Fire Lighting Methods

[stevenscout]

I was just curious what people have done to light fires at camporee's, summer camp, etc. We just had a camporee and we lit the fire off with model rocket engines.

stevenscout

[616kayak]

dryer lint in a ball it starts good and is always in your dryer.

[wagionvigil]

steel woola nd a 9 volt battery works great.

[DadScout]

For my Outdoor leader training it was a flaming arrow shot from about 25' away but it was teathered to a metal cable so it wasn't flying free, just sort of set in motion. Would have been great if it didn't get snagged 1/2 way and one of us had to give it a shove.

[MisterChris]

I remember when I was in scouts centuries ago (well, ok, in the last century) that they had a flaming arrow light the fire from 100 feet away, at Land Between The Lakes near Murray Kentucky.

It was an actual practice arrow shoved through a roll of toilet paper soaked in white gas, suspended on a steel cable right down into the heart of the fire. worked like a charm.

Man, it was IMPRESSIVE!!!

I remember once they lit a bonfire with a pocketful of flash powder and a remote spark. Al O WatsisKima called down lightning from heaven to start the fire. KABOOM!!!! Bright bright bright white flash of light. We couldn't tell if the fire was lit or not for almost 15 seconds. Retina shadow, ya know. All we saw was spots. Even Al had disappeared. The old disappearing Indian trick. Cameramen use it all the time.

[hacimsaalk]

at our camps, we're too dang lazy to do anything tricky. we usually have the fires lit before everone shows up. lo l

[OldGreyBear]

who is the world is "Al O WatsisKima"?

[scoutaholic]

who is the world is "Al O WatsisKima"?

Alawatsakima is the chief in the Order of the Arrow ceremonies. I have seen many ceremonies where he or Meteu (the Medicine Man) calls upon the spirits to bring us fire.

Sometimes we did it with a remote spark (buried wire, and a rocket starter). Sometimes we just had the indian guides with us light the fire with their torches. I have also seen the arrow on a wire trick, and it can work well. One thing we often did to impress the boys was throw in a handful of black powder. It flashes and sparks, and they think we did something magical.

[MisterChris]

who is the world is "Al O WatsisKima"?

Sorry, OGB, just a little 'tongue-in-cheek humour at BSA expense. No offense intended, I'm an OA member myself (Ordeal). But I guess I can't claim that if I don't catch my dues up.

For an additional 'humour' blurb on fire-lighting techniques, consult with George Goble.

This is definitely NOT in the G2SS (or in any other safety guide!! ) but since liquid Oxygen isn't readily available for purchase, I thought it would be okay to post it as a little humour on how he lights HIS fires...

http://www.doeblitz.net/ghg/

Definitely don't try this at home. And don't be in the same city.

Moderators, feel free to delete this post if it's too 'out there' for prime time. But I guarantee it'll get a chuckle out of the leaders. And maybe an OMG ROFLOL

[riverwalk]

Well, this safety nut has to get past the safety concerns first....then I can appreciate some of the neat firestarter methods. I've also seen the impressive ceremonies, and they are good ones to remember. But if the show turns into more of what the pyro guys want, we've lost our way with the ceremony.

So KISMIF, and keep safety and mission in mind. And keep sharing the unique ideas for others to consider.

[Mad Dog]

How do you rig up the steel wool and battery?

[wagionvigil]

There are several ways we have done it so experiment. One was letting the battery upright and just drop the steel wool on it from above.

[vpalango]

How do you rig up the steel wool and battery?

I've seen this done a number of different ways.

1) get very light weight steel wool "000".

2) Rig two sides of the circuit about 2" apart on the steel wool at the bottom.

3) Put some kind of very dry/light tinder on top (wood shavings, dryer lint, etc...) on top to get things going, with progressively larger tinder, kindling, and then the main wood content.

4) When ready to light, connect the conductors to the battery and watch it light.

The key to this is creating a practice rig (just the wool and initial tinder) to experiment first. I've used a car/boat battery, or an older battery charger without the cutoff curcuit in newer ones. Make sure if using a battery to FULLY charge it prior to attempting this trick. At full charge you get the maximum wattage from the battery to make it work.

Just as a note, this pretty much won't work at all if things are even a little bit damp. You need to create your lighting rig on a very dry surface (I've sometimes used a small platform that I've made out of lashed together kindling to keep it from being directly on the ground.

For the conductors, you'll probably need to go to the hardware store, and get a couple of spools of wire, something light like 14 guage wire should be fine. You will need to pre-set the wire, burying it in the ground under the fire, and out of the fire pit. It's also best if you can rig it to be removed once the fire is lit.

Again, do some experimentation with materials, but it's a relatively easy trick, and it produces a good effect.

[wagionvigil]

All you need to do is have the steel wool come in contact with the two terminals on the battery

[JRTroop270]

my troop has done and seen a lot of different ways to do it.

1. we lit it with one of those 500 degree starters that the military uses it set all a big bang and was flaming instantly.

2. we used the steel wool and battery

3. (not exactly safe) bug spray and a long neck lighter

4. tiki torches (saw OA use them at Tap-Out)

5. titanium fire starter and a knife

[riverwalk]

Can't do #3 unless you allowed someone to have a spray can thingy. And they don't need to be there, haha.