[Regia-NA] Re: Making Fire

[Mark Patchett]

I would agree with the "practice lots" suggestion.

Having got interested in flint and steel fire lighting, Magnus and I  ( from
Wynmerestow - Ontario, Canada ) sat down to try our hand at it on Sunday night.

I have a flint and steel kit that I bought a couple years ago at Pennsic, which
contained a small firesteel, chunk of flint, tin with charred linen or cotton,
and a bunch of "tow fibre" to use as tinder.

After a great deal of work (just getting a good spark to land where we wanted it
) we managed to catch a spark on the chared linen, so that it just glowed a
little, then wrapped the tow around it, and with some blowing got the tow to
begin smoldering, smoking a lot, and I would say, just about on fire.
We didn't really have things set up to fully start a fire ( since we were in my
kitchen, and it was about 10 degrees below freezing outside )
We did manage to char some birch bark, and paper, but didn't really get it to
flame up.
( does birch bark get used as fire starting material in the UK -- North american
birch has bark that can be separated into paper thin layers, and which burn
remarkably well. )

Looking forward to more practice, and discussing things more at Shrewsbury.

-Edward

PS: the kit I have originally came with "directions" which I have since
misplaced, but the part that surprised me most about the directions was the
explanation that what you're really trying to do is hold the steel, and use a
sharp corner of the flint to strike the steel, and thus chip off a piece of the
steel, thus causing the spark.  Also, the steel I have is shaped into an oval
shape, with one side open, almost like a "C".  Having tried it a few times now,
I would recommend not sticking your fingers into the inside of such a device,
since it brings your knuckles rather close to the edge you are striking, thus
making them too easy to hit with the flint and slice them up ;)


Hrolf Douglasson wrote:

> I also suggest you practise lots. I have actually started one fire this way
> , the fire had to be properly laid ..with sufficient air flow to allow it to
> get going and people to prevent the helpful addition of damp tinder when it
> was too small to deal with such stuff.
> Ensuring ALL the tinder is dry is as important as getting the spark:)
> vara
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Lori Rael Northon" <lesseley@attbi.com>
> To: <list-regia-na@lig.net>
> Sent: Tuesday, March 11, 2003 5:10 AM
> Subject: [Regia-NA] Re: Making Fire
>
> > Thanks, Kim!
> >
> > These are some really helpful tips.  I'll see if my husband  will pick up
> > some old files at The Boeing Company Surplus Store tomorrow, then I'll see
> > about grinding the teeth off the sides - I'm hoping you meant the wide
> flat
> > sides - is that correct?  I don't know what you mean by "fire fungus".  Is
> > that a type of mushroom that will catch on fire easily like punk wood?
> > While I was looking for information regarding flint, I ran across a
> message
> > from a Native American List where the author of the message said the best
> > tinder available in the forest was wasp's nests - paper wasps I'm thinking
> > and empty I hope.  Since I don't have any wasp's nests but instead a lot
> of
> > linen scrap around the house and some empty cans with lids, I'll have to
> try
> > to make the charred linen.  It doesn't sound too hard - watch me mess it
> up!
> > 8^)  I'll keep everyone posted on my progress.  Thanks again, Kim.  I
> > appreciate your help.
> >
> > Lori
> >
> >
> > Kim Siddorn said:
> >
> > It's not that easy Lori. Roland can do it and makes it look as easy as -
> > well, an easy thing;o))
> >
> > But try though I might, I must put my hand up to never having yet set fire
> > to anything with flint and steel - although once I have a smouldering
> ember,
> > I can keep it alight and make a good fire in almost any circumstances.
> >
> > I know that the flint ought to have a freshly chipped surface
> (flintlockers
> > "hammer" their flints before shooting) and that the higher the carbon
> steel,
> > the greater the chance of getting a spark. Most modern steels are made
> from
> > bits of old files as that is the easiest source of HC steel. If you take a
> > sanding disc in an angle grinder to a file and take the teeth off two
> sides
> > without getting it too hot, you ought to then be able to get a spark.
> Strike
> > at a sharp angle, speed being important. Vary the angle until you get a
> > spark.
> >
> > Do you have and "fire fungus" to catch it on? This is the best material,
> > although charred linen is very good too. You can make charred linen by
> > taking some small squares and put them in a boot polish tin or other tin
> > with a tight fitting lid. Put this in the fire or on the hob. The linen
> will
> > burn until it uses up the available oxygen and then (literally) turn into
> > charcoal. Keep it dry and dropping a single spark on it will cause it to
> > smoulder. Cherish the burn with tinder & away you go.
> >
> > Regards,
> >
> > Kim Siddorn