So hopefully you have watched our first video on this series on how to make a tinder bundle. If not you can view it and read the blog that goes along with it at the link found here.
Now that the tinder bundle is made, we want to get it on fire so we can utilize it to start a much bigger fire for warmth, cooking, or tool making, etc.
As we discussed in the last post, you need three things to make a fire oxygen, fuel, and ignition source (heat). A tinder bundle is the fuel source, so the two most important aspects to getting it on fire is a good source of heat, and the right amount of oxygen.
In this video we utilize a ferro rod to get this tinder bundle lit. You will notice that it only takes one or two good scrapes from the ferro rod to get it going. Keep in mind that this is because we had near perfect materials and setup. Getting it in a couple of hits is rare, especially for beginners. Once it is going, you need to start playing this game of increasing oxygen vs too much oxygen. You can do this by simply blowing on it, or waving it in the air. What you want to happen, is to see the small embers that are now burning to burn bright red when you do this and for smoke to start coming out of the bundle. Keep in mind that the more smoke you see the better. This means that more material is beginning to catch fire. This definitely takes practice, and lots of it. So yeah, I am recommending you go play with some fire!
The key point here once you start seeing smoke, and the ember is going good, is to ‘capture’ all the heat you can in the bundle. This is done by almost inverting the bundle on top of itself, so that all the heat that is coming off the ember goes into the bundle rather than rising into the air. Keep doing this until you get your bundle into a decent flame and then you can place it on your fire lay. Some of the problems that will give you fits are the following:
- Blowing so hard that the ember burns through the back of the bundle
- Not blowing hard enough such that the ember is deprived of oxygen and goes out.
- The bundle is not put together well enough and it falls apart.
- Bundle materials are damp and not adequate fuel (again watch our other video on building a good tinder bundle)
- Being afraid of the flame when it gets going, and dropping the bundle.
So there you have it. On the next video we are going to demonstrate how to start adding materials to the bundle to get that all-important fire.Until next time, I hope to see you on, or off, the trail.
