Using Bow Drill

[Insel Affen]

i personally prefer the drillbit be slightly harder wood than the hearth, too hard a drill and too soft a hearth and you burn straight through, too soft a drillbit on too hard a hearth and it's like sticking a pencil in an electric sharpener, my favourite (easiest i can get to an ember) combo is willow drill and lime (linden/basswood)hearth

Cheers fella, thanks for the tip. Might struggle to find the lime, but willow should be OK. Best break out the mini tree recognition book and keep an eye out to and from work.

 

[GGTBod]

No probs mate i'm always glad to share the good info, i can't take credit as i was taught by a master and just persevered with the muscle work until i built the technique i'd been shown and formed the muscle memory to get the job done, I was shown how to make a set and use it and failed my first times over and over until i burnt my arms out, i did not see the person who taught me for a few months after this but went home and practiced what he had shown me over and over mostly sitting in my bathroom setting off the smoke alarms, the next time i seen him i was like a kid eagre to show him my success, he was stoic but i could tell he was proud ::

Willow on willow works well, i seem to find when using the same wood for both that i burn through spindles very quickly and i am regularly making new hearth holes, embers come pretty quick as the micro tinder grinding from both builds up quickly in the notch and all you gotta do is drill steady paced smoke rising evenly until you have enough and then speed up and increase downward pressure to ignite it