Bow Drill...what am I doing wrong?

[Runs With Beer]

Does anyone know if dried Doug Fir will work? I made the drill portion way to big to fit into my drill. I guess I could size it down.

Your using the wrong type of wood,Do you have ceader and hickory where you live? Use the hickory for your spindle and ceader for your fire board, Should get a coal. You can also use hickory For both parts, It Will work, Give it a try.

[dbldrew]

Ok...I went and made a new board. I stuck with the bow and drill I was using. I made three separate coals! I had grabbed a handful of dryer lint and shredded some napkins and made a birds nest.

each time I dropped the coals into the nest, cupped it and blew...could not get it to ignite all three times.

so...now what do I do?

I’ve never used dryer lint in a tinder bundle for a coal ignition fire. It certainly seems dry and fluffy enough, but if you continue to struggle maybe try a different tinder bundle material. Make sure your tinder bundle is large enough, and when you drop your coal into the bundle, you start off very gently blowing, this is very important if you blow to fast it will blow apart your little coal. As the coal grows in size you can slowly increase the amount of blowing force, eventually it will spread and create enough heat to ignite.

Getting the coal is the hard part so you’re close; keep it up and good luck.

[dolfan87]

Thanks for all the advice guys. I could make the set out of anything to make it work here at home, but in the desert I have very few types of wood to choose from. Palo Verde, dead Saguaro, Creosote Bush(mostly for the bow) and not much else.

I know my set works now...so I need to find some grasses, and try that twine, and finish this puppy off.

[tsitenha]

Getting a "coal" is not the problem it seems, as you have done it 3 times....

your tinder bundle may be packed to tight..go to have a lot of air access to it, shred the tinder apart, lint, grasses what ever you use allow air (oxygen) easy access
and don't blow to hard and blow the "coal" out.... everything in measure

[dolfan87]

I DID IT!! I can't tell you how excited I was. I scoured around my house and found a couple hand fulls of dead weed, and grass, added the dryer lint, and made a nice "nest."

The first time I tried it today I hadn't added the lint...just used the grass and weed. Coal didn't take in the nest.

So I added the lint, made another coal, and when the dryer lint started smoldering I blew harder, and the grass finally caught, and I had flame!

Tossed it in the fire pit, threw on some wood shavings, and viola...a nice little camp fire.

Now, on to phase two. Doing this in the desert with the materials available to me.

Thanks for all the advice, and encouragement...we won!

G

[huntermj]

NICE!
What did you end up using for the drill and fireboard?
Jim

[dolfan87]

NICE!
What did you end up using for the drill and fireboard?
Jim

Doug Fir for the drill...and some sort of looser grain pine for the fire board.

[wareagle69]

atta boy way to persevere

[crashdive123]

Good job Dolfan87 - way to stay with it.

[nell67]

Way to go!!!!!!!

[dolfan87]

Thanks all, I had a real sense of accomplishment. My kid came out and said "dad, did you cheat?!" lol

I told him, "what the heck would be the point of cheating?" He laughed at me and said "well I would of just used the matches here on the table."

There is a lot to teach me, and even more to teach him.

[Runs With Beer]

Nice job, That first time getting it right is pretty cool.

[TDG]

Well, making fire with a bow drill is very hard indeed

Stroke longer, really until you see glowing or smoking coal. That's the hardest part. You're doing great, just practice that last part and you'll succeed.

[dolfan87]

Ok, I had today off from work, so I trekked out to the desert yesterday, and accomplished my next goal. I built a bow drill from desert brush and trees, and successfully got my camp fire going.

It was a little bit of a challenge getting the right drill. At first I whittled on a piece of dried up Palo Verde branch, but it was never straight enough, so I found a bush (I am trying to identify it now, but no luck so far) that had these long straight branches. At first I thought there was no way they would hold up because they were extremely light (felt as though there was nothing to them) but when I began to drill with it, I got almost immediate smoke.

Once it was burned in, I notched the fire board, and had a coal on my first attempt.

On my way in, I had found an abandoned birds nest. I dropped the coal in, blew it to flame, and had the fire going in less then 10 minutes from beginning to end.

I was so excited, but alone, so I had to just pat myself on the back. lol

There are two more things I want to accomplish now. Make my own cordage for the bow, and once I have successfully done that, try to do it hand drill style.

Here is my desert made set, and fire. Fireboard is dead palo verde, as is the hand hold. Live Creosote bush for the bow. 550 Para on the string. The drill...I dunno what it is yet.

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Fire!

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[crashdive123]

Great job! Nice pics.

[dbldrew]

That looks like a very long spindle, the ones I’ve always made the spindle was 8” or so, but I guess you can’t argue with the results!

Good job!

[dolfan87]

That looks like a very long spindle, the ones I’ve always made the spindle was 8” or so, but I guess you can’t argue with the results!

Good job!

Yeah, it was kinda long, but it spun nice and smooth, and made the coal quickly.

Great day yesterday for sure.

[dbldrew]

Yeah, it was kinda long, but it spun nice and smooth, and made the coal quickly.

Great day yesterday for sure.

All that matters is that it worked! I might have to try a longer one next time to see if it makes it easier.

[flandersander]

I scoured around my house and found a couple hand fulls of dead weed

Whoa whoa whoa hang on a minute, did you scour the cigar box under your bed for this "weed"?

[red lake]

It's not mine, I am just holding on to it for a friend. i swear