Got Smoke But No FIRE

D

Davo

Joined
Jul 8, 2003
Messages
21
Just got back out of the woods today testing for the first time my ability to create FIRE! Well, I cannot yet say..I....HAVE CREATED...FIRE!! Although I did get close, here is how it went.

My method utilized a bow and drill with hearth. I made the drill about 8" long and maybe 1" in diameter out of solid dead fall. My hearth was made from the same wood and was about 1' long and 2" wide and approximately 1" thick. The bow was made out of a green piece of wood. String of choice was 550 paracord. Top handle was made out of sandstone. I charred the hearth with the drill and then notched out the side the powder to fall.

I was able to produce a good amount of smoke, but it seemed that every time I was getting it to smoke decently, the bow string would stick on the drill and not move or I would knock the drill out of my hand with the bow due to string getting really herky jerky(sorry to get so technical). I just could not really get a good steady rythm with the bow and string. I guess nobody said it was easy. I will try again as I still had a blast trying!!! Any suggestions for a smoother bow and drill? I have a picture of my setup, but I am unsure of how to insert the pic.

Thanks Davo:D
 
i am certainly not an expert in this area, i have made fire, so i will tell you what i learned, first your selection of wood is critical, some would wont work. second the wood must be dry to work, third when you get smoke you are about 1/2 way there. and fourth your tinder is critical, so you need to get some real dry fine material as tinder, first time i used kleenex and i baked my wood in the oven for about 2 hrs at 250 degrees to assure it was dry enough. the materials for the fire set will be determined as to what shrubs or trees are in your area. the geometry of the notch you make in the base is important, but you need to learn about shaping this by trial and error.

good luck, its a lot of fun, and when you get your first fire it is a great feeling.
alex
 
Alex,

I beleive the wood I used was pine but I cannot be real sure as it was very dry dead fall. I beleive it would have worked if I could have gotten the bow string to cooperate with the drill smoothly. I had some dry leaves and dry grasses as tinder that I had softened with my hands to make it fibrous. What type of string have you used for the bow? Thanks for your input.

Davo
 
Cedar is probably the best wood to learn with. Easier than most, but harder thans some others. Practice, practice, practice. Good luck.:)
 
The same exact thing happened to me, the bow string kept coming off, or my bow would snap just as I started getting smoke.

Oh well, I guess that's why I have half a dozen fire steels!

Charles Bronson 1921-2003 You Will Be Missed...
 
pine is not a good wood to use too soft, use poplar, cottonwood, sasafras, cedar,i live in the northeast.a lot of guys use the different willows as it has a good consisitancy and is prolific, look in creekbottoms it is found all over the country, dont use weeping willow, wont burn. the rule is if you take a dry piece of wood, and you can make a small dent by pushing yout thumbnail into it, it is hard enough but not too hard. if you make no dent then it is too hard, if you make a big dent too soft. not very scientific, but old time woodsman were not very scientific. grease your bearing surcface with oil from your nose or behind your ear, this will cut down on friction at the bearing (your sandstone).

i used 550 cord twisted into a pair, and when it gets loose, it always gets loose on everybody, reach up and grab it with your finger to tighten it. hope i have helped, there is more to it than just picking up a stick and going at it. but with some knowledge you will get there. but that is why we are all here to share experience with each other.

alex
 
One of the places to start is your wood. Wood selection matters a lot. It should be as dry as possible. Only certain woods work.

Start moving the bow slowly, then ramp up speed. As you move the drill faster, apply more downward pressure to the socket/bearing.

You should have a coal when you take the spindle away and your dust is still smoking. If not, check your brown/black dust by applying a lit match to it. Does it produce and sustain a coal?

Ron Hood's video is a very good how-to.

I have some more junk on my web site regarding fire by friction, covering materials local to New England, but it's a lot of trial and error. There are a lot of good web sites on this topic.

Happy firestartin'

Mike
 
Thanks to everyone for their comments and help. All of the tips will be very useful. I will try again this weekend hopefully with a bit better results.
 
If I can still trust any of my memory, it seems to me that the last firedrill kit I had that actually made fire had a fireboard and drill of the SAME material (poplar, I think), and the bow was strung with a borrowed rawhide bootlace.... the cut of the lower side of the fire notch may also make a difference....

Good Luck!:D
 
To keep your spindle, bow, and socket operating smoothly and not flying apart, try to position the string at the lowest possible part on the spindle, close to the fireboard. This aways helped me. The next thing you need to do is get in the most comfortable position possible. If your not comfy it's not going to be near as easy. And first and foremost you must have very dry wood, and the quality construction of your whole setup is critical. Take the extra half hour to pick as good of a spindle as possible and for woodworking the other parts.
Jeff
 
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