Char Cloth - 1st Attempt

[OrangeSport]

After an introduction to using flint and steel at the weekend, I want to practice this more. It's fun, rewarding (when it works) and I found the whole process of catching a spark, transferring the ember and bringing a fire to life very relaxing. It also helps with easier methods I think, such as my more usual ferro rod.

So I had my first attempt at making char cloth today. I used an airgun pellet tin with a hole in it, some cotton wool pads and just heated it on the hob until the smoke stopped.

The material is black, stable to handle and started smouldering with the first spark (from my ferro rod) in a very windy back garden. The house stinks a bit, but hey-ho!

So, hopefully, once the steel striker I've ordered is delivered i can get practising. Actually, I've ordered three (because... well, just because).

Quite pleased that something worked first time for once. If you're new to this like me, its really very easy to make it under 30 mins all in. Give it a go.

 

[John Fenna]

Feels good eh?

 

[OrangeSport]

Feels good eh?

It does!

 

[Nice65]

I've only done it once, when I was working for a utility company. I won't mention the name because it was one of their 100% cotton shirts that we cut up and sealed in a pellet tin with a hole. The resulting black sheets could easily be lifted out individually and worked brilliantly. Very pleasing.

 

[Silverclaws2]

After an introduction to using flint and steel at the weekend, I want to practice this more. It's fun, rewarding (when it works) and I found the whole process of catching a spark, transferring the ember and bringing a fire to life very relaxing. It also helps with easier methods I think, such as my more usual ferro rod.

So I had my first attempt at making char cloth today. I used an airgun pellet tin with a hole in it, some cotton wool pads and just heated it on the hob until the smoke stopped.

The material is black, stable to handle and started smouldering with the first spark (from my ferro rod) in a very windy back garden. The house stinks a bit, but hey-ho!

So, hopefully, once the steel striker I've ordered is delivered i can get practising. Actually, I've ordered three (because... well, just because).

Quite pleased that something worked first time for once. If you're new to this like me, its really very easy to make it under 30 mins all in. Give it a go.

House pongs a bit from making char cloth, yeah I know that one.

But the flint striker, mine own comprises of an engineering file I just had to break up and painted hunter orange to save me losing it in the grass, to say yeah it strikes an ember or few every time with a bit of char resting on top a bit of flint off the beach.

And yeah will get a more stylish striker at some point, to have had ideas about trying to fashion or find a Tibetan flint striker/pouch as it seems usefully sensible

*** Edited to add the Tibetan striker/pouch, I have just discovered is called a Chuckmuck ***

 

[OrangeSport]

A steel arrived today, flint had been collected from the beach and the first batch of char cloth held a spark and started a fire!

Very pleased!

 

[matarius777]

House pongs a bit from making char cloth, yeah I know that one.

But the flint striker, mine own comprises of an engineering file I just had to break up and painted hunter orange to save me losing it in the grass, to say yeah it strikes an ember or few every time with a bit of char resting on top a bit of flint off the beach.

And yeah will get a more stylish striker at some point, to have had ideas about trying to fashion or find a Tibetan flint striker/pouch as it seems usefully sensible

*** Edited to add the Tibetan striker/pouch, I have just discovered is called a Chuckmuck ***

Be wary of Chukmuks, I got my sister to buy one when she visited Ladahk recently, some shops were selling so called antique ones for up to £300. In the end, she bought me one that cost around £30, sadly though, I found the metal striker wasn’t made from high carbon steel so wouldn’t produce a spark. It looks good but is a reproduction. I actually bought a Chukmuk in the late 80s in Kathmandu without knowing what it was (I only found out recently after doing a google image search on it and was delighted when I found it was a tinder purse- it didn’t have the striker on the bottom, but is a beautifully made thing, far better than the one from Ladahk. Mine has a proper gusset to slow it to open fully plus it’s actually lined in leather as well, where as the new one hasn’t, there isn’t much room in for anything. Supposedly, most of these “Tibetan” handicrafts are now made in China as tourism has taken off in a large way. When I went to Kathmandu in the 80s, the handicrafts were absolutely amazing, real works of art. Anyway, I’m glad I’ve got it, I’m hoping to replace the striker with some suitable metal if I can find something the right shape. I have quite a collection of different shaped strikers, all the traditional shapes. Not at home now, but I’ll post a picture of it when I get back.

 

[matarius777]

Found one I had of it.

 

[Silverclaws2]

Aye and it would appear various bushcraft suppliers have had a similar idea and there are various others scattered around the internet also exploring the rather sensible concept

Chuckmuck - Leather Fire Steel Tinderbox Pouch - 85mm - Beaver Bushcraft & Leather​

As ever the voyage of modern discovery starts with knowing what a thing is called.

 

[matarius777]

This is a decent modern rendition- it has the integral striker. Not a bad price either- £23

ChukMuk

This is my take on an old idea. The Tibetan word for it is "Chukmuk." The name reminds one of the sound it makes when struck with flint to produce sparks. They were quite popular up until about the end of the 1800's from what I've read. And rightly so. Everything needed to create an ember in one...

emberlit.com

 

[Silverclaws2]

This is a decent modern rendition- it has the integral striker. Not a bad price either- £23

ChukMuk

This is my take on an old idea. The Tibetan word for it is "Chukmuk." The name reminds one of the sound it makes when struck with flint to produce sparks. They were quite popular up until about the end of the 1800's from what I've read. And rightly so. Everything needed to create an ember in one...

emberlit.com

Aye that is a rather decent modern example and I like the way he has made it clearly trapping the steel to the pouch by way of the rivets as I had wondered how the antique example had done that.

 

[matarius777]

This is the first one I got, back in 1988. For years,I had assumed it was a coin purse. Was so happy when I found its true purpose!

 

[OrangeSport]

Aye and it would appear various bushcraft suppliers have had a similar idea and there are various others scattered around the internet also exploring the rather sensible concept

Chuckmuck - Leather Fire Steel Tinderbox Pouch - 85mm - Beaver Bushcraft & Leather​

As ever the voyage of modern discovery starts with knowing what a thing is called.

I would be wary of buying a steel striker from Beaver Bushcraft and Leather, in fact I wouldn't buy another.

I have several strikers now, and the can get a good shower if sparks from each one that didn't come from Beaver. Those that did are  very hard to get a spark from.

I can only assume that their high carbon steel is not that high carbon.

They aren't useless, but they really aren't very good (and were also the priciest ones I bought).

 

[OrangeSport]

I would be wary of buying a steel striker from Beaver Bushcraft and Leather, in fact I wouldn't buy another.

I have several strikers now, and the can get a good shower if sparks from each one that didn't come from Beaver. Those that did are  very hard to get a spark from.

I can only assume that their high carbon steel is not that high carbon.

They aren't useless, but they really aren't very good (and were also the priciest ones I bought).

You can see the difference here (you'll have to expand the video to see the sparks as its not the best quality) :

 

[Furbles]

You can see the difference here (you'll have to expand the video to see the sparks as its not the best quality) :

You seem to be striking with the flint - that’s an unusual technique.

 

[OrangeSport]

You seem to be striking with the flint - that’s an unusual technique.

I use both methods:

* Strike with the flint to drop sparks onto tinder below

* Strike with the iron to put a spark onto the tinder being held

Both get the same results, I just happened to use this method to demonstrate to difference between the steels.