Making fire

[Quartermaster James]

I can't say if they are period or not, but if someone found the remains of one, they probably wouldn't be able to identify it anyway....

Tinder tubes are period. They were used in Europe as early as the 16th century.

They were fancy items though, not common. They don't really get popular until the 1800's and the fur trade.

Then you see a lot of them in the southwest. Which sounds like just about where you picked up the trail.

Over at the fabric store you can find crude cotton cord (it's used for drapery or upholstery, or both) that works fine in a tinder tube.

[callenish gunner]

I've used a fire piston for years but i wasn't sure that they were early enough for our period but I think Dampier refers to them in his book

[Captain Jim]

Is there enough spark in a fire piston to light a pipe? I just may have to get one, if so.

[silas thatcher]

I bought Mark a Swedish steel for his backpacking Christmas present before we left ~ and at PiP bought flint and steel for myself from Greg... Now to practice ~ Is char cloth period? Having luck with the spark, but getting it to catch is another matter entirely.

mary, did you "cook" the charcloth correctly ?? it is period as far as i know... i bought a set, and am able to get the charcloth to get an ember on one or two swipes of the flint...

a little practice and i had it down... but capt. jim seems to be the authority on this one :)

[Dutchman]

maybe.. I don't know how much is needed. you end up with an ember about the size of a worn #2 pencil tip that last for around ten seconds with some blowing. of course it depends on the ammount of tinder loaded into the tip of the piston. an interesting note here- too much tinder will not combust- a little dab will do ya.

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

I bought Mark a Swedish steel for his backpacking Christmas present before we left ~ and at PiP bought flint and steel for myself from Greg... Now to practice ~ Is char cloth period? Having luck with the spark, but getting it to catch is another matter entirely.

Yes linen is PC, but also remember that linen rags were a valuable commodity as they made print-stock from them,(why magazines and journals are still referred to as "rags"), so other forms of tinder should be considered as well. Read the article I provided as to proper charring technique. I use dried aromatic cedar bark as it is in endless supply here. Dried and "fluffed" and mixed within the jute twine I use for ignition tinder it works well, though not as fast as linen char. You can also char the punk-wood the same way as the linen. This works well if you keep it from humidity and damp conditions.

Jim, do you have a burning lens that you could keep on a thong around yer neck? I could send you a pair of brass tongs made especially for plucking a small coal from the fire to light yer pipe too. Just a couple of period alternatives to using up all your tinder/char on pipe-lighting.

Bo

Edited December 14, 2009 by Capt. Bo of the WTF co.

[Mary Diamond]

I bought Mark a Swedish steel for his backpacking Christmas present before we left ~ and at PiP bought flint and steel for myself from Greg... Now to practice ~ Is char cloth period? Having luck with the spark, but getting it to catch is another matter entirely.

mary, did you "cook" the charcloth correctly ?? it is period as far as i know... i bought a set, and am able to get the charcloth to get an ember on one or two swipes of the flint...

a little practice and i had it down... but capt. jim seems to be the authority on this one :)

Hi Silas! No, we haven't had/made/tried char yet ~ was trying it straight on dry grasses and fluff. Great sparks, but none caught. Granted, we only tried for about 20 minutes ~ not enough time pre-PiP!

Yes linen is PC, but also remember that linen rags were a valuable commodity as they made print-stock from them,(why magazines and journals are still referred to as "rags"), so other forms of tinder should be considered as well. Read the article I provided as to proper charring technique. I use dried aromatic cedar bark as it is in endless supply here. Dried and "fluffed" and mixed within the jute twine I use for ignition tinder it works well, though not as fast as linen char. You can also char the punk-wood the same way as the linen. This works well if you keep it from humidity and damp conditions.

Bo

Thank you, Bo ~ I found the articles Very interesting ~ just haven't had time to put them into practice. Not as much aromatic cedar here, though at work we do sell bark mulch... maybe I will try some of that. Thanks for the great ideas!

[silas thatcher]

if i figgered all this out correctly, one uses the flint and steel to get the char, or char cloth smoldering with an ember at which point one uses the ember from the char cloth to ignite something flammable ... twigs, grass and the like....

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

Yeah, that's pretty much it. Sounds easy huh? (evil smirk here) You neeed one of my super-duper atomic spark-throwin wonder steels don't ya? Seein as how yer from Mizzourah and all, i suppose i oughta let ya have one. Watch the mailbox, still have yer addy.

Bo

Edited December 15, 2009 by Capt. Bo of the WTF co.

[Captain Jim]

Jim, do you have a burning lens that you could keep on a thong around yer neck? I could send you a pair of brass tongs made especially for plucking a small coal from the fire to light yer pipe too. Just a couple of period alternatives to using up all your tinder/char on pipe-lighting.

Bo

I have one of those brass boxes with the lens built into the lid. I have used it occasionaly to light the slowmatch (takes about a second) and then use the match to light the pipe.

Where did you find the tongs, or did you make them? I've seen several antiques but the prices are outlandish.

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

I make them from brazing rod. It takes about three minutes on a good day, maybe five if I'm in a funk. A grumpy ol' german blacksmith taught me how, documented too, just cannot remember from where, but he knew his stuff.

Those little burning lenses in the HB type boxes don't work well up here at this latitude in winter solstice. I carry a 2 1/2" dia. with a thick convex curve up here year round. I don't smoke, but ya never know when you may need to create a diversion to make your escape. Besides, it's always a hoot when someone asks for a lighter and I hand them my lens!

You wanna try makin those tongs or do ya want me to whip out a pair and send 'em down?

Bo

[Captain Jim]

I make them from brazing rod. It takes about three minutes on a good day, maybe five if I'm in a funk. A grumpy ol' German blacksmith taught me how, documented too, just cannot remember from where, but he knew his stuff.

Those little burning lenses in the HB type boxes don't work well up here at this latitude in winter solstice. I carry a 2 1/2" dia. with a thick convex curve up here year round. I don't smoke, but ya never know when you may need to create a diversion to make your escape. Besides, it's always a hoot when someone asks for a lighter and I hand them my lens!

You wanna try makin those tongs or do ya want me to whip out a pair and send 'em down?

Bo

Whip me up a pair, good sir, set me a price and send 'em on down. I'll definitely have some fun with them at late-night (after the kids are in bed, rules you know) cub scout camping trips. I don't smoke except at reenactments and occasionally while camping.

The idea of a separate burning lens is definitely growing on me. In FL if the sun is shining at all the small lens works, but a big one would work even better.

Jim

[theM.A.dDogge]

for lighting my pipe....i have used the char clothe and striker with success...tho did break a pipe this way(was still in my mouth while i was striking)...and usually have on hand my small magnify glass...form jas towsend...and will...re-light my pipe...allready charred you see...quite quickly(just not so good at night tho)

[callenish gunner]

Bo, I'd like to see about several pairs of those tongs you make. We had a bitch of a time lighting our pipes at PIP and at Lockhouse.

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

I'll be sending this out to Jim tomorrow, and perhaps he will give a product review. I used the last piece of 1/8" brazing rod I had, If these are acceptable and there is a need for more, I will go to the welding shop and get some more stock. My camera quit or I'd just show a picture and you could all see how simple they are to make. These are not the scissors type, but a spring-clamp type. Think of the coil end of a safety pin, with the ends crossed over and forming loops at the end of each tyne, and meeting flush with each-other. That's the best description I can muster. I also use them to light candles with matches when the wicks are far down inside a globe/jar. Saves a lot of burnt fingertips.

Bo

[callenish gunner]

About how long are they?

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

Usually around 6", but they can be made a little bit longer. That is basically half of a brazing rod, I can get two pair from one rod if I don't screw-up. I tend to make things compact anyhow. With these, you just rake some coals far enough away from the fire that you don't get burned reaching in for the coal you want, or if you have a small camp shovel, scoop some up with that, then just pluck one up with the tongs and smoke-away.

Bo

[michaelsbagley]

I have a set of these types of clamps that were gifted to me back in October. I think the gent that made them told me he made them from a coat hanger, or perhaps some thick unshielded copper wiring from the hardware store. My set are about 6 inches long (give or take). Bo, the guy that gave me that is Jean Phillipe from Frontier Folk if you know him at all.

Callenish, I had those at the Lockhouse back in November, did you see them? I used them to light my pipe when we were sitting around the fire Saturday night. They're likely still packed, but I will try and have a look for them and post a pic or two in the next few days if I can find them.

[Captain Jim]

Thanks, Bo, I'll take pictures as soon as it arrives.

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

I have a set of these types of clamps that were gifted to me back in October. I think the gent that made them told me he made them from a coat hanger, or perhaps some thick unshielded copper wiring from the hardware store. My set are about 6 inches long (give or take). Bo, the guy that gave me that is Jean Phillipe from Frontier Folk if you know him at all.

Callenish, I had those at the Lockhouse back in November, did you see them? I used them to light my pipe when we were sitting around the fire Saturday night. They're likely still packed, but I will try and have a look for them and post a pic or two in the next few days if I can find them.

The late Mike Amelling showed me how to make them, but I know Jean only thru the FF forum. Likely he learned from Mike as well at one of those events up north. The trick is to not get them too springy (too much pressure), or they'll bust the coals all down yer front. The advantage over the scissors type is you don't have to worry about keeping pressure on them yourself, and having one get loose and fall down yer front.

Bo

[silas thatcher]

Yeah, that's pretty much it. Sounds easy huh? (evil smirk here) You neeed one of my super-duper atomic spark-throwin wonder steels don't ya? Seein as how yer from Mizzourah and all, i suppose i oughta let ya have one. Watch the mailbox, still have yer addy.

Bo

bo, i'll be looking forward to it !! thank you !!

[Wayland]

I use flint and steel very regularly as part of my school talks and demonstrations.

My method is here and you can also find a video someone shot of me doing it

.

Of course that is all based on how the Vikings did it but there is not much difference until the invention of the match.

Linen tow is often used for caulking and good dry oakum would probably do the trick too.

For lighting a candle I usually use a spill of resinous wood, shaved to a fine point at the end and dipped in molten sulphur. These can be stored in your tinderbox and when the sulphur is touched to your charcloth ember, it ignites and if you wait a moment the burning sulphur will then ignite the spill. This method goes back at least to the middle ages.

[theM.A.dDogge]

I use flint and steel very regularly as part of my school talks and demonstrations.

My method is here and you can also find a video someone shot of me doing it

.

Of course that is all based on how the Vikings did it but there is not much difference until the invention of the match.

Linen tow is often used for caulking and good dry oakum would probably do the trick too.

For lighting a candle I usually use a spill of resinous wood, shaved to a fine point at the end and dipped in molten sulphur. These can be stored in your tinderbox and when the sulphur is touched to your charcloth ember, it ignites and if you wait a moment the burning sulphur will then ignite the spill. This method goes back at least to the middle ages.

wonderful pics..what the hell kinda of fish is that?....obviously no skinny dippin there!!

[Wayland]

This one?

I think it's an Angler fish. Deep sea fella.

The locals up there think they are lucky I as far as I can tell.

[Mary Diamond]

For lighting a candle I usually use a spill of resinous wood, shaved to a fine point at the end and dipped in molten sulphur. These can be stored in your tinderbox and when the sulphur is touched to your charcloth ember, it ignites and if you wait a moment the burning sulphur will then ignite the spill. This method goes back at least to the middle ages.

Fantastic! Do you make the spills yourself? I would be most interested in seeing the plane you use ~ I am quite intrigued by spills and their practical use.