In this episode of the show you can here more from the 2023 National Jamboree Chairman Tico Perez. In this segment Tico discusses innovative ways the BSA has thrown out the old rule book about how a Jamboree is run. This includes the opportunity for ANY Scouter to attend with a troop or on staff. He shares that in this new model a leader can attend with their Scout and live the adventure. They are also looking to add another 1,000 staff members and shares how for younger staff members there is a generous discount.



During the show there will also be an unboxing of a Boy Scout collection that I got in. I will also premiere a special video that I recorded for my Patreon Group. The video is called the Inside the Warehouse feature and shows my sorting project in action.

You can enter the giveaway mentioned in this episode by going to http://www.scoutpatchcollectors.com/prize. The drawing will stay open for one week following the video.

If you are a Scouting memorabilia collector this is the show for you! This is the first episode of my new weekly show Scouting Hot Finds Live. You will not want to miss everything I have packed into a 30-minute livestream including an unboxing, cool giveaway, interview with the 2023 National Scout Jamboree Chairman Tico Perez and a Trade-O-Ree update. The link to participate in the giveaway and get a chance to win the signed sash by the founder of the OA is http://www.scoutpatchcollectors.com/p... This format will be interactive to join live so you can leave comments and be part of the fun.

Chris Jensen is once again hosting the Pre-NOAC Trade-O-Ree and in this interview he shares all the details of the event coming up July 23-25 in Knoxville, TN. The TOR runs Saturday - Monday which means the last day is when all the contingents show up. In the podcast we talk about this bi-annual gathering of the hobby and why this is a don't miss event for any Scouting memorabilia collector. You can get a copy of the flyer and see what other TORs are happening around the country on my website at http://www.scoutpatchcollectors.com. You can find Chris Jensen's website at http://www.Streamwood.net which includes additional information about the event.

Version III of the Camp Book II has been published and my guest is Bob Sherman who is the lead author on the project along with Dave Minnihan and Kevin Doyle. This latest version now tops out at 1600 pages identifying each known Boy Scout camp by alpha, state and council. In the interview Bob shares all the research that has been added in this edition including whether camps are known to have issued a patch.

The book is available as a digital download or you can buy the whole 1600+ page printed copy at http://www.scoutpatchcollectors.com.

Order of the Arrow cataloging going back 50 years is the topic of this month’s Scouting Hot Finds Insiders Round Table. Bill Mulrenin served as the New York State Editor on the Blue Book project for the last 3 editions. So in the discussion we take it all the way back to Bill Price books of the 1970s to describe how far this has come. The next big leap forward that we cover is the 1979 publication of the Arapaho book which really helped the hobby. The key feature here was adding high quality images to help with the identification. We didn’t mention it (sounds like a topic for another Round Table) but there is also tons of great historical data in the Arapaho uncovered from National BSA records. Finally we single out multiple ways that the Blue Book published in 1996 really improved OA cataloging. Over the six editions of the Blue Book things such as chronological listing, decimal numbering, as well as including neckerchiefs, chapter issues and event issues were big improvements. If you are a Boy Scout patch collector I think you will find this video to be very educational as Bill has a wealth of history in the hobby to share.

Wiatt Williamson has cracked the code on how to write a Scouting memorabilia guide book. In his years in the hobby he has written over a dozen guides for Order of the Arrow lodges, councils and camps. In this interview he shares the blueprint and makes an offer to share his easy to use template with everyone out there. I think that his idea can be a powerful positive force for the hobby. Imagine if in your state there was a free PDF for all the CSPs (David McIntyre) or for the camps that have been part of your council's legacy through mergers. If you write it they will collect it to borrow a twist a line from a classic movie.

Mitch Reis has just published the 5th Edition of A Guide To Dating And Identifying Boy Scouts Of America Badges, Uniform, & Insignia. This book is one of the reference "bibles" that all Scouting memorabilia collectors should have on their shelf. There is hardly a topic that is not covered if it was worn on a uniform. In this interview Mitch goes all the way back to his earliest efforts on this project. We hear how catching up since the last edition in 2009 was such a challenge. But in the end he has crafted a reference book that will be such a vital piece to feed collectors with new rabbit holes to go down. I was reading the book myself and spent way too much time looking at the Cub Scout listing. Now I'm going to put together a Cub display as I just finished 5 years of being a den leader.

If you enjoy this content please consider helping me fund this podcast by joining my Patreon Group called the Scouting Hot Finds Insiders. For as little as $1 per episode you can join and make sure that the podcast remains a bi-weekly effort to interview interesting people in the hobby. You can also unlock exclusive content that I only publish there. That includes an "After the Interview" segment with Mitch where I asked him some extended questions to get his opinion. Check it all out at http://www.ScoutingHotFinds.com.

Perhaps the first podcast I ever listened to back in 2006 was an ambitious project that was launched by some guys out of Coosa Lodge 50 in Alabama. Clothtalk was their idea for an audio podcast that would focus on the hobby of collecting Scouting memorabilia. For 29 episodes these guys brought on guests for interviews, had a Trade-O-Ree correspondent, and asked their guests "what's your favorite patch?" Chris Brightwell was part of that original team although he was more of the engineer making the magic happen. In this interview Chris goes back to 2005-2006 and shared where the idea was born, who made it happen, and reminisces about how this podcast was maybe ahead of it's time. I say right from the beginning in the intro that their podcast was the inspiration for me to pick up a microphone and start SHF Radio back in 2011.

You can find the show notes page at http://www.Scoutpatchcollectors.com. Be sure to go there to find a link to the original Clothtalk episodes that Chris was able to resurrect including the show notes pages. In my Patreon group the Scouting Hot Finds Insiders you can find an extended version "After the Interview" segment where I hear about an amazing audio project that Chris is helping to launch called the Scouting Memories Podcast. You can find out more at http://www.ScoutingHotFinds.com.

For about 15 years Bill Mulrenin has been a constant on the Internet for the Boy Scout memorabilia collecting hobby. His website at www.NYOATRADER.com is the prototype for what a niche blog site in our hobby should be. As the New York OA Blue Book Editor he created the site to help share knowledge and also to keep up with new Order of the Arrow issues from the Empire State. In this interview we go all the way back to the beginning of this idea. We also talk about his work on the board of the Ten Mile River Scout Museum. Going forward Bill has used some of the down time during the 2020-21 pandemic to work on the site and has plans to improve it going forward.

If you enjoyed this content please consider joining my Patreon Group called the Scouting Hot Finds Insiders. My backers in this group specifically help me hire an audio and video editor to bring this podcast to life along with my series of unboxing videos. You can find out more and access exclusive content (including my After the Interview segment with Bill) at www.ScoutingHotFinds.com.

A decade ago Bill Chadek took a gamble on a Boy Scout pocket knife.  He cleaned up a beat up old knife and brought it back to life with elbow grease, sandpaper, and lots of polishing.  This was the beginning of a side business refurbishing vintage BSA pocket knives, sheath knives and hand axes. Today his completed projects sell at auction for as much as $400 on eBay.  Over the last decade of honing his craft Bill has experimented with different woods, learned how to forge a much improved leather sheath, and mastered polishing metal. In the interview we talk in depth about one of his most well known projects - recreating the "Kit Carson" style combo with sheath knife with a hand axe mated together.When I came across Bill promoting his projects on Facebook I quickly became a fan.  While connecting on this interview Bill actually agreed to repair the sheath for my favorite Western BSA knife.  I came away really impressed by his craftsmanship. I love how he is taking something old and recycling it to make it a presentation item.  He shares in the interview that several Scoutmasters have purchased these to give them out as gifts for Eagle Scout presentations.If you enjoy this interview with Bill Chadek then you might want to hear the exclusive bonus content that I have posted in my Patreon Group.  I had one thorny question for Bill and decided to put that in my "After The Interview" segment rather than include it in the public audio.  We also talk about the possibility of me sending him some items to refurbish. You hear access that bonus content and become a member of the Scouting Hot Finds Insiders for as little as $2 per month at http://www.scoutinghotfinds.com.  There are also exclusive videos in the Insiders group.  The whole purpose of this Patreon group is to support the hiring of an audio and video editor so I can put out more content in 2021!