Bushcraft Beginnings - Fire.

[rancid badger]

Have you taken a look at any of my other firelighting video's yet?

This one covers the absolute basics of firesteel application;
[video=youtube;xnMrQuV3UJ0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnMrQuV3UJ0&list=UURdd L3mkjOvJ3tAtVHpW-XQ&index=18[/video]

I didn't realise you were not quite up to speed with the firesteel itself. Master the tool, then experiment with tinders.

To be honest, those tiny little scrapers provided with some firesteels, are not ideal in my opinion.

Steve

 

[ged]

Start off by lighting a bit of cotton wool with the ferro rod. If you can make any kind of a spark with the rod, the cotton weoll will light when the spark finds it. Then you'll feel good about it all.

Work up from there using anything you can find lying around in bushes hedgerows.

Really dry dead twigs which will break very easily when you bend them make good kindling. Con't take them from the wet ground, take the ones that are hanging a couple of feet off the ground under some shelter. They'll be a lot drier.

Using the twigs, make some feather sticks with a knife. You should soon be able to light them easily, but if you find it difficult light a bit of cotyton wool first. and use that to light some feather sticks.

Press the striker really quite hard on the rod. You'll soon get the hang of it. You might want to try a few other strikers e.g. if you can borrow some at meets.

Some ferro rods are harder than others, they might last longer but they might not give such a big shower of sparks.

 

[Scots_Charles_River]

I avoid Bracken, as it tends to hold/hide TICKS up here.

Brown dry moss or light brown grass is good on top of the birch bark.

 

[THOaken]

This is very strange. This morning I've tried cotton pads (not balls, because for some reason we don't have any, so I took the pad apart and frayed it), dipped it in vaseline and used the firesteel. It didn't light. Then I tried the dry grass. It didn't light.

Edit: Oh, and paper, too. Why I can't light paper I have no idea.

 

[maddave]

Another goot tip for standing deadwood.... ALWAYS check holly bushes !! They have the uncanny ability to snag literally anything that falls from above. i've been on weekends where folk have been searching for ages for kindling and i've come back with an armload. Hollys are easy to spot in the winter woods too because they're evergreen and stick out like a sore thumb. Keep going at it mate and you'll soon be lighting fires like a pro... Remember though, Fail to prepare... Prepare to fail !! Prep is the key !!

 

[THOaken]

Another goot tip for standing deadwood.... ALWAYS check holly bushes !! They have the uncanny ability to snag literally anything that falls from above. i've been on weekends where folk have been searching for ages for kindling and i've come back with an armload. Hollys are easy to spot in the winter woods too because they're evergreen and stick out like a sore thumb. Keep going at it mate and you'll soon be lighting fires like a pro... Remember though, Fail to prepare... Prepare to fail !! Prep is the key !!

Thanks for the tip. Indeed, yesterday in the woods I trained my eyes to look skyward and soon I was noticing a fair bit of standing dead wood.

But what's this problem I'm having with tinder? I can't seem to light the very flammible stuff. Dried grass, paper and cotton with vaseline. I'm using the striker correctly now and there's more sparks, but nothing seems to light.

 

[maddave]

Thanks for the tip. Indeed, yesterday in the woods I trained my eyes to look skyward and soon I was noticing a fair bit of standing dead wood.

But what's this problem I'm having with tinder? I can't seem to light the very flammible stuff. Dried grass, paper and cotton with vaseline. I'm using the striker correctly now and there's more sparks, but nothing seems to light.

Sometimes it's technique. Try putting the firesteel actually touching the tinder with the striker on top, then don't try to scrape sparks towards the tinder, Leave the striker where it is and draw the steel backwards instead. I know it sounds odd but your sparks will hit the target better. Also make sure your tinder is as "Fluffed Up" as it can be to get the most air in there too. If you use cotton wool and Vaseline make sure you tease the cotton apart to make it twice or 3 times its original size and the fibres are showing all whispy in the middle

 

[ged]

Thanks for the tip. Indeed, yesterday in the woods I trained my eyes to look skyward and soon I was noticing a fair bit of standing dead wood.

That's a result!

But what's this problem I'm having with tinder? I can't seem to light the very flammible stuff. Dried grass, paper and cotton with vaseline. I'm using the striker correctly now and there's more sparks, but nothing seems to light.

If you're getting a decent amount of sparks (we need to confirm that somehow) and you're using good tinder (we need to confirm that too) then maybe the sparks aren't reaching the tinder.

Check the sparks: With the ferro rod that you've pictured your showers of sparks should be almost uncomfortably bright to view (certainly they'd ruin your night vision at night) and fatter than any electric spark you've probably ever seen. There should be a respectable fizzling noise as you strike them.

Check the tinder: Is it bone dry? If you're using cotton wool and vaseline you only need a little bit of vaseline (too much can tend to damp the sparks) on something like a one inch diameter cotton wool ball. I don't usually bother with the vaseline but it's good for extending the life of the initial flame if you're not too sure about your kindling. Try one with vaseline and one without? Paper isn't as easy to light as cotton wool, you'll probably need to fluff it up a bit and some kinds of paper are a lot easier to light than others. Loo rolls is an easy one with very little effort. The real key is getting a matrix of finely divided dry, flammable material with a lot of air spaces in it so that once it catches it burns well and heats your kindling quickly.

There's a definite knack to getting the sparks to go where you want them. Some people hold the striker and rod very near the tinder and pull the rod away from the tinder rather than pushing the striker towards it.

You will want your tinder to be dry to get the hang of it, but I have ferro rods that I thnk will light a wet brick. If your tinder is slightly damp, sparks from a ferro rod can dry it out enough to light it.

Another trick is to scrape some shavings from the ferro rod before actually striking sparks. Do this by pressing firmly with the striker but moving it only slowly along the rod. A few shavings in amongs the tinder will light quite spectacularly and set the fire going very well.

Can you video yourself while doing this so we can see what you're doing?

 

[THOaken]

I'm using it this way /, but perhaps I'm too flimsy with it? After I stopped recording I tilted the striker downward a little so that it dug in and there were more sparks. I've tried holding my hand steady and pulling back the rod, but that produced less sparks because I'm terrible at it. I tried to show off the three bite marks in it. Maybe I should just get a new one? I mean, I've struck this thing about 200 times and I'm a beginner who hasn't even lit anything yet... I've probably damaged it.

I can't take a video of me actually trying to light the tinders because I don't have a tripod.

I think I'll give it a rest for now. I've been thinking about, and failing with, firesteels too much.

[video=youtube;aySkzc1naZQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aySkzc1naZQ&feature=youtu.be[/video]

Edit: I know there might not be anything necessarily wrong with this Light My Fire Firesteel that I'm using, but I've went ahead and bought a Woodlore one instead. I hate continuing to use things that have been scarred by novice hands, so it's best if I just get a new one and start from scratch. Haha.

 

[ged]

I'm using it this way /, but perhaps I'm too flimsy with it? After I stopped recording I tilted the striker downward a little so that it dug in and there were more sparks. I've tried holding my hand steady and pulling back the rod, but that produced less sparks because I'm terrible at it. I tried to show off the three bite marks in it. Maybe I should just get a new one? I mean, I've struck this thing about 200 times and I'm a beginner who hasn't even lit anything yet... I've probably damaged it.

The actual striking technique looks OK. The sparks are fine. You haven't 'damaged' the rod, the whole point is to scrape metal off it which catches fire to make the sparks. You can continue using the rod until so much wears away that it breaks in two. Then you can use it some more.

If the tinder is OK then it has to be that you aren't getting the sparks to find the tinder. Try making a paper cone from a sheet of A4 paper. Make the base of the cone about 10cm diameter. Hold it in shape with sticky tape or something. Support it point down (for example in a hole in the ground), and put a ball of cotton wool in the bottom of the conical cup. Strike sparks so that they fall into the cup and are guided onto the cotton wool. Can't miss that way.

I think I'll give it a rest for now. I've been thinking about, and failing with, firesteels too much.

Maybe not a bad idea. With those sparks you will eventually get there.

 

[THOaken]

The actual striking technique looks OK. The sparks are fine. You haven't 'damaged' the rod, the whole point is to scrape metal off it which catches fire to make the sparks. You can continue using the rod until so much wears away that it breaks in two. Then you can use it some more.

If the tinder is OK then it has to be that you aren't getting the sparks to find the tinder. Try making a paper cone from a sheet of A4 paper. Make the base of the cone about 10cm diameter. Hold it in shape with sticky tape or something. Support it point down (for example in a hole in the ground), and put a ball of cotton wool in the bottom of the conical cup. Strike sparks so that they fall into the cup and are guided onto the cotton wool. Can't miss that way.



Maybe not a bad idea. With those sparks you will eventually get there.

Hm, well that's good to know. I don't know, I just thought that the 3 indents in the rod might be causing the striker to shave off less than it normally would.

That's also a great idea, Ged. But I'll have to buy actual cotton balls first.

Thanks.

 

[Ogri the trog]

Yup your technique looks OK, but try separating the striker from the rod, it should encourage you to put more effort into the strike. Some bushcraft tutors recommend that from a standing position, you should be able to strike sparks that remain viable as they bounce and crackle around on the ground. Press more firmly that you have been with the striker so that it bites deep into the rod.

The cotton pads should also be OK, just tear them up to expose the inner fluffy stands - if they wont light after two or three strikes, tear them up even smaller.

With the sheer amount of dedication and determination you are showing, flames will not be far away!

Keep at it, you will succeed!

Ogri the trog

 

[THOaken]

Yup your technique looks OK, but try separating the striker from the rod, it should encourage you to put more effort into the strike. Some bushcraft tutors recommend that from a standing position, you should be able to strike sparks that remain viable as they bounce and crackle around on the ground. Press more firmly that you have been with the striker so that it bites deep into the rod.

The cotton pads should also be OK, just tear them up to expose the inner fluffy stands - if they wont light after two or three strikes, tear them up even smaller.

With the sheer amount of dedication and determination you are showing, flames will not be far away!

Keep at it, you will succeed!

Ogri the trog

Thanks, Ogri. Well, now I just feel bad for saying that maybe I should give up trying to light stuff for the day. I think I'll go try again... Are you known around here for your motivational speeches?

 

[THOaken]

After a lot of striking and fluffing, I managed to create fire. I tore up a pad into two and fluffed it as much as I could and after many, many strikes I actually placed the rod beside the cotton and pushed down firmly and the thing caught. It's incredible how something so seemingly simple as lighting a bit of cotton with a ferro rod can bring such a sense of accomplishment.

Since I don't have any cotton balls, and there is surprisingly little cotton in the pads, I think I'm going to try and take the cotton, which is much more wispy, from earbuds. I've made a ball of fibrous cotton from the earbuds and hopefully that will light!

One step closer. I can see why lighting cotton is a great beginner exercise.

 

[ged]

After a lot of striking and fluffing, I managed to create fire. I tore up a pad into two and fluffed it as much as I could and after many, many strikes I actually placed the rod beside the cotton and pushed down firmly and the thing caught.

It's incredible how something so seemingly simple as lighting a bit of cotton with a ferro rod can bring such a sense of accomplishment.

Since I don't have any cotton balls, and there is surprisingly little cotton in the pads, I think I'm going to try and take the cotton, which is much more wispy, from earbuds. I've made a ball of fibrous cotton from the earbuds and hopefully that will light!

The cotton buds will be fine. You don't need a lot of tinder if you're prepared with some good kindling. Anything which will start a flame is enough.

 

[THOaken]

The cotton buds will be fine. You don't need a lot of tinder if you're prepared with some good kindling. Anything which will start a flame is enough.

Thanks. It lasted for about four seconds, but it was glorious.

If I were successful with this next try and want to actually create a real fire in the garden, for example, would I have to transfer the cotton into to the grass bundle? Is that how that works?

 

[Ogri the trog]

One step closer.

The difference between 0 & 1 being greater than 1 & infinity!

Congratulations

Now for step two.....

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[THOaken]

O, glorious fire.

Here's my second, larger attempt. As you can see I went made the same mistake as before by blindly striking away at the rod until I realised it'd be better if I placed the rod down onto the cotton tinder.

I guess now I need to start a proper, sustainable fire in the back garden.

Thanks for the help everyone. It's such a small thing to achieve in the grand scheme of things, but to those of us who know the value of fire, it's a great accomplishment.

[video=youtube;trM7DsK767U]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trM7DsK767U&feature=youtu.be[/video]

 

[ged]

Thanks. It lasted for about four seconds, but it was glorious.

If I were successful with this next try and want to actually create a real fire in the garden, for example, would I have to transfer the cotton into to the grass bundle? Is that how that works?

I wouldn't recommend that you try to transfer a small bit of burning tinder at this early stage. It's very fragile and needs nurturing, although if you light a cotton wool ball soaked with a bit of vaseline it would probably survive being thrown across the garden.

Try to build a little pyramid of very small kindling -- straw sized or less -- over the tinder, with a small opening near the bottom through which you will aim the sparks, so that they light the tinder, and the tinder will immediately light the kindling.

Once you have some small kindling lit you're well on the way to a roaring fire.

Shield it from the wind if it's breezy.

Put it on a dry base such as a bit of wood. Don't use a metal or stone base until you can light a fire with your eyes shut, it will absorb too much heat.

 

[THOaken]

I wouldn't recommend that you try to transfer a small bit of burning tinder at this early stage. It's very fragile and needs nurturing, although if you light a cotton wool ball soaked with a bit of vaseline it would probably survive being thrown across the garden.

Try to build a little pyramid of very small kindling -- straw sized or less -- over the tinder, with a small opening near the bottom through which you will aim the sparks, so that they light the tinder, and the tinder will immediately light the kindling.

Once you have some small kindling lit you're well on the way to a roaring fire.

Shield it from the wind if it's breezy.

Put it on a dry base such as a bit of wood. Don't use a metal or stone base until you can light a fire with your eyes shut, it will absorb too much heat.

Thanks, Ged. You've such helpful advice in every post you write.

I updated my post with my second fire attempt.