Cool. I'll have to give this a try. Not that I'm going to leave behind my vaseline cotton balls, but I like to know if I had to I could use something else.
Many Thanks
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Char Cloth Recipes
- Thread starter lpwang
- Start date
Cool. I'll have to give this a try. Not that I'm going to leave behind my vaseline cotton balls, but I like to know if I had to I could use something else.
Many Thanks
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2003
- Messages
- 20,207
There may be better ways, but I just smear a cotton ball or pad around in a bottle of vasaline so it picks up "enough." Maybe 1/4 tsp. per ball. When I take a ball out of the 35mm can, I fluff it up with a small stick (or match) before lighting.
Yeah, for vaseline/cotton balls you don't want to saturate them all the way through. Coat the entire outside and work it in just a little bit.
When you want to light one you tear it open so that alot of the dry interior is exposed - this is what catches the spark and then acts like a wick - drawing up the petroleum and allowing it to burn. Essentially it's a mini oil lamp.
It still works when the ball is totally saturated, but then it requires alot greater heat source to obtain ignition.
For char cloth I prefer denim and my 'secret' is to stuff a cannister with scraps of cloth, close it up, poke a hole in it, then drop the whole thing into a bed of coals. When smoke starts coming out of the hole light the smoke so that it becomes a flame. When that flame goes out remove the cannister from the coals because it's done. Cannister with a large surface area to volume type of shape seem to work best.
When you want to light one you tear it open so that alot of the dry interior is exposed - this is what catches the spark and then acts like a wick - drawing up the petroleum and allowing it to burn. Essentially it's a mini oil lamp.
It still works when the ball is totally saturated, but then it requires alot greater heat source to obtain ignition.
For char cloth I prefer denim and my 'secret' is to stuff a cannister with scraps of cloth, close it up, poke a hole in it, then drop the whole thing into a bed of coals. When smoke starts coming out of the hole light the smoke so that it becomes a flame. When that flame goes out remove the cannister from the coals because it's done. Cannister with a large surface area to volume type of shape seem to work best.