#96, I think.
More Text at my Other Fire Blog Link Below
More Text at my Other Fire Blog https://questforfireblog.wordpress.com/2016/02/18/fire-from-a-marble/
02/17/2016
02/24/2016
DIY Compact & Easy Fire Piston with Special Stone Tinder Demonstration
There is a video clip Below
I am backed up with more posts than I can find time to make. I have new and exciting ways to start fire without matches. I believe some of them to be original and never before seen. But I also have some lose ends regarding previously posted methods that I feel need to be tied up before I move on to these new methods.
I have come far toward mastering the effective use of the fire piston for starting fire, so I wanted to share some of my recent experiences with others. My first post made my frustrations evident. I could not get fire consistently with homemade fire pistons. Then my oldest daughter sent me a commercially made model that changed everything. It also included good instructions regarding its use. This gave me a standard to compare my own designs and techniques to. Although I am still short of my original goal for success using only primitive materials, I can now make consistent fire from pistons made from easily available scrap materials. I want to share some of this. Much of the problem was operator error. What was I doing wrong, that I have since been able to correct? While I knew that the piston had to be pushed or slammed firmly down and then quickly withdrawn to get an ember, I apparently didn't quite understand how important the quick withdrawal is. Nor did I have a good technique for doing so. I couldn't understand why I would only sometimes get an ember, when it seemed that I was doing the exact same thing.
Once I got the commercial model, I assumed that it would work, and concentrated on trying different techniques to get positive results. I was quickly able to getting an ember almost every time. Another problem that can kill the deal is improper handling of the tinder while loading it into the piston rod. Some kind of lubricant is usually used to ensure a good slide and seal in the cylinder against the O-ring. Vaseline if what I commonly use. Coconut oil is probably the best and will cause the least deterioration of the components. Whatever is used must not contaminate the tinder. Getting any lubricant on the tinder will keep it from igniting. As my new fire-making compadre Pierre says, wiping your fingers on your pants is not enough. Your fingers must be entirely free from oils when you handle the tinder. He suggests using one hand for lubricating the O-ring, and the other for handling the tinder. Great advice!
Enter Stone Tinder
The tinder should not be wadded up tightly. Keep it fluffy. It is okay if it fluffs out beyond the tinder hole. In fact this may help. And be careful not to contaminate the tinder as you place the piston into the cylinder. You need enough fluff to allow the tinder have sufficient air to breath. The heat may be there to ignite, but if the Oxygen is not, then it can't burn. This also likely explains why it is so important to quickly get the rod back out into the air--so it can breath. This idea is furthered by the need to blow the ember even when it comes out burning. This is my take, anyway. The next problem was the tinder that I was using. Initially, the char cloth that came with the fire piston didn't work. I tried some of my own and it worked. Aha, I thought, they sent me lousy char cloth. That was not the case. I just happened to use a good technique when I used my own. So, we are back to good technique. Still, if you use poor technique, good tinder can only help so much. On the other hand, if you have extraordinary tinder, you can get an ember much more easily even if your fire piston design is less than ideal.
I know this because once I discovered really good tinder; I went back and tried the dozen or more homemade piston and they worked much better! This was partly because I had learned better techniques, but not all. I said I discovered really good tinder. The real discovery was made by my new friend who shares an interest in similar fire-making techniques. Pierre Coutu is a man after my own heart--an interesting fellow with a proud French-Canadian heritage who is a transplant to the Southern States, not that far from me. As Pierre tells it, a series of hap-stance events led to his discovery of what he now calls Stone Tinder; he further explains that Pierre means Stone in French. It's a good name both ways and is fitting for his product. Pierre alone is responsible for the discovery, development, and refinement of his proprietary material with just the right properties for use with fire pistons. He has a web site also bearing the name Stone Tinder and sells the magic stuff all over the place. He says it is made from all natural albeit uncommon materials using his own carefully guarded recipe. I got two varieties of Pierre's Stone Tinder--Regular and Expert. They are both amazing. Unburned Stone Tinder is odorless to me--just kind of refreshingly clean smelling. It has a pleasant odor when it burns. Pierre says it is completely nontoxic. Unlike char cloth which can get messy and leave a black residue on your fingers and piston, Stone Tinder is light colored, almost white.
I am not interested in stealing Pierre's secrets.I won't even venture a guess as to what it is made from or how it is made. He deserves full credit and any monetary rewards that come from it. It is inexpensive, and a little bit will last forever used with a fire piston. I have not yet tried it with other fire starting methods, but seeing how well it does with fire pistons, it will undoubtedly work well otherwise. I think Pierre is a genius, besides being a very kind and pleasant guy and I am glad to know him. I am very happy to know about Stone Tinder. It is helping me on my way to constructing a usable fire-piston from raw primitive materials in the wilds. Those who follow my blogs understand that my blogs are are noncommercial and that I have never advertised products herein. This is as close as I have come to endorsing a product and I recommend Stone Tinder strictly for its outstanding merits. Given the information I have provided about it, you will have no problem finding it with a simple online search. There is only one Stone Tinder. Thanks Pierre.
Simple to Build. Follow these Instructions
Now I am going to share two simple fire piston designs that have been effective enough for me using both Stone Tinder and homemade char cloth that I think virtually anyone can construct quickly with minimal fuss. They are very similar. One is slightly more compact than the other, but both are small and easy to carry in a pocket. They are easy to use, too. The parts required are available from virtually any hardware store such as Ace or home building supply such as Lowes or Home Depot. The main cylinder of either design is simply a 3" or longer piece of brass pipe (called a nipple) with threads on at least one end and a threaded brass cap to screw onto it. I have tried pipe with both 3/8" and 1/2" diameters with equally successful results. I like the smaller one simply because it is smaller. Theoretically, the smaller diameter requires less speed and downward pressure--thus less effort to develop the necessary pressure and consequent heat to start an ember. I can't tell any difference. If your brass cylinder is threaded on both ends or if it has been cut with a pipe cutter, it is a good idea to use a rat-tail file, sandpaper, or power tool to make the opening for the piston rod slightly bigger, but this is not critical.
The piston that fits into the cylinder should ideally be as close to the inner diameter of the brass pipe cylinder as possible, while still sliding without any metal on metal resistance. This is not critical either, because the O-ring around the piston will close the gap. Neither of the two designs shown here fit very tightly, but there are advantages to having a snugger fit. I have used several materials for the piston rods including wooden dowel, copper, brass, and aluminum. They all work. I prefer aluminum rod. It is light and tough, but soft enough to easily cut and work using simple tools.
O-rings. These are rubber(ish) rings that are used to create a seal in everything from water faucets to air and fuel lines and many other things. They come in all sizes. I had some on hand in a faucet repair kit, but you can buy them for pennies at the same stores mentioned above. Or you can get a box of about three hundred in various sizes for five or so dollars from places like Harbor Freight or TSC. You can be scientific and fit by size or just try different sizes until one fits. You will need to make a hole in the piston rod just deep enough to retain the tinder in one end of the rod. I made mine about 1/8" deep. Since my rod pieces already had holes in one end, I just cut or grind them off to the right depth. Make the holes as wide as you can without weakening the outer walls of the rods. You can make these holes in a wooden dowel with a pocket knife, but if you use metal, you will best use some kind of a power tool, although you could use your triangular file to make one or more slots to hold the tinder. Copper and aluminum can be easily worked. A Dremel-style moto-drill with a pointed abrasive bit works well. You can get a cheap model on sale at Harbor Freight for six dollars complete with bits.
You may already have pieces on hand that will work for the piston rod. I used a broken aluminum craft knife handle for one piston and a piece of an old gun cleaning rod for the other. These already had holes in one end for placing the char cloth. I just cut them off with a small triangular file to make the holes shallower. (If you cannot find suitable aluminum, brass, or copper rods in local stores, you can certainly find the objects I used and others. You can also find bargain prices for aluminum round on eBay.) The O-ring needs a groove to hold it in place on the rod. I placed one about 1/8" from the hole end of the rod on the smaller piston and about 1/4" from the end of the other. It didn't seem to matter. I made a couple of wraps of a piece of duct tape around the diameter of the rods to provide a guide for filing the grooves using the same small triangular file. I went slowly with the file, eyeballing and hand turning it to file the correct depth while trying the O-ring fit every little bit.
There are two main considerations while making the groove for the O-ring: 1) The O-ring must be able to allow the rod to slide within the cylinder when lubricated and pushed into it slowly--but with a sufficient seal to cause a slight push-back from the air within. 2) The O-ring must fit securely enough into the rod groove so that it neither slips out of the groove, nor allows a sudden escape of air while under the quick pressure during operation. This means the groove must be fairly uniform in depth and the sides of the groove must not be too rounded. (You can also make the grooves by chucking the rod in a drill and letting it turn at low rpm against the file, but I didn't on these.) It probably took about ten minutes for each groove doing it by hand. I used both Teflon plumber pipe tape on the outer threads of the pipe and a quarter inch ball of JB Weld Two-Part Putty to fill the cap up before screwing it firmly onto the pipe.
The putty is important because there is a gap left within the inside of the cap when it is screwed onto the pipe. If the cap is not filled, the O-ring can lose the compression if it goes past the pipe's edge into the gap. While the putty is still pliable use a pencil's eraser end or solid end of the rod to press it down smoothly inside the pipe. You will need something to help you grip while pulling the compressed rod out of the pipe quickly enough to fuel the ember and keep it burning. The heat may be sufficient to ignite the tinder, but if it is not removed quickly enough, it will not have sufficient air to burn. You will need a knob of sorts to grasp to do this. With one of my fire pistons I epoxied a drilled piece of wooden dowel onto the end of the rod. The piece of rod I adapted from the old gun-cleaning rod already had threads that I screwed a rubber washer and a nut onto for a handle. I molded a piece of JB Weld putty onto the bottom of each cylinder and each rod handle to keep it from scratching the any surface I might used the fire piston against while slamming it down.
There are two ways I operate these fire pistons. The first is by standing it upright on a hard surface and slamming it down with the heel of my hand followed by snatching it right back up and out of the cylinder. This works well (these things were called Slam Fires back in the day). Beginners, children, women with small hands, and those lacking a firm grip may find this the best way. The other way is by holding the cylinder firmly in my week-side fist horizontally braced against my chest while using the heel of my my strong side hand to push the rod quickly to its limit and snatching it back out with curled fingers. This takes a little more technique but a few times practice made it work for me. It does take a few times to get the hang of it.
It will likely take less time to construct one of these guys than it takes to read these instructions. It is just a guide for making a couple of models easily and quickly from inexpensive materials. The basic idea can be adapted to whatever you can find to improvise with. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the first fire piston I ever made was from a piece of aluminum arrow shaft, a pencil, and an O-ring. Amazingly it worked on the first try as I recall. Unfortunately, it never worked consistently. Oh, but wait! It probably would have with my new information and Pierre's Stone tinder. The video clips show each of these homemade fire pistons in operation.
There is more information about this and other fire starting methods at my other blog, PapaD's
Quest for Fire Blog, at the following link: https://questforfireblog.wordpress.com/2016/02/25/new-take-on-fire-pistons-with-stone-tinder/
02/27/2016
Hand Drill Techniques. The Finer Points of Hand Drill Fire Making
Let's face it, most of my video clips have been less than professional. For the most part, they have been made on the fly with inferior equipment, phone cameras without tripod, and often unplanned or spontaneous as I have found myself with a few spare minutes or when stumbling across materials or circumstances for making fire. My original intent was to grab a few proof shots to show my scattered grand-kids. I never realized or planned to have a broader viewership until fairly recently when popular demand made me realize that a good many people have an interest in such things. I am trying to do better.
Previously, I have made posts and shown clips of making fire using different kinds of materials--some which require different kinds of hand drill techniques. I have tried to describe these techniques thoroughly enough that I felt these techniques could be duplicated by those who wanted to. But nothing beats actually seeing the process. I have had requests for better videos specifically displaying the finer points of this kind of fire making. In response to these requests, I have made and am posting here now several video clips that I hope will better address the requests.
Although still totally unscripted and disjointed, I present these videos with minimal additional explanation--for those who care to view them. I have learned things about my own techniques that can probably be unproved by viewing these videos myself. Be-that-as-it-may, these clips do show my own methods that have worked for me. They have evolved over time and will likely evolve more. I am a tinkerer by nature. I have interests in the natural sciences, outdoors skills, geography, and anthropology--all of which have a tie-in to fire making. I am also likely somewhat OCD. So once I begin to research and tinker with a broad subject such as this--I typically learn everything I can about it. For good or bad, I have done this with fire-making.
The following videos are unedited. If I have made additional written comments as captions, it is because I either left information out that I feel is important, or I thought of additional information when I played the clips back. If you are going to spend the time viewing these clips, it is a good idea to pay particular attention to these written comments. I may find time to edit these clips and add this additional information, but it is not too high on my list of priorities at this point. I have many other ways to make fire that I want to get to and time is limited. Once I get the total one hundred ways documented, I will then try to refine the videos if there seems to be a need. Going forward, I will also try to make better video clips.
Please note regarding the method shown in the next clips. If you are not use to this method it will make blisters on the insides of your thumbs, so, I recommend putting duct tape over the inside of your thumbs, or otherwise protecting them.
The following clips show my use of a Hickory Nut outer husk for a top-hat to hold the spindle in place while I apply continuous pressure on a tree-wood spindle (as opposed to a weed stem spindle). I do this for two main reasons. It is harder to find long straight pieces of tree wood, AND it usually takes me longer time spinning to get an ember with tree woods. By using the top-hat, I can exert more downward pressure and spin continuously. I can usually get an ember faster and with less trouble than I can even using a bow to spin the spindle.
So, why don't I use the top-hat with weed stems? They are usually too delicate and they do not lend themselves to the pointed top necessary for this method. I could and have work-around this, but it just is not necessary because the stems I prefer have an inherently lower ignition temperature than the tree woods I use. If I can find the types of weed stems I have found best for my methods, I can usually have fire quicker than I can with the tree woods. So why even bother with the top-hat work-around? I don't.
The next clip shows another method of spinning the spindle continuously with your hands. It works well if you are up to it. The main feature is that it keeps the stem spinning without ever stopping, which is desirable because it makes heat faster. At my current age and handicaps, it is not longer a good option for me. It both wears me out, leaving me breathless and with muscles burning way before the ember burns, AND it hurts my bum wrist because the action lies primarily in the wrists instead of the forearms.
It has interesting stories behind it supposedly associated with our American Indian ancestry. I don't know which of the three tribes we represent--Qua-paw, Osage, or Cherokee--if any, that it is attributed to. As I recall from childhood stories, it was called Spirit Hands or Spirit Walking Hands. I don't know why. The story has to do with how Bear, who was the original keepers of Fire, got busy playing in the woods and left Fire unattended. Humans stole it or fire-napped it or somehow got hold of Fire. And that's all I know. I have tried to run down further details of the story, but so far with no success.If the story is wanting, the method can be more fullfilling if you are young and fit.
There is more about this technique at my other blog PapaD's Quest for Fire
03/02/2016
Hand Drill Method. Spirit Hands, for Continuous Spinning #77
I just added this clip. I also added the clip to the last post regarding Hand Drill Fire Starting Hints, but since this technique is an entirely different way of using the hand drill, it is also a separate way of making fire--so I felt it deserved a post all to itself. I had almost forgotten about this technique. It was first learned long ago. I haven't used it in years. It is a good method, but it is not so good for me anymore. It is especially interesting to me, however, because it may be part of my NA heritage. I learned it as The Spirit Hands or Spirit Walking Hands Fire Method, which has some ties to Native Americans, but I don’t really know how or why it is called that. It is a good and viable method with the advantage that the spindle never stops spinning, giving the benefit of less loss of heat during the brief pauses between spin sequences than with my usual spin method.
There are three reasons I don’t use this method anymore. One is that the spindle never stops turning. Yep, that’s the same as the advantage mentioned above. This method takes more exertion to use, partly because you never stop spinning. At my advancing age, I need those pauses to get a second of rest between spin sequences. Without them, I both lose my breath, and my muscles give out. This was not always the case but it is now.
Another reason is that it hurts my bum wrist with all the twisting required. The third is, it takes a lot more inward isometric tension to keep my hands from riding the stick downward as naturally happens using my normal method. It may not sound like a big thing, but it is all I can do to get an ember now; the extra effort makes it, if not impossible for me to sustain, at least makes it unpleasant to do so. If ever I had anything to prove regarding this, I just don’t anymore. Lost my fire? Nope, I got over a hundred ways more fire than your average bear.
Speaking of bears, there is an American Indian legend or myth or story from one or more of the tribes of our Southern States that goes with this Spirit Walking Hand Drill method of making fire. Although I have been unable to run down the remnants of stories from my youth, it has something to do with how Bear was the keeper of Fire, and got negligent and left Fire unattended while he was playing, presumably with other Bears, and it took a while to remember and come back to get Fire. Fire was pretty put out about the whole misadventure and ran off from Bear to sulk, and some Humankind from said tribe(s) kid-napped or fire napped or otherwise absconded with Fire. The Humankind was thereafter able to call forth Fire by Spirit Walking using this method–or something like that.
I know. Don’t kill the messenger. I was not there, and as previously stated, I am still scratching for details from fading childhood stories. It made perfect sensed then. Or did it????
But those learning hand drill methods should learn the Spirit Hands Method. If you can do it without any problems physically, you may like it better than my other methods–because the continuous turning, though requiring more exertion will make an ember faster. If you can maintain it. AND, it is one of the One Hundred Ways (and growing) I know to Make fire.
03/11/2016
A new Fire Piston Design from PapaD to Appeal to Rifle Enthusiasts. 50 Cal BMG Brass. #86
5o Cal BMG Big Boy Fire Piston
Some of these pix are a little cheesy because I took them from a folder of images enhanced for the sake of illustration in a legal filing. Sorry about the cartoon looking ember. It is only because it IS a cartoon ember enhanced as requested.
Many revere the legendary reputation of the 50 Cal BMG as the preeminent long range rifle/light machine gun cartridge, but may know little of the Fire Piston as a remarkable fire starting method with likely origins in the jungles of South East Asia thousands of years ago–or vice versa. Although the Philippine Islands and Malaysia are most often thought of as the origins of fire pistons–the triad of Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia are thought to be the oldest cultures in Asia, so who knows . . . . all bamboo cultures are candidates
I guess it was inevitable while I am on this fire piston tear. Being a Vietnam
See the full text at my other fire blog link https://questforfireblog.wordpress.com/2016/03/11/5o-cal-bmg-big-boy-fire-piston/
Multi-Purpose Fire Starting Antler. #41, 42, 43
OCD Antler Multi-Purpose Fire Thang
The only size reference is the quarter hickory nut husk, but the fire thang is not very big. Some folks are of the notion that a bow for bow & spindle fire making must be big. In use, a size larger than this might be more comfortable, but if necessary this bow will turn the spindle sufficiently to make an ember; when my hand drill techniques get down to making fire, the most intense friction happens while making strokes using only about half my palms. This bow will easily match that.
The waxed bow string is adjustable via the hole in the bottom of the antler and wrapped to firmly secure it. The ball of beeswax attached to the excess string provides a way to add more grip to the string while spinning the spindle. As with my other rigid bow designs, the thumb and fingers allow further tautness manipulation while in use–simple by squeezing.
The hickory nut husk can be used as the top spindle socket–even when attached to the antler bow–as can the small piece of chert when struck with the attached striker. This small flint is diamond bit drilled to always provide a ready flint, but a larger flint would conserve this little one when available.
Flint was traditionally sharpened (knapped) by primitive users with the end of an antler point. This is how flint arrow heads were shaped. And how fire flint is sharpened. These two antler points work well for this. The rougher base end of the antler has sharper protrusion that lends itself to gouging the beginnings of a hole in the hearth. The piece of saw blade is held in place by a combination of position while striking and beeswax. The blade can easily be removed and used for the same purpose as well as sawing a notch into the hearth hole. It can also be used to blunt a hand drill spindle end and scrape it smooth to ease wear on the hands. The blade is easily replaced and secured back with the bees wax.
Secured within a slot in one side of the antler using beeswax, a piece of hacksaw blade, teeth side inward, makes an excellent flint striker. The knuckles are protected by the antler when held by the opposite side prong.
The antler piece has other features. At a balanced place on the opposite side, just below the prongs. a hole has been drilled to use as another low-friction spindle socket when using any other bow and spindle. Bows are easy to come by, but a good socket is often the weak part of the set. Using wooden sockets, I have set them on fire sometimes before I got an ember in the fire board hearth. So, if a bigger bow is desired this makes an ideal socket.
FYI, the spindle shown here is a cattail reed–not my favorite, but they work. The shelf fungus–if very dry–can make an ember without the use of a notch that will just keep on burning. Pretty cool when you can find them dry enough.
I am still adding features. Ridiculous I know, but just for grins, I may add a clear marble or other small magnifier for solar fire starting. And yes, I have drilled the bottom of the antler to fit a matching spindle–creating a fire piston. Maybe I can tap and drill a detachable compartment in the extra antler prong to stow Char Cloth and Fire Piston lube.
I gotta stop this.
Additional Fire starting Methods at the following link: https://questforfireblog.wordpress.com/
03/12/2016
Green Burning Laser Pointer Hacked or No. Fire Starter #99
Tweak a Laser Pointer for Fire Starting
Have you ever heard of a burning laser? Of course I have one. No I have half a dozen. Lasers. But one is big and throws an intense emerald green beam. I vividly remember fourth grade with Mrs. Kanopka in Fairbanks, Alaska. She was the best school teacher I ever had. Years later a high school friend mentioned his all-time best while his dad was stationed in Germany. Same Mrs. Kanopka. I suppose her husband was Air Force, too.
I borrowed this illustration from the eBay ad where I bought mine. They shouldn’t mind. A video of mine in action will soon follow.
That was back when manned space capsules looked like mushrooms and our heroes were those who orbited the earth in them. It didn’t matter how many times. Mrs. Kanopka and Weekly Reader first taught me about Lasers. Lasers were new then. Barely real from science fiction. Reserved only for the hardcore science community. Costing millions of dollars. Now I have one big one and three or five little ones. I play with the cats with the little ones. I point out stars and constellations to grand-kids with the big one. AND I start fire with it.
This big one set me back ten bucks and change which included shipping. Amazing. It will burn black plastic, strike a match. and start an ember using really good char tinder. If you know how, you can tweak a small laser pointer to do the same. You can find things like that on YouTube. Young techno-geeks call it hacking a laser pointer; the videos are often made by teens or younger who conceal their faces and whisper code like they are doing something wrong. Dunno, maybe they are. But there are easier ways to strike a match. Hacking a laser pointer is simple science, though not readily evident for consumers. Within limits, any electric light will increase in intensity with increased juice. The easiest way to do this with a laser pointer is apparently to hack the hidden potentiometer.
Easier still is to spring for the ten bucks to get a burning laser from the git-go. These things are serious and can be dangerous. Mine has a keyed lock on it. While working (or playing) with lasers, exercise extreme caution (also known as using increasingly uncommon commonsense). Although it likely doesn’t happen accidentally or in a snap, I understand that any laser pointer can permanently dama . . . .
Full Text at PapaD's Quest For Fire Blog: https://questforfireblog.wordpress.com/2016/03/11/tweak-a-laser-pointer-for-fire-starting/
04/10/2016
Wham-Bam Slam Fire. The Fire Inside. Clear Fire Piston Design Lets you See the Flash
Pardon the low light image that makes my arm look funkier than it actually is, but I wanted to make sure the flash could be seen--AND IU didn't want to move out of my easy chair to better light.
Okay, as I stepped up my research into the practical uses of fire pistons as a viable fire starting method, I realized that tinder has quite a lot to do with success. Char cloth seemed to be the standard. With the lubricants usually used, it gets messy and fouls the inside of your cylinder. I then learned about Stone Tinder, a product produced by my friend Pierre Coutu and sold on eBay and from his Stone Tinder website. He has been very helpful in my overall fire piston research. We have swapped other alternatives of materials that can work in a pinch. They have been few and often hard to come by in the wilds.
Once I got the design and technique down to where I felt I could produce fire just about every time, I began to try and log different materials. Everything from belly-button lint (it can work), to various natural downs and fluffs and fibers. Cattails, both mammalian by accident, and botanical. Dried pond scum to corn silk and milkweed ovum. You name it. During the process, I was sometimes left sniffing the closed cylinder to see if even a hint of ignition had taken place. Was that leftover from the last thing I got fire from or just then? I had heard of fire pistons made of clear materials that would allow you to see the fire when it ignited--if it ignited. The only ones I could find cost fifty bucks and up. The whole idea about alternative fire starting methods has always implied a DIY take on the process for me.
This link is to a quick clip of how this thing looks when making slam fire.
This endeavor is what led me to the clear cylinder fire pistons that allows you to see whats going on inside the tube upon ignition. It has greatly improved both my technique and my understanding of just how close some materials come to making an ember that would otherwise be lost on me. I have found that many materials show promise evenif they merely make smoke or better yet, an very small flash. I find that these marginal materials can usually by coaxed to light by using a couple of rapid slams or a little more of less lubricant. Once the combo is figured out--it can be repeated. for this reason alone, the clear piston has proven indispensable to me in mastering the nuances of fire piston design and use.
I first read about a DIY attempt using clear acrylic that worked only a couple of times before shattering. I then learned of a high strength clear plastic used in the aerospace industry and finally called in a couple of favors to obtain the fairly rare stuff. The formulation is apparently shrouded in secrecy, but it is the same stuff used in the best bullet proof windows and the windows on spacecraft and the newest jets. I guess that's why those clear commercial fire-pistons cost so much--assuming that they know about this stuff. Anyway I got my hands of a sufficient supply to make all the fire pistons I will ever need and then some.
It took some experimentation and a few fails, but I now feel that I have a safe, effective, and foolproof design that I can make for a lot less than the commercial ones--that is as long as I can get my hands on this clear space stuff. I am now using aluminum for the piston rod and aluminum and copper for plugging the tube and the hardware. Bonding the stuff to where it can withstand the major pressure generated inside the tube took some doing. I shot one aluminum plug like a shotgun slug out the end of one and knocked a hole in the wall before I got this piece figured out. In spite of their durability and strength they will show minor scratching over time, so care needs to be exercised to keep them clean and free of grit. But even with the scratches, you can still see the flash. To keep my group demonstrators fresh, I rotate them out for new ones every couple of group demos--allowing individuals and blog followers to acquire them at a price to cover my costs.
I will do group demonstrations of a few of my One Hundred Ways to Start Fire without Matches when called upon. Scouts, youth groups, preppers, home schoolers, history and science classes, and what-not. The clear fire pistons were an instant hit, so I usually make up a dozen or so to accommodate the group. I am not out hawking sales for this stuff, but if someone really wants one, I will provide them at my cost. I have made enough of them that I have a good design down cold. They are homemade by hand as I watch TV or listen to educational or theological audio materials. No two look exactly alike. They have minor scratches or imperfections at times, but they look nice enough and most importantly, they work. It is very cool to see the flash the the clear space window material as shown in the YouTube clip posted here.
These things have lots of possibilities both for teaching principles of physics and the sciences as well as tying into history and prehistoric fire making methods, as these were first used by prehistoric peoples in the tropics of South East Asia and vicinity. But the main attraction is also that you can make fire out of thin air by using these guys. They are practical and useful. You can find much on the information found here, presented in a more abbreviated fashion at the following link.
https://questforfireblog.wordpress.com/2016/04/10/clear-fire-piston-helps-id-usable-tinder/
04/16/2016
05/22/2016
Cold Pack and Zinc Fire Starter
It's been longer than I had planned since I made a post here. Life gets in the way sometimes. but I have a backlog of fire-making information I am eager to share, both here and on my other weblog, PapaD's Quest for Fire Blog.
First Aid Only Instant Cold Pack
I borrowed this image from an ad for Instant Cold Packs. It is just for illustration purposes because I don't have one on hand to photograph. I don't know if the brand pictured uses the required chemical cited in this post. I will begin with a post to further credit an Internet friend and fellow fire starting consultant. I will not assume that he wants credit until he says it's okay, as not everyone wants such credit for topics that may be controversial in one way or another. But he and I have exchanged some materials and ideas about fire making methods. Although I have indeed made fire using one method he showed me--I failed at making it with the materials he uses. On my One Hundred Ways blog I had not yet posted any method using Ammonium Nitrate. I have planned to as it is a viable chemical method of making fire without matches and is fairly well-known and I have used it before. It has undeserved negative connotations owing to its use as one possible ingredient used nefariously from time to time.
Fire Using cold Pack Ingredients with Zinc and Saliva (Yuk. But it Works.)
If Ammonium Nitrate was actually used by them, it was but one of the ingredients and by itself offers no dangers other than would be required in handling any compound that contains Ammonia. By itself it is no more dangerous than many other substances that can be intentionally misused or abused by stupid and/or wicked people. A person would have to have the specific knowledge and go out of his way to do so. Now and again we hear news of would-be bad guys blowing themselves up while trying to make bombs or illegal drugs. I guess Karma seeks her own. Ammonium Nitrate was used, is used, and will continue to be used as an important agriculture fertilizer by farmers. My only caution regarding using it in an emergency where there may be no other alternative methods, is that the smoke can be deadly. All of my usual disclaimers apply regarding trying this. Don't do it! It can kill you. I offer this information for the academic study of emergency fire making methods only--and explicitly do not recommend that you ever attempt this yourself, unless faced with an emergency need for a real life and death situation wherein you or your family may freeze to death if you don't. I provide many better and safer alternatives herein--so this likelihood is virtually zilch. There are a variety of reactive substances that will work with Ammonium Nitrate to start a quick and impressive fire--primarily metals. Zinc is one of them.
You will not accidentally stumble onto Zinc, but it is neither rare nor particularly hard to get. None of these substances are illegal to obtain, but if you do not have a good reason to be buying large quantities of them, then I am only guessing that you may wind up on a watch list. Small quantities can be obtained from any chemical supplier or drugstore. Zinc and compounds thereof are used in various vitamin supplements and is often used in creams and ointments used to treat or protect baby's bottoms to protect from diaper rash. So, it can't be too stringent. Zinc can also be obtained by scraping the greenish surface from galvanized steel pipe.
Both my friend and I at some point became aware of using those chemical instant cold compress packs that are found in many of the more elaborate first aid kits. You can buy them separately at many drugstores and over the counter home medical supply sections of general merchandise stores. They are used to reduce swelling and relieve pain in the event of a sprain or fracture. The cold effect is activated by crushing and/or opening the ingredient or otherwise allowing them to combine. The chemical reaction extracts heat from the mixture which makes them very cold to the touch. But one of the ingredients has another useful emergency application.
You guessed it, this one ingredient found in these cold packs is Ammonium Nitrate to one degree of pureness or the other. The first time I tried this, many years ago, I am not sure if I even had the right kind of cold pack--as there are other chemicals that may be used for cold packs. We did not have the Internet at the time and such information was not so easy to come by. As I recall, I got some promising bubbles, smoke, and a bit of heat--but no fire. I had sense enough to avoid the smoke. That's it. I only had that one cold pack and that attempt was a fail.
I just never took opportunity to try it again. Until recently. One reason the previous attempt did not work may have been that I also had a dubious source of Zinc. As I recall, my scant instructions directed me to scrape the green stuff off of old galvanized pipe. While this really may be sufficiently Zinc, I have no idea how pure it was. Probably not very. (Although I have not much researched this yet, a better source of Zinc powder on the fly might be found today in our medicine cabinets or nutritional supplements. Zinc is an important nutrient and has been found to be the only known product to fight the Common Cold Virus. I have personally found Cold Ease lozenges to be effective for this, but I have not tried them to start fire. Nor have I tried the Zinc sold as nutritional supplements.)
Fast forward a decade or so when I was more actively researching methods for emergency fire-starting to write about. I purchased a small amount of powdered Zinc and a small amount of Ammonium Nitrate from a small chemical supplier. This was still prior to the red flags connotations. And still prior to useful access to the Internet. I looked in some chemistry books and extrapolated a formula that called for half a teaspoon of Ammonium Nitrate to a teaspoon of powdered Zinc and a very small touch of table salt. I carefully ground this up with a spoon in a glass dish in lieu of a mortar and pistol while wearing safety glasses and gloves. I placed about half a teaspoon of this mixture on a piece of cotton and using an eye dropper, I stood back the length of my arm, held my breath (literally) and added a drop of tap water to the mix.
I was so skittish that I missed the first time, but when I finally did get a gush of drops onto the mixture, I almost wet myself as well . . . . Continued at my other fire blog. You can visit my One Hundred Ways to Make Fire without Matches at the following link. Please Read this Cautionary Note It is reasonable to assume that the one or more Federal Agencies of the United States Department of Homeland Security maintains a Watch List of people who purchase substantial quantities of what they deem potentially dangerous or having a high potential for misuse or criminal purposes. The following list came up as such a list when I did a due diligence search asking if it is legal to use any of the chemicals I have referenced here.
Apparently none are illegal. But some are on this list. I don't know who to credit as no citations were provided and it was apparently posted or re-posted anonymously in more than one place. The list was said to be over ten years old. I don't know if it is accurate or if it is even real. However, the third item, Acetaminophen, is otherwise brand known as Tylenol. I know that Tylenol can damage the liver if taken in access, but I had no idea that it has potential for criminal misuse or other dangers. Silly me. I guess you have to be a criminal to know this. A few others are common household items and others are in my medicine or vitamin cabinet.
Based on this, I am guessing that if this list is real, that one would have to buy a whole bunch of these ingredients to raise any red flags. If you are not a criminal, I guess you have little need for concern. (Gone are the days when Mom would write me a note to assure the local pharmacist that her fourth grade boy scientist had her permission and only the best intentions for buying virtually any named chemical my experimentation required. I did not misuse them then, and I have no plans to begin in my senior years.)
This is just me, but I am thinking I am okay here. Still, I am NOT recommending that anyone try this unless dire need in a post zombie apocalypse world actually necessitates. So then, probably never. Update: Silly me is right! A simple search discovered that Tylenol and a gazillion other legal products can be used in the manufacture of illegal drugs.
SUPPOSED WATCHED CHEMICALS LIST taken from "Sources" by Strike
Acetaldehyde, Acetamide, Acetaminophen, N-Acetyl Anthranillic Acid, Alumina (activated), Aluminum Chloride, Aluminum Oxide, Aluminum Powder, Ammonium Formate, Ammonium Nitrate, Aniline, pAnisaldehyde, Arsenic Metal, Arsenic Pentoxide, Arsenic Trichloride, Arsenic Trioxide, Benzene, Benzocaine, Biotin, Boron Trifluoride, Bromine, Bromobenzene, Brucine Sulphate, Butylamine gammaButyrolactone, Caffeine, Calcium Metal, Calcium Carbide, Calcium Hydride, Carbon Disulfide, Carbon Tetrachloride, Chloroacetone, Chloroform, 2-Chloropyridine, Chromium Picolinate, Citral, Cyclohexanone, Dichloroacetic Acid, Diethyl Malonate, Diethylamine, Digitonin, Digitoxin, Dihydroxyacetone, Dimethyl Sulfate, Dimethyl Sulfoxide, Dinitrochlorobenzene, Diphenylacetonitrile, Epinephrine, Epinephrine Bitartate, Estradiol, Estriol, Estrone, Ethinyl Estradiol, Ethylacetoacetate, Ethyl Alcohol (190-200 proof), Ethyl Magnesium Bromide, Ethylenediamine, Folic Acid, Formamide, Formic Acid, Freon, Gallic Acid, Glycolic Acid, Guaifenesin, Hexachlorophene, Hexyl Resorcinol, Hydrazine, Hydrazine Dihydrochloride, Hydrazine Hydrate, Hydrazine Sulfate, Hydrobromic Acid, Hydrochloric Acid (ups, nf, fcc grades), Hydrocortisone, Hydrofluoric Acid, Hydrogen Peroxide 30% & 50%, Hyoscyamine, Ibuprofen, Indole, Inositol, Iron Filings, Ketoglutaric Acid, Lactose, Lead Acetate, Lidocaine, Lithium Metal, 3,5-Diiodosalithium, Lithium Acetate, Lithium Aluminum Hydride, Lithium Bromide, Lithium Carbonate, Lithium Chloride, Lithium Chromate, Lithium Citrate, Lithium Cobalt, Lithium Dodecyl Sulfate, Lithium Fluoride, Lithium Hydroxide, Lithium Lactate, Lithium Metaborate, Lithium Nitrate, Lithium Oxalate, Lithium Perchlorate, Lithium Sulfate, Lithium Tetraborate, Lycopodium, Magnesium Metal, Magnesium Turnings, Mannitol, Megestrol Acetate, Mercuric Acetate, Mercuric Bromide, Mercuric Chloride, Mercuric Cyanide, Mercuric Iodide, Mercuric Nitrate, Mercuric Oxide, Mercuric Oxycyanide, Mercuric Sulfate, Mercuric Sulfide, Mercuric Thiocyanate, Mercurous Chloride, Mercurous Nitrate, Mercurous Sulfate, Mercury Bichloride, Methylformamide, Methylprednisolone, Methylpropylarrune, Methylsulfoxide, Methyltestosterone, Miconazole Nitrate, Naproxen Sodium, Niacin, Niacinamide Ascorbate, Nicotinamide, Nifedipme, Nitrofuranation, Nitromethane, Nystatin, Oxalyl Chloride, Palladium Black, Palladium Metal (powder), Palladium on Alumina, Palladium on Charcoal, Papaverine HCl, Peracetic Acid, Perchloric Acid, Petroleum Ether, Phenacetin, Phenol, Phenyl Magnesium Bromide, Phenyl Magnesium Chloride, Phenylalanine, Phenyl Mercuric Acetate, Phenyl Mercuric Borate, Phenyl Mercuric Chloride, Phenyl Mercuric Nitrate, Phenyl Mercuric Salicylate, Phosphorus Oxychloride, Phosphorus Pentachloride, Physostigmine, Phytonadione, Picric Acid, Pilocarpine, Potassium Chlorate, Potassium Cyanide, Potassium Nitrate, Potassium Perchlorate, Potassium Permanganate, Proxamine Hydrochloride, Prednisolone, Prednisone, Pregnenolone, Prilocaine, Procaine, Progesterone, Promethazine Hydrochloride, Propenylbenzene, Propionic Anhydride, Propranolol, Pyridine, Pyridoxal, Pyridoxine, Quinine, Raney Nickle, Reserpine, Riboflavin, Salicylic Acid, Scopolamine, Selenous Acid, Sodium Acetate, Sodium Azide, Sodium Borohydride, Sodium Chlorate, Sodium Chlorite, Sodium Cyanide, Sodium Fluoride, Sodium Iodide, Sodium Metal, Sodium Nitrate, Sodium Nitrite, Sodium Perchlorate, Sodium Peroxide, Sodium Sulfate, Sodium Sulfathiazole, Strychnine, Styrene, Sulfanilamide, Sulfathiazole, Sulfur Trioxide, Theophylline, Thionyl Chloride, TitaniumTetrachloride, p-Toluenesulfonic Acid, o-Toluidine, Trichloroacetic Acid, Trichlorotrifluoroethane, Trifluoroacetic Anhydride, 3,4,5-Trimethoxy Compounds (Any!), Tryptophan, Vitamin A Acetate, Vitamin E, Vitamin E Acetate.
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Join PapaD's Quest for Fire
Recent Posts
- A Rose and a Stick and Sugar to Ignite Potasium Permanganate Fire Starter #87
- Cold Pack and Zinc Fire Starter
- How to Use PapaD's Big Flash Transparent Fire Piston
- Wham-Bam Slam Fire. The Fire Inside. Clear Fire Piston Design Lets you See the Flash
- Green Burning Laser Pointer Hacked or No. Fire Starter #99
- Multi-Purpose Fire Starting Antler. #41, 42, 43
- A new Fire Piston Design from PapaD to Appeal to Rifle Enthusiasts. 50 Cal BMG Brass. #86
- Hand Drill Method. Spirit Hands, for Continuous Spinning #77
- Hand Drill Techniques. The Finer Points of Hand Drill Fire Making
- DIY Compact & Easy Fire Piston with Special Stone Tinder Demonstration
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