bow drill fire

[jack29g]

what woods do you use to do this

[al]

hazel ,willow and ivy work well

[masongary44]

I found that Ash spindle and willow works well... So does Sycamore into Sycamore

[Odie]

Hi all, first post and all that jazz.

From my recent RM bushcraft course the main UK woods good for bow drills are:

willow
alder
ivy
sycamore

though there are probably may more that are just as good.

For my course assessment I used an alder drill and hearth which worked splendidly.

[hobbit]

hi odie you were'nt paying atention on your course you forgot one( when did you do your course as i have done one resently too )
ivy
willow
alder :wink:
sycamore
lime

[grumit]

hi odie i was on a fundamental course resently too you forgot one of the five that were given :wink:
alder
cycamore
ivy
lime
willow

[Leon]

Elder is also great, both as spindle and hearth: produces wonderfully fine dust that easily binds up into a good coal. Works well for hand drill too.

[match]

(Just found this forum, and am looking forward to learning form others and passing on things I know, so here goes...!)

I haven't tried using Elder due to the old superstitions about elderwood and fires, (although fallen elder would probably be ok :wink: ), but what I have used is Hazel for the spindle, and pine for the hearth, both to great effect. This is particularly useful as hearths can often be a pain to make, especially if you're dealing with old scraps, and pine is readily available (if not traditional) in DIY stores, old palettes etc.

The only woods I would recommend against are oak (very hard, and takes ages to get enough dust) and anything very resinous (pitch pine, cedars, firs, balsams etc) where the resins tend to glue the dust together stopping them heatig up properly.

[den]

I’ve just had a go on a western red cedar hearth with a hazel drill.

No ember, not even much smoke. The drill hardly dented the hearth. I think the drill was too soft.

Does anyone have any suggestions for a drill wood I can use with the cedar?



After I failed with the cedar/hazel I tried a new set I made from poplar, which
I made green from a wind fallen branch last week.
It has been sitting on the side all week drying
I wasn’t expecting to get an ember as I thought it would still be a bit wet but being impatient I just wanted to get her ready , wear her it in a bit and cut the wedge but she started smoking so quickly I thought I would go for it and got an ember in about a minute

One more for the list...

[Jeff Wagner]

From my own experience, poplar, basswood and cedar should work just fine on a cedar hearth board.

[den]

cheers jeff

[Jeff Wagner]

I've had pretty good luck using a split poplar limb as a hearth board also. After initial burn-in and cutting of the notch, you should be able to get a coal in 10 - 15 seconds.

My challenge for this weekend will be to make fire with a mullein hand drill but WITHOUT the use of a knife or other modern tool. I am pretty sure I can cut the notch adequately with a flint chip.

[den]

It was the first set I’ve made from green wood all my others has been from dead standing wood. I wasn’t really expecting it to work. It's a week old and I’ve not forced dried it.

Ever used reedmace for the hand drill? I've got some drying at the moment.
I have only ever used elder. Some good wood combo's would be nice.

Is there a world record for the quickest coal produced?

[den]

That poplar is sooooooooooooo good.

Today I’ve banned myself using any other form of making fire apart from the bow.

Being a smoker I’ve been on it ten times already.


Do you find different sets of the same wood or same combination of woods work well if slightly rotten, hard or green etc? and which prefer what?

I have been trying as many different woods as I can for a list of possible but it’s not as easy as I thought. Some woods which I have said no to before I have made again in different stages of decay or not decay and got different results.

What other things do I have to take into account when compiling my list to make it more accurate?

I've gone bow drill crazy. :o):

I can’t get that brown stain off my foot no matter how m

[Paganwolf]

made one today Hazel spindle and crack willow hearth
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v479/jlamour1/Picture1049.jpg
worked a treat :wink:

[Jeff Wagner]

Good heavens.....he appears to be burning down the deck! Mother!!... fetch a pail...!! :yikes:

I see you are becoming much too proficient with the bow drill. Time to try the hand drill... :naughty:

[Paganwolf]

Ahhh jeff thats Essex decking :shock: made of concrete matie look closer :naughty: effective eh :naughty: :rolmao:

[ScottC]

Off topic but do you treat your wetterlings handle with anything PW?

[Paganwolf]

only a drop of tongue oil only used it that once use my GB mostly. :biggthump