Use of flint / firestone...

[Sgt.D]

I happend to read a post about lighting something with a flint and didn't see anyone suggest birchbark.A piece of birchbark together with a flint will make me a open flame anywhere and anytime in less than five minutes.Not under water though

. I've done it in heavy rain.(I used a friend as rainprotection)

If you scrape the outermost layer of bark, until you have a small pile of "bark-dust" and then place the end of the flint in it, scrape on flint and you will have a nice little flame to light larger pieces of birchbark with.

I dont know if birch grows where all you guys live, but it's very common in Sweden.
This is the way it's done in most swedish survival-training.

What do you guys have to say about this issue?

Regards Daniel

 

[Strabs]

Actually, if birch bark is available in the area I'll use it before anything in my kit

Thanks for the reminder. It has to be the best stuff to start fires with.
...next to drying out the stuff that accumulates in your belly button

 

[V Shrake]

Around here (W. Oregon) the best natural tinder I've found is finely-shredded Juniper bark. You've got to find an old tree, with a thick coat of bark, and then really work it with your hands to get it to catch a spark. Don't know how it would work with natural flint, but larger ferrocerium bars work best, giving lots of sparks. I've got a 1 gallon ziplock bag of bark I shredded with my lawn mower in my ALICE. The lawn mower worked really well shredding the bark, but I doubt you could find one handy when you needed it in the field. :~}