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Making Fire 
 
This section is devoted to explaining the procedures and equipment for making fire in a camping or in a survival situation
How to build a fire  Matches or lighter    Fire Piston    Spark ignition  Solar Ignition  Friction ignition

See below for specific instructions on the specific procedures

Tinder - collection and use 
Before you attempt to create a fire you must have tinder. Now tinder will differ from method to method and depending on what is available. Most anything that will burn can be split, shaved or rubbed to make it easier to ignite. There are many great items that you could carry into the woods with you to assist in getting a sustainable fire going. There are many commercial products made for this purpose but you can make them at home to carry with you in you Survival Daypack, such as 100% cotton ball that have been charred and then extinguished or impregnated with Vaseline over 1/2 of the cotton ball, but true survival is not usually wrought with these conveniences. 
Given that you may not have a complete fire starting kit with the above mentioned materials, you will have to make do with what you have on your person or can be collected and enhanced. Consider the non obvious sources or tinder. Your hair, yep that right take out your trusty old Bowie knife and nip off some. It burns rapidly and additional tinder must be nested around it. Secondly a snippet of your T-Shirt or other cotton material can be shredded and fluffed into ball which will ignite into a smoldering mass that can be place in a nest of natural tinder and blown on to encourage a flame. (just a note - Money doesn't burn as well as we have been led to believe)
Now we don't want you whittling away at yourself if at all possible so let's look at natural sources. 
Almost anything that is organic, dry, fine and fibrous. However certain item are known to be better than others. Look for material that is upright  and usually dead. The inner layer of bark on some dead trees is high in energy and is not a dense material.  Dry grasses and fluffy seed heads. Deteriorating wood in a standing tree is a corky material (pith) that can be broken up to expose the fibers (makes a good glowing coal when lit). Alternatively you can use small twigs that have been pulverized between two stone (fibrous, not to the point of dust). Virtually all tinder can be improved by shredding, pulverizing or rubbing between your hands. 
You can find some excellent tinder in an abandoned bird nest or even in field rat's nest.
Once you have prepared your tinder, you gather it into a wad. Make the wad fairly flat if you are using spark ignition or will be applying a coal from a friction ignition method. If you are fortunate enough to have flame making device (Waterproof matches- Lighter etc) you place the tinder in a more upright position and light it along the bottom edge.

Fuel Gathering
For kindling you can pick small dry twigs from inside the tree canopy where they should be dry. No twigs? Then use your knife (you do have a knife don't you?) to shave off slivers or split some dry branch pieces. No knife, then smack a stout branch over a dead tree trunk  or smash it with a rock until it is shattered. Then rip out the splintered section. Be careful of splinters as an infected splinter can disable you.
To sustain your fire for any length of time you will need larger material.  Chose standing wood and a lots of it. Wood that  is firm and laying down over another fallen tree but is not on the ground itself should be ok to use on a well established fire. ****** When pushing over a tree or even cutting one down, be extremely careful as the top of the tree can break off (top fall) and drop like a dart and injure or even kill you. Just so you know, it most commonly falls to the side of the tree opposite of the direction the tree is falling. In other words, the side you are pushing or cutting from.******
If you are in a region that is not forested you will have to make do with whatever is available. When shrubs are all that there is, try pulling them up roots and all as the roots often have pitch stored in them and make a very hot fire. That brings us to a source of high energy fuel. Trees that die during the winter months either by natural causes (fire, freezes, winds etc.) or by man in the logging industry, will leave a stump that is pitch rich. If you can kick it out of the ground you will have a long lasting hot fire. We say kick it or wrestle it out of the ground because the concentration of resin makes it nearly impossible to cut with an axe. In some locations this pitch rich wood is called "lighter"  which refers to the fact that a large diameter piece can often be lit with a match, and not the weight as it is extremely dense and heavy. In other regions it may be referred to as "fatwood" but either way this is an excellent source of high energy fuel.       You will know if it is lighter because it will have and exceptional hard and dense sound when tapped with you knife handle.

Fire Pit Preparations
See also our Primitive shelters Section  For additional descriptions of this item
This is one area that needs to be well studied as being able to light a file may not solve all you problems. Being able to control and utilize it are of the utmost importance.
First we will address the the safety factor because if the fire gets away from you then you may lose everything you have managed to gather or preserve or endanger your life or the life of the forest around you. I does happen.
Choose a location in front of your shelter opening approximately 4 feet away from any flammable materials. This means not too close to your shelter and remove all other material  such as grasses and and overhead branches. If the soil is loose enough to dig the scrape out a pit about 10" deep. Slope the front of the pit towards your shelter and placing  the removed soil to the rear creating a mound (this can be supplemented with a log which you will cover with soil) to help reflect the heat into the shelter and to keep the wind from blowing it towards you. 

Some people are inclined to use rocks around their fire, while this looks nice, it can be extremely dangerous. As the rocks heat up, the moisture trapped in the dense structure of the stone will turn to steam and expand so rapidly that it will cause the rock to explode. The flying fragments can easily take out and eye without warning. In this situation you won't hear the explosion until it is too late to duck or cover up. Losing an eye may sound extreme but it could be worse. Someone else with you, someone you care about  could be injured, or maimed. Now this doesn't mean you can't use rocks as you will find that putting rocks in a fire is recommended when preparing to sleep in frigid weather. It is just that if you are going to use rocks pick out the driest and then dry then near the fire where the get warm but not hot until it has had a chance to dry out. Alternately you can place them in a bed of coals and cove them with dense green vegetation to block any chips that may want to fly off.. 
Giving heat for warmth s only one reason for the fire. You want to cook something right? Here we are assuming minimalistic  resources are available and you don't have your Martha Stewart grill from K-Mart. So how do you cook over an open fire. Back to the rocks, you can take a rock from the coals using a couple of forked green stems to fish it out and place it in the belly cavity of a small animal. It may have to be replaced with a fresh one perhaps more than once until the meat is done. Meat cooked this way will be moist and not charred. Likewise if you have or have fashioned a cooking vessel you can drop hot rocks in it to boil water or stew or whatever. But then there are those of us that like the flavor of the the burning wood. In this case you can make a channel between 2 mounds of soil with the fire in between and green sticks stretched across the channel on which you can place your catch. Using wood crutches work well but must be driven in the soil far enough to be rigid and the a skewer similar to a shish kabob place between them. Short on cruth sticks, then you can use one with a green stick placed though it with one end up and over the fire while the other is pinned down with a heavy rock. There's  that darned rock again; this is beginning to sound like the stone age but you get the idea. 

Ignition Methods:
If you know your are going to be in a situation where you may have light a fire to survive it would be foolish to not have a proven fire lighting method somewhere on your person.

Matches  or a lighter. 

Regular matches, such as the one you pick up at a convenience store can be a life saver, providing you keep them dry. A paper match should be peeled or split in 2. This way you will have 2 matches and the thinner the stem is, the easier it is to get the stem to ignite and not just the combustible chemicals on the tip. This of course assumes the match is dry. 
What to do if your matches get wet:
Ever try lighting a wet match? The tip just crumbles. Depending on how badly wetted they have become you may be able to save them. Providing the weather cooperates, you can set the matches out in the sun on a dry surface or hang them in the sun. It will take a whole day to dry out and even then it is not always successful. Another method that has limited success it to rub the match head through your hair, providing that your hair is not wet or too oily,****caution a match, especially a "strike anywhere Kitchen match" may ignite if rubbed vigorously and even though this is ultimately what you want the match to do, you don't want it to do it in your hair**** see Tinder 

 If you are prepared then you will most likely have  waterproof matches  or storm matches or possibly even Lifeboat matches. These can take dunking and still light and if you have been dunked, that is when you will need fire more than any other other time.

Waterproof Matches
There are several supplier of waterproof matches available almost anywhere that camping gear is sold. However some are better than others. Many of the so called "waterproof" are really water resistant and cannot stand being submerged for any length of time. Not only are some of these marginal at best but they perform only as well as a typical dry utility match and have no other enhancements other moisture resistance. There are several highely improved matches out there and even though they cost a bit more your life is worth it.

Make Your Own: Many people have attempted at making kitchen matches waterproof and if done correctly these can be superior to many simple waterproof matches. However if you  like the idea of something more than a just match, you may want to make some  wax impregnated cotton bound matches that are waterproof, and strike anywhere (no special striker required like most).
First you start by obtaining the strike anywhere  Kitchen  Matches (you know, the ones with a white tip),  a block of Paraffin sealing wax and some cotton string. Melt the paraffin wax (use extreme caution as the wax is extremely flammable - have an appropriate fire extinguisher on hand) but don't let it get too hot because you are going to dip the matches in it and you don't want them ignite when you do. Tie a five inch piece of string to each match about half way down the match stem and then holding the strings, lower the matches into the melted wax. Put the ends of the strings over the lip of the pan and set the lid on the pan to hold the string ( if you have tongs to fish them out with, you can put strings and all in the wax). Let the matches soak for several minutes so the wax works it's way into the wood stem to prevent water from penetrating the match head through the wood. Lift the matches out, keep separate (clothes pins over a taught line) and allow them to cool. After a few minutes, hold the match stem and lower the strings into the wax briefly then remove (This is not necessary if the string were already in the wax and removed with tongs). Using care, wind the string up and down the stem and over the match head a couple of times and then bring the tail of the string down along the match stem. Re-dip the match (a pair of Hemostats works well for this) for 30 seconds, holding it by the stem. Then lift and allow the wax to form and then re-dip it briefly and raise to let cool. Clip off the string tail (save for a firestarter)  that extends beyond the match stem and then holding the match by the bottom of the stem, dip the cotton wound portion back in the wax  several times until the string is totally covered with wax.
To use the match unwind the string and place it in your tinder nest and then strike the white portion of the match on a rough surface ( a rock) and when it is lit the wax in the stem will assist the burning process. Light the wax coated string, it makes a good firestarter.
Another variation of this is the firestarter.  Tie several matches together and when you wind it ,do not cover the heads with string. Dip as above but when you use them leave them all tied together and strike.  Then place the burning mass into the tinder. It will burn a couple of minutes, enough time for the tinder and kindling to catch on fire.

STORM Waterproof Matches
These are very similar to the "Lifeboat" matches, but in a slide-open box instead of a sealed tube. They burn ferociously and very hot (it'll almost remind you of a 4th of July sparkler) for about 11-13 seconds and are virtually impossible to put out, no matter how bad the weather. Each match is partially varnished and the incendiary material extends almost halfway down the match stick... they'll light even when soaking wet, and are virtually impossible to blow out. These matches are invaluable for hunters, hikers, boaters, pilots, rescue personnel, or anyone whose survival could depend on their ability to get a fire started. A box contains approximately 25 matches and weighs 0.5 oz.
Lifeboat Matches
These are without a doubt THE very best matches in the world. Gale-force winds and dunking underwater will have no effect on these superb matches! These are the matches that get placed in lifeboats (hence the name), and they'll serve you well on land or at sea. There are approximately 25 matches sealed in a waterproof plastic vial with a striker on top. Each will burn ferociously for about 12-15 seconds.

Lighters: There are may choice of lighters out there including hurricane or wind proof lighters. Generally unless you are in a blizzard or a smoker  these are not absolutely necessary.  Your cheap disposable butane lighter should work just fine. If it gets wet it should work once it has had a chance to dry out which you can help by tapping it and blowing through the spark head. (remember just because these are disposable don't do it. it is bad practice to leave anything behind and in a true survival situation you may find a use for the carcass - male a great colorful fishing bobber)

Fire Piston   
 

The fire piston represents the most amazing and effective fire starting method ever conceived. Similar to the diesel engine, air molecules within the cylinder become hot when rapidly compressed.
With a single push, tinder placed in the end of the piston is ignited by the heat of compression, instantly becoming a glowing ember with no more effort than lighting a match. 
This fascinating fire lighting device has be in use for hundreds pf years in the Pacific islands and one was brought back to the USA in 1896 which is believed to be on display at the Smithsonian. 
The fire piston can be used to ignite a variety of tinders including true tinder fungus, mullein pith, milkweed pod, wood punk and charcloth.
These are quite expensive but they work when nothing else does.

Spark ignition - Flint and steel -  Magnesium striker -Ferrocerium rods - Blast Match -  2 Rocks
This section covers the concept of using sparks to ignite a  wad of tinder which is blown lightly after sparks get it smoldering. Once the tinder is ignited it is then place into the tinder nest at the base of  your fire stack.

Ferrocerium Rods          
 Perhaps the easiest way to spark ignite a fire. Striking it will give you a shower of sparks with a temperature of 3000 degrees. Direct this towards a wad of tinder and with a little persuasive puffing you should be able to get a fire even if the ferrocerium rod has gotten drenched.

Flint and Steel   This is Usually in a kit form with the strip of flint on the outside and  the steel twist locked into a wooden case. With this device you you take the steel or or the back of a knife blade and strike down across the flint toward the tinder wad. This should send a shower of sparks on to the tinder, if not then change the angle at which you strike the flint until you get a decent shower. Once you get the tinder smoldering, nurse it with small puffs of breath to encourage a hot coal to grow before placing it into the tinder nest.   

Magnesium and Striker This is pretty much the same as the flint and steel above except you will probably get sparks all the way down on each strike, resulting in an easier ignition of your tinder.

2 Rocks When there is nothing else available you may have to resort to smacking 2 rocks together at a glancing blow to create a spark. This is difficult in part because it is difficult to send the spark in the direction of the tinder. They just seem to want to go wherever. The rocks you use for this have git to be extremely hard (Preferably quartz of natural flint) as softer or very grainy stone like sandstone won't work. This is a little less preferred than many other ways but it would be good to practice this at your leisure just in case.

Solar Ignition      Magnifying lens

What a great way so start a fire. Many survival kits contain a magnifying lens in the first aid kit for pulling splinters or they are often attached to a compass which you should have with you. There is a type of lens called a Fresnel Lens (See below) that is a flat sheet with  grooves in it. Theses are made out of a plastic or vinyl and can be fit into any pack without having to worry about it breaking.
Take your lens and hold it perpendicular to the sun (at a right angle) and lower or raise it until the light shining through it is concentrated into a small intense dot of light. When this is placed over prepared tinder you will get a smoldering  mass in no time at all. 
The drawback to this is that is must be a sunshiny day which means that if you are traveling you have to light you fire while the sun is fairly high in the sky and not behind a cloud. Does not work  during rain, fog or night.

Fresnel Lens Magnifying Sheet
A multi-use item that you won't want to be without, this super lightweight magnifier not only lets you read small print and maps with ease, it's also great for seeing tiny splinters, and even starting fires! Hold it about 4" above an object to magnify it, or use it to concentrate sunlight into a super-hot beam that easily starts a fire. To start a fire, just hold the lens between the sun and your tinder... you'll see a very bright circle of light. Move the lens to aim and adjust this intense beam of light until it's about the size of a dime or smaller... this is extremely simple and can light a fire in seconds!

Friction Ignition  Hand Drill   Bow and Drill   Fire Plow

Using friction to create fire  has long been referred to as rubbing 2 sticks together. Well that it is but it must be done correctly and not just picking up any old stick and rubbing them in any fashion. Read on and you will find that with some practice you can have fire virtually anywhere.

Hand drillshould be no bigger than 5/8" (16mm) in diameter as a larger piece which may feel more comfortable when rolling it between your hands will not make as many revolutions an a drill of a smaller diameter.  Select a dead- dry - straight - standing upright  stem from a willow or similar brush. Make sure that it has no knots. If it does trim or rub them smooth with a piece of sandstone or similar. Save the trimmings or sawdust from rubbing to be used as tinder. Your Keyhole notch in the fireboard is always smaller than the drill or about 3/8 to 1/2 inch (10-12mm) in diameter. Be sure to place a piece of bark or other material under the notch to catch the coal before you start drilling. Place your knee on the fireboard to hold it steady so that it doesn't knock away the dust that is created from the friction that will ultimately become your glowing coal.

Place your hands together at the top and start twirling the spindle moving both hands and not just one agianst the other. You will have to check from time to time to make sure that both hands are moving the opposite of each other as there is a tendency to only move the dominant hand, such as the right  for right handed people. Use as much of the length of your hands as you can to get the most revolutions each way. Apply downward pressure as you work and your hands will move down the spindle. If you are getting only a couple or revolutions before you hand reach the bottom try pressing your hands together a little harder in an attempt to prevent them from sliding down the spindle (drill). Take your time to learn the technique before working for speed. At the bottom, hold the spindle with one hand then move the other hand to the top and hold the top. Move the other hand up and start spinning. Make the move quickly because the spindle cools off fast. Warm up the set gradually and save your strength. As the assembly warms then increase the speed and downward pressure and it will start smoking. When it is smoking heavily then apply more speed,  and pressure. This is not the time to stop but persevere 
As you drill, tiny sawdust wears off the drill and keyhole and settles in the notch of the keyhole. As this sawdust pile up, the collective heat ignites it. This is what you use to light the fire, not the fireboard. When you see a substantial amount of smoke stop the drilling and carefully lift the fire board and you should have a little pile of glowing sawdust. This you transfer to the tinder and begin giving it gentle puffs to bring it to a flame.
Bow and Drill method
This method is similar in function and results as the hand drill except that it is easier providing you have the material to work with. Select the drill and prepare the fireboard as described above. Plus cut a green stem about 3/4" in diameter about 32 inches long to use as a bow. Tie your shoelace or other chord (drawstring on a hoody or Parka etc) to one end of this bow ( you should notch it to prevent the string from slipping). Then without bending the bow tie the other end of the string to the opposite end of the bow leaving little or no slack in the string. You will then take the drill (spindle) and lay it on the string and then wrap the string around the drill so that it looks like 2 snakes entwined. Some people only use one wrap but 2 will grip the drill better and prevent slippage. Once it is wound you will then stand the drill up until it is at right angle to the bow and string. This will cause the bow to bend. Twist the drill by hand to help the winding gather in the middle of the drill in tight wrap similar to a hitch knot. Now you need a socket, a stone or bone with a depression in it to hold on top of the drill to steady it and place downward pressure on the drill. Be sure to place a piece of bark or other material under the notch to catch the coal before you start drilling
When you have the completed assembly then place the drill in the keyhole of the fireboard and begin a sawing motion with the bow from the side of your body outwards and not from left to right, while holding the drill in place by pushing down on the drill..
 The balance of this method is the same as the hand drill method above but it is repeated here for simplicity:
Warm up the set gradually and save your strength. As the assembly warms then increase the speed and downward pressure and it will start smoking. When it is smoking heavily then apply more speed,  and pressure. This is not the time to stop but persevere 
As you drill, tiny sawdust wears off the drill and keyhole and settles in the notch of the keyhole. As this sawdust pile up, the collective heat ignites it. This is what you use to light the fire, not the fireboard. When you see a substantial amount of smoke stop the drilling and carefully lift the fire board and you should have a little pile of glowing sawdust. This you transfer to the tinder and begin giving it gentle puffs to bring it to a flame.

Fire Plow
This is the method used in the Pacific Islands for starting fire.
Take a piece of dry  wood about 3-4 feet long and split it down the middle lengthwise. Place one end against a tree with the heart of the wood facing up. Cut the 2nd piece to about 16 inches. Kneel with long piece (the harrow) wedged between the tree and your belt. Place the short piece (the plow) in the middle of the harrow and begin to move it back and forth along the length of the harrow. Pick a traveling distance that you can reach comfortably and move the plow rapidly while apply downward pressure. Make sure that your stroke always end at the same place as you will be depositing hot sawdust into a pile at the end of your stroke. Do not scatter this little pile. Ultimately if you do this hard enough and long enough you will have an accumulation of heat in the sawdust that will cause it to ignite. You will then transfer this glowing coal of sawdust to your waiting tinder and blow on it gently to start your fire. You will have a couple of minutes to complete this as the sawdust becomes packed and will glow for a fair amount of time. 
once you learn how to do this you should be able to light a fire quicker than by any other friction method.

For a humorous look at one person firemaking efforts see http://cockeyed.com enjoy.

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