Becker Bow Drill (Pic Heavy)

If I remember my lecture notes........every ten degree in crease in humidity and every ten dgree drop in temperature DOUBLES the difficulty......So try a sunny, south facing slope at about 3pm......You do this and hand rill and you really understand why they killed the idiot wwho let the fire go out......A gene pool enhancement plan for sure......Remember in your fits of frustration that when a primitive left the hogan, lodge or long house to go a'hunting of a frosty morn he had DRY tinder, his already made fire kit......See the Iceman's gear......It was his "Bic"......

After I got my first coal with a hand drill I never ever looked at a match, Zippo or Bic quite the same way.....

Ethan
 
Ethan Becker said:
If I remember my lecture notes........every ten degree in crease in humidity and every ten dgree drop in temperature DOUBLES the difficulty......So try a sunny, south facing slope at about 3pm......You do this and hand rill and you really understand why they killed the idiot wwho let the fire go out......A gene pool enhancement plan for sure......Remember in your fits of frustration that when a primitive left the hogan, lodge or long house to go a'hunting of a frosty morn he had DRY tinder, his already made fire kit......See the Iceman's gear......It was his "Bic"......

After I got my first coal with a hand drill I never ever looked at a match, Zippo or Bic quite the same way.....

Ethan
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It had just rained, was 33 degrees while raining/snowing and then it dropped to the 20s... so it was very humid, very cold and coincidentally a North facing wooded area around 10:00 AM, talk about doing everything in the wrong! I am however not giving up and I'll try until my sheer frustration and/or determination will ignite the wood. That and maybe some homemade napalm...

Thanks for the information Moose and E, I will definitely try it on a less crappy day. It just sucks because it shows me how dependent I am on my gear, so I really want to be a bit more self sufficient in the future. On a secondary note, the BK2 makes easy work of making the kit!
 
Fantastic Moose. This is why you are the man. Taking the time to educate the masses. I will hopefully find some time this weekend to try this out with the back cut.
 
Moosez45 said:
Once it works, embellish as much as you want to, and I recommend alot.

First, choose your tool.

lip test to make sure any wood you find is workable. Your lips will tell you if the wood is wet, or dry.

Ok, wood processing time. You will need 5 pieces of certain shape and size.

I typically go from 6-8", you will need enough room for your foot, so don't skimp on the length, unless you have not choice.

Now we have a round piece of wood

Mine has a little curve to it, as that's the grain, but it will work just fine

I like my spindles to be about 8" long, YMMV, the short they are the easier to control, but you string way walk up to the bearing block, and monkeywrench the whole works.

I like to shave mine down, one, I use the bark to make my nest for the coal, and two, it tears up your cord faster. Skin it. .

You don't need a HUGE curve, but if that's what you want, go for it

I have a special way of doing the other end, pics should tell you better but I bore a hole about 2" back, and then split the wood to the hole.

If this is your first time, it may take you a minute. Don't worry, you will get lots of practice..

Now, the secret is pressure and speed.

When you start, start slow, with just enough pressure to keep the whole mess together. Once you find your rythym, increase speed and pressure. You should start to see smoke in about 10 secs. You will need to constantly monitor your pressure. Once you smoke the hearth for about 15-20secs, you should be burned in.

Start the same way, only increase your pressure faster, now, and smoke that baby

Then, lighten just a little on pressure, AND GIVE IT ALL YOU GOT. ALL GO NO STOP. She should be smokin' like a housefire.

Moose
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That's what she said.





:D someone had to do it.

Ehem. That's what she said.
 
Shoot, since Derek linked this thread, I'm bumping it back up. Good stuff Moose. I need to try this myself. Always wanted to learn how to do it.
 
There is some good information on the Bushcraftusa site about using green or wet wood. One of the advanced papers details getting smoke, waiting for it to cool down, repeat 5 times and then go for a coal. The friction on the first five dry the wood.

If you want to teach someone and get them hooked fast the yucca is about the best, I recall it burns at something close to 400 degrees vs some of the other woods are as high as 1200 degrees. Also let them use jute twine for a tender bundle in the begining to make sure they are successful. You can even recommend they use Zute as a lanyard so they always have some with them. It does work as a cord for the bow drill too, but you have to twist it up to make it more durable. I also make a reverse cone in the notch so the dust packs under the drill. The goal is to light the top of the dust pile with friction. Going slow until the notch fills to the top saves energy and makes it burn better once you have the enber.

As to your tutorial...Very nice. Much better than anything I could do and it covered everything one needs to know to be successful. Great instructions, great pictures, great job!
 
Per Moose the last time we discussed a bow drill the only thing he has since changed is that if possible he will use a chunk from a very green sapling as the bearing block, preferably one that has a great deal of moisture on the inside as that helps to make it even more lubricated for the spindle.
 
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