- Joined
- Nov 7, 2008
- Messages
- 63
I think one of the reasons that folks do not try or use flint and steel for fire making is the need for char cloth.In my experience char cloth is so easy to make that it is a non issue.Take a 100 percent cotton(terrycloth) washcloth and cut it into 1 inch squares,I use a metal container that originally contained air rifle pellets and is about 3 inches in diameter and 1/2 inch thick and has a small hole punched in the center of the lid to make char.Simply pack the squares loosely in the tin and set on a stove(I use a SVEA123)and heat it untill the smoke or flame comes steadily out of the hole.When the smoke or the flame quits coming out of the hole immediately remove and let cool.The resulting material will catch a spark and smolder untill you blow on it and then will burst into a flame that will catch any tinder and start a fire,
You can even use a lighter such as a BIC that no longer has any fuel left to throw the sparks that start your fire.If you put the char onto the flint and then strike with the striker you will be amazed at how easy the process is.
Jeremiah Johnson is a great movie but it illustrates how it is so much harder to start a fire this way if you have the char in the tinder and try to throw the sparks off the flint onto the charcloth instead of having the char on the flint where it is dang near impossible not to get a spark into the char.
You can even use a lighter such as a BIC that no longer has any fuel left to throw the sparks that start your fire.If you put the char onto the flint and then strike with the striker you will be amazed at how easy the process is.
Jeremiah Johnson is a great movie but it illustrates how it is so much harder to start a fire this way if you have the char in the tinder and try to throw the sparks off the flint onto the charcloth instead of having the char on the flint where it is dang near impossible not to get a spark into the char.
There's got to be dozens of recipes for making your char. These days I do it in big batches using a disposable aluminum pan. I just layer in big sheets of cotton, lasagna style. Cover with foil and cook on the outdoor grill until it stops smoking. I can tear the char into smaller pieces.
