I tried the bow/drill for years before I had any luck. Then I sat and watched and talked to a guy while he made fire that way, and I never had any problem with it again. I just needed a real person to show me.
I have sat with a lot of people and walked them through it. I used to make and sell bow/drill sets and would help the buyers make fire the first time.
I used to do a program at the local school where I demonstrated mountain man history and skills. The bow/drill was always the kids' favorite part. (I also demonstrated flint and steel-- which also feels like cheating to me.)
For years I made a fire every single day-- usually with the bow/drill, but occasionally with flint and steel. Then I sat by the fire for a few hours. Friends knew where to find me-- sitting by the fire in front of my wikiup-- and would come share my fire to chat for a while. Here's a picture of my wikiup and surroundings:
You can see my bow/drill fire kit hanging from the tripod (along with my rifle) on the left of the picture. It's the long bag.
Awesome. You're a wealth of information and skills. Aside from being from the generation that came after you, we have some things in common. I'd love the opportunity to hang out and learn from you sometime, but will probably have to make do with Steem for the time being :)
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Yeah, that would be fun. It would probably be even better if we could hang out somewhere that there's some wilderness. This area kinda sucks for wild spaces.
Oh, and I tried out the glass paperweight today. Watch for a post about that soon.
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Oooh, I bet it went well! I'll keep my eyes peeled for it :)
You're right, space would be a really nice thing. I've moved out of Vancouver to a smaller town, but still feel a longing for nature again. My health hasn't been great for a few years (still trying to pin down all the diagnoses), and my wife's not well at all either (crippled, cancer, neurological side effects from the radiation), and we just had a surprise baby. So I'm not certain when I'll be be able to make it happen.
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Around here, there's nothing but farmland. And it's not the picturesque kind. Oh, and big, industrial dairies and feedlots. And this house doesn't even have a back yard. Except for a narrow strip without a fence-- where I throw my tomahawk. But everything else I end up doing in the front yard so people can wonder what I'm up to. This isn't the life I'm accustomed to and I'm not a good fit.
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