- #36
zoobyshoe
- 6,510
- 1,290
The granola bars?
Lots and LOTS of batteries. Hey, if you're going to be stranded in the wilderness, you have to have your priorities straight. Deer are a lot harder to sneak up on than sheep.Chi Meson said:Did everyone read Chroots list, CAREFULLY?
GLOW STICKS!zoobyshoe said:#4 where he says 2 sources of cold light, but then names 3?
Give us a hint, what kind of thing are we looking for?
Your survival kit includes lots of batteries and you were picking on me for needing batteries.chroot said:I don't know what I said that was so funny either. Glad I'm entertaining though.
- Warren
Item 15 in the quote.chroot said:I don't know what I said that was so funny either. Glad I'm entertaining though.
- Warren
Moonbear said:Your survival kit includes lots of batteries and you were picking on me for needing batteries.
You're kind for using the word "value."chroot said:My survival kit doesn't include lots of batteries. Chi Meson was just misquoting me for humor value.
- Warren
Yes, a good quality folding knife with a blade that locks open and a lightweight alloy frame. Big size, but light - I have several.chroot said:I would take a good-quality folding pocket knife over a Swiss Army knife anyday.
I guess you can tell how carefully we read the original list then, huh?chroot said:My survival kit doesn't include lots of batteries. Chi Meson was just misquoting me for humor value.
- Warren
OK, you're the one we want to ask. Having all the proper pieces of wood, how long does it take from when you first start bowing till having a fire started?turbo-1 said:As a kid, I learned how to make a fire fairly quickly with a friction bow -
Here's the trick: you drill a pocket in your soft base with the tip of your knife, and you shape the tip of the spindle to fit that pocket as close as you can. This gives you a lot of contact area (friction) when you start bowing. You also want to carve a little channel from the pocket in which to place your tinder. If I recall, I've gotten a nice flame in as little as 5 minutes or so. If you've done well (and you're bearing down on the top block as you bow) you will get smoke in just a couple of minutes, but you will not get flames unless you've got good-quality tinder adjacent to the pocket in the bottom block. It helps if your bottom block is soft, dry wood, and can easily deform to the pressure of the spindle, giving you the maximum surface contact and friction. Soft white pine and cedar are really good choices, here.zoobyshoe said:OK, you're the one we want to ask. Having all the proper pieces of wood, how long does it take from when you first start bowing till having a fire started?
That's great, if you remember to bring along something that is hard enough to generate sparks when you abrade the flint, and can find suitable tinder. My little film can "fire kit" was sufficient to ensure that I could build a fire any time that I wanted. Carrying a piece of flint in my pocket would not have ensured this, at least not on a timely basis, especially if I had a broken leg and could not forage for tinder and firewood. The fellow who taught me this was a pretty sharp old guy.Evo said:I would carry a flint.
Yeah, a flint and striker and some dry tinder. That was a common "fire kit" back in the old days. A lot easier than the bow, although in areas that flint was not available, that was the next best option.turbo-1 said:That's great, if you remember to bring along something that is hard enough to generate sparks when you abrade the flint, and can find suitable tinder. My little film can "fire kit" was sufficient to ensure that I could build a fire any time that I wanted. Carrying a piece of flint in my pocket would not have ensured this, at least not on a timely basis, especially if I had a broken leg and could not forage for tinder and firewood. The fellow who taught me this was a pretty sharp old guy.
turbo-1 said:Here's the trick: you drill a pocket in your soft base with the tip of your knife, and you shape the tip of the spindle to fit that pocket as close as you can. This gives you a lot of contact area (friction) when you start bowing. You also want to carve a little channel from the pocket in which to place your tinder. If I recall, I've gotten a nice flame in as little as 5 minutes or so. If you've done well (and you're bearing down on the top block as you bow) you will get smoke in just a couple of minutes, but you will not get flames unless you've got good-quality tinder adjacent to the pocket in the bottom block. It helps if your bottom block is soft, dry wood, and can easily deform to the pressure of the spindle, giving you the maximum surface contact and friction. Soft white pine and cedar are really good choices, here.
The optimal choice is VERY hardwood for the spindle, VERY soft wood for the base (where you want to build the fire), a relatively hardwood for the top block (to reduce friction), and the selection of wood for the bow is "whatever". It is very easy to get a fire going with this technique if you have collected some good tinder. Some good tinder might be sun-dried peat, leaf duff, lichens, etc. There is a lot of stuff that can be found for tinder, even when it is cold or very wet - you just have to know how and where to look.
First zoobies, now brush people?Zoobies can do things with brush people
VERY cool! Flint in holes in a stick! Maybe I should put that in my future emergency kit! Or maybe a magnifying glass or a Fresnel lens would make-do better. But not as cool.As a kid, I learned how to make a fire fairly quickly with a friction bow - just carry a piece of rawhide in your pack, cut a hard branch for the shaft another branch for the bow and some softer wood for base and top pivot - drill the sockets with the tip of a knife. That's handy to know, but not as practical as the little kit I kept in my pack for hiking, fishing, and hunting.
It was an aluminum film can packed with some tinder, into which I jammed a short piece of hacksaw blade and a small hardwood stick into which I drilled proper-sized holes and embedded lighter flints. Place a bit of tinder in some combustible materials, hold the stick near the tinder and rake across the flints with the hacksaw blade to make a shower of sparks. You can start a fire very quickly with that set-up, and my parents were comfortable with my carrying that. They would probably not have liked to see a 10 year old with a Zippo, but if you're going to go miles into the Maine woods alone, it's a good idea to have some way to start a fire in case you are injured and can't walk back out.
Funny you should say that. They make a big point of this in the movie The Edge, where some guys crash in Alaska in the wilderness. The character played by Anthony Hopkins warns all the others that the main reason people die in the wilderness is shame: they think they deserve it for letting this happen to them.Chi Meson said:Never, ever rubbed two stick together. I figure, if I got myself in that situation, I didn't deserve any fire.
A fresnel is nice to have but it only works in the daytime and only when the sun is shining. If you are out in a foggy drizzle and you get injured and nightfall is coming on, you'd prefer the flint trick. I used a skinny little piece of hardwood and drilled about 10 holes just the right size for a tight fit and jammed the lighter flints into the holes. As for tinder, 4x steel wool works pretty well, and it burns hot enough to get your secondary combustibles to catch fire so you can start putting heavier sticks, etc on.Mk said:VERY cool! Flint in holes in a stick! Maybe I should put that in my future emergency kit! Or maybe a magnifying glass or a Fresnel lens would make-do better. But not as cool.
There is definitely some truth to that. Last time I got "lost" in the wilderness (deliberately and alone) was in 1988. I tossed my compass and tempted fate. Two days later I was cursing myself for being an idiot. I followed a stream until it crossed a hiking trail. Then it was another day before I figured out where I was headed, then another two days to hike back. In retrospect it was "pretty cool," but at the time it was five days of no fun, and a bit of shame.zoobyshoe said:Funny you should say that. They make a big point of this in the movie The Edge, where some guys crash in Alaska in the wilderness. The character played by Anthony Hopkins warns all the others that the main reason people die in the wilderness is shame: they think they deserve it for letting this happen to them.
Oh, I missed this part. That's a cool idea. Flint's the way to go.turbo-1 said:It was an aluminum film can packed with some tinder, into which I jammed a short piece of hacksaw blade and a small hardwood stick into which I drilled proper-sized holes and embedded lighter flints. Place a bit of tinder in some combustible materials, hold the stick near the tinder and rake across the flints with the hacksaw blade to make a shower of sparks. You can start a fire very quickly with that set-up, and my parents were comfortable with my carrying that. They would probably not have liked to see a 10 year old with a Zippo, but if you're going to go miles into the Maine woods alone, it's a good idea to have some way to start a fire in case you are injured and can't walk back out.
Very sad. Not exactly a roaring fire, eh?chroot said:It looks a little sad, Evo.
- Warren