Starting Fires Without Matches and Lighters.

reply to post by gazerstar


I'm sure you can purchase it somewhere like in a camping/sporting store but from what I know, it's mostly made at home with household items:

www.youtube.com...

Originally posted by gazerstar
reply to post by AshleyD

 

Thanks.

Is char cloth something that most people have around the house or can make, or is it something that has to be purchased?

It can be purchased at alot of camping/outdoor supply stores, but very easy to make at home as well.

Basically you heat up a piece of cloth to a temperature where it would normally burn up, but don't give it enough air for it to catch fire. Just place a small square (2" x 2" or so) of cloth into some small metal container such as a Sucrets or Altoids container, metal chew can, etc. Poke a tiny hole in the can with a nail so the smoke from the smoldering cloth can escape and place it over a heat source such as a fire or small camp stove. Basically let it smolder until there's no more smoke coming out of the hole, let it cool and the cloth will be blackened and sooty like charcoal.

The resulting "char-cloth" will take a spark and hold an ember very easily. It's mostly used in fire pistons but useful with just a normal flint & steel as well.

for the magnesium bar with keychain hole attach broken end of hacksaw blade with hole already in it,save your knife for something else.you dont need flint to creat sparks just a good hard rock that will scape pieces off carbon steel & create sparks,this is why SS knives are not reccomemded for serious outdoor use you cant start a fire with one if you had too.the BlastMatch Fire Sarter is great also you can start fire with one hand, which may happen,you could be injured ,and have only one hand to do things with.you should be able to open & use most if not all of your gear and food with one hand.Backwoodsman magazine has dealt with all this info and more ,and how to do things cheaply too. suscribe,or just read it at the newstand.bi-monthly

It has been recommended often to use alternative fire starting methods in order to save one's matches and lighters. Well, here is another idea:

I have read that nomadic peoples have carried coals with them to quickly start a fire. So if coals could be saved or kept alive every 24 hours, fire starting materials would never have to be used.

I do not know how the nomads did it, or how practical the idea really is. Just another idea to add to the soup.

Does anyone know how to keep some coals burning for many hours to restart fires?

Originally posted by Asktheanimals
In the far north you can cut a lens shape out of clear ice and start a fire with that just like a magnifying glass.

Though theoretically possible in reality it doesn't work. In nature ice always forms cloudy (apart from the very thin pieces on the surface of water but they are no good for this) so you cannot use it to concentrate the light to start a fire no matter how well you carve it.

-Cauch1

Originally posted by brygivrob

Does anyone know how to keep some coals burning for many hours to restart fires?

The method I've seen includes a cup (about the size of a coffee mug) made out of birch bark or similar and it is thickly lined with green moss. The ember is nestled in the middle of the moss and a lid (also made of bark) caps off the cup to reduce the amount of available air. Often these cups are doubled up for redundancy and a long strap allows them to be slung over the shoulder for carrying.

A modern personal heater is based on the same principle:
World Famous pocket heater