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Seven Ways To Light a Fire Without a Match
Seven Ways To Light a Fire Without a Match
Flint and Steel
Striking the softer steel against the harder flint will produce sparks to flame your fire. The curved steel striker provided with flint and steel kits is easiest to use, although with some practice you can produce sparks by using the back of a carbon-steel knife blade. (Stainless-steel knives are usually much too hard to shave sparks from.) An old bastard file or an axe head will also work.
Step One Grasp a shard of hard rock, such as flint or quartzite, between your thumb and forefinger with a sharp edge protruding an inch or two.
Step Two Tightly clamp a piece of your homemade char cloth or a lump of birch tinder fungus under the thumb holding the piece of flint. Grasping the back of the striker, knife blade, or file in your other hand, strike a glancing blow against the edge of flint, using a quick wrist motion. If you're using an axe, hold the head still and sharply strike the flint near the blade, where the steel is harder. Molten sparks from the steel will fly off and eventually be caught by an edge of the char cloth, causing it to glow.
Step Three Carefully fold the cloth into a tinder nest and gently blow on it until it catches flame.
Step One Identify quartzite by the many crescent-shaped fractures on the surface.
Step Two Choose a quartzite boulder that is flat or discus-shaped and drop it against a larger rock to chip off an edge. Round or oval rocks are more difficult to break.
Step Three A flake broken from the quartzite boulder is usually sharp enough to use as a striker or knife. If you can't find one to your liking, break the boulder again.
Striking the softer steel against the harder flint will produce sparks to flame your fire. The curved steel striker provided with flint and steel kits is easiest to use, although with some practice you can produce sparks by using the back of a carbon-steel knife blade. (Stainless-steel knives are usually much too hard to shave sparks from.) An old bastard file or an axe head will also work.
Step One Grasp a shard of hard rock, such as flint or quartzite, between your thumb and forefinger with a sharp edge protruding an inch or two.
Step Two Tightly clamp a piece of your homemade char cloth or a lump of birch tinder fungus under the thumb holding the piece of flint. Grasping the back of the striker, knife blade, or file in your other hand, strike a glancing blow against the edge of flint, using a quick wrist motion. If you're using an axe, hold the head still and sharply strike the flint near the blade, where the steel is harder. Molten sparks from the steel will fly off and eventually be caught by an edge of the char cloth, causing it to glow.
Step Three Carefully fold the cloth into a tinder nest and gently blow on it until it catches flame.
Another option is to use a magnesium-and-steel tool, which is an updated version of an ancient method that creates a strong shower of sparks. The advantage of this method is that the magnesium shavings flame briefly at an extremely high temperature, eliminating the need for char cloth or tinder fungus.
Step One Using a knife blade or striker, shave a pile of magnesium flecks into a nest of tinder.
Step Two Strike the steel edge of the tool with the back of a knife blade or the scraper provided to direct sparks onto the tinder.
Step Three When the tinder starts to smolder, gently blow on it until it bursts into flames.
Rock Striker
An ideal tool for starting a spark-based fire, the striker should be made of flint for best results. If you can't find flint, look for quartzite, which is much more common and is hard enough to strike sparks from steel.
Step One Identify quartzite by the many crescent-shaped fractures on the surface.
Step Two Choose a quartzite boulder that is flat or discus-shaped and drop it against a larger rock to chip off an edge. Round or oval rocks are more difficult to break.
Step Three A flake broken from the quartzite boulder is usually sharp enough to use as a striker or knife. If you can't find one to your liking, break the boulder again.
Photo by Steve Sanford
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Photo Gallery Comments (19)
I carry a small jar of Vaseline® Petroleum Jelly which is a mixture of mineral oils, paraffin and microcrystalline waxes. As some of you know Vaseline® has more uses that WD40. After cleaning the wound, use a small amount to coat the wound then cover the area. This keeps out and lets out the bad stuff also to keep the wound moist.
Vaseline® and magnesium stick is my primary fire starter rather than water proof matches. A 2x2 cotton patch saturated will burn 6 to 10 minutes.
Some of the info here is fantastic but the Fire plow is not a realistic method for us in North America. It is extremely difficult and more suited for tropical climates. The hand drill and bow drill are my favorite two and you can use a variety of materials whether you line back East, in the Southwest or in the great Northwest like I do.
im still dont know if i could start a fire with out mathces iv tryed a few times and have never been able to succeed
Thanks, The Pump Drill works great! It took me like half an hour to make from scrap materials!
Looking for something that really works and works even after being wet for a long long time! Well by’golly get’ya a small jar of good old fashion Vaseline from and a magnesium fire starter stick from your local Wal-Mart. Take a 2x2 inch piece of cloth and saturate it with Vaseline and scrape a little magnesium on it and hit it with the flint side and now you have instant fire 6 to 10 minutes of flame, now compare that with any other lighter and remember you haven’t really used your fire starting resources at all.
Wow I watch a lot of survival shows and read quite a bit but have never heard of this vaseline trick. I will certainly test it out first thing in the morning. Sounds reasonable. Thanks for the tip.
The Vaseline trick sounds pretty reasonable...the biggest problem with the magnesium fire starters is that the magnesium flakes scatter and blow away very easily. The Vaseline will hold them to the cloth and make it heavy enough that it probably won't blow away. I'll have to try it in the back yard tomorrow (when my wife is at work and won't see her idiot husband trying to light the yard on fire).
I guess if you didn't have a magnesium fire starter, these would be excellant ways to start a fire. They all seem time consuming though and it seems you would have to start the process well before dark if you were going to be in the woods over night.
I read of a scoutmaster who had hollowed out a small section of his highly decorated walking stick and secreted away a 9 volt battery with wires hidden all the way down to the ground end where used a crutch rubber on the end. He would hide a small amount of steel wool in the tinder at the bottom of his teepee fire setup,pull off the crutch rubber, insert the walking stick, mumble some "magic indian words" and....just amaze the living sh*t out of his scouts.
While watching Survivorman on TV, I was informed that yer basic corn chip will work to hold a flame for 30-45 seconds. This would be long enough to get the small twigs ignited in wet weather when dry grass is at a premium. I also have a couple of alcohol wipes in my first aid kit that will do the job nicely!
I have made a fire with the bowdrill method, but it takes a whole lot of air (heavy breathing) and sweat to make it happen, and I learned to rub the top of the drill on my forehead or beside my nose to get a slight amount of oil from my skin on it as a lubricant, this really helped, and to keep my head off to the side of the baseboard,so I didn't inadvertently drip sweat on the coal! ;)Whats the use of making mistakes if you don't learn from them, right?
Bottom line is to practice your primitive methods when you are not in an emergency situation.
i have gotten good at the bow drill method over the years and ok at the hand drill. for first timers i would try the bow drill first. read alot of different web sites like, www.wildwoodsurvival.com, then practice, alot. if you live in the southeast like me, try red ceder for drill and fireboard. pump drill is great but hard to make in survival situation.
I love starting primitive fires. Learning to start one teaches you the basics of how to "build" a fire correctly.
fire bilding is definently an art and it would be very smart to learn it. You never know!
yea its a good way to start a fire but you really only need one person if your good enough
I find that the bow drill is the easiest way to start a fire by yourself when relying on friction.
I don't know if anyone has mentioned this other aspect of the Vaseline trick but most river guides up north in Canada/Alaska use cotton balls soaked in the petroleum jelly. They take a spark very quickly and are about the most reliable tinder you can get when it's wet out.
Very helpful, thanks. It seems like these techniques would take time to master though. Its probably best to learn the know how before the need to make a fire arises.
I've been able to do all of these fire starting methods but I have to agree with the previous comment about the fire plough. It is very difficult and is probably unrealistic for most situations. I'm trying to compile a list of all possible ways to make a fire in a survival setting. Is there anything I've missed? http://howtoto.com/survival-fire-starting-methods-techniques-skills/
This is a cool way from Man vs Wild, it uses the Yucca plant from the American SW deserts.
http://videos.howstuffworks.com/discovery/30407-man-vs-wild-making-fire-...
I've used the petroleum jelly cotton balls, they work great, regardless of the fire starting technique.
Kidney Stones Home Remedies
Critically? It is actually brilliant in order to witness another person at long last start addressing this type of goods, despite the fact that I’m still certainly not guaranteed the amount To be sure to you over it all. I subscribed to your rss though and will absolutely go on following content even in the future I may chime with just as before in more aspect. Cheers for putting up nevertheless!
Post a Comment
I carry a small jar of Vaseline® Petroleum Jelly which is a mixture of mineral oils, paraffin and microcrystalline waxes. As some of you know Vaseline® has more uses that WD40. After cleaning the wound, use a small amount to coat the wound then cover the area. This keeps out and lets out the bad stuff also to keep the wound moist.
Vaseline® and magnesium stick is my primary fire starter rather than water proof matches. A 2x2 cotton patch saturated will burn 6 to 10 minutes.
Looking for something that really works and works even after being wet for a long long time! Well by’golly get’ya a small jar of good old fashion Vaseline from and a magnesium fire starter stick from your local Wal-Mart. Take a 2x2 inch piece of cloth and saturate it with Vaseline and scrape a little magnesium on it and hit it with the flint side and now you have instant fire 6 to 10 minutes of flame, now compare that with any other lighter and remember you haven’t really used your fire starting resources at all.
Some of the info here is fantastic but the Fire plow is not a realistic method for us in North America. It is extremely difficult and more suited for tropical climates. The hand drill and bow drill are my favorite two and you can use a variety of materials whether you line back East, in the Southwest or in the great Northwest like I do.
The Vaseline trick sounds pretty reasonable...the biggest problem with the magnesium fire starters is that the magnesium flakes scatter and blow away very easily. The Vaseline will hold them to the cloth and make it heavy enough that it probably won't blow away. I'll have to try it in the back yard tomorrow (when my wife is at work and won't see her idiot husband trying to light the yard on fire).
While watching Survivorman on TV, I was informed that yer basic corn chip will work to hold a flame for 30-45 seconds. This would be long enough to get the small twigs ignited in wet weather when dry grass is at a premium. I also have a couple of alcohol wipes in my first aid kit that will do the job nicely!
I have made a fire with the bowdrill method, but it takes a whole lot of air (heavy breathing) and sweat to make it happen, and I learned to rub the top of the drill on my forehead or beside my nose to get a slight amount of oil from my skin on it as a lubricant, this really helped, and to keep my head off to the side of the baseboard,so I didn't inadvertently drip sweat on the coal! ;)Whats the use of making mistakes if you don't learn from them, right?
Bottom line is to practice your primitive methods when you are not in an emergency situation.
I love starting primitive fires. Learning to start one teaches you the basics of how to "build" a fire correctly.
fire bilding is definently an art and it would be very smart to learn it. You never know!
I find that the bow drill is the easiest way to start a fire by yourself when relying on friction.
im still dont know if i could start a fire with out mathces iv tryed a few times and have never been able to succeed
Thanks, The Pump Drill works great! It took me like half an hour to make from scrap materials!
Wow I watch a lot of survival shows and read quite a bit but have never heard of this vaseline trick. I will certainly test it out first thing in the morning. Sounds reasonable. Thanks for the tip.
I guess if you didn't have a magnesium fire starter, these would be excellant ways to start a fire. They all seem time consuming though and it seems you would have to start the process well before dark if you were going to be in the woods over night.
I read of a scoutmaster who had hollowed out a small section of his highly decorated walking stick and secreted away a 9 volt battery with wires hidden all the way down to the ground end where used a crutch rubber on the end. He would hide a small amount of steel wool in the tinder at the bottom of his teepee fire setup,pull off the crutch rubber, insert the walking stick, mumble some "magic indian words" and....just amaze the living sh*t out of his scouts.
i have gotten good at the bow drill method over the years and ok at the hand drill. for first timers i would try the bow drill first. read alot of different web sites like, www.wildwoodsurvival.com, then practice, alot. if you live in the southeast like me, try red ceder for drill and fireboard. pump drill is great but hard to make in survival situation.
yea its a good way to start a fire but you really only need one person if your good enough
I don't know if anyone has mentioned this other aspect of the Vaseline trick but most river guides up north in Canada/Alaska use cotton balls soaked in the petroleum jelly. They take a spark very quickly and are about the most reliable tinder you can get when it's wet out.
Very helpful, thanks. It seems like these techniques would take time to master though. Its probably best to learn the know how before the need to make a fire arises.
I've been able to do all of these fire starting methods but I have to agree with the previous comment about the fire plough. It is very difficult and is probably unrealistic for most situations. I'm trying to compile a list of all possible ways to make a fire in a survival setting. Is there anything I've missed? http://howtoto.com/survival-fire-starting-methods-techniques-skills/
This is a cool way from Man vs Wild, it uses the Yucca plant from the American SW deserts.
http://videos.howstuffworks.com/discovery/30407-man-vs-wild-making-fire-...
I've used the petroleum jelly cotton balls, they work great, regardless of the fire starting technique.
Kidney Stones Home Remedies
Critically? It is actually brilliant in order to witness another person at long last start addressing this type of goods, despite the fact that I’m still certainly not guaranteed the amount To be sure to you over it all. I subscribed to your rss though and will absolutely go on following content even in the future I may chime with just as before in more aspect. Cheers for putting up nevertheless!
Post a Comment