Today was my first success with making and using a Fire drill !!


I yesterday between football games I grabbed a scrap of cedar 2x2 and using my BK-7 and a baton split out a hearth board and a 1x1 blank for a spindle. Went out and batoned off a 2' bow of Fl. Holly, grabbed a piece of paracord, found an old oyster shell for a hand hold. Whittled my spindle, made my bow, and proceeded to spend a frustrating hour getting nothing but brown dust,a sore left wrist, blisters from the oyster shell, and a little smoke.

<img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" /> Dang, back to football with visions of a frowning Wilson volleyball in my head.
Spent a few hour on the net to get a few tips after football and with a renewed spirit vowed to try again in the AM.

First, I whittled my spindle down to about a 1/2" dia. Then made a more comfortable handhold out of an aged chunk of very hard buttonwood. Switched the side of the hearth board on which to drill so that I had a better view of the dust and low and behold, black dust and lots of smoke. Took a short break, put a dried leaf under the hearth board, made a nest of tinder from old palm burlap and back at it. Lots of black dust and smoke, dump it in the tinder nest and blow. Suddenly I spot a glowing coal. LOTS of smoke and poof FLAME.
I HAVE MADE FIRE !! <img src="/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> Wison is pleased.


Being as my wife and teen daughters did nothing but ridicule me, I thought maybe I'd get some love here.

Scott

That's some great work!

Football and fire in the same weekend. Excellent! <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

That is a tough way to make fire, so you should be proud.

We'll give you props!!!!!

ALL THE WILSONS ARE PROUD!

Sue

Congratulations... great feeling, ain't it?

Troy

Congrats. Assuming that it was you, not Wilson. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

And we might tease you here, but that's becuase we are jealous.

Did you hear THUS SPRACHT ZARATHUSTRA when the first flame was born? Did you feel the presense of countless past generations of Oetzis smilling in ghostly approval? Congratulations, you is now a nature mystic.Just don't stand outside naked holding a torch in hand. You might upset some AARP members <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I admire your courage for even daring to attempt it! Well done.
Where any (cellphone) pics taken? Love to see some pics of the occasion or the next time you're at it.

Being that I live in the Fl. Keys <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />, standing outside naked holding a flaming torch would not be as an unusual sight as you might think, but being as I am AARP age it would surely be an ugly one. <img src="/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

Scott

Kudos!!!

You done well. Welcome to the club.

Wilson is a happy boy. Now, based on Chris' response, the only questions is when were you last at the monolith? <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

May I please touch the hem of your shirt? I am very impressed!!! I've have been trying on and off for a month now to use a bow drill. Same results lots of dust no smoke. I am now more determind to get this. I thought matches and gas was difficult to master <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> (eybrows just growing back)
GREAT JOB!! <img src="/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

Congratulations! Now it's time to try the hand drill. When you figure that one out let me know. I still can't seem to make it happen. I keep telling myself that I just need to exercise more so I have more stamina. Of course that irony is that constantly spinning a hand drill is probably the best training for this purpose, so I keep at it.

Congratulations!
I also made my fire using bow-srill on 2nd January this year! Yes, I do remember the date because it never worked before. And you feel so different after this...
Sometimes I think that some people who wrote survival books never actually made fire using bow drill because they often forget to mention that you should put a tinder easy to ignite into the wedge of the base wood near to the drill - wood dust often does not want to catch the fire because you do not use particularly easy-to-burn wood, but what you have available.
I tried bowdrill many time before and never sucessfully until I read Ray Mear's "Bushcraft" book and followed his instructions. I decided to add a bit of crampballs into the wedge of the base wood - I got fire in about 5 minutes!
Actually, I liked that I made fire in winter time - we have too much rain in the UK at this time of the year, so I could not find anything dry in the woods, not even a leaf. I cut away a lot of wet wood to reach dry pieces to make drill and case. So, I guess I did it in quite difficult circumstances, so next time hopefully it will be in much more favourable conditions.

Handdrill - I can almost picture the blisters on these office softened hands ! <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Actually, what I working on is hand making cordage for the bow. So far I've made cordage from palm fronds and pandanus. The pandanus seem fairly stong and I will try this weekend.

The other thing I'm trying is various native woods for hearth and spindle. Got some good smoke and dark dust from Slash pine and Chinese Fan palm but no coal yet.

My goal is to only need a knife as a tool and then go from there but the shortcuts of using other tools sure is tempting.

Thanks for the encouragement everyone,
Scott

My goal is the same and I too struggle with the temptation of pulling the ferror rod, lighter or matches out of my pocket instead. I mostly have used cedar and cottonwood, both of which are native to my area. I haven't had much luck with natural cordage for bow drills so far. I haven't found the right combination of strength and pliability yet with materials native to the area in which I live. I keep searching and practicing though. Eventually I will probably stumble across something that works.