Bow Drill Ideas?

[bleedorange]

I am working with my Varsity Team (hence the "bleed orange" user name) and they are going to be working on their broken match award (have to start a fire with flint and steel and also a fire with a bow drill in 10 minutes).

I have received some good bow drill help from other scout leaders in my area but am looking for additional ideas on what the ideal materials are: Economically, ease of use, and portability. This will be a summer long project as we work on this award at our high adventure and other camp outs.

What has worked best for you??

[Ohio_Scouter]

Try these ideas from champion firebuilder, Dudley Winn Smith.

 

"I have experimented in fire-making for several years and am delighted to do a special scout Good Turn by describing my method, which differs very little from the one described in the Boy Scout Handbook for Boys. The author has asked me to tell you how I established the records, so Ill do my best.

 

A few minutes before the start of the contest in Kansas City, I prepared a firepit by rubbing it with a drill just as I would in actually making a fire. Then I laid aside my apparatus, taking care that nothing came in contact with either the charred end of the drill or the fire-pit. Next I worked a small handful of absolutely dry red cedar bark tinder into a thick round pad and placed it directly under the fire pit of my American elm board. When the starter said Go I drew my bow back and forth with long complete strokes. In about three seconds a little pile of smoking black charcoal issued from the pit. Then I stopped rubbing, picked up both the board and the tinder and blew directly onto the smoking pile, which immediately turned into a red ember. In 7 1/5 seconds after I drew the first stroke the tinder burst into flame.

 

Luckily for me the three timers all agreed. The suggestions below are given in hopes that they will help you make fire rapidly. I worked a long time before I was able to produce a blaze in less than a minute. Do not get discouraged if you fail at first; keep trying and you are sure to succeed.

 

The Bow. I find a long bow by far the best. Mine is twenty-nine inches long and has a three inch bend. The easiest way to secure the thong so that it can be adjusted quickly is to drill two holes in the end of the bow. When using the bow, hold the board very firmly with your foot, or you will never get a spark. When you stop bowing, do not let the drill fly, but lift it out of the pit.

 

The Drill-Socket. A very hard substance must be inserted in the drill-socket to prevent excessive friction. I use the glass knob of a coffee percolator top. The pressure on the drill socket must be increased gradually.

 

The Fire-Pit. When a new fire-hole is made, the pit should be drilled before the notch is cut. The end of the drill should be pointed only for starting a new hole; after that, it should always be kept round. While bowing, the spindle must be held exactly perpendicular to the board. A U shaped notch is better than a V. A spark can be produced more easily by putting a little sand in the pit.

 

Woods for Fire by Friction. Of the common woods of the United States I have found American elm decidedly the best for both the board and the drill. Since establishing my record, I have discovered that yucca (a wood found on the desert) is even better than elm. I have repeatedly produced an ember with yucca by two complete strokes of the bow. It requires nearly three seconds to do it with elm. These are the only woods I have tried that produce an ember that you can blow into the instant you stop ribbing. Other woods must be allowed to stand a few seconds or must be fanned gently with the hand to produce the spark. I have tried the following woods and have listed them in the order in which I prefer them: yucca, American elm, red elm, balsam fir, red cedar, willow root, cypress, basswood, sycamore, cottonwood, poplar, soft maple, white pine. A thin fire board is superior to a thick one for both speed and ease. I use boards from a quarter to three-eighths of an inch thick and get from six to eight fires out of one hole. A small drill is also better. I use octagonal drills a half to nine-sixteenths of an inch in diameter, and nine inches long.

 

Tinder. I have not found anything superior to red cedar bark for tinder. To prepare it, pound a piece of bark into a fluffy mass with a club; then, the tinder remains in a mass and does not fly into your face when you blow it. The following sorts of tinder are listed in the order in which I prefer them: red cedar bark, white cedar bark, inner chestnut bark, cottonwood bark, inner red elm bark, miscellaneous bird and field mice nests, crushed spruce needles, beaten rope fibers. It is not generally known that the quickest way to get flame is to put milkweed silk in the center of a pad of red cedar bark."

 

From Games and Recreational Methods for Clubs, Camps and Scouts; Charles Fredrick Smith, Dodd Mead & Co. 1937(This message has been edited by Ohio_Scouter)

[bleedorange]

Thanks Ohio_Scouter, that is a great article! Lucky for me, I am going to Arizona soon and will be able to snag some Yucca!!

[AvidSM]

Very good information from Ohio-Scouter. The only thing I can add is to use graphite lubricant in the socket of the handpiece (the wooden block that the upper end of the spindle rotates in). This would be in lieu of inserting a glass knob, as suggested. Keep adding the graphite until you get a shiny dark gray coating built up. This greatly reduces the friction between the spindle and the handpiece, which avoids burning it out and makes it easier to bow.

[bleedorange]

AvidSM, i have heard of taking a carmex container and cleaning it out then using that in the palm of your hand. I guess whatever you can do to reduce friction!

[Hawk]

Bleedorange, try this web site:

 

http://www.primitiveways.com/

[packsaddle]

Ohio scouter gave you really good material to work with. By the way, Idaho Falls is a really great place to do stuff.

 

I've been able to get a flame in 30 seconds using the materials described in the article. If you want to do it in true survival mode, you'll use sinew or leather for the bow and a stone or block of wood for the drill socket. If you use a stone, it helps to pick one that has an indentation and that fits the hand nicely. It also helps to take another stone approximately the same diameter of the drill and use it to make the indentation deeper by 'filing' the indentation with the other stone. This takes a while but you'll appreciate the way the drill does NOT pop out right before you bust a coal. Yucca is by far the best drill material but another light-weight, non-resinous wood (note his preferred list) will also work. Here's another hint: make the drill small in diameter but not so small that it doesn't turn easily. Keep in mind that you are trying to transfer the energy of your muscles to the tip of the drill and that the faster it turns, the faster the friction works to warm the two surfaces of the drill tip and the fire board. Hence, smaller diameter. Larger diameters will turn more easily but not as fast. A smaller diameter makes the drill turn faster and more revolutions with each pass of the bow. It also helps to have a fairly short drill so that it is easier to keep lined up.

Don't put too much pressure on it but keep enough pressure that it is building up the blackened 'punk' in which the coal will form.

Some animal fat works well for lube on the drill block if you want to avoid graphite.

Tinder can be according to his description or some 'punk wood' powder that you get from dry rot, surrounded by dry grasses, etc. You get the idea. Once you have a spark the rest is easy.

Best advice: Practice, practice, practice! You'll figure out the best way.

[bleedorange]

Thanks Hawk.

Appreciate the info Packsaddle!

We did an intro last night to the bow drill and the broken match award. Thanks for the tip on the drill diameter. I figured the larger diameter would have more surface area thus allowing for greater friction. It turned but not very fast. I have some old croquet sticks that are soon to become drills it looks like!