea about “beer clubs”. It just sounds like a good gig. I just go down to the various grocery stores or places that sell craft beers, and buy anything I hadn’t gotten before. Unfortunately I’ve rounded out most things I can find that have any, or all of these words. Chocolate, Caramel, Vanilla, Milk, Oatmeal, or Coffee. I also try to find the darkest beer possible. The best dark beer name I’ve seen yet is “Old Engine Oil” (a British Beer). not bad, but its quite expensive.
I had this one recently. Man it was so good.
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/3818/43687
@ jack
Thank You. Much appreciated., sorry to be such a pain haha
@ the new mike
thanks brother I will keep an eye out for “old engine oil” just the name makes me want to give it a try haha
Glad you didnt have problems with sprouting barley. It all depends on where you are doing it. I vote for Dorothy on the videos. Would like to here some wifey things or 13 skills info. Thanks for all you do. Have a great time on vacation.
Jack, do you find that the acidic vinegar you use to patina the Mora knives causes any noticeable degradation of the cutting edge?
no
Cool, good to know.
Also, did you ever try that Paleo bread you mentioned a while back? Might be cool to see a quick verdict on that in a new video.
Sadly it sucked.
I LOVE the iPhone Video rig. It is seriously badass. Also, my wife and I both want Dorothy on camera. 🙂