Rick
07-18-2008, 07:12 PM
Here's another tool for the toolbox. A really good material for tinder is a product known as Oakum. Oakum is made from fibers of the Jute plant and has historically been combined with pine tar and used as caulking or packing of ships' timbers and deck planking. It has also been used extensively in the plumbing industry to seal cast iron drain pipe.
But Oakum, minus the pine tar, can do an excellent job of catching and holding a spark. You can still find it on the internet and in plumbing supply stores. It's pretty inexpensive. A couple of feet of 1/2 inch Oakum is about $2.00.
For those of you that teach wilderness skills, this might be a good way to provide your students with a good tinder product that's pretty cheap.
But Oakum, minus the pine tar, can do an excellent job of catching and holding a spark. You can still find it on the internet and in plumbing supply stores. It's pretty inexpensive. A couple of feet of 1/2 inch Oakum is about $2.00.
For those of you that teach wilderness skills, this might be a good way to provide your students with a good tinder product that's pretty cheap.