Starting a fire Without matches;
- Thread starter Levi Garrett
- Start date
SuperCub said:When hunting, a good way to start a fire is to carefully remove the projectile from one of your ammo w/o spilling the powder. Just pour the powder onto your dry fire starter kindling stuff and then load the empty, primed, case into the rifle. Hold the muzzle to the powder pile and pull the trigger. The primer flash will ignite the powder and you now have a fire.
Otherwise, I always carry a BIC lighter.
sc
I've never tried this but am going to on my next outing. I've always wondered if it worked since I saw that Survivorman guy try it on TV. All he managed to do, I think, was blow the whole ignition/kindling setup apart. I don't recall if he ever got a fire going. I believe he had a .303 Enfield. Do you know if there is there a minimum or maximum distance from the kindling to maintain when doing this?
Trick is to have woman follow behind; there is generally room for a decent sized cast iron cookstove under a camo bhurka! When feeling peaked, have woman set up chair for you then instruct her to prepare warm nourishing meal. Tea is nice while waiting. In Canada, you are not allowed to beat woman very often, though.
ckid said:Some very good info here. I'd never heard of char clother before.
Next time you get a bag of cheezies put a match to one, you probably will never eat them again!!
go one better...
potato chip are great fire starters...but the thread is about starting a fire with out matches..
so i just use a lighter
Ahsan Ahmed
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Hey Guys...
As I said before..
A bic is good to have as a secondary source of possible fire, but shouldn't be your primary tool, nor should matches...
Sparked based by means of a Ferro Rod or Doan Tool, and a waterproof fuel/tinder should be your main,, or at least your back up firestarting tools..
There is Very little if anything to go wrong with them,short of them getting lost..They simply don't fail when used properly..
One other thing I should mention with Ferro Rods of any kind..
At the end of your season,or when not in use, cover the entire rod on (Doan Tools as well) with as clear nail polish.
Under certain conditions, the Ferro rod can Deteriorate and corrode into a fine white powder..
If you take care of them properly,, they should last you a Very long time...
ttyle
Eric...
As I said before..
A bic is good to have as a secondary source of possible fire, but shouldn't be your primary tool, nor should matches...
Sparked based by means of a Ferro Rod or Doan Tool, and a waterproof fuel/tinder should be your main,, or at least your back up firestarting tools..
There is Very little if anything to go wrong with them,short of them getting lost..They simply don't fail when used properly..
One other thing I should mention with Ferro Rods of any kind..
At the end of your season,or when not in use, cover the entire rod on (Doan Tools as well) with as clear nail polish.
Under certain conditions, the Ferro rod can Deteriorate and corrode into a fine white powder..
If you take care of them properly,, they should last you a Very long time...
ttyle
Eric...
Levi Garrett
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Hillbilly shack in the boonies
I was out with a friend, not gonna say any of the details except it was a covert op, And that black out was in effect. Well it was cold, and my buddy wanted to light one of those white fuel cubes to keep warm. He carefully placed it under his camo plastic rain poncho. I was freezing to a point where shaking was present, and could not control it.
Well I looked over at him, and the poncho looked like a chinese lantern in the middle of the bush. I laughed so hard , conditions, mindset, and it was an exercise after all, that it was difficult to get to him before the thing was a blaze. There was no physical damage done, just a brused ego. My in ability to stop laughing did not help much.
Frank
Well I looked over at him, and the poncho looked like a chinese lantern in the middle of the bush. I laughed so hard , conditions, mindset, and it was an exercise after all, that it was difficult to get to him before the thing was a blaze. There was no physical damage done, just a brused ego. My in ability to stop laughing did not help much.
Frank
Hey Guys..
Ahsan
All good tools you showed links to there..
One thing about the blast match though...
These can be really handy if for some reason you have an injured hand..Fire can be made with these with only one hand, as the striker is pressed down against the ferro rod,then pressed down causing a shower of sparks onto your tinder.. Very effective...
However...
The strikers on these have a tendency to break off at the worst possible moment,,leaving you with only a Ferro rod,and plastic parts...
Ok if you have something such as a knife to strike the ferro rod with,, but if you don't you'll have a hard time lighting a fire with it...
Too mechanical and isn't fool proof...
The other thing with the Blast Match is,, if you are using a highly combustable material to iginite, such as Gas, gun powder and such,, it is Nearly impossible to use without getting burned,,as you have to push the blast match down hard into your fuel...
If you were to say dump some gas onto your kindling,, a Ferro rod and striker by itself,,can throw sparks hot enough to inginte the gas from a foot or two away...Same goes with gun powder...
Again Great secondary tool,but shouldn't be your first.
The Strike force rod is good,, however I find it too short and prefer a longer rod.A longer rod gives you more throwing power and creates a larger shower of sparks.
The Wet Tinder fuel can be made using vasiline and cotton balls...Not as compact as the premade setup, but works just as well...
ttyle
Eric....
Ahsan
All good tools you showed links to there..
One thing about the blast match though...
These can be really handy if for some reason you have an injured hand..Fire can be made with these with only one hand, as the striker is pressed down against the ferro rod,then pressed down causing a shower of sparks onto your tinder.. Very effective...
However...
The strikers on these have a tendency to break off at the worst possible moment,,leaving you with only a Ferro rod,and plastic parts...
Ok if you have something such as a knife to strike the ferro rod with,, but if you don't you'll have a hard time lighting a fire with it...
Too mechanical and isn't fool proof...
The other thing with the Blast Match is,, if you are using a highly combustable material to iginite, such as Gas, gun powder and such,, it is Nearly impossible to use without getting burned,,as you have to push the blast match down hard into your fuel...
If you were to say dump some gas onto your kindling,, a Ferro rod and striker by itself,,can throw sparks hot enough to inginte the gas from a foot or two away...Same goes with gun powder...
Again Great secondary tool,but shouldn't be your first.
The Strike force rod is good,, however I find it too short and prefer a longer rod.A longer rod gives you more throwing power and creates a larger shower of sparks.
The Wet Tinder fuel can be made using vasiline and cotton balls...Not as compact as the premade setup, but works just as well...
ttyle
Eric....
What several here have said,just keep some 000steel wool in a plastic bag,and a nine volt battery in a vest pocket!
Pull a cotton ball sized piece of steel wool off,and scrape some wood shaveings off some wood(or use strings off your socks)put the steel wool across the +and - poles and you will have fire!
Bob
Pull a cotton ball sized piece of steel wool off,and scrape some wood shaveings off some wood(or use strings off your socks)put the steel wool across the +and - poles and you will have fire!
Bob
Slooshark1
CGN frequent flyer
I usually carry windproof/waterproof matches and fire starters that I make out of 5 or 6 paper towels folded up and soaked with parafin wax. Once the wax starts to cool, I cut the papertowels into strips and keep them in a ziploc bag. They work awesome in damp conditions. If you're ever stuck hunting and don't have fire, you can use your knife to remove the bullet off of one of your cartridges. Then carefully chamber the casing full of powder into your rifle, keeping it pointed upward. Place a rag or a hand full of toilet paper on the muzzle and fire it up in the air. It will be on fire when it hits the ground, just flick into your tinder pile and you're good to go.
Regards,
Slooshark1
Regards,
Slooshark1
- Location
- The Conservative part of Ontario
I'm getting old and forgetful. Almost all of the methods above require you to have brought something along.
He's one that dates to primitive man.
For tinder, use the inside bark of trees like cedar, or birch.
Set up a small bow, use your shoe laces for the bow string, and a comfortable to handle stick for the bow. The string doesn't have to be real tight, as you will wind it around another straight dry stick ad use it as a drill. (dry sticks are found under evegreen trees, dead, and still attached)
place a dry piece of wood on top, and underneath each end of the stick, in wich you have made a dent for the stick to sit in while you work the drill. You can make the dent with a rock.
You work the bow back and forth spinning the drill and aplying pressure to the until you get a good smoke going from either the top or bottom dent in the wood. Blow on the ember until it is red, get the tinder in there, and keep blowing until you have a flame. With a bit of practice, it's done in about ten minutes.
If you don't have boot laces, you can use strips of cloth from your clothes. If you are naked, you have issues.
He's one that dates to primitive man.
For tinder, use the inside bark of trees like cedar, or birch.
Set up a small bow, use your shoe laces for the bow string, and a comfortable to handle stick for the bow. The string doesn't have to be real tight, as you will wind it around another straight dry stick ad use it as a drill. (dry sticks are found under evegreen trees, dead, and still attached)
place a dry piece of wood on top, and underneath each end of the stick, in wich you have made a dent for the stick to sit in while you work the drill. You can make the dent with a rock.
You work the bow back and forth spinning the drill and aplying pressure to the until you get a good smoke going from either the top or bottom dent in the wood. Blow on the ember until it is red, get the tinder in there, and keep blowing until you have a flame. With a bit of practice, it's done in about ten minutes.
If you don't have boot laces, you can use strips of cloth from your clothes. If you are naked, you have issues.
- Location
- AB foothills
John Y Cannuck said:
I wouldnt just say you have issues, I would say you have serious issues
Very good info in this post! Nothing has been new to me, but always good to refresh the mind. Like John y said, we get old and start to forget. Survival skills are always important.
I know there are a few times I would have died without knowing good outdoor skills. Practice as much as you can, starting a fire with almost nothing can be very frustrating to say the least. Most people will give up long before the fire ever starts.
Good post!
What if you can do both?
fogducker said:wow...that i have to see..a person lost in the bush today
it sucks to be me today...i,m a computer dummy... but i could survive in the bush for weeks /months/years or what ever it took, ..... living off the land..
could you?
and this is in the bush..not in mommies basement
