- Joined
- Sep 21, 2009
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- 534
I have noticed a few people asking about making fire in wet conditions. The splitwood fire technique has been taught at the USAF Survival School for many years. The premise is that you are getting to the dry inner wood by battoning and breaking down larger wood.This method works well with most ignition sources. My favorite is the firesteel.
To start with you need to find dead wood that is off the ground. When on the ground wood absorbs moisture. When it is elevated most of the moisture is on the outside.
This dead Elm has slipped its bark and is a good example of what to look for.
I like to cut a piece of wood about 24" long. It is also very helpful if it is straight and knot free. This makes it much easier to break it down into the right sizes.
Pictured here are 3 types of wood; American Elm,Burr Oak, and Green Ash. Different woods have different properties. Some split easy, some are softer or harder. It pays to experiment with the woods in your area.
The billets of wood are easily split by battoning your fixed blade knife. This is also a technique that has been taught in the AF for many years.
The wood should be processed into 4 different stages.
Shavings- This is a basic skill that will help with just about any fire. Small thin curls are shaved from a larger piece of wood. The curl part is important. It lets O2 all around the flame which is key.These can be easily ignited by a match or lighter.
Pencil lead sized-This is the stage that goes on the flame from the shavings. They burn hot and fast due to the small size.
Pencil size-Just a little bigger than the last stage these pieces start to create short lived embers and coals. This extra heat is needed to get the next stage to burn.
Thumb sized fuel-This is the last stage of our prep.With this we can maintain a fire for cooking,warming, or any of the other tasks we use fire for.
A good rule to follow is prepare enough wood to start 3 fires. This is referred to as 3X the prep. If you are having trouble with rain, snow or other issues you have plenty of wood to add to the flame you have.
3X the prep
This picture illustrates a sustainable fire with enough prep to start at least 2 more fires.
For those of you who like videos better here are a couple.
[video=youtube;sawri36ga1Y]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sawri36ga1Y[/video]
[video=youtube;14vtvs98KrM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14vtvs98KrM[/video]
To start with you need to find dead wood that is off the ground. When on the ground wood absorbs moisture. When it is elevated most of the moisture is on the outside.
This dead Elm has slipped its bark and is a good example of what to look for.
I like to cut a piece of wood about 24" long. It is also very helpful if it is straight and knot free. This makes it much easier to break it down into the right sizes.
Pictured here are 3 types of wood; American Elm,Burr Oak, and Green Ash. Different woods have different properties. Some split easy, some are softer or harder. It pays to experiment with the woods in your area.
The billets of wood are easily split by battoning your fixed blade knife. This is also a technique that has been taught in the AF for many years.
The wood should be processed into 4 different stages.
Shavings- This is a basic skill that will help with just about any fire. Small thin curls are shaved from a larger piece of wood. The curl part is important. It lets O2 all around the flame which is key.These can be easily ignited by a match or lighter.
Pencil lead sized-This is the stage that goes on the flame from the shavings. They burn hot and fast due to the small size.
Pencil size-Just a little bigger than the last stage these pieces start to create short lived embers and coals. This extra heat is needed to get the next stage to burn.
Thumb sized fuel-This is the last stage of our prep.With this we can maintain a fire for cooking,warming, or any of the other tasks we use fire for.
A good rule to follow is prepare enough wood to start 3 fires. This is referred to as 3X the prep. If you are having trouble with rain, snow or other issues you have plenty of wood to add to the flame you have.
3X the prep
This picture illustrates a sustainable fire with enough prep to start at least 2 more fires.
For those of you who like videos better here are a couple.
[video=youtube;sawri36ga1Y]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sawri36ga1Y[/video]
[video=youtube;14vtvs98KrM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14vtvs98KrM[/video]
