just been chatting to one of the members about hand drills, he's not been having much success, i gave him what advice i could, i was just wondering if anyone else had any advice on this subject, preferably with british woods.<br><br>thanks in advance.<br><br>take it easy

Friction firestarting is one of those impossible skills until somehow all the pieces come together and that first ember appears. Some woods are better suited than others. One of my peeves are instructors who assemble units with premium materials. People don't always have the best materials at hand in an emergency. Once you have the basics down I strongly urge practice with the lousy stuff. I imagine your friend is probably just wearing through the board. Many woods have a substantial moisture content that must be displaced before ignition can occur. The trick is modifying the speed of rotation to the changing condition of the wood. Watch for subtle changes in colour, resistance to friction and the first few wisps of smoke and granulation. This is easier shown than described.

chris,<br>the problem i've been haveing is the powder is comeing out brown insted of black. and I can't make out wether I want more downwards presure or less. I can get a fair bit of smoke but just no coal. if I use more downwards presure I just seem to go through hearth with out making a coal form. I've mastered the bowdrill but really want to be able to produce fire with out any cordage. <br>more advise please!!!<br>thanks. <br>-james<br>P.S I whole hartedly agree about practicing with bad materials, thats what i'm working on with the bow drill at the moment.