Over my life time I've made fire using various methods. On this quest to make fire I have used matches,lighters,a magnifying glass,ferro rod,the bowdrill,the hand drill,the bamboo fire saw and have been successful in all these methods. I have one method I have not tried yet and that is the fire plow. There is one method that still alludes me and that is making fire using one of the oldest method known to man and that is using Iron pyrites and flint. I tried to master this method for years but to no avail,I have managed to get the odd spark but thats about all. The Ancients made fire in this way by scraping the outer surface of the iron pyrites away and then striking the flint in a downward motion onto horse-hoof{Fomes fomentarius]fungus that has been scrapped off the inner flesh into a dust,this inner layer is between the outer layer and above the pores. This is probably how the ice man Otzi made fire as they found on him the tinder fungus and particles of pyrite. About Otzi. http://hubpages.com/hub/The-Icemans-Belt Heres the kit I used the other day and failed yet again,but I shall keep trying. A link to my blog about the tinder fungus. http://sticksblog-sticks.blogspot.com/2 ... fomes.html Id much rather be able to post my own video of me successfully making fire this way but as I have failed every time I begrudgingly post Ray Mears doing it and making it look easy LMAO In the Video Ray say that the fungus grows on Birch trees in Scotland but it grows on Birch trees all over the UK as does the Crampball fungus he used.
Next you will be attempting to use internal combustion and self ignite materials from your Chi. That would rule! Good stuff. I am interested in all of your projects.
Thanks for the Video. That fungus looks very similar to some I've seen growing here in Minnesota. I'm going to give it a work out. thanks again
Hope it works out better for you than it did me. using iron pyrities must be the hardest method of firelighting Ive come up against so far.
