Bob Correll
R.I.P. 3/31/2022
I've always been interested in the survival tactics of mountain men, early pioneers, etc.
Most every day for them had to be a challenge to survive.
One item, the tinderbox, with a steel striker, flint, and char material was always of particular interest.
The material must be natural, cotton, linen, moss, etc.
There's tons of info on the web on how to make char cloth, so I decided to make some.
Small cookie tin with a dozen cotton gun patches.
About 10 briqs going in a basket, small hole in the top of the tin.
Awful smelling smoke fumes pour out and are flammable.
Once the smoke stopped, about 15 minutes later, I let it cool before opening.
Some edges didn't get a full char, but most did.
Got out my magnesium rod with striker.
Two strikes and we have ignition on a test piece.
You cannot blow this out, it just spreads and gets hotter.
Third attempt and I had fire.
Wood shavings on the top and bottom of the cloth did the trick.
Along with a lot of blowing.
Fun, but don't plan to do this to light my charcoal.
EZ Towels are pretty neat.
Sold on Amazon, eBay, etc.
They look like a fat mint.
But when water is added they become a disposable, reusable a couple of times or more, and biodegradable rayon cloth.
They hold up well for general cleaning, and have no odor.
I add water with a little bleach if I want a sanitizing cloth.
Yes, I know, I have too much time on my hands.
Most every day for them had to be a challenge to survive.
One item, the tinderbox, with a steel striker, flint, and char material was always of particular interest.
The material must be natural, cotton, linen, moss, etc.
There's tons of info on the web on how to make char cloth, so I decided to make some.
Small cookie tin with a dozen cotton gun patches.
About 10 briqs going in a basket, small hole in the top of the tin.
Awful smelling smoke fumes pour out and are flammable.
Once the smoke stopped, about 15 minutes later, I let it cool before opening.
Some edges didn't get a full char, but most did.
Got out my magnesium rod with striker.
Two strikes and we have ignition on a test piece.
You cannot blow this out, it just spreads and gets hotter.
Third attempt and I had fire.
Wood shavings on the top and bottom of the cloth did the trick.
Along with a lot of blowing.
Fun, but don't plan to do this to light my charcoal.
EZ Towels are pretty neat.
Sold on Amazon, eBay, etc.
They look like a fat mint.
But when water is added they become a disposable, reusable a couple of times or more, and biodegradable rayon cloth.
They hold up well for general cleaning, and have no odor.
I add water with a little bleach if I want a sanitizing cloth.
Yes, I know, I have too much time on my hands.
