Char cloth with denim

[brucemacdonald]

Recently I converted an old pair of Levis 501s into charcloth using the method described by Ray Mears. In short, I got an old Nescafe coffee can, pierced the lid, rolled up a load of denim from the jeans and put them in, and then put the can on a small fire I made for the purpose.

I can report that denim works very well for char cloth. To test it, I started a garden bonfire using a spark from my Swedish firesteel on the char cloth, which caught the spark immediately and started glowing. I simply added it to some birch bark and kindling I had already prepared with my Fiskars mini-axe and soon I had a pleasing blaze for burning some old holly boughs left over from clearing the garden.

That was something of a milestone for me as it was the first time I have managed to start a fire without matches or a lighter.

And BTW the Levis were beyond salvaging as (like others) mine always get a hole in the inside leg just below the seat.... :yikes:

Best wishes

Bruce

[alick]

Spot on Bruce, denim makes top class charcloth

http://www.bushcraftuk.net/photopost/data/512/80IMG_0652a.jpg

Cheers

[Hoodoo]

Congrats Bruce! To give your charcloth a really good test, see if you can light it with a flint and steel.

[Paganwolf]

Levi 501's! thats the most expencive charcloth known to man :rolmao: well done matey, yes flint and steel test it or pyrites if you have some :biggthump

[TheViking]

Well done mate, it's a great feeling. :D

[brucemacdonald]

A quick update: I have managed to ignite the char cloth with a piece of flint and the back of my Mora knife (I don't have a strike-a-light).

The only problem was getting the spark to hit the cloth, especially in the strong winds we have been experiencing today.

:-)


Bruce

[falling rain]

Car polishing buffing rags. The meshy type stuff you can get on a roll, and yellow dusters make excellent charcloth. Same way of preparing but very very cheap. :wave:

[Ed]

When making char cloth from denim make sure it is good cotton denim. I made some once that must of had lycra or something in it as it came out very hard and brittle with gooey oily plastic in the bottom of the tin.

Ed

[NickBristol]

Apologies if this has been covered before but the thought has just come to me... is it worth impregnanting the cloth with anything to make it burn longer / hotter, in a similar vein to vaseline soaked cotton wool? Is it even possible given the process of making char cloth?

Ta
Nick

[Ed]

is it worth impregnanting the cloth with anything to make it burn longer / hotter, in a similar vein to vaseline soaked cotton wool?

Probably not.... char cloth is used to take a spark and produce a coal which then can be added to tinder which is blown into a flame. The char doesn't really 'need' to burn a long time, just enough for you to blow it to flame.

Not sure if it could be done though :-?

Ed