Good tinder for pyrite.

[Pappa]

Hi,

I've been having a go at pyrite/flint firelighting for a while now (off and on). As yet, I've not produced fire. I get lots of nice orange sparks, but my technique's a bit pants and they rarely land on the tinder.

Anyway, while I've been practising, I have been using pre-charred King Alfred's Cakes fungus as tinder, but it doesn't seem too good a choice really. Sparks landing on it never seem hot enough to ignite the fungus. Does anyone have any recommendations as to a good choice of tinder, specifically for pyrite. Also, I do not have access to horse-hoof fungus.

Pappa

[leon-1]

Hi mate, I had a little chat about this sort of thing a while ago. I think in the end we decided that Charcloth was probably the best for this.

[bloodline]

I can get you some cramp ball fungus when i go walkies with dog (when it stops) raining if that helps)

[match]

With any luck you'll find that you have one stone that gives off sparks (the 'fint') and another that makes it sparks (the 'hammer').

If you hold the hammer stone, with the tinder on top near the edge, and strike down the edge with the flint stone, then the flint shards that spark will be thrown upwards straight into the tinder.

Works well with a flint and steel (hold flint, strike it with steel).

[Pappa]

I can get you some cramp ball fungus when i go walkies with dog

Thanks for the offer Bloodline, but they're the same as King Alfred's Cakes.

I'll go with the charcloth, it's about time I made myself some anyway.

Pappa

[Ed]

Charcloth is deffinatly the best for pyrites from my trails and errors. Remember though that the sparks from pyrites are alot cooler than those from say a firesteel or even a traditional steel, so you may find that the sparks are landing but not catching.... don't worry... stick with it... one of them will eventually catch :D

:)
Ed

[Fallow Way]

Hi there, now that I have some pyrities (thanks Ed - nude photos of me as requested on their way) I`ve found that Fomes, naturally, or the Ganoderma family work very very well. Take a thin slice and use the flint to buff up a collection of the fibers, strike down towards this, resting the pyrities on the edge of the fungi.

[rich59]

I spent half an hour this week getting sparks from pyrite. Seem to get loads of shards of the stone all over the char cloth, then when I try a flint and steel spark it will hardly catch. Any way to separate the shards of stone from the cool sparks?

[KIMBOKO]

I think it is best to listen to the tinder reccomendations from those who have actually caught the sparks from flint and pyrites, in this case Fallow Way.

[storm]

it's nice to see you not using steel (go abo!). polypore fungi have worked best for me as the hearth for catching two-stone sparks. those carbon balls seem as though they should work well, but i've not gotten them to catch a spark either. i wonder if you have any shelf fungi (polypores) in your area...artist conk, red-belted polypore, false tinder fungus. dry, they work quite well (throw the sparks onto the underside--the pore layer).

the dried, rubbed and balled-up leaves of some species of Artemisia (mugwort/sagebrush) have also worked...