Char Cloth and Fire my first Success

[CBJ]

Hey folks,

After setting up camp for the weekend I wanted to try my hand at something that I have never done before. So I decided to have a go at making some char cloth.

Now I know this is "Old Hat" to most of you but for me it was something really exciting and new.

Anyways with the fire going the first step was to cut some 100% cotton into rough squares/rectangles and stack them into the tin. I packed a 200g sweet tin with a hole punched in the lid up to the top but not so that I had to cram it down to get the lid on.

Next The tin went into the fire. At first I put it directly into the flames and as soon as it started smoking it was moved onto the edge of the fire.

I was very attentive at this point as I had to watch that hole carefully to make sure it didnt catch flame. It did catch flame the first time but was quickly put out by placing my poker over the hole.
As soon as there was no more smoke coming from the tin ( I checked by putting it back into the middle of the fire) I pulled it right out of the fire and left it to cool down . I remembering reading somewhere that if you open it too quickly the air rushing in could ignight it again so I wasnt chancing it.

Finally the moment of truth, I was dreading opening up that tin. I thought something must have gone wrong and all there was in there was a pile of ashes or the cloth had only been partly charred.

But:

After checking that it didnt fall a part in my hands I felt like skipping around the camp as I didnt think it would have been succesfull.

The whole burning process took me 20-25 min and after the first batch I got into a very theraputic rythm, cut...stack...burn...etc till in the end I ended up with this pile

OOPs a bit much ?? mabey but I really couldnt help myself and the only reason I stopped was the fact that I had run out of tins to store the charcloth in.

I will be going out to make more as often as I can.

This is my second victory over the weekend and in many ways much more exciting than the above.

After the first batch of charcloth was done I had to test it :

I put a square of the cloth into some dried grass and held the lot with some cherry bark

One little spark from the flint and steel and a bit of blowing turned this:

into this:

Now this was the very first time I had started a fire without a lighter or matches and I was elated that I managed to do it .

The last thing to do was gather a bit more resources and dry them off

Thanks for listening.

Craig

 

[Jack_D]

Great step by step guide - thanks. I have been planning to make some char cloth after seeing how effective it was at the Bushmoot. I will have a go and let you know how I get on. Was the cotton you used just an old t-shirt or is there a better type to use? I have seen instructions for using dish cloths as the weave is looser.

 

[CBJ]

Hi mate ,
I would be very interested in hearing how you get on. The cloth I used was just a thin jumper that I had.
As for the type to use I really am not sure but no doubt one of the more experienced members could shed a bit of light here.

Good luck making the cloth.

CBJ

 

[Mesquite]

You can use any type of cotton material to make char cloth so long as it is that... 100%cotton or linen. Don't use anything that has any man made fibres in it.

I've made charcloth from tea towels but I found the best for me is denim from old jeans

 

[Tye Possum]

Cool stuff, I've been meaning to make char cloth for forever, even have an old shirt laying around that I plan to use, but haven't done it yet. Good job!

 

[peds8045]

Why didn't i think of using a sweet tin.... i've been trying to find something suitable to have a go at this myself, thanks.

 

[gsfgaz]

great post m8..

 

[CBJ]

Thanks folks,

Glad it was of some help to sombody and once you do it for the first time you will see it isnt as hard to do as you might think

CBJ

 

[fishfish]

well donr that chap! ime inspird to have a go mself!

 

[Jack_D]

Sucess!! - thanks for that, within the space of about 1 hour and an old Kangol hair wax tin(its all I could find) myself and my son had turned an old black(probably not the best colour to use as it already has the charcloth look) t-shirt into a large supply of good quality charcloth. On our first batch, eager to see if it had worked, we opened the tin about 10 mins after taking it off the fire and tested it to see if it had worked - it took the first spark from a firesteel and produced a great ember. Unfortunately there was then a gust of wind and the majority of the first batch started to gradually spontaneously combust - nevermind learned from this and the next 2 batches went through with no problems.

Thanks again - showing how simple it was got me off my backside and giving it a go.

One thing I did find is that if you wait for the charcoal stage of the fire and create a well to put your tin in and then push the charcoal all around and on top of the also( away from the vent) the time taken to produce the charcloth is greatly reduced although as you say it is very theraputic so there is no great need to rush.


Cheers

Jon

 

[CBJ]

great stuff mate,

Well done for giving it a go and congrats for succeding.

I myself find anything more enjoyable when ive got my little uns by me learning at the same time

CBJ

 

[bushscout1]

A few hints & tips I've picked up and found to work well...

I use old denim jeans, cut into 2" wide strips (length of the leg). I roll them up then stand the rolls on end in a tin (that's just over 2" high). Hence the material is arranged vertically in the tin (rather than stacked horizontally). This helps the smoke escape from the tin which in turn ensures the charring process is not hindered.

Secondly, once the smoke stops coming out of the tin and the tin is removed from the fire, it is best to plug the 'smoke-hole' with a twig whilst the tin cools to prevent air getting in.

I hope this is of use.

 

[javi]

Craig - thanks for an interesting and very informative post! I haven't tried char cloth as a tinder but have heard how readily it takes a spark - your experience shows this to be the case.
I will definitely be making some now so cheers for sharing!

 

[John Fenna]

I find Tescos 100% cotton tea towels idea for making charcloth - the loops help catch the spark and often I catch the first strike from a flint and steel!
This is what I include in my "Dragons Breath" fire steel sets and have had no comlaints yet!

 

[CBJ]

Bushscout and John thanks for the tips ill try them out next time.

Javi glad it helped mate and good luck when you give it a go


CBJ

 

[VtBlackdog]

Nice going, and nice report!
try using a magnifier lens to focus the sun onto it, it should light it up as soon as the spot of light hits it....I use old jeans denim; thin stuff like t-shirts gives char that takes a spark easier, but denim burns hotter......

 

[gsfgaz]

just had a go my self at making char cloth , i think i put too much in the tin , and then the lid welded shut , but after all that it came oot quite good , had a go with the flint and amazing first strike the cloth showered with embers,,i was well chuffed..