a few firestarting tips

[Porcupine]

The following is a compilation of tips i found on several places on the internet,i didnt test all of em so your mileage may vary




Roll a sausage of cotton wool and dip it into molten candlewax,good firestarter.

Roll some cotton wool on a match and dip it into molten candlewax (keep the head clean) to make a firestarter.

Dry oakleaves burn fast and are an easy way to spread a flame in your starting fire.

Digging a small depression beneath your firewood makes sure theres sufficient airflow.

Treeraisin,candlewax,vaseline and shoepolish dabbed onto a bit of tinder make it burn longer and hotter.

Pencilsharpeners can be used to make fine tinder from small sticks.

Think outside of the box,peppermints,chips (the edible crunchy type) etc burn realy good (high fat or oil content)

Birchbark,great tinder and no need to cut a tree for it.

Cattail (Typha Latifolia) gives a nice down,good for spark type firestarting.

Batteries and steelwool,just touch the battery to it and it will start to burn (most common type named is the 9 volts brick type)

Steelwool catches sparks good.

When using matches or lighters light a candle first and light your fire with the candle.

Dried orange peels (skins?) burn good.

Woodshavings with oil make good tinder also waterproof.

30 centimeters of gardenhose,doesnt take a lot of room and handy to blow the fire back to life.

Always carry one or two spare disposable lighters,theyre cheap and small so theres no excuse to not have the backup.


Theres tons of things i missed so feel free to add a few of your own.


Porc.

 

[Infragreen]

(Slaps forehead)
How much does a cheapo useless-for-pencils pencil sharpener cost? Weigh? Fill up your pack?

I'm gonna get one tomorrow!

As for disposable lighters, I've always wondered why so many texts advise against them, advocating matches instead.

I'd need a good-sized pack of matches to make up for a bic (or my trusty flint, steel and charcloth/amadou OR some willow and maple nearby).

As for tinder/kindling, don't forget tire rubber á la Mears.
I like candlewax soaked tissue paper/cardboard/masonite/dryer lint, unamit.
And I can recommend the shoe polish.
It served me well during a wet fishing trip.

Also, split your firewood. Sharp edges catch quicker.

Happy camping!

Infy

 

[Porcupine]

Im not sure what everybody has against the bic lighters either,guess its more or less the not bushcraft thing.Do remember them being cheap does mean they might fail at the most unwanted time.

Been doing a tally of what types of firelighting stuff i carry along on a normal trip:
1 big ferrocerium rod (preferred method of lighting)
1 flint and firesteel (mostly for showing theres more ways to make a spark)
1 lighter in my tobacco pouch (realy should quit smoking again)
1 small ferrocerium rod in my "survivaltin"
2 small lighters drifting around in my gear and clothes

Theory has it i can make fire by friction and so far it kept me warm trying but didnt see any fire yet

Guess im somewhat of a whimp but i prefer being able to make a fire (even if its not in the bushcraft style) to being wet,cold and miserable any day.

Maybe one of the more knowledgable members can shed some light on this no lighter thing?


Porc.

 

[Nemisis]

Infragreen look for the two hole pencil sharpener just that bit more useful
Dave.

 

[bloodline]

Orange peel should be force dried in the oven (do it while you do the roast to save fuel) then store it in air tight zip lock bags. It burns well and smells nice. Got this one off "HOW' about 30 years ago.

 

[Topcat02]

Re: pencil sharpener, surely with a sharp knife you can produce some decent wood shavings? One less thing to have to worry about losing.

 

[addyb]

Porcupine,

I should probably quit smoking too, but it's just too darn fun and enjoyable to worry about....yet.

I take a Zippo with me everywhere I go for my "lung darts" and even when I'm in the bush. (I don't take my coffin nails there, though. They stay at home) Mind you, if my Zippo runs out of fuel, I'm S.O.L. I can usually keep mine running for about a week, or even a week and a half on one filling, but ten days is really pushing it.

BIC's are great I find, for a survival kit lighter. Yes they're cheap, and no, they're not reliable. They never work when you want them to, the flame has absolutely no wind resistance and you have to hold that blasted button down to keep the flame going. I've seen people sticking their heads inside of their shirts to light their smokes with BIC's because they keep blowing out. That said, they have two really great things going for them: They carry a lot of fuel and a lot of flint. Even if your BIC runs dry, chances are you've still got enough flint under the wheel to spark some tinder.

(That is of course, if you don't have a petrol stove in your pack that you can steal fuel from. If you keep a Zippo filled up, you've probably got the most dead-set reliable lighter in the world.)

Cheers,

Adam

 

[oops56]

Well just been trying them butane lighters they work good i going to keep one with my stove gear they well light up my stoves better then those BBQ lighter plus it will burn up side down with a 3/4 flame good for alcohol stoves all fuel stoves plus the flame is so hot it will lite a damp twig

 

[Infragreen]

After about 30 seconds, I finally located a pencil sharpener.
Mind you, it was this high techy, aluminium thing.
Drat, I was going for red plastic.

The reason I'd like to try that one out is, I remember those extremely fine shavings. I MIGHT make something like it by scraping with a knife, but not by whittling.

The usual fallacy of BICs is that ppl mostly use them wrong.
Oh, I've tried jamming a BIC under my fire-to-be and burning my finger by keeping the tab pressed for too long.
But why not light something else? Save the gas for next time!
How long would it take for a BIC to get a piece of charcloth going? (A flick?)
Besides, the only ones I've had failing were: Out of gas, do. flint or WET!
You could also throw it on the fire to impress the natives

BUT I'll still lug around flint'n steel and occasionally keep up the bowdrilling skill.

Hot sparks!

Infy

 

[Galemys]

I finally located a pencil sharpener.
Mind you, it was this high techy, aluminium thing.

If I remember correctly, in one of the episodes of `rough science` it was mentioned that alot of the metallic pencil sharpeners are actually made of magnesium. So if in dire need, fine scrapings of the sharpener itself could also be lit.

Tom

 

[moduser]

As well as a firesteel and a cheap bic I always carry my storm lighter. It's one of those butane one that burns hot enough to cut soda cans. Very handy (as long as there's fuel in it ).

Moduser

 

[Don Redondo]

Surely a bic lighter [or a zippo] is just flint and steel? when stripped to it's essentials.

OK maybe it wont last ;long, is mainly useless without fuel, but when you need fire in a hurry, weight for weight its unbeatable

 

[beowolf762]

heres my .02 cents worth:any citris fruit rind dried makes very good tinder!! Good job porqupine

 

[jamesraykenney]

After about 30 seconds, I finally located a pencil sharpener.
Mind you, it was this high techy, aluminium thing.
Drat, I was going for red plastic.

<snip>

Some of them are made of Magnesium...
Try scraping some shavings from it and lighting them...
Makes a great addition to your tender nest...

 

[Infragreen]

I've heard that a coupla times before on a "how to obtain magnesium" thread on scienceforums.

However, I don't need magnesium (yet).

I've found, that with a bit of prep, just one spark in the right place will make all the difference.

What I usually do is, get a handful of dry grass and crumple it into a ball, then dig a depression into it.

I then fill this depressed grass with wood shavings/sharpener dross.

On top of that goes some VERY fine tinder, like absolutely discouraged birch bark or reedmace down.

Then I strike/spin up an ember, place it on the VERY fine tinder, and just blow gently at first. As the ember spreads and matures, it can take some more air. Keep your thoughts on the life of the ember, not on the fate of the ball.

Never failed me.

Infy