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Bow drill questions

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Outbackbob48:
I just made a bow drill out of paw paw and my base is the same . I 've got quite a few coals from this set up but I am looking to improve    gear. So hears my questions . Is there a preferd thickness for base an also thick or thin for spindle, an after I get my coal what is a good tinder to use besides jute. Thanks in advance. Bob

Wiggy:
A lot of it depends on what wood you're using, if I'm using a softer wood, I like the board to be a little bigger so I know that I'll have enough wood to make a coal before I just burn a hole through the board. In general, I like mine around a half inch in thickness. For the spindle, it's personal preference. I've found that I get more friction with a wider one, but they seem to take more energy to move than a thinner one. I usually like mine about as big around as a magic marker, nothing bigger around than your thumb. I also make my spindles in the shape of an octagon and not round. That way the string from the bow drill grips it better, but if you use rawhide or a real "grabby" kind of cordage for the string then there isn't much difference between an octagon shaped spindle and a round one. If you have a really smooth textured string, you can braid it to get it to grab the spindle better too.

For the tender, I really like cattail fluff. I put that inside some some cedar or juniper bark shavings. It looks like cattail fluff inside a bird's nest but it catches fire from a coal very quickly. I also let my coal "breathe" for a few seconds (just fan it with your hand while it's still near the hearth board) so it can become more stable before I put it in the tender bundle.

Hillbilly:
I like a fairly thin hearthboard-that way you don't have to pile up a big tall pile of dust in the notch before you can get a coal. Those shelf fungi (cracked-capped polypores) that grow on locust trees make great coal extenders. A couple slices in a tinder bundle really helps when the tinder is a bit damp. For tinder, I like shredded cedar bark, dry grass, pine needles, an old bird nest, anything fine-shredded and dry.

ricktrojanowski:
Bob
For my bowdrill setup, I like a spindle about as thick as my thumb, and a board about 1/2" thick,  That pawpaw is pretty soft so I would keep the board on the thick side.  For a harder board like ERC, I would go to about 3/8" thick.  Make sure you keep the handhold lubed.  That really cuts down on unwanted friction.  As far as tinder bundles my favorite material is the inner bark of cedar ( really retted out),  cattail fluff also is good, and like Hillbilly said the CCP really can make a not so good bundle a really good bundle.  If you can't find any let me know,  I'll bring some to Lethcworth.

Pat B:
I have a nice collection of the shelf fungus(CCP) that I have collected. One is about 12" across the wide side.  Steve, you will have to help me with fire making at the camp-o-rama.

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