Ignition Systems

So, you want fire do you? Before you trek into the great outdoors thinking you know all you need to know about starting fires you better read this.

Butane disposable lighters: Advantages: good ignition source, cost about one to two dollars, usually good for 2000 + lights and usually made out of plastic. Disadvantages: does not work well in below freezing temps. If your butane is refillable be careful to replace the flint IF YOU CAN. A piezo ignition system seems to be reliable if the lighter doesn't get wet. Some rare problems reported with accidental release of fuel in clothing next to another ignition source, yup, up in smoke. Newer butane lighters have safety devices on them but some of us rip it off when we get them. You ever try to light those things with frozen fingers?

"Storm" lighters: Advantages: hotter flame than normal butane or fluid lighters, withstands strong winds, some are water resistant. Disadvantages: cost from 15-60 dollars. Make work slower in low temps. Piezo ignition can fail and never return. Fuel can be expensive compared to other lighter fluids, may be hard to fill, some have small fuel capacity.

Traditional fluid lighters: Advantages: dependable in light wind depending on the model, spare flint can be kept in base, uses Naphtha fuel (same as "Coleman" fuel) so you have refillable capabilities if you use Coleman fuel for your camp stove. Can be used for 10 years or more. Some are repairable for lifetime of owner (i.e. Zippo brand). Cost; 5-50 dollars. Disadvantage: Fluid will evaporate over time. Need to fill before heading out so you are not surprised. Some manufacturers don't have warranties.

Matches: Most have to be kept DRY. Some are water proof. If stored properly can be stored indefinitely. Paper or wood? Wood burns longer. Cheap, cheap, cheap.

Magnesium fire stick and flint: (Alaskan Match) 5-10 dollars. Hot heat but short lived. Can be stored indefinitely. Totally weather proof.

Bow drill: Go learn how to do it on another web-site please as we don't have that much patience. Or Click Here

Drilling by hand:
The basic principle for making a fire with a hand drill is the same as that for making one with the bowdrill. Instead of using a bow and socket, the drill is simply twirled between the palms of the hands.
Make first a hole to hold the drill in place, with the point of a knife ca 1½ cm from the side of the 1½ cm thick fireboard. A spindle of mullein with a straight cut end, puts into this hole and spin until the first wisp of smoke begin appearing. Not until now you can cut first a V-shaped notch into the side of the fireboard. The point with the notch is to do friction for the spindle to producing smoldering black dust and collecting this dust, forming a coal. The best notches have a form of an isosceles triangle, so the inner corner just about reach to centre of the hole.
Place the tinder (shredded bark of juniper) in the notch under the hole and begin to spin te drill again. In twirling the drill, the hands will gradually work down toward the base of the drill, when they are passed quickly to the top and the movements repeated.
The twirls have be going on until black dust running in the notch and begin to smoke. There is a glow inside, often invisible but still hot in a couple minutes. The drill is then carefully a lifted away and pick up the glowing ember with the bark and set it on the tinder bundle. Cradling it in your hands, blow steadily.
Growing brighter and brighter orange, the coal and bundle will burst into flames. All this takes about one minute.
If the drills begin to creak, it is a mark that the holes in the fireboard have been conical, and the firemaking will probably fail this time. Then you have to start at the beginning.

The Indonesian fire piston:
One of the strangest ways of making fire was conceived by the natives of Indonesia. This was combustion by compressed air on the same principle as the diesel engine.
To make fire in this way, a cylinder of bamboo, 12 or15 cm long, was used. One end of the bamboo was cut at the joint so that the base was closed. A piston of hardwood, wrapped at one end with tow or fibre, was pushed into the open end of the bamboo cylinder.
Added wrappings must wound about the piston until it fitted tightly against the cylinder wall. The sides of the cylinder, the fiber-wrapped piston and the tinder greased with dog fat. But I have used other fats also.
To start a fire with the fire piston, a small piece of char is held in an indentation at the end of the piston; it is plunged into the cylinder, then quickly removed. Several tinders can be used: dry moss tinder, shredded bark of juniper, the interior material of the true tinder fungus or the false tinder fungus.
When hitting the piston repeatedly with the palm of the hand, the air inside the cylinder being so highly compressed that head is generated, igniting the tinder.
When a small ember should be glowing in the char, blow gently on it to spread the ember, then transfer it to a tinder bundle and blow it into flame.

Tinderbox: Flint and steel were commonly used until the beginning of the 1800's. Industrial manufacturing of matches was started in 1832. It caused the use of flint and steel to be gradually given up.
Genuine tinder is got from tinder fungus [punk, touchwood] (Fomes fomentarius) that grows on dead birches and beech.
When sparks are struck, tinder is always put on top of the flint. A straight and sharp edge of the flint is chosen and the steel is struck severely against it with a downward movement keeping the steel in vertical position.
When tinder starts to smoulder, the oldest way is to put it on a dry and shredded kindling and gently blow the sparks into flame.
When sulphur became known a sulphur cup was added to the steel outfit. The glowing tinder were dropped into the sulphur cup where sulphur began to boil. Fire was shifted to the kindling with a small stick. Later also sticks of pine wood were used. The sticks were dipped in melted (but not boiling) sulphur. When a stick was put on glowing tinder, it soon caught fire.

Steel Wool and Electrical Source: Use a flashlight and connect the positive and negative electrodes with steelwool. When the steel wool begins to glow, accelerate the glowing by blowing on it. Place in tinder and continue to accelerate the glow.

Have fun, have fire.

Cooky Charlie and Pathfinder