Help with the cold and my hands

[tramp bushler]

The best cheapest parka is the 40 below down parka at Army&Navy on 4th . Get it big ... Nothing wrong with Carharts Arctic EXTREME .BUT DON,T GET THE COTTON .GET THE CORDURA .. I prefer the Jacket with the attached Hood as Carhart snap on hoods REALLY SUCK BIG TIME . The Coat has a storm velcro flap tho .so if you can sew on your hood and put a good ruff on i,t it is ok ..... Brooks Range Store is no more expensive on somethings than Anch . or Fairbanks . But on somethings they are REAL expensive .....I buy my Arctic insulated Carharts @ Brooks Range any more .. saves me having to pack them ....Are you a pilebuck? Mechanic ?Laborer ?

 

[tramp bushler]

If you don,t need the FRC , Korbana gear , don,t spend the money on it ...

 

[slowp]

slowp , you don,t know what cold hands really are . last winter in Prudhoe I frosted 3 fingers on my left hand ... I was changing teeth on a 345 Cat frost bucket . From the time I was ok to them starting to turn into something you would find in the freezer section was 2 minutes .... It is usually cumulative ... . I had got oil on my gloves doing an oil change on a light plant or 966 or something .....then we decided to change some bucket teeth ... I should have taken a 10 minute break of so , it was 50 below ........ Log butcher isn,t talking about cold hands , but ones soon on their way to changeing for the rest of someones life .... My head is one of my best hand warmers .. I put my hands on my head under my hat ............But @ -50 . Most peopke left outside will be dead in an hour unless they have arctic gear on ....

Well, I'd still squeal if I was the tummy donor. Just thinking about it. Some people are extremely ticklish...:monkey: Not saying that I am...

I have a little bit of experience with cold. But only to -30 with no wind. Back in da liddle house in da Methow Valley, where da shower drain froze up at -10 but den thawed ok at -9. And in da Nort country of Wisconsin, where I tink I froze my tear duct because it has been runny ever since I took da dog for a walk in -20 somting and my eye kinda froze shut.

Used to ski in da old days ven da boots were leather. Ve skied until our feet were numb, den went in and tried not to notice da pain when dey warmed up.

Yah, now dey got dose plastic ski boots wid da insulation. Wimps.

By the way, I like my Dalbellos. But dey don't fit so good on da hands.

 

[gwiley]

I remember walking to work northwest of Chicago on morning at -20 to -30degF. COuldn't wear my glasses for obvious reasons and my eyes kept freezing shut. They would tear up because of the cold and wind then when I blinked they would get stuck, had to use my fingers to pry them open. That was an awesome experience for someone who grew up in Florida!

 

[ak4195]

The best cheapest parka is the 40 below down parka at Army&Navy on 4th . Get it big ... Nothing wrong with Carharts Arctic EXTREME .BUT DON,T GET THE COTTON .GET THE CORDURA .. I prefer the Jacket with the attached Hood as Carhart snap on hoods REALLY SUCK BIG TIME . The Coat has a storm velcro flap tho .so if you can sew on your hood and put a good ruff on i,t it is ok ..... Brooks Range Store is no more expensive on somethings than Anch . or Fairbanks . But on somethings they are REAL expensive .....I buy my Arctic insulated Carharts @ Brooks Range any more .. saves me having to pack them ....Are you a pilebuck? Mechanic ?Laborer ?

Picked up a set of arctic bibs and coat here in wasilla,will get at least one more pair of bibs too.I just dont think they are enough,but I have no winter experience north of Fairbanks.
Waisted some dough on more refrigiwear gloves,thnx for the info on AIC,will take them back.
Bought a small job box for my tools,$560 day,nother $300-$400 or so to go.
Pee test tomorrow in Anch,will buy my boots downtown,was thinking of Lacrosse,hate to tear up my black bunny boots.But Im all ears,didnt hear anything good about the Baffins,which is a shame.
Im an apprentice Service Oiler,didnt think I was going to get any dispatches this winter.In fact i was going to attend the "Pimp my Resume" class at the job center,till I was saved by a phone call.The job is supposed to last till April,somewhere around Kuparic for BP staying in the OCC camp,or something like that.
Would you suggest a mini DVD player or is that stuff piped in,I was a commercial fisherman for over 20 yrs so I know the value of some end of day wind down time.
I love the Copper River valley btw,have a family cabin on the Gulkana @ Sourdough.

stay safe
ak4195

 

[tramp bushler]

If you already got a pair I would take them with you , But don,t tell them you have gloves . Put the reciept in one tie them together and put them in your go to work gear bag .. Mine holds 4,000 cubic inches and I pretty much keep it full .... You need spares . Put your name on everything they give you with a marker pen ... It goes home with you .. If you buy any tools at NAPA. / Brooks Range Supply ,You need to keep the reciept and have it w/you when you come home ....... Sometimes security will check a tool as lots of stuff disappears even up there .... I will give 1 tip that may save your carrer ... 5 MPH IN THE YARD ..... Don,t cross a pad unless the foreman of that shift gives you permission NO #### < IT IS BETTER TO SIT AND WAIT . Crossing a pad without BPs permission can get you dead if there is a gas leak or fired if the BP guy is in any kind of a mood .... Prudhoe is kind of like being on a military base .....same goes for Conoco Phillips ..... They are WAY REDNECK ABOUT THEIR PROCEDURES BEING FOLLOWED .... and 8-10 grand a month take home is worth doing it their way .... Don,t even think about getting a drop oil , anti freeze or other fluid on the ice or snow .. Prudhoe is the most ANAL place for any oil spills there is .. I mean , 1 ounce .... DUCK PONDS /DUCK PONDS/ DUCK PONDS ....... When close outs start I may be up there .. , It will be good to meet someone else on A. S . 10 mph at Peak Base Camp . And it,s a big yard .. Don,t worry , you get paid by the hour ... Rosy the fueler is cool and a very good fueler ..For us dirt guys the fueler is real important ...

 

[tramp bushler]

I forgot , if your gloves get soaked with oil they will freeze your hands . .Thats 1 reason you need spares .... AIC has alot of real good hands that work for them .........Be real nice to the gals in the office !!!!!! They control your coming and going .. .. Oh and the place is over the top anal about sanitizing your hands .. just do it . I use Bag Balm and food service gloves at night twice a week minimum ... slather my hands down with Bag Balm , put on the gloves and go to bed . ... It really helps out .... Most of the other stuff doesn,t work too good .. They usually have it at Brooks Range store .. .. An MP3 player is a must ... I hate public music as I usually hate what someone else likes ... Put in the ear buds . Crank up your tunes and go ahead on er .. If you have to ride in a crummy or bus It will really help your mood . Hopefully you will have a opposite shift room mate . Same shift room mates suck ..even if they are a good guy it still sucks ..... Fleece face masks .. Real important . Have a couple / few . they get snotted up pretty good .Oh and last but not least .. about half the people who work for AIC Prudhoe . are named MIKE . seriously . Please tell me your not named Mike ..

 

[catbuster]

Carhart coat w/ sevral layers underneath, insulated bibs w/long-johns, 600 gram minimum thinsulateboots and really thick socks. Then insulated gloves. for you head, Wear a ski mask/tobbaggan, I wear a tobbaggan so the nieghors don't think my name is jason and put a hood over it. then you'll be REAL toasty.

 

[slowp]

Gotta revert to the right accent.

Youse guys know what da serious cross country skiers use on der faces? Da skiers who ski in da Berkerbiener--Cable WI to Hayward, through da woods in chilly winter, swear by Mary Kay Ballerina Foot Balm. Yup. Dats what it is called. Smells better dan Bag Balm. Prettier container.

I used some on the last Book Across The Bay event I did. I think the temperature was 11 above that night. It seemed to help keep the face from freezing. Although that "race" was warmer than the year's before.

No Berkerbiener for me!

 

[bullbuck]

turtle fur makes a real nice baclava designed for fitting nicely under your helmet, hardhat,hat,etc.it is a real nice product,thin breathable and wads up to the size of a hankie when it is not in use,any local motorcycle shop can order it for you through parts unlimited

 

[tramp bushler]

Had my hair freeze to the suspension of my hard hat yesterday .That was my 2n sled load when I had got done most of the cutting for the day Have to take my balaclava off as I get too hot .. . Face mask was freezing to my beard ....... The jacket I wore all day was becoming solid on the outside , A fila downhill ski jacket that mas PolorGaurd insulation .I got it at a thrift shop for a couple bucks and have been wearing for 3 winters now .. It,s too warm for Southeast . but good for here and it,s real flexable .. It was around 20 below F all day ....Had to melt the ice out of the face screen a half dozen times on the muffler of the Solo ... ... Had a good day , but the rewind on the Solo broke right after I started the saw to buck the last 2 short logs up , and it was odd , sometimes the starter handle will sit sideways in it,s pocket on the starter cover , it tends to bug me so I will flip it 90 degrees so it sits in line like it,s supposed to ... When I did that , it fell over sideways and the rope payed out .... I had to wad it up and hold it in my left hand while I bucked up my last logs ... I,ll tear into it today and see what happened .....

 

[ak4195]

Nikaitchuq ....

Well got most of the big ticket items out of the way,just have to pick up an xtra set of bibs,n balaclava's.
Did the "turn your head and cough" yesterday and shipped off my tools,now its pretty much time to sort and lay everything out.Stuff it in a bag,pull it out downsize and stuff it in again.
Took the GF and dawgs up to Hatcher Pass last night for a new years full moon snow shoe,it was actually fairly warm up there surprisingly,cept for the stiff breeze it was probably in the mid teens.
I guess the job is for ENI,big italian national oil company

Are you clearing land or harvesting firewood,or both?
Back in the day my running partner @ UAF(xtra curricular activities) was Bob Murray from Kenny Lake.One of my former shipmates as far as I know still lives @ Willow Lake.
Did you ever figure out how to reduce the air flow on the Solo?

ak

 

[tramp bushler]

what is Nit a chuq

Salvage logging beattle killed spruce @ 166 mile ,down toward Lost Cabin Lake ....State timber sale.. Cool on the snowshoeing !!!! My wife likes recreational snow shoeing also .... What kind of bibs and parka ??? Yhe ENI job .. good deal it is going ...
.
I guess it is Nik ait chuq , what is it ???

 

[ak4195]

Salvage logging beattle killed spruce @ 166 mile ,down toward Lost Cabin Lake ....State timber sale.. Cool on the snowshoeing !!!! My wife likes recreational snow shoeing also .... What kind of bibs and parka ??? Yhe ENI job .. good deal it is going ...
.
I guess it is Nik ait chuq , what is it ???

Sounds like its a big production site,will be tied in with kuparuk for pipeline transfer.Guess Ill know more very soon,ran into a friend last night who works for ASRC for the last few yrs.
Echo'd your thoughts on gear,sounds like I may not have had to buy everything here as well.Oh well,I hate showing up like a greenhorn.
Now onto more important things like:do I need to bring my own tobasco sauce?
ak4195

 

[tramp bushler]

Some real expensive restraunts in town have better food than the general run of Prudhhoe Bay ... But as a rule you always leave alot fatter than when you go ... ALWAYS BRING TWO BIG LUNCHES TO WORK .. If you don,t get caught in a White out you throw the one away that you didn,t eat ... Seldom do you get caught out , but it only takes freezing to death one time ya know ... food keeps you warm ..................

 

[Brmorgan]

This is a great thread; lots of info and products for me to check out. I'm always looking for ways to keep warm since I have four fingertips that I've shortened up over the years and they get cold very easily. Add to that that I have naturally low BP and my extremities don't stay warm if I'm not really moving around a lot; meanwhile my torso can be absolutely burning up inside. I hate it. I love working around -5-10°C if I can keep moving, but beyond that my fingers start aching after a while and they aren't quick to warm back up.

 

[tramp bushler]

It was 25 below 0 F today when I went to work . All I wore on my hands was a pair of insulated leather palm nylon back gloves ...I have about 28years running a saw for a living , and I only had to warm my hands on the muffler twice .... But I had the rest of my body very well insulated and half the time I was breathing thru a fleece face mask .. 3 of them actually as they would ice up and freeze to my beard ......Plus I am sick with a major cold so I was feverish / then chilled .. Got my day in tho ,, made 200 . Bein sick I was very thankful I did that well !!!

 

[ithica]

I have these hunting mittens that flip open underneath is a glove, there is also a zippered pocket on the mitten half where I put hot packs inside, I use them for everything , never had cold hands, and trust me it gets colder than witches tit up here in Northern Ontario. Not the same brand as the picture but the same style , if these don't work well you can always shove your hands down your pants haha !

 

[ak4195]

its been around -8 here since I got here,sposed to chilly on down later in the week,glad I brought the heavy duties....

 

[tramp bushler]

Ak; hows it goin there ... Did you need a refresher on your NSTC card ???? I got an e mail from the Laborers that there was a mandatory class or something I needed to take on my NSTC card .... ?????????????????????? How big is the job @ ENI ?????? The phone started ringing here with wood orders so I,ve been totally busy all week and it is looking like into next week .....Hopefully for a while to come .....