Tom Forbes

An avid outdoorsman and self-taught craftsman, Tom Forbes was born on the plains of the Dakotas in 1964. His first book for Paladin, PVC Projects for the Outdoorsman: Building Shelters, Camping Gear, Weapons, and More Out of Plastic Pipe, was released in March.

He has also done three videos—two with Paladin (The Invisible Advantage: A Step-by-Step Guide to Making Ghillie Suits and Custom Camouflage Accessories in 1997 and an upcoming video on muzzleloading firearms) and one with the Varmints Hunters Association (Seeing is Believing). He has also written articles for newspapers and magazines such as American Survival Guide and Varmint Hunter.

Forbes joined the army after high school and served three years as a military policeman. He returned to South Dakota and worked as a deputy sheriff for two years, then as a city police officer for three more years. In 1991 Forbes went to work full time for the South Dakota National Guard as a training NCO. In addition to his other duties, is also working as a recruiter for the guard.

PVC was Forbes’ first serious attempt at writing a book, and he’s looking forward to doing more projects with Paladin. While he’s modest about his skill as a craftsman, he says he enjoys building things, and PVC pipe provides him with a cheap medium in which to work. He and his family also run The Ghillie Shop, which sells ghillie suits to the public. But he says business has slowed down since the release of his instructional video, which makes it easy for the average person to construct his or her own camouflage gear. "In the video, we showed a lot of the shortcuts. We basically showed how to build a better mousetrap," Forbes said, adding, "It makes a great winter project."

Forbes says he has always had "a passion for implements of destruction." His hobbies include shooting modern and antique firearms and bows, hunting (primitive and modern), off-road bicycling, and studying military history and weapons. He lives in Mobridge, South Dakota, with wife, Jill, and 13-year-old daughter, Scout, who he says are a great deal of help and "tolerate my eccentricities."

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