C. Hughes.... im starting to understand limiting liability a little better now... im sure you know what i meant, but since you want to be technical, all i meant was without something like a lighter, magnesium, or matches, etc. i was merely suggesting that you might be in a situation say in the woods or the desert, and just have you and your clothes and nature(nothing in the pockets, if youd like to be even more technical).

thanks for the info some of the acronyms had me stumped.

i just caught on that SAK is swiss army knife *hangs head in shame*

The reason for carrying pocket gear is three fold.

First is time.
Sure I can start a fire by rubbing 2 Boy Scouts together. Standard primitive skills training. Scenario I just fell through the ice. I'm soaking wet and my cloths are freezing stiff. The seconds or minutes between using a match or lighter versus constructing a bow drill and getting the fire going. That little bit of time could mean the difference. So gear buys you the time it takes to make the tool to make the tool you need.

Second is quality.
Sure I can make a cutting implement from the things I could find around me. But a steel knife blade works a lot better and lasts longer.

Third is confidence.
If TSHTF tell me you will not feel more self assured just knowing that the gear is available. That alone may make the problem smaller. At least in your mind and therefore easier to over come. Remember panic can kill you quicker than just about anything else. Just the time of breaking open a kit puts your mind in survival mode thinking. It keys your thinking from the situation back to your training.

By this do I mean forget learning primitive skills HE Double hockey sticks NO!!!

The skills are a great back up if your gear is lost, damaged or inadequate. Also if things last longer than expected they can improve your lot in the situation. Is gear the end all be all. No. You can only carry so much. How you use it, the skills to use it and the ability to make what you need from what is available is how you survive.

unifides,
There is no sarcasm or hostility in my message to you. We are all here to learn from each other's experiences.

You stated, "i would much rather be the person who can start a fire without any tools, rather than a guy with a bic lighter and some cotton balls."

I asked for more information about your firestarting technique, in the spirit of friendship, because I was interested in learning - that is all.

Paul810,

I do not understand your post. Maybe you should re-read the thread more carefully.

Theres an old expression that if you stare at something long enough it will happen (obviously the opposite is true). You asked how to start a fire without tools, I gave a sarcastic comment. Meaning if you stare at a pile of wood long enough eventually it will turn into fire. <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Paul,

Thank you for your response - but you still need to re-read the thread.

Someone else said, "i would much rather be the person who can start a fire without any tools..."

I was inquiring as to his firestarting techniques.

Nevermind, I was just making a small joke before. The same as if I had said "very carefully" as an answer to your question. I understand the thread completely, I was just making light of the fact that you need some sort of tool to make fire, be-it found in nature and made on the spot (fire saw, bow drill) or manufactured by man before hand for the purpose (lighter, matches).

making and using a bow drill

Admittedly this is using a tool and requires having cordage at a minimum. Cordage can be improvised from fibrous bark or grasses or can be made from torn clothing but if you are without cordage this is a difficult method to use.

Same here Paul, when I said brain power, I was being facetious as well.

There really is no way to start a fire without any tools, meaning implements. If you don't have an igniter of some sort, be it a friction tool, a solar intensifier, a sparking tool, or whatever. All you have left then, is pure luck. Maybe the lightning will strike somewhere nearby.

Okay, so back to the original point of the thread. Like I said earlier, all those gadgets makes us think about what might happen, which naturally fosters thoughts about what we'd do in those situations, with or without the gadgets. That one small step puts most everyone here above the mark in being prepared for any survival situation, because by having or thinking about what we might need, we begin planning for and realizing what is possible.

So is all this gadget talk good? Well, maybe we could use a little more discussion about primitive tool making, and timing. If I found myself in the wilderness with nothing but a pocket knife and no hope of immediate rescue, I believe the first order of business would be to make gadgets to survive with. Depending on where I find myself, I will try to make a shelter, a firestarting tool, a water collector, a defensive tool, a compass, a signalling device, etc. What I make for each depends on what's available, my condition, and my knowledge.

I dunno how many times this movie's been mentioned on this forum, but did anyone watch "The Edge" last weekend? A good piece of fiction, with some food for thought.