Many thanks for this great video. Your title may be a bit misleading because it's not so much about the worth of a FerroRod but about the importance of producing real good cinder which I consider the most important thing to start a fire. - As always: good preparation is key.
The title ties in strongly with the theme of the video and that is why I chose the title. The major theme of this video is to encourage people to get out and learn to use their local natural materials, learn which ones work and which ones do not work well. In other words, if you know your local options then a ferro rod is worth having. If you do not know your local natural material options then a ferro rod is probably not worth having. Only you can answer that question for yourself as it is an answer that is different for different people
I some how missed this question. You can use the interior of many different trees the same way however there are many trees whose wood will not split as easy as this did.
I love your videos. There's no ego, no attitude, no marketing. You basically interact with your audience like they're a grandkid you're taking out into the woods to learn basic skills because you care about them. You seem like such a kind, down-to-earth person, and I always learn something everytime I watch your channel. Thanks for being awesome. ❤
I've been out in the wilds countless times for weeks and months at a time. Started making flint and steel fire when I was eight years old (1967). It is rare that I see something that I don't already know.... but I've never seen anyone slice into the blisters on a pine tree and sop up the resin with lichens. It just proves that there is always something new to learn.
I'm 65 y/o now, and I've been camping since I was 16 y/o. I'm also a retired District Fire Chief. I've started campfires many different ways in the past, but the last method was something completely new to me. I live in Florida and we have many pine trees of various kinds and oaks with lichen, so that method should work well here. Thank you for sharing your knowledge!
"Shaving a pile" is the number one thing that got me over struggling with a ferro rod. If you made several slow semi hard passes over the rod before generating any spark you get a much stronger hotter ignition.
Matt Smith. now l didn't know that. been using a rod for years and didn't know that. thanks. l'm going to have to try that. how did you come to figure that out?
Josh Clement. so farting around as a kid you discovered something very useful that will serve you well and the rest of us for our lifetimes. How many times will we be in need of a stronger spark? As a kid...ya did good!
Makes a world of difference! If my fire is being stubborn i shower it in flakes and then hit it with the Sparks. Also, I often scrap my flannel shirt or denim jeans with a knife to create a little cotton tinder ball, roll that up in some paper and you have a nice match to light your cigarette with! Love playing with my fire rod.
When you scrap is slow like that you cause these sort of ridges in the rod. Then when doing a hard strike it will typically rip the ridges off in bigger chunks also making a larger hotter spark. I also don't scrap my knife on my ferro rod for the lighting portion. What I do is hold my knife still and pull the rod away from my tinder scraping along the knife as I go. Seems to work for me
Your videos have a charm of their own. No razzle-dazzle, no personal vanity, just good info, handed out in your friendly, accessible style. You do good work.
Here in Wyoming, I have learned to grab whatever tinder material I find at the beginning of my walk, and then place a nice sized wad of it in my pants pocket and just walk until I need it to start a fire. That usually dries it out well enough. It's better to plan ahead, however, and place a plastic baggie of cotton dryer lint, along with a small tube of petroleum jelly in the bag. this combo works! Thanks, Lonnie, for the tip about the pine resin; have used it before, but you reinforced my memory. God bless you and yours.
I couldn't agree more with you. I too am always grabbing dry pieces to keep in a baggie in each of my bags - EDC bag, 3 day pack, and hunt pack, and my carry all ruck. Found much easier to always have access to dry tinder when in cold, frost, wet environment. However not always the case, or need light multiple fires. Every bit of knowledge is helpful in dire straights.
I certainly agree with preparation! I'm less enthusiastic about refined accelerants like petroleum jelly even though they work great. If I'm going take that route I'll tend to use a lighter too, which again is great, but not much fun / of a challenge.
As a relatively new subscriber to the channel, I wanted to take a moment and tell you how much I appreciate the videos and the straightforward way in which they are presented. Having grown up in the Adirondacks in Upstate NY, it's a pleasure to hear someone speak directly about what works, how it works, and what you need to do without the yelling, hype and product pushing that so many other survival channels seem to have as a part of them. I find my sons often sitting and watching these with me, and it gives us ideas of things to do, together, to keep the knowledge alive. Please keep up the great work!
Simple solution I use, I used a chunk of good saturated fatwood for the handle to my ferro rod. Scrape off some fatwood shavings and they will light wet or dry, just have to find half decent tinder for the fatwood to light once it is burning.
Okay, now you made me feel like an idiot. I've built ferro rod handles for years, but didn't think to use pine fat wood for the handle. Makes sense, tender and fire steel all in one, and some of that aged pine heart has beautiful grain too. Thanks for the idea. Brum
I’ve followed this channel for a few years now in fact this channel is what inspired me to start growing my own, im almost at 4,000 subs now. His editing is nothing to flashy but I love that! his voice is so calming to listen to I could easily sit & listen to him for hours.
It’s amazing just how much we don’t know. The resin fire could be a life saver and just about everyone has never thought about it so that is one of the best teachings worth knowing. Brilliant video.
Bravo :D, the chemical inside of the spruce that is lighting is called alpha pinene, a terpene and accelerant. Interestingly the chemical is also extremely antimicrobial to the point where untreated wounds have a 56% chance of infection and those treated with spruce resin have a 4% chance of infection in trials in finland. Fir trees also have pockets of alpha pinene in the outer bark I used to use the chemical to start fires in vermont in the rain.
I have used spruce pitch quite a few times on wound that I have had. It not only helps to heal but it helps considerable to reduce pain. It is effective on not only wounds but burns as well. Here in Alaska spruce pitch has been used traditionally for many many medicinal uses.
@@andrelarocque5967 Wound infection triggers inflammation causing swelling as fluid & wbc enter wound tissue: Pain. Pine pitch disinfects the wound......
@Charles Larocque I have applied spruce pitch to very painful fresh wounds and burns before bacteria has had a chance to colonize and the pain was measurably substantially reduced within 5 to 10 minutes.
Awesome! Last year, I went out into the woods after a few days of rain. Temperatures had been below freezing. I was determined to make a fire with just a ferro rod and a knife. After about an hour in the rain, I got pretty cold and gave up and used a lighter. I was surprised at how hard it was to get the typical "standby" materials going when they had been soaked for a few days. I could get little flashes of flame, but nothing to hold long enough to dry wet fuel out. I should have thought about the trick with the sap and getting dry wood shavings from the interior of branches. I'll have to go out and give it another shot.
@@williardbillmore5713 we had that where I grew up, but not where I live now. I should look into some better local species. That said, what I should go is put my firesteel on a lanyard that also has a little capsule with a few tinder tabs in it.
Well, I keep some dryer lint and some fine steel wool in my pocket! I vac seal it in a bag with a vac sealer! The whole thing doses not weigh more that a couple of ounces! The Rod is just one of three ways I can get a fire going, I also carry a lighter, and waterproof matches as well! I don't leave anything to chance! And since the backpack stoves are so light now, I keep one in my day pack whenever I go off the road! I go out from time to time in different conditions and get a fire going, just for practice, in the wet, it can be a real task!
yep, George, I collected dryer lint, my wife saw me placing some of the dryer lint in a pint mason jar on a shelf over the clothes dryer one day. She asked what I was up to and I told her it was for fire tender on rainy camping trips. She has since then filled up 3 pint jars with tightly packed dryer lint for me. I told her that was probably enough for now. LOL I like to drip candle wax on a ball of dryer lint about an inch in diameter, and roll it like rolling up biscuit dough as it cools, then shove three or so of the wax/lint balls in an empty plastic 35mm film canister to carry as wet weather tender. I have also been known to add a squirt or two of Zippo lighter fluid to the lint/wax balls. The old type snap lid film canisters are water tight and the lighter fluid mixed with the candle wax last for months. Cotton balls can be done the same way. Brum
I live in a tropical island. I've been looking for trees that can provide bark or other oily substance but haven't been successful. Oddly enough, I found fatwood. A friend of mine cut out a pine tree in front of his house and I was able to collect a nice quantity of fatwood. I gave some away to some bushcrafting buddies and kept some. I gotta be honest, the ferro rod is my last option in my setting. Everything else has to fail for me to use it. Our weather is so damp and the humidity is always above 40-50 percent that it's pretty difficult to start fire in those conditions, worse when it rains. Good video man!
Good point Dani, ferro rods are much like shoes when you do a comparison with other ways to make fire. Some people like lace up shoes and some like slip on shoes but both types will offer protection for your feet when needed. Same with ferro rods vs. matches/lighters, ferro rods may outlast matches by maybe 1 rod to 500 matches but they both will give you fire if you know how to operate them. Ferro rods are like lace up shoes, you need to know how to operate the "laces" on each and both are a bit more complicated than striking a match or flicking a bic or simply pulling on a pair of slip on shoes.
Dani El buy yourself a portable bellows. Look at Canadian outdoor equipment for 'bellows' and you'll see what I mean. It's designed for use in damp conditions. While you are at it, get some of their 'fire fuses'.
+Austin0777 As I have explained many times in comments on this video, A lighter may fail and often has failed me. A ferro rod will never fail. I live in a cold environment (Alaska) and a butane lighter has to be kept warm here or it will not light. It does not matter how cold or how wet a ferro rod is, it will still throw sparks just the same.
+Austin0777 Well you go ahead and put your trust in your bic. I will continue to carry my bic as usual but I will also carry my ferro rod and other means of fire lighting as well. I know through multiple personal experiences that a bic can fail you but a ferro rod never will. I go prepared to survive because some of the places I go can very easily kill you if you are not prepared. Being prepared means not putting all my trust in that bic.
***** Seems like the "generation gap" is more dangerous than I thought, I have been to your world and know that one slip, one careless gesture or glance in the wrong direction, will change a hunt for food into a challenge for basic survival. "Survival" to some flat landers means finding a Wal-Mart that stays open 24/7 in some areas of this fine country. This young man apparently has not tried to light any type of tinder with the flint and spark wheel in a bic after the butane has run dry, otherwise he wouldn't talk in terms that do not make a bit of sense in a real world survival situation. There isn't a bic alive today which can send just one spark into a pile of tinder and fat wood hot enough and long lasting enough to get a wisp of smoke going in that tinder. Flint and steel will do that in the right hands but not THAT flint and steel. But he will learn, I only hope that he finds out the real truth BEFORE it means the difference between life and death in the wilderness. Out there is REAL living ...... and real survival to test one's mettle. Had I not had an accident that took my health and made it nigh impossible to sustain myself where I was, I would NOT be where I am today, down at the opposite end of the USA from you! Stay safe and watch your back.
This reminds me of growing up and always playing in the woods with my Grandpa. He always had something really cool to show me. Best childhood ever! Can’t get enough of these videos!!!
#64dexta I had just got done blowing on the coals of a fire one time when after sitting back up again I could still see smoke drifting up past my eyes. I discovered that the smoke was being generated by my beard. I quickly whacked the fire out by beating my beard against my chest. We all had a real good laugh over that episode.
Thanks Lonnie for a very informative video. I have been teaching my wife and grandchildren how to start a fire with a ferro rod. I have been starting them out easy by lighting Vaseline cotton balls and alcohol stoves. We don;t have any birch or pine in the area i live in but we do have red cedar. Thanks again for another good lesson.
The sincere kindness and guidance you show in the lesson is admirable. When the lesson is demonstated in such a calm and collected way, it makes the video relaxing to watch. The last trick with the pine/spruce is completely new to me, thank you for the lesson. Your survival skills are impressive.
Great video! It's amazing how far away from nature that we are today and I am an avid camper that loves getting away from it all. What I can't stand today is everywhere around here is either private property or govt owned parks w/designated campgrounds where everyone's packed in, side by side, like sardines. Of course you have the drunken party somewhere close, the arguing couple or the kids running around playing and screaming. Most likely all of the above. It's more nerve racking than just sitting in my backyard with a fire pit but this stuff is really a need to know, just in case you need it to survive. Thank you so much for teaching us this great information. You're a peach :) And one of those people who make me proud to be part of the human race. And your dog freakin ROCKS!!! What a great friend to cuddle with in a shelter at night to help keep each other warm :)
Absolutely FIRST RATE video. It's great for learning, and it's great for INSPIRATION. All I wanna do now is get out in the woods and look for all the possibilities of finder good tinder that can light with a ferro rod.
Thank you. You were right. I have a ferro rod and thought I could do fire anywhere anytime. Maybe now I have a better chance because of your teaching. Thank you again.
Who gives this a thumbs down. This guy obviously is experienced and lives the life. He then shares some of his knowledge with all of us, and a few people give it a thumbs down? Are they jealous? Or did he just show something that their favorite TV “survivalist” didnt show on the latest episode....🙄
You've probably noticed that virtually every video on UA-cam has a certain number of down-thumbs. It's trolls. They have a belief that it's useful to crap on things. (Not making it up; trolls automatically down-thumb everything, regardless of content or quality, just to show the troll-flag. Because they believe the world doesn't suck enough. Again: seriously. It's their "public service".)
I know this one is a save. Great advice and I will give it a try. Pretty much guaranteed he did better with the wet conditions than I will do with the dry materials I have access to 👍
Great video, thanks. I am not a minimalist outdoor guy, I like to use the benefit of technology. For example, during my 8,000 miles off-road motorcycle trip in your great state, we had GPS, Sat-phone, LED light, and BIC type lighters and the like. But technology does fail, especially in harsh environment. So we always have basic back-up like, compass & maps, candles, waterproof matches, and a FerroRod. But your video reminded me that I have not use it in the last 10 years, and that if the need arise, it will not be the right time to try to remind me of my "pre-technology" skills. Thanks again. I will plan a trip with only the minimal gear in our great Canadian winter wilderness to hone those maybe forgotten skills.
Been using a ferro rod for years and I teach people fire lighting with one. A couple of ideas here that I will be using in future - great video, thanks.
Brett Tietema just for the sake of argument,, you get stranded out in the wild due to some unexpected circumstances, you run out of dryer lint ( which truly is a good tinder ). Then this where the knowledge of primitive ways comes into play ,, I merely suggest you practice using natural materials only and more primitive methods to start fires after a good rain or snow ,, always relying on synthetic fire starter materials or fuels ,, will get you nowhere when your life depends on that next fire ! And you need it right now !!
Where I live and go my entire region is absolutely abundant with tulip poplar.., cedar and fat wood ,, and maple for some hot long lasting coals .. I know not everywhere has those resources available. Pretty much everywhere but the desert has an equivalent to them .. just figure out your equivalent and practice until you don't fail to make a sustainable fire .. best of luck to you, and enjoy the outdoors every chance you get !
I do some gold prospecting in the summer - deep into mnts and forests of S Oregon and N Calif. I have a ferro rod, but never gave any thought on how to use it, nor what to use with it. Now I know. Thx for a well done video.
Ferro rod is totally "must have". No doubt. Would prefer to majority of modern firestarting equip - matches, gas burners and so on! Flint and Steel - for the soul =) Ferro rod for deeds ;)
Thank ou for sharing your tips with the ferro rod. Usually I use a regular gas lighter for fire making but I always bring a ferro rod as a backup :) - Martin
I usually have primitive fire methods or the ferro rod as primary to get training on it, while have gas lighters, matches and a spare ferro rod as back up.
I see. Thanks. Down here in SE we use spruce pitch but sometimes you have to go a ways to find it. Not nearly as prevalent as birch in your area as not all spruce have pitch pockets or knots where you can get to them. Does work in the wet though. Take care. Doug
Wow, Guess I need to get myself a ferro rod : ). I've always relied on my flint and steel, with char cloth, and inner tree bark etc. Like the fire bow drill too. But seeing you use the ferro rod, and ways to get tinder I hadn't seen prior, is very cool.
it's a good back up to have outside of your regular starting methods. grandpa always taught me "the right tool, for the right job." fire starting is no different. for ease, there are bic lighters, matches, and fire paste. for not so ease, there are storm matches and mag blocks (and fire paste). and for impossible mission where the weather absolutely loathes you... there are flint and steel, ferro rods, and fire paste. back up, on my back ups, on my back ups....and all still EDC.
Liked this video in 2016 and still revisit it just to insure its instilled in memory forever, living in Alaska where everything soaking wet is such a hassle and this makes fire making much much easier!
Seen and used all of those methods, however I havent ever seen a pure white spruce with sap blisters. They are always on young fir, false fir or cross bred trees. As a bonus even cross bred fir make good tea.
Pine as well as spruce also make a great tasty tea as well. The tea is great at fighting off a cold before it can really get started if you catch it soon enough. Yes that was a White Spruce with the blisters.
Well here locally we have the White Spruce and Black Spruce. The black spruce definitely smells much better. The Sitka spruce in southeast Alaska also smells much better but I do enjoy the tea from all three varieties. The white spruce though smells kind of bad.
***** i always thought the black spruce was pretty nasty, but it was a long time ago that I tryed it. Do you just use the needles like other conifers? I think this gives me an excuse to wander off into the skag for a bit and revisit the concept.
I use just the tips of the branches needles as well as the branch tips. I usually do it in the Spring with the fresh new growth but have done it also all year anytime of the year.
possibly some people surrounded by paper and petroleum products deluding themselves into thinking of themselves as environmentalist warriors by thumbs-downing a video where some guy scraped some bark off a tree. that or some people upset with the amount of dry grass leaves he gathered because with a good grapefruit sized bundle he'd have no trouble starting a fire with them. just shootin in the dark here
Great info Lonnie! I noticed that the birch bark smells exactly like kerosene when lit...pretty cool and I'll be keeping a bit of that in my sack! You rock a mean beard too!
Thank you for taking the time to film, edit and upload this video. My experience with ferro rods is limited and disappointing. In truth, however, the rods I used were poor quality and very small. A cheap lighter has been my most successful fire starter so far. That said... Today it's -6° F here in Anoka, Minnesota. Just for fun, I walked out to my car to get a lighter from the center console. I really wanted to light it up and see a nice flame and debunk the "lighters don't work in the cold" maxim. Man, was I disappointed. That lighter barely sparked. It didn't come close to making a flame. I held it in my hands for a few minutes until it finally gave off a feeble little flame - that lasted only a few seconds. So... Just in my one little test, my cheap lighter absolutely DID NOT WORK in cold weather. Would it be that cold if it were in my pants pocket? Probably not. But if I needed to light a fire within a few minutes it would be useless. From now on, I'm going to practice with decent ferro rods and keep a good supply of dryer lint in waterproof bags in my car. Hopefully, I'll never NEED to make a fire ... but at least I can be prepared. Your videos have been extremely helpful. Thanks again!
if youve got a car, use your jump leads, to create a spark, you attach them to the battery terminals, preferably with the engine running, and slide the ends across each other, you will definitely get sparks
Hi Lonnie, thanks for showing more ways to use the ferro rod. Particularly the tree splitting, that was awesome. Went out and tried it and yes it worked amazingly well. That said, hope you don't mind if I play the devil's advocate here; while watching your video, for some reason I thought what if I lost my knife, how would I use the ferro rod, would a belt buckle, cooking utensil, axe etc be useful? Will be trying some of those out this week, but I'm sure there's many more ways to get sparks. Thanks once again Lonnie and Connie!
You can use any sharp enough object as a striker on your ferro rod. If you can find any rock you are in business. just bust that rock and use a sharp edge of the rock as a striker. In this video I was using the back of a saw as the striker. I always carry a fingernail clipper in my pocket. It has a file on it and would work well. a shovel, ax, machete, screw driver, knife, metal pocket clip on an ink pin, belt buckle as you said, ear band on metal frame eye glasses, brass eyelet ripped out of a boot cooking spatula, metal fork, metal spoon, cooking pot lid, cooking pot etc.... Some of these things would need a sharp edge and that could be accomplished by rubbing the object on rocks. In other words, when in a tough situation one must not think in terms of "I lost my X so now I'm in deep doo doo. How will I ever survive?" But rather take the mental perspective of "now that I know that X is lost, how can I make do or substitute". There is that famous old saying "where there is a will there is a way" and that applies to wilderness survival as well.
If you are a smart woodsman, you won't venture out into any dense forest where you run the risk of being stranded with only one knife on your person. I always carry a belt knife even when I take the dog to one of the state parks here in the Southeast USA for a couple of hours of running. In addition, I always have a folding knife of one kind or another in a pocket or I have one of the hardened scrapers that come with many of these wannabe ferro rods that I tie on a small carabiner and snap on my belt loop out of the way. the ferro rods that I use are all 1/2" X 6" rods bought on eBay a few years ago before they became the rage to own and brag about. They were cheap back in that time and they are easy to drill for a lanyard or small type I or II paracord loop with which to carry it on your person. They are long enough that you don't need an auxiliary handle to hold them tightly in one hand as you smartly drag the spine of your knife down the ferro rod and they are quite easy to manage with gloves in colder weather. Technically, there is only one or two "ways" to use a ferro rod, either holding the ferro rod still on top of your tinder and swiping the "striker" down on the rod or bracing the held knife or other type of "striker" in one hand against your leg or a rock or other solid object and pulling the ferro rod back over the edge of the knife spine or other "striker" to generate sparks. What this man showed isn't about the rods use but of the different kinds of natural tinder that can be found in the woods and when to use one kind over another. In my opinion, a ferro rod is ALWAYS "worth having" as the title of the video asks. But just as important is knowing what kind of tinder to use under different conditions and THAT was the focus of this video in my opinion. The title was a bit misleading in that it placed the importance of "using" the ferro rod on making of the video instead of the importance of which kind of material to look for in wet vs. dry weather when a fire is needed.
One thing I have learned over the years is to be resourceful in the bush and would now find that rock you mention. But when beginning outdoor adventures that sort of thing would not have been something I thought of (looking back, yah, bear fodder comes to mind.) Anyhow, using a rock to sharpen edges is a good idea and one I have now tried to make it sink in, thanks! You mention thinking in terms of "if I lost m X.....how can I make do?" That sounds like something to add to my hikes around the place here. Usually I head out to try one of your video methods but will also challenge myself on outings, this will ad some adventure for sure. All the best.
#Tall_Cedars After re-reading my reply above, the last part was worded so that it sounded like I was giving you advice which was not my intention. I meant that yes I was agreeing with you. A person does need to use the patterns of thought like you were saying above. It can be very beneficial to think along the lines of "what if?"
#Framer_Guy The point for the video title was not addressed directly but rather indirectly. I was trying to get across the point that a ferro rod is *NOT* worth having if one does not practice with it enough to know how to use it. It is only worth having if a person *DOES* know how to use it. So in reality, the question that the title asks can be answered either way depending on the person answering the question.
A ferro rod works better by pulling the rod away from the tinder. Brace the knife hand on something firm and hold it tight in one spot just above the tinder...insert the rod under the blade and pull it away firmly. The way you do it really jostles the tinder and impedes the sparks from resting on the tinder and burning in as well as they could.
'mornin, Lonnie; Always a treat to see an up-load 1st. thing in my 'mornin With a fresh cupa Folgers ! Can't have enough Ferro-Rids In Or On My Person, But still carry Fathers WWII Zippo as a back-up ! Great Videoing Connie, Ole Buck is weathering well. Thanks as always for sharing, Friends. Stay-Ha Ha -Frosty ! ATB Terry God Bless
Hey Terry, there you are! Just picked up a Zippo from Cabelas, reminds me of my father's, always carried one around in the "ol' days" (now I'm old!?). They still work far better than a Bic and there's just something about that piece of nostalgia and a tried and true method. Blessings from Manitoba.
Canesser Also when out & about I have Pop's Haversack that saw the WWII Campaign. Man oh Man The Stories It Could Tell ! Never without either item when Woods-Tramp'n. Thanks for the Kind Comment, Brother. Stay-Frosty
So your Dad is another reason why we're still free! A moving Remembrance Day ceremony in Ottawa yesterday as usual. Not sure if the young 'uns really appreciate the enormity of what that generation accomplished. Nice to carry such powerful sentimental value on your back. Mostly they're just back packs. You too brother!!
Never had a bic let me down. zippos are great if they have fuel most new ones leak like crazy. Bic just last longer used to love zippo till one leaked in my pocket leaving a chemical burn on my leg for about 3 months.
My first experience was exactly this. Almost always wet at my area. But it is useful when gloves is needed and you are unable to use a lighter or matches. It also give you god training prepping for the fire in wet conditions.
That's cool. Will you do an episode on the magnesium starter blocks with the strikers? They really impressed me when i actually learned how to use them.
Glad you found my channel. Welcome "home". :o) No I have not done any videos where I use a magnesium block. I don't own one so I probably won't be doing a video in the future either. I know how to use them since I had one. Lars over at "Survival Russia" just did a video on that subject that you might find interesting if you haven't already watched it. He has a great channel.
Thank you for the advice. I will check that out. I have quite a few magnesium blocks and I would be more than happy to send you a couple if you would like to try them out and make a video. When I finally learned to scrape the magnesium off of the handle then use the built-in striker I was amazed actually. I put the small pile of mag. on a very solid and coated (formica I think) desk top and the small pile burned a hole almost a quarter of an inch deep. Needless to say, I learned a valuable lesson.
You never know when you'll find yourself in a situation where knowing how to build a fire will save your life! Put a small kit in your vehicle containing a multi tool; survival knife; hatchet; sizeable tarp(12'x12'); two 50' lengths of Paracord; large survival blankets; wool blankets for as many people as your vehicle carries; a small camping stove with gas; cooking pot; cups and utensils; food and water for 3days, and a fire starting kit with lighters, matches, fire steel and tinder. Tinder can simply be dryer lint saturated in Vaseline. A few votive candles would be helpful. I know this sounds extensive, but with all the crazy weather changes, who knows when you and friends may be forced off the road in a storm! A votive candle in a tin can will keep your vehicle surprisingly warm after you've run out of petrol and can no longer use the heater! It would be good to have a ceramic tile under the can so that the heat doesn't melt the man-made fibers in the rugs! Heavens! I see I've gotten carried away! I apologise! I simply wanted to make it clear that you don't ever know when you'll find yourself in a dicey situation! I hope you don't, but if you do, you'll thank your lucky stars for the freeze dried food in the boot of your car, and the means to heat the water to prepare it, and to warm yourself! I've left out plenty of stuff, but there are sources on utube and on Google that can fill in the gaps. Please bear in mind that I'm not talking about prepping for the zombie apocalypse, or any such shit, just being able to take care of yourself if you're forced off the road in a storm that became much worse than forecast. Better safe than sorry! Blessings to you!!
@@brookeggleston9314 If I estimate the need to make a fire in a forest during my final ten years or so at one in ten thousand, and the odds that I will not be able to lay my hands on matches or a lighter at perhaps one in a thousand. And further the chances that I have this stuff with me rather than said lighter or matches at one in a thousand? The chances I will need this come out at one in ten billion. That is a thousand times less likely than winning the lottery, and I have no intention of wasting my money on that. So no, lets not bother pretending we are Robinson Crusoe any more than thinking that blessing people does anything beyond wasting a little Internet bandwidth.
@@donepearce fast forward 6 months where there is a global pandemic and you wish you knew how to make a fire and had a survival kit in order to bug out to the woods with.
I follow the 3 ways to make fire rule, starting from easiest to hardest, with the ferro rod being last choice due to difficulty of use. I need to practice more with the rod for sure!
This is 'way off-topic, but inquiring minds want to know: you mentioned being in central Alaska. Where are you in relation to this place: Back in 1973-74, I was stationed at a lovely, truly exotic "recreational area" (at least that's what the official Air Force brochures said ;o) ): Indian Mountain Air Force Station (last time I checked, it was turned into an automated long-range radar site), located roughly 16 miles from Hughes, AK. Indian was a split-camp operation, with the support base located at the base of the mountain on the banks of Utopia Creek, a tributary of Indian River. That was where the administrative offices, medical (a medic, no doctor), law enforcement/security office (one security policeman), and other support was located. It was also where the diesel power generators that provided all the electrical power for both camps was housed, as was our lifeline to the world: a 5000-foot gravel (in summer) and/or packed snow runway, the last 500 feet of which ended in a 30% up-grade. and The Top Camp operation, where the radar and the combat operations center were located, was at the summit of the mountain. Great place for a bunch of young guys ranging in age from their late 'teen's to their late '30's, with the nearest female companionship 196 miles away in Fairbanks, to spend a year. The standing joke there was, "I went to Indian Mountain a 98-pound weakling--but I came back a husky-fXXker!"
Well I live a long long ways from Indian Mountain but believe it or not, I worked there for a few months as a civilian while the military still operated the site. That was back in 1975 I think when I was there. I spent a bit of time on both Utopia creek and Indian river if I remember right. Got a lot of pictures of wolves and bear while there.
It was an early warning site and the mail plane would fly in and land and the site wouldn't even be aware that the plane was there. lol He would approach the site flying real low over the hills and the radar or other instruments would not detect him.
+Far North Bushcraft and Survival Really like your channel! A lot of what you demonstrate and teach is applicable where I live today as well as in Alaska: Kentucky. Sorry for the long reminiscences, Brother, but people who have been to Indian are a rare bunch, whether civilian or military. Do any panning while you were there? Utopia had gold in it still; also, the old commercial mining camp was another place to look. Some of the guys found gold-mercury aggregate, burned off the mercury (idiots!--but it worked!), and got nuggets that way. You already know how good the hunting is there Ahh, yes, the Wienie Bird! Wien (?) Air Alaska. I'll never forget my flight in to Indian--few people do, I think! ;o) On Nov 23, 1973, I flew from Elmandorf AFB to Campion on a DC-8 (maybe?) for a two-hour layover and transfer. Less than an hour before we were due to leave on the Wienie Bird (Don't remember the type, but it was the only one of its kind still flying anywhere in the world--spooky!), a little bit of fog rolled in. As I and a number of other people watched, another aircraft, *not* piloted by an Alaska bush pilot (in fact, the pilot had only just gotten his instrument rating,) w/four souls on board, took off. The inexperienced pilot barely got off the ground, went into the fog at about 200 ft, instantly became disoriented, and pitched his nose straight up. The airplane stalled and fell back onto the runway, tail first, killing all four people. Within an hour, I was on that same runway in an airplane that looked like a brick with wings, not feeling real confident about this whole flying thing ;o) . Landing at Indian was a trip in itself: coming in at full power, reaching the top end of the runway and turning sideways onto the turnaround so that when the engines were cut we wouldn't roll back down the runway--it was an adventure that day! We got there at @:30 PM and it was already dark. We were met by the station commander himself, who decided to drive us straight up the 10 1/2-mile switchback road to Top Camp himself, a decision he made *only after* discovering that I had Marlboro cigarettes--they hadn't had a supply plane in several weeks, and the only cigarettes left were Lucky Strikes and Bel Aire. That major bummed half a pack from me during that hour-long ride!--and me a mere two-striper. I wouldn't take a million dollars to repeat that year, and I wouldn't take a million not to have gone through it! Good times.... Take care, be safe.
Yes I did do some panning. I came back with about an ounce if I remember correctly. I had cleaned out the cracks of the hopper on the gold washing plant and other nooks and crannies on the plant. Of course there was a lot of mercury on the gold. I put it in my gold pan (metal) and roasted it over a fire and I made sure I was upwind and away from the fire. There was a rumor while I was there that someone from upper camp had accumulated a pound of gold. There was also magnetite rocks there that would stick to a magnet. I had collect a few but we had a house fire and I lost everything I owned including that gold. I still have some of the memories however and it will be a while before i loose them I hope.
***** I should've known, Brother! ;o) I wonder if you were there was the following happened, or whether you knew if it was true: In '73/'74, a litter of wolf-dog pups was born at Top Camp. One of 'em, a big Malamute-wolf cross we named Indian, was given the run of dorm at night, taking turns sleeping with different guys. He was just a big baby. I heard that in '75, one of the cooks, drunk, went out by the Scuzz Dump. He had a box of cookies with him, and a black bear that was scrounging the dump somehow got wind of the cookies. The cook stupidly, drunkenly, tried to make "friends" with the bear by feeding it cookies. Bad idea. When the cookies ran out, it marked the end of a beautiful friendship; the bear "treed" the cook on top of a fuel tank. He started yelling for help, and at some point Indian heard him. The bear, already enraged, kept trying to get at the cook. Indian charged the bear, trying to get it to turn on him. Eventually it worked, and the cook was able to escape into the building. Apparently, Indian and the bear finally got into it proper, but unfortunately, the bear managed to give Indian a good shot to the head and killed him. You know, living at Top Camp for a year was like living in a fish bowl: everything takes on a significance far beyond its relative importance in the wider world. Somehow, in that short space I ended up with a lifetime of stories and observations, while other times in my life, when more was happening around me had much less importance. I'll tell you what: despite the inconveniences, occasional hardships, periodic boredom, and all the rest, I've often found myself wondering what it would have been like to go back. Take care,Lonnie. I'll keep watching your videos!
yes i thought there was a bear behind you to. It was the dog. I was shouting at my tv, F--kin BEAR ! Thankz for the scare, lmao... Did not know the last one. Thank you and again great vid.
Thank you for this video. I always use my ferro rod to start my campfires just to stay in practice. My sons too. Anybody can start one with matches or lighter, but you better have some practice under your belt with that ferro rod in case you don’t have that luxury.
Dogman, down in Louisiana we call it "lighter knot", and you are correct, it is like gold, and my go to tender wherever I camp. I keep a few small splinters of it in my tender pouch. If I luck out and find an old small pine stump that I can uproot, it will last all night on the fire, and the smell of burning aged heart pine is pure country to me, that and a hot cup of coffee as the sun comes up makes my trip worth while.
so many people don't realize that a wet lighter is an easy fix, just put the wheel down on a flat surface and roll it i just use my pants.takes about 10 seconds and its dry and it's usable again...LOL old pot head trick.
If the water was cold and the lighter stayed there very long then it would not work. For instance if a person falls through the ice into the water on a winter trip the lighter will most likely not work even if it is dry. The butane will cool down too much and not evaporate into gas form enough to build up enough pressure to light when exposed to the external spark. This is the case especially if the lighter fluid level is less than full. I have had my lighters fail many times during the winter even when carrying them in a short pocket. I quite often leave my coat open and the winter cold is enough to cool the lighters.
I've never seen snow so thats not an issue for me, but thanks for the tip if i'm ever in the snow now i will know. What if you put it in the front of your underpants?
I found in AK that butane can get so cold it will not light, but you can rub it in your hands for a few minutes and light it. If I fall through the ice at like -70f I got huge issues that go way beyond making my lighter work, though fire may still help. But I would carry a magnesium starter block just in case and I think the striker bar is made of ferrocerium, but they are only a couple bucks from most military surplus stores. Worth watching because I had no idea them blisters had terpene resin in quantities like that.
Well use a zippo lighter with pure alcohol/ethanol in it as it freezes at -114°C; -173°F and put i strip of duct tape around the seal to keep it dry, that is what i use and keep a rod as a back up(olny take a bic when i cant find my zippo). Would be a great video idea bic lighter vs zippo/ethanol.
Great video. Good information and demonstration. The smartest think I did after buying a ferro rod was put various tenders in the cast iron skillet in my kitchen (wife was not home) and tried to make fire until it worked every time with just a few strikes. Then I moved to the opening of my wood stove. The tender really mattered. Chunky stuff , even small chunks of fat wood, was very difficult. Shedded newspaper was easy, too easy as it doesn’t lend well to getting the actual wood tender started. Cedar shavings worked well and let me move on to a small chunk of fat wood then actual fire wood (1 1/2” sticks and such). Just as instructed in the UA-cam, if you keep your ferro rod (or magnesium) in the original packaging, you aren’t ready for an emergency situation. Practice practice practice. Then anytime you need a fire always use your ferrorod. Impress your friends. Even learn how to ignite a small twig to light that blunt.
Many thanks for this great video.
Your title may be a bit misleading because it's not so much about the worth of a FerroRod but about the importance of producing real good cinder which I consider the most important thing to start a fire. - As always: good preparation is key.
The title ties in strongly with the theme of the video and that is why I chose the title. The major theme of this video is to encourage people to get out and learn to use their local natural materials, learn which ones work and which ones do not work well. In other words, if you know your local options then a ferro rod is worth having. If you do not know your local natural material options then a ferro rod is probably not worth having. Only you can answer that question for yourself as it is an answer that is different for different people
Mabra Fule yes I agree.its still awesome though.
Tinder?? Grinder!!
Cinder doesn't need no ferro rod, that's for sure 😂
I some how missed this question. You can use the interior of many different trees the same way however there are many trees whose wood will not split as easy as this did.
When he said " I'll show you something you probably haven't seen"; I thought he was gonna cut a piece of his beard and use it as tinder lol
that beard is far too glorious to cut
i was thinking just that if stuck in a pink the beard is a good source of for fast burning tinder
Worst case it burn
He should be careful when playing around lighting fires.
When you're trading clothing for fire you're in a bad situation.
I love your videos. There's no ego, no attitude, no marketing. You basically interact with your audience like they're a grandkid you're taking out into the woods to learn basic skills because you care about them. You seem like such a kind, down-to-earth person, and I always learn something everytime I watch your channel. Thanks for being awesome. ❤
I've been out in the wilds countless times for weeks and months at a time. Started making flint and steel fire when I was eight years old (1967). It is rare that I see something that I don't already know.... but I've never seen anyone slice into the blisters on a pine tree and sop up the resin with lichens. It just proves that there is always something new to learn.
Wow! really any resin or sap is like gasoline when its ignited
@@hemidart7 most conifers most of the time and those are good odds.
My philosophy is, if you ain’t learning something new, you must be dead. Lol.
@@oddballdynamics.9658
If you do not learn, from experience,
you might just be
Communist Demo-crat. THEY are incendiary...
eg Molotov Cocktail?
@@TrackerScout
Masses watch TV.
Why do THEY call it TV programming ???
Amuse means no thinking...
I'm 65 y/o now, and I've been camping since I was 16 y/o. I'm also a retired District Fire Chief. I've started campfires many different ways in the past, but the last method was something completely new to me. I live in Florida and we have many pine trees of various kinds and oaks with lichen, so that method should work well here.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge!
"Shaving a pile" is the number one thing that got me over struggling with a ferro rod. If you made several slow semi hard passes over the rod before generating any spark you get a much stronger hotter ignition.
Matt Smith. now l didn't know that. been using a rod for years and didn't know that. thanks. l'm going to have to try that. how did you come to figure that out?
@@jackiecampbell3401 I discovered it as a kid... trying to see if I could get a huge pile of ferro shaving to go up at once. It works.
Josh Clement. so farting around as a kid you discovered something very useful that will serve you well and the rest of us for our lifetimes. How many times will we be in need of a stronger spark? As a kid...ya did good!
Makes a world of difference! If my fire is being stubborn i shower it in flakes and then hit it with the Sparks. Also, I often scrap my flannel shirt or denim jeans with a knife to create a little cotton tinder ball, roll that up in some paper and you have a nice match to light your cigarette with! Love playing with my fire rod.
When you scrap is slow like that you cause these sort of ridges in the rod. Then when doing a hard strike it will typically rip the ridges off in bigger chunks also making a larger hotter spark.
I also don't scrap my knife on my ferro rod for the lighting portion. What I do is hold my knife still and pull the rod away from my tinder scraping along the knife as I go. Seems to work for me
Your videos have a charm of their own. No razzle-dazzle, no personal vanity, just good info, handed out in your friendly, accessible style. You do good work.
Here in Wyoming, I have learned to grab whatever tinder material I find at the beginning of my walk, and then place a nice sized wad of it in my pants pocket and just walk until I need it to start a fire. That usually dries it out well enough. It's better to plan ahead, however, and place a plastic baggie of cotton dryer lint, along with a small tube of petroleum jelly in the bag. this combo works! Thanks, Lonnie, for the tip about the pine resin; have used it before, but you reinforced my memory. God bless you and yours.
Just know that dryer lint is mostly plastic fibers nowadays and is very toxic when burning
Even tree moss! Germans use it.
@@larryhawkes1347 true n most likely give a person away if trying to not be as spotted as smoke out of the trees.
I couldn't agree more with you. I too am always grabbing dry pieces to keep in a baggie in each of my bags - EDC bag, 3 day pack, and hunt pack, and my carry all ruck. Found much easier to always have access to dry tinder when in cold, frost, wet environment. However not always the case, or need light multiple fires. Every bit of knowledge is helpful in dire straights.
I certainly agree with preparation! I'm less enthusiastic about refined accelerants like petroleum jelly even though they work great. If I'm going take that route I'll tend to use a lighter too, which again is great, but not much fun / of a challenge.
I love your teaching style. So calm, natural, and down-to-Earth. It’s like hiking and camping with your grandfather.
Really cool grand pa.
As a relatively new subscriber to the channel, I wanted to take a moment and tell you how much I appreciate the videos and the straightforward way in which they are presented. Having grown up in the Adirondacks in Upstate NY, it's a pleasure to hear someone speak directly about what works, how it works, and what you need to do without the yelling, hype and product pushing that so many other survival channels seem to have as a part of them. I find my sons often sitting and watching these with me, and it gives us ideas of things to do, together, to keep the knowledge alive. Please keep up the great work!
One of the few truely useful videos out there.
No long winded bull, just proof in the doing of it!
Simple solution I use, I used a chunk of good saturated fatwood for the handle to my ferro rod. Scrape off some fatwood shavings and they will light wet or dry, just have to find half decent tinder for the fatwood to light once it is burning.
Okay, now you made me feel like an idiot. I've built ferro rod handles for years, but didn't think to use pine fat wood for the handle. Makes sense, tender and fire steel all in one, and some of that aged pine heart has beautiful grain too. Thanks for the idea. Brum
TX Rider thats a cool idea fatwood handle kill 2 birds with one stone great idea on a chunky ferro rod!!
great idea
TX Rider The last gun&knife show that I went to they wanted 35 dollars for a piece that was 3 in ×1.5 in. × 1.5 in and that was without a ferro rod.
oh yeah got stumps upon stumps of fatlighter!
I have no idea but he always makes me so happy maybe it’s his monotone voice and the calm serenity of the forest
I bet that beard would take a spark.
***** Lol
If you're Dad doesn't have a beard you've got two mom's!
you read my mind. dat beard is probably full of all kinds of combustible oils and what not........
If your*
+Mpowered Actually no, to get such result you have to wash it and brush it like hairs
I’ve followed this channel for a few years now in fact this channel is what inspired me to start growing my own, im almost at 4,000 subs now. His editing is nothing to flashy but I love that! his voice is so calming to listen to I could easily sit & listen to him for hours.
Yes.
Agreed!
"Having tools is not as important as knowing how to use them" was one of the wisest things I've ever heard you say
It’s amazing just how much we don’t know. The resin fire could be a life saver and just about everyone has never thought about it so that is one of the best teachings worth knowing. Brilliant video.
Bravo :D, the chemical inside of the spruce that is lighting is called alpha pinene, a terpene and accelerant. Interestingly the chemical is also extremely antimicrobial to the point where untreated wounds have a 56% chance of infection and those treated with spruce resin have a 4% chance of infection in trials in finland. Fir trees also have pockets of alpha pinene in the outer bark I used to use the chemical to start fires in vermont in the rain.
I have used spruce pitch quite a few times on wound that I have had. It not only helps to heal but it helps considerable to reduce pain. It is effective on not only wounds but burns as well. Here in Alaska spruce pitch has been used traditionally for many many medicinal uses.
I wonder what it is inside spruce resin that does that. I'm gonna do a little looking today I never knew about the pain thing thank you :).
so then pine cones would be another source of that, i think, because they burn like they have sap in them.
@@andrelarocque5967
Wound infection triggers inflammation
causing swelling as fluid & wbc enter wound tissue: Pain.
Pine pitch disinfects the wound......
@Charles Larocque I have applied spruce pitch to very painful fresh wounds and burns before bacteria has had a chance to colonize and the pain was measurably substantially reduced within 5 to 10 minutes.
Your voice itself is so comforting that i feel like i am with my great grandfather..
Good Lord, I thought that was a bear behind you.
Same here, lol
Lol same.
Hahaha I thought that was a bear behind him also! I was instantly scared for him
Bruh, I was looking at that thing and I was like, "Bruh, is that a f$@king bear behind that dude!?"
Is that a Bouvier?
Awesome! Last year, I went out into the woods after a few days of rain. Temperatures had been below freezing. I was determined to make a fire with just a ferro rod and a knife. After about an hour in the rain, I got pretty cold and gave up and used a lighter. I was surprised at how hard it was to get the typical "standby" materials going when they had been soaked for a few days. I could get little flashes of flame, but nothing to hold long enough to dry wet fuel out. I should have thought about the trick with the sap and getting dry wood shavings from the interior of branches. I'll have to go out and give it another shot.
@@williardbillmore5713 we had that where I grew up, but not where I live now. I should look into some better local species. That said, what I should go is put my firesteel on a lanyard that also has a little capsule with a few tinder tabs in it.
Scraping the inside of a dead standing tree...that's brilliant. That could really come in handy in a tough situation. Great advice, thanks.
Well, I keep some dryer lint and some fine steel wool in my pocket! I vac seal it in a bag with a vac sealer! The whole thing doses not weigh more that a couple of ounces! The Rod is just one of three ways I can get a fire going, I also carry a lighter, and waterproof matches as well! I don't leave anything to chance! And since the backpack stoves are so light now, I keep one in my day pack whenever I go off the road! I go out from time to time in different conditions and get a fire going, just for practice, in the wet, it can be a real task!
yep, George, I collected dryer lint, my wife saw me placing some of the dryer lint in a pint mason jar on a shelf over the clothes dryer one day. She asked what I was up to and I told her it was for fire tender on rainy camping trips. She has since then filled up 3 pint jars with tightly packed dryer lint for me. I told her that was probably enough for now. LOL I like to drip candle wax on a ball of dryer lint about an inch in diameter, and roll it like rolling up biscuit dough as it cools, then shove three or so of the wax/lint balls in an empty plastic 35mm film canister to carry as wet weather tender. I have also been known to add a squirt or two of Zippo lighter fluid to the lint/wax balls. The old type snap lid film canisters are water tight and the lighter fluid mixed with the candle wax last for months. Cotton balls can be done the same way. Brum
I live in a tropical island. I've been looking for trees that can provide bark or other oily substance but haven't been successful. Oddly enough, I found fatwood. A friend of mine cut out a pine tree in front of his house and I was able to collect a nice quantity of fatwood. I gave some away to some bushcrafting buddies and kept some. I gotta be honest, the ferro rod is my last option in my setting. Everything else has to fail for me to use it. Our weather is so damp and the humidity is always above 40-50 percent that it's pretty difficult to start fire in those conditions, worse when it rains. Good video man!
Good point Dani, ferro rods are much like shoes when you do a comparison with other ways to make fire. Some people like lace up shoes and some like slip on shoes but both types will offer protection for your feet when needed. Same with ferro rods vs. matches/lighters, ferro rods may outlast matches by maybe 1 rod to 500 matches but they both will give you fire if you know how to operate them. Ferro rods are like lace up shoes, you need to know how to operate the "laces" on each and both are a bit more complicated than striking a match or flicking a bic or simply pulling on a pair of slip on shoes.
Dani El buy yourself a portable bellows. Look at Canadian outdoor equipment for 'bellows' and you'll see what I mean. It's designed for use in damp conditions. While you are at it, get some of their 'fire fuses'.
+Austin0777 As I have explained many times in comments on this video, A lighter may fail and often has failed me. A ferro rod will never fail. I live in a cold environment (Alaska) and a butane lighter has to be kept warm here or it will not light. It does not matter how cold or how wet a ferro rod is, it will still throw sparks just the same.
+Austin0777 Well you go ahead and put your trust in your bic. I will continue to carry my bic as usual but I will also carry my ferro rod and other means of fire lighting as well. I know through multiple personal experiences that a bic can fail you but a ferro rod never will. I go prepared to survive because some of the places I go can very easily kill you if you are not prepared. Being prepared means not putting all my trust in that bic.
***** Seems like the "generation gap" is more dangerous than I thought, I have been to your world and know that one slip, one careless gesture or glance in the wrong direction, will change a hunt for food into a challenge for basic survival. "Survival" to some flat landers means finding a Wal-Mart that stays open 24/7 in some areas of this fine country.
This young man apparently has not tried to light any type of tinder with the flint and spark wheel in a bic after the butane has run dry, otherwise he wouldn't talk in terms that do not make a bit of sense in a real world survival situation. There isn't a bic alive today which can send just one spark into a pile of tinder and fat wood hot enough and long lasting enough to get a wisp of smoke going in that tinder. Flint and steel will do that in the right hands but not THAT flint and steel. But he will learn, I only hope that he finds out the real truth BEFORE it means the difference between life and death in the wilderness.
Out there is REAL living ...... and real survival to test one's mettle. Had I not had an accident that took my health and made it nigh impossible to sustain myself where I was, I would NOT be where I am today, down at the opposite end of the USA from you! Stay safe and watch your back.
This reminds me of growing up and always playing in the woods with my Grandpa. He always had something really cool to show me. Best childhood ever! Can’t get enough of these videos!!!
if its one thing i have learned in my relatively short life, its that when a guy is sporting a 10 inch beard, i need to listen to what he has to say.
Krestian Kvart
True but only if his beard is gray
CroatiaSurvival very true, and he might be a wizard
I did have a magnificent beard until I was lighting the fire and blowing on it. Beard is an excellent tinder........................
#64dexta I had just got done blowing on the coals of a fire one time when after sitting back up again I could still see smoke drifting up past my eyes. I discovered that the smoke was being generated by my beard. I quickly whacked the fire out by beating my beard against my chest. We all had a real good laugh over that episode.
Far North Bushcraft And Survival Wait for real tho. Can you start a fire with beard hair in survival situation.
Amen! Tools without knowledge / practice are not worth their weight.
You said it better than I did in the video. lol
agree, the greatest tool we have is knowledge.
The wisdom and care you seem to have for the forest is evident. I appreciate you sharing that too.
Very good video Lonnie. Thanks for taking the time to show us this!
Thanks Lonnie for a very informative video. I have been teaching my wife and grandchildren how to start a fire with a ferro rod. I have been starting them out easy by lighting Vaseline cotton balls and alcohol stoves. We don;t have any birch or pine in the area i live in but we do have red cedar. Thanks again for another good lesson.
The sincere kindness and guidance you show in the lesson is admirable. When the lesson is demonstated in such a calm and collected way, it makes the video relaxing to watch. The last trick with the pine/spruce is completely new to me, thank you for the lesson. Your survival skills are impressive.
Great video! It's amazing how far away from nature that we are today and I am an avid camper that loves getting away from it all. What I can't stand today is everywhere around here is either private property or govt owned parks w/designated campgrounds where everyone's packed in, side by side, like sardines. Of course you have the drunken party somewhere close, the arguing couple or the kids running around playing and screaming. Most likely all of the above. It's more nerve racking than just sitting in my backyard with a fire pit but this stuff is really a need to know, just in case you need it to survive. Thank you so much for teaching us this great information. You're a peach :) And one of those people who make me proud to be part of the human race. And your dog freakin ROCKS!!! What a great friend to cuddle with in a shelter at night to help keep each other warm :)
Loved this video. Cutting into a tree ,for its sap, to assist in starting a fire. Brilliant. Thanks you sir, I’ll never forget it.
Absolutely FIRST RATE video. It's great for learning, and it's great for INSPIRATION. All I wanna do now is get out in the woods and look for all the possibilities of finder good tinder that can light with a ferro rod.
That was really good, had to sort through alot of garbage until I found your site.
I am glad you found my channel here. Welcome to the channel.
Thank you. You were right. I have a ferro rod and thought I could do fire anywhere anytime. Maybe now I have a better chance because of your teaching. Thank you again.
Who gives this a thumbs down. This guy obviously is experienced and lives the life. He then shares some of his knowledge with all of us, and a few people give it a thumbs down? Are they jealous? Or did he just show something that their favorite TV “survivalist” didnt show on the latest episode....🙄
You've probably noticed that virtually every video on UA-cam has a certain number of down-thumbs. It's trolls. They have a belief that it's useful to crap on things. (Not making it up; trolls automatically down-thumb everything, regardless of content or quality, just to show the troll-flag. Because they believe the world doesn't suck enough. Again: seriously. It's their "public service".)
Justin Russell it’s probably from the other so called survivalists that do it to make money
I know this one is a save. Great advice and I will give it a try. Pretty much guaranteed he did better with the wet conditions than I will do with the dry materials I have access to 👍
People who are allergic to being outside.
RobMacKendrick: no matter what, there will always be people that only see darkness. They want the world to suck.
Great video, thanks. I am not a minimalist outdoor guy, I like to use the benefit of technology. For example, during my 8,000 miles off-road motorcycle trip in your great state, we had GPS, Sat-phone, LED light, and BIC type lighters and the like. But technology does fail, especially in harsh environment. So we always have basic back-up like, compass & maps, candles, waterproof matches, and a FerroRod. But your video reminded me that I have not use it in the last 10 years, and that if the need arise, it will not be the right time to try to remind me of my "pre-technology" skills. Thanks again. I will plan a trip with only the minimal gear in our great Canadian winter wilderness to hone those maybe forgotten skills.
Am training my 12 yr old son all this and with u shown it all saves time
You are amazing. Thank you so much ! For your knowledge as well as your wisdom. Thank you...bless and,keep you and yours safe and healthy. 👍
Thanks man I know this is simple but it's very important to us out here in Kentucky
Been using a ferro rod for years and I teach people fire lighting with one. A couple of ideas here that I will be using in future - great video, thanks.
I like to use dryer lint for fire starter. it's light compact and a by product of laundry
Brett Tietema just for the sake of argument,, you get stranded out in the wild due to some unexpected circumstances, you run out of dryer lint ( which truly is a good tinder ). Then this where the knowledge of primitive ways comes into play ,, I merely suggest you practice using natural materials only and more primitive methods to start fires after a good rain or snow ,, always relying on synthetic fire starter materials or fuels ,, will get you nowhere when your life depends on that next fire ! And you need it right now !!
Where I live and go my entire region is absolutely abundant with tulip poplar.., cedar and fat wood ,, and maple for some hot long lasting coals .. I know not everywhere has those resources available. Pretty much everywhere but the desert has an equivalent to them .. just figure out your equivalent and practice until you don't fail to make a sustainable fire .. best of luck to you, and enjoy the outdoors every chance you get !
I do some gold prospecting in the summer - deep into mnts and forests of S Oregon and N Calif. I have a ferro rod, but never gave any thought on how to use it, nor what to use with it. Now I know. Thx for a well done video.
Yes it does. Bulk pine can also be full of pitch if they are around when you need them. Take care. Doug
Ferro rod is totally "must have". No doubt. Would prefer to majority of modern firestarting equip - matches, gas burners and so on! Flint and Steel - for the soul =) Ferro rod for deeds ;)
Thanks Lonnie.... You're an amazing outdoorsman.
I love that you answered the question in the videos title in a minute and then just continued to show cool stuff anyway.
I like how the dog is "Keeping Watch" on you two...👍
IS that a dog or a mini-bear?! Holy cow! He/her is on duty too. Good pup.
His voice and calm demeanor makes it easier for me to learn.
Thank ou for sharing your tips with the ferro rod. Usually I use a regular gas lighter for fire making but I always bring a ferro rod as a backup :)
- Martin
I usually have primitive fire methods or the ferro rod as primary to get training on it, while have gas lighters, matches and a spare ferro rod as back up.
Hey Lonnie great video! I learned something new. I had never considered blister resin and Usnea combination! Thanks for the lesson learned!
thanks for great videos. I like your quiet, concise style.
Circumpolar Bear Cult
I see. Thanks. Down here in SE we use spruce pitch but sometimes you have to go a ways to find it. Not nearly as prevalent as birch in your area as not all spruce have pitch pockets or knots where you can get to them. Does work in the wet though. Take care. Doug
I like laying a lit match on top of a little chunk of spruce pitch. Makes a great long lasting fire starter.
Wow, Guess I need to get myself a ferro rod : ). I've always relied on my flint and steel, with char cloth, and inner tree bark etc. Like the fire bow drill too. But seeing you use the ferro rod, and ways to get tinder I hadn't seen prior, is very cool.
it's a good back up to have outside of your regular starting methods. grandpa always taught me "the right tool, for the right job." fire starting is no different. for ease, there are bic lighters, matches, and fire paste. for not so ease, there are storm matches and mag blocks (and fire paste). and for impossible mission where the weather absolutely loathes you... there are flint and steel, ferro rods, and fire paste. back up, on my back ups, on my back ups....and all still EDC.
@@nickiewhittakerii1432 Exactly!!
Good Stuff... Glad to see someone teaching the Craft.... It is a matter of Life and Death
Liked this video in 2016 and still revisit it just to insure its instilled in memory forever, living in Alaska where everything soaking wet is such a hassle and this makes fire making much much easier!
Dislikes dont know how to use tinder ?
Great Vid appreciate it man :)
Great survival info. Some people may not know these things. Keep up the good work, watching you from West Virginia.
pentecostalangel1 West Virginia for the win brother
It's a truthful overview. In reality it is rather difficult to get fire with Ferro Rod in wet and windy weather.
Seen and used all of those methods, however I havent ever seen a pure white spruce with sap blisters. They are always on young fir, false fir or cross bred trees. As a bonus even cross bred fir make good tea.
Pine as well as spruce also make a great tasty tea as well. The tea is great at fighting off a cold before it can really get started if you catch it soon enough. Yes that was a White Spruce with the blisters.
***** The jack pine and lodgepole we have here taste terrible and the spruce arent much better honestly.
Well here locally we have the White Spruce and Black Spruce. The black spruce definitely smells much better. The Sitka spruce in southeast Alaska also smells much better but I do enjoy the tea from all three varieties. The white spruce though smells kind of bad.
***** i always thought the black spruce was pretty nasty, but it was a long time ago that I tryed it. Do you just use the needles like other conifers? I think this gives me an excuse to wander off into the skag for a bit and revisit the concept.
I use just the tips of the branches needles as well as the branch tips. I usually do it in the Spring with the fresh new growth but have done it also all year anytime of the year.
How could anyone thumbs down good knowledge? Great video... learned something new. Thanks
possibly some people surrounded by paper and petroleum products deluding themselves into thinking of themselves as environmentalist warriors by thumbs-downing a video where some guy scraped some bark off a tree. that or some people upset with the amount of dry grass leaves he gathered because with a good grapefruit sized bundle he'd have no trouble starting a fire with them. just shootin in the dark here
Far North Bushcraft And Survival Well said sir.
What really worth is having you as a instructor and teacher of all these tricks. Amazing. Thank you for sharing !
lighters run out faster than this would, but still runs out. When it is sunny you can use a cheap little 5x magnifier to make fire, save on flint.
A 2x maginifer sheet from dollar tree works well even in slight shade or light cloud cover. Use a frame or case to keep it straight and unbent tho
Clear plastic bag with water in too...
Important tips and good flames Lonnie! Everything as you said.
Excellent video. Nice instructions, no razzle dazzle, just solid knowledge being dispensed. Thanks to you both for this video.
Great info Lonnie! I noticed that the birch bark smells exactly like kerosene when lit...pretty cool and I'll be keeping a bit of that in my sack! You rock a mean beard too!
I think the beard would light pretty good.
Yeah that's there in emergency situations and if all else fails
Alex V , haha. Hear that !
Allee Allegorie you had to, it's happening
Thats how bush people shave themself
Hahaha
Thank you for taking the time to film, edit and upload this video. My experience with ferro rods is limited and disappointing. In truth, however, the rods I used were poor quality and very small. A cheap lighter has been my most successful fire starter so far.
That said...
Today it's -6° F here in Anoka, Minnesota. Just for fun, I walked out to my car to get a lighter from the center console. I really wanted to light it up and see a nice flame and debunk the "lighters don't work in the cold" maxim.
Man, was I disappointed.
That lighter barely sparked. It didn't come close to making a flame. I held it in my hands for a few minutes until it finally gave off a feeble little flame - that lasted only a few seconds.
So...
Just in my one little test, my cheap lighter absolutely DID NOT WORK in cold weather.
Would it be that cold if it were in my pants pocket? Probably not. But if I needed to light a fire within a few minutes it would be useless.
From now on, I'm going to practice with decent ferro rods and keep a good supply of dryer lint in waterproof bags in my car. Hopefully, I'll never NEED to make a fire ... but at least I can be prepared.
Your videos have been extremely helpful. Thanks again!
if youve got a car, use your jump leads, to create a spark, you attach them to the battery terminals, preferably with the engine running, and slide the ends across each other, you will definitely get sparks
Then use fluid based lighter that can survive any condition (except it get wet)
Keep your bic in the inside pocket of your jacket, like grandpa kept his hunting sandwitch.
Use an expensive lighter. Still more convenient.
Hi Lonnie, thanks for showing more ways to use the ferro rod. Particularly the tree splitting, that was awesome. Went out and tried it and yes it worked amazingly well.
That said, hope you don't mind if I play the devil's advocate here; while watching your video, for some reason I thought what if I lost my knife, how would I use the ferro rod, would a belt buckle, cooking utensil, axe etc be useful? Will be trying some of those out this week, but I'm sure there's many more ways to get sparks. Thanks once again Lonnie and Connie!
You can use any sharp enough object as a striker on your ferro rod. If you can find any rock you are in business. just bust that rock and use a sharp edge of the rock as a striker. In this video I was using the back of a saw as the striker. I always carry a fingernail clipper in my pocket. It has a file on it and would work well. a shovel, ax, machete, screw driver, knife, metal pocket clip on an ink pin, belt buckle as you said, ear band on metal frame eye glasses, brass eyelet ripped out of a boot cooking spatula, metal fork, metal spoon, cooking pot lid, cooking pot etc.... Some of these things would need a sharp edge and that could be accomplished by rubbing the object on rocks. In other words, when in a tough situation one must not think in terms of "I lost my X so now I'm in deep doo doo. How will I ever survive?" But rather take the mental perspective of "now that I know that X is lost, how can I make do or substitute". There is that famous old saying "where there is a will there is a way" and that applies to wilderness survival as well.
If you are a smart woodsman, you won't venture out into any dense forest where you run the risk of being stranded with only one knife on your person. I always carry a belt knife even when I take the dog to one of the state parks here in the Southeast USA for a couple of hours of running. In addition, I always have a folding knife of one kind or another in a pocket or I have one of the hardened scrapers that come with many of these wannabe ferro rods that I tie on a small carabiner and snap on my belt loop out of the way. the ferro rods that I use are all 1/2" X 6" rods bought on eBay a few years ago before they became the rage to own and brag about. They were cheap back in that time and they are easy to drill for a lanyard or small type I or II paracord loop with which to carry it on your person. They are long enough that you don't need an auxiliary handle to hold them tightly in one hand as you smartly drag the spine of your knife down the ferro rod and they are quite easy to manage with gloves in colder weather.
Technically, there is only one or two "ways" to use a ferro rod, either holding the ferro rod still on top of your tinder and swiping the "striker" down on the rod or bracing the held knife or other type of "striker" in one hand against your leg or a rock or other solid object and pulling the ferro rod back over the edge of the knife spine or other "striker" to generate sparks. What this man showed isn't about the rods use but of the different kinds of natural tinder that can be found in the woods and when to use one kind over another. In my opinion, a ferro rod is ALWAYS "worth having" as the title of the video asks. But just as important is knowing what kind of tinder to use under different conditions and THAT was the focus of this video in my opinion. The title was a bit misleading in that it placed the importance of "using" the ferro rod on making of the video instead of the importance of which kind of material to look for in wet vs. dry weather when a fire is needed.
One thing I have learned over the years is to be resourceful in the bush and would now find that rock you mention. But when beginning outdoor adventures that sort of thing would not have been something I thought of (looking back, yah, bear fodder comes to mind.) Anyhow, using a rock to sharpen edges is a good idea and one I have now tried to make it sink in, thanks!
You mention thinking in terms of "if I lost m X.....how can I make do?" That sounds like something to add to my hikes around the place here. Usually I head out to try one of your video methods but will also challenge myself on outings, this will ad some adventure for sure. All the best.
#Tall_Cedars After re-reading my reply above, the last part was worded so that it sounded like I was giving you advice which was not my intention. I meant that yes I was agreeing with you. A person does need to use the patterns of thought like you were saying above. It can be very beneficial to think along the lines of "what if?"
#Framer_Guy The point for the video title was not addressed directly but rather indirectly. I was trying to get across the point that a ferro rod is *NOT* worth having if one does not practice with it enough to know how to use it. It is only worth having if a person *DOES* know how to use it. So in reality, the question that the title asks can be answered either way depending on the person answering the question.
Lonnie your voice is so soothing you’re like the Mr. ROGERS of bushcraft. I learn something from every video I watch. Thanks for sharing!
A ferro rod works better by pulling the rod away from the tinder. Brace the knife hand on something firm and hold it tight in one spot just above the tinder...insert the rod under the blade and pull it away firmly.
The way you do it really jostles the tinder and impedes the sparks from resting on the tinder and burning in as well as they could.
Also, it helps to blow on the tinder. I don't feel like he was giving 110%.
Wow. Advice taken.
'mornin, Lonnie; Always a treat to see an up-load 1st. thing in my 'mornin With a fresh cupa Folgers ! Can't have enough Ferro-Rids In Or On My Person, But still carry Fathers WWII Zippo as a back-up ! Great Videoing Connie, Ole Buck is weathering well. Thanks as always for sharing, Friends. Stay-Ha Ha -Frosty ! ATB Terry God Bless
T.W. Milburn
Hey Terry, there you are! Just picked up a Zippo from Cabelas, reminds me of my father's, always carried one around in the "ol' days" (now I'm old!?). They still work far better than a Bic and there's just something about that piece of nostalgia and a tried and true method. Blessings from Manitoba.
Canesser Also when out & about I have Pop's Haversack that saw the WWII Campaign. Man oh Man The Stories It Could Tell ! Never without either item when Woods-Tramp'n. Thanks for the Kind Comment, Brother. Stay-Frosty
So your Dad is another reason why we're still free! A moving Remembrance Day ceremony in Ottawa yesterday as usual. Not sure if the young 'uns really appreciate the enormity of what that generation accomplished. Nice to carry such powerful sentimental value on your back. Mostly they're just back packs. You too brother!!
Never had a bic let me down. zippos are great if they have fuel most new ones leak like crazy. Bic just last longer used to love zippo till one leaked in my pocket leaving a chemical burn on my leg for about 3 months.
My first experience was exactly this. Almost always wet at my area. But it is useful when gloves is needed and you are unable to use a lighter or matches. It also give you god training prepping for the fire in wet conditions.
what is the blue light coming from the middle of your beard?
That is my bluetooth remote microphone.
That's cool. Will you do an episode on the magnesium starter blocks with the strikers? They really impressed me when i actually learned how to use them.
I'm new to your channel so if you have already done that I haven't seen it yet. I just started watching your channel about an hour ago.
Glad you found my channel. Welcome "home". :o) No I have not done any videos where I use a magnesium block. I don't own one so I probably won't be doing a video in the future either. I know how to use them since I had one. Lars over at "Survival Russia" just did a video on that subject that you might find interesting if you haven't already watched it. He has a great channel.
Thank you for the advice. I will check that out. I have quite a few magnesium blocks and I would be more than happy to send you a couple if you would like to try them out and make a video. When I finally learned to scrape the magnesium off of the handle then use the built-in striker I was amazed actually. I put the small pile of mag. on a very solid and coated (formica I think) desk top and the small pile burned a hole almost a quarter of an inch deep. Needless to say, I learned a valuable lesson.
I live in London. I've never needed to do this. I will never need to do this. Nevertheless, here I am and I watched to the end.
You never know when you'll find yourself in a situation where knowing how to build a fire will save your life! Put a small kit in your vehicle containing a multi tool; survival knife; hatchet; sizeable tarp(12'x12'); two 50' lengths of Paracord; large survival blankets; wool blankets for as many people as your vehicle carries; a small camping stove with gas; cooking pot; cups and utensils; food and water for 3days, and a fire starting kit with lighters, matches, fire steel and tinder. Tinder can simply be dryer lint saturated in Vaseline. A few votive candles would be helpful. I know this sounds extensive, but with all the crazy weather changes, who knows when you and friends may be forced off the road in a storm! A votive candle in a tin can will keep your vehicle surprisingly warm after you've run out of petrol and can no longer use the heater! It would be good to have a ceramic tile under the can so that the heat doesn't melt the man-made fibers in the rugs!
Heavens! I see I've gotten carried away! I apologise! I simply wanted to make it clear that you don't ever know when you'll find yourself in a dicey situation! I hope you don't, but if you do, you'll thank your lucky stars for the freeze dried food in the boot of your car, and the means to heat the water to prepare it, and to warm yourself!
I've left out plenty of stuff, but there are sources on utube and on Google that can fill in the gaps. Please bear in mind that I'm not talking about prepping for the zombie apocalypse, or any such shit, just being able to take care of yourself if you're forced off the road in a storm that became much worse than forecast. Better safe than sorry!
Blessings to you!!
@@brookeggleston9314 If I estimate the need to make a fire in a forest during my final ten years or so at one in ten thousand, and the odds that I will not be able to lay my hands on matches or a lighter at perhaps one in a thousand. And further the chances that I have this stuff with me rather than said lighter or matches at one in a thousand? The chances I will need this come out at one in ten billion. That is a thousand times less likely than winning the lottery, and I have no intention of wasting my money on that. So no, lets not bother pretending we are Robinson Crusoe any more than thinking that blessing people does anything beyond wasting a little Internet bandwidth.
@@donepearce fast forward 6 months where there is a global pandemic and you wish you knew how to make a fire and had a survival kit in order to bug out to the woods with.
@@appalachianoutdoorsman5721 Still desperate to be Davy Crockett I see.
@@donepearce no, im not desperate at all, im prepared. Theres a big difference.
Thanks boss. My son and I have taken up camping in the last year. We will put these techniques to the test.
Hey Bud , need a light ?
ps .. I enjoyed your video . we all need to learn a little survival techniques , these are strange times .. Keep them coming ..
Thanks old Timer, This is knowledge that is worth its weight in gold, By the way, that's some bad bear dog you have there !
I follow the 3 ways to make fire rule, starting from easiest to hardest, with the ferro rod being last choice due to difficulty of use. I need to practice more with the rod for sure!
what about those big dried out brown (?) leaves on those branches right in front of you? looks like they might be good tinder . . . just sayin'
Sid Viscous showing alternative sources
Leaves suck as tinder. Hard to get going. Once you have tiny flame or bunch of embers you can add leaves but leaves by themselves are hard to get lit.
This is 'way off-topic, but inquiring minds want to know: you mentioned being in central Alaska. Where are you in relation to this place:
Back in 1973-74, I was stationed at a lovely, truly exotic "recreational area" (at least that's what the official Air Force brochures said ;o) ): Indian Mountain Air Force Station (last time I checked, it was turned into an automated long-range radar site), located roughly 16 miles from Hughes, AK. Indian was a split-camp operation, with the support base located at the base of the mountain on the banks of Utopia Creek, a tributary of Indian River. That was where the administrative offices, medical (a medic, no doctor), law enforcement/security office (one security policeman), and other support was located. It was also where the diesel power generators that provided all the electrical power for both camps was housed, as was our lifeline to the world: a 5000-foot gravel (in summer) and/or packed snow runway, the last 500 feet of which ended in a 30% up-grade. and The Top Camp operation, where the radar and the combat operations center were located, was at the summit of the mountain. Great place for a bunch of young guys ranging in age from their late 'teen's to their late '30's, with the nearest female companionship 196 miles away in Fairbanks, to spend a year. The standing joke there was, "I went to Indian Mountain a 98-pound weakling--but I came back a husky-fXXker!"
Well I live a long long ways from Indian Mountain but believe it or not, I worked there for a few months as a civilian while the military still operated the site. That was back in 1975 I think when I was there. I spent a bit of time on both Utopia creek and Indian river if I remember right. Got a lot of pictures of wolves and bear while there.
It was an early warning site and the mail plane would fly in and land and the site wouldn't even be aware that the plane was there. lol He would approach the site flying real low over the hills and the radar or other instruments would not detect him.
+Far North Bushcraft and Survival
Really like your channel! A lot of what you demonstrate and teach is applicable where I live today as well as in Alaska: Kentucky.
Sorry for the long reminiscences, Brother, but people who have been to Indian are a rare bunch, whether civilian or military. Do any panning while you were there? Utopia had gold in it still; also, the old commercial mining camp was another place to look. Some of the guys found gold-mercury aggregate, burned off the mercury (idiots!--but it worked!), and got nuggets that way. You already know how good the hunting is there
Ahh, yes, the Wienie Bird! Wien (?) Air Alaska. I'll never forget my flight in to Indian--few people do, I think! ;o) On Nov 23, 1973, I flew from Elmandorf AFB to Campion on a DC-8 (maybe?) for a two-hour layover and transfer. Less than an hour before we were due to leave on the Wienie Bird (Don't remember the type, but it was the only one of its kind still flying anywhere in the world--spooky!), a little bit of fog rolled in. As I and a number of other people watched, another aircraft, *not* piloted by an Alaska bush pilot (in fact, the pilot had only just gotten his instrument rating,) w/four souls on board, took off. The inexperienced pilot barely got off the ground, went into the fog at about 200 ft, instantly became disoriented, and pitched his nose straight up. The airplane stalled and fell back onto the runway, tail first, killing all four people. Within an hour, I was on that same runway in an airplane that looked like a brick with wings, not feeling real confident about this whole flying thing ;o) . Landing at Indian was a trip in itself: coming in at full power, reaching the top end of the runway and turning sideways onto the turnaround so that when the engines were cut we wouldn't roll back down the runway--it was an adventure that day! We got there at @:30 PM and it was already dark. We were met by the station commander himself, who decided to drive us straight up the 10 1/2-mile switchback road to Top Camp himself, a decision he made *only after* discovering that I had Marlboro cigarettes--they hadn't had a supply plane in several weeks, and the only cigarettes left were Lucky Strikes and Bel Aire. That major bummed half a pack from me during that hour-long ride!--and me a mere two-striper. I wouldn't take a million dollars to repeat that year, and I wouldn't take a million not to have gone through it! Good times....
Take care, be safe.
Yes I did do some panning. I came back with about an ounce if I remember correctly. I had cleaned out the cracks of the hopper on the gold washing plant and other nooks and crannies on the plant. Of course there was a lot of mercury on the gold. I put it in my gold pan (metal) and roasted it over a fire and I made sure I was upwind and away from the fire. There was a rumor while I was there that someone from upper camp had accumulated a pound of gold. There was also magnetite rocks there that would stick to a magnet. I had collect a few but we had a house fire and I lost everything I owned including that gold. I still have some of the memories however and it will be a while before i loose them I hope.
*****
I should've known, Brother! ;o)
I wonder if you were there was the following happened, or whether you knew if it was true:
In '73/'74, a litter of wolf-dog pups was born at Top Camp. One of 'em, a big Malamute-wolf cross we named Indian, was given the run of dorm at night, taking turns sleeping with different guys. He was just a big baby. I heard that in '75, one of the cooks, drunk, went out by the Scuzz Dump. He had a box of cookies with him, and a black bear that was scrounging the dump somehow got wind of the cookies. The cook stupidly, drunkenly, tried to make "friends" with the bear by feeding it cookies. Bad idea. When the cookies ran out, it marked the end of a beautiful friendship; the bear "treed" the cook on top of a fuel tank. He started yelling for help, and at some point Indian heard him. The bear, already enraged, kept trying to get at the cook. Indian charged the bear, trying to get it to turn on him. Eventually it worked, and the cook was able to escape into the building. Apparently, Indian and the bear finally got into it proper, but unfortunately, the bear managed to give Indian a good shot to the head and killed him.
You know, living at Top Camp for a year was like living in a fish bowl: everything takes on a significance far beyond its relative importance in the wider world. Somehow, in that short space I ended up with a lifetime of stories and observations, while other times in my life, when more was happening around me had much less importance. I'll tell you what: despite the inconveniences, occasional hardships, periodic boredom, and all the rest, I've often found myself wondering what it would have been like to go back.
Take care,Lonnie. I'll keep watching your videos!
Yes it's worth having two firesteel/fireflash. Thank you for offering some good knowledge and wisdom!
yes i thought there was a bear behind you to. It was the dog. I was shouting at my tv, F--kin BEAR ! Thankz for the scare, lmao... Did not know the last one. Thank you and again great vid.
Same here !!!
It was scary for sec
Ferdynand Wspanialy he looks like a black bear wouldn’t bother him much lol
my Lord look at that glorious beard.
In beards we trust. The pain and patience needed to endure to grow a beard like that is experience personified.
I'm using this knowledge this weekend when I go camping! Thanks Lonnie & Connie
At 1:06 I thought he was going to set his beard alight (it will make great tinder though).
When did you get a pet guerilla? ;)
As my farther used to say “A bad workman blames his tools, so choose the right tool for the job Son”
Thanks for sharing this valuable information.
Did you ever think about trying your beard hair?
Is carrying your tinder around on your face , worth it?
Thank you for this video. I always use my ferro rod to start my campfires just to stay in practice. My sons too. Anybody can start one with matches or lighter, but you better have some practice under your belt with that ferro rod in case you don’t have that luxury.
Thought the dog was a bear...
B-Ham Bus Me too:)
It was
wcr3650
I was like: ... Is that frigging a bear behind you... It must be a 3d shooting target or something... Oh its head moved! ... Is it a dog?
Yes it is my dog "Buck". He is half mixed lab and half Bouvier Des Flandres. He is by far the best dog I have ever had.
I found that using my ferro I have a lot of success starting a fire if I also have 2 gallons of gasoline.
Lonnie, you’re Masterclass level. Thank you for sharing your passion.
Birch bark burns very well.
Dogman, down in Louisiana we call it "lighter knot", and you are correct, it is like gold, and my go to tender wherever I camp. I keep a few small splinters of it in my tender pouch. If I luck out and find an old small pine stump that I can uproot, it will last all night on the fire, and the smell of burning aged heart pine is pure country to me, that and a hot cup of coffee as the sun comes up makes my trip worth while.
Brumfield We call it that in NC too.
You're right that smell is as country as it gets.
Unfortunately birch doesn't grow in my part of the country. Pines do though.
so many people don't realize that a wet lighter is an easy fix, just put the wheel down on a flat surface and roll it i just use my pants.takes about 10 seconds and its dry and it's usable again...LOL old pot head trick.
If the water was cold and the lighter stayed there very long then it would not work. For instance if a person falls through the ice into the water on a winter trip the lighter will most likely not work even if it is dry. The butane will cool down too much and not evaporate into gas form enough to build up enough pressure to light when exposed to the external spark. This is the case especially if the lighter fluid level is less than full. I have had my lighters fail many times during the winter even when carrying them in a short pocket. I quite often leave my coat open and the winter cold is enough to cool the lighters.
I've never seen snow so thats not an issue for me, but thanks for the tip if i'm ever in the snow now i will know.
What if you put it in the front of your underpants?
I found in AK that butane can get so cold it will not light, but you can rub it in your hands for a few minutes and light it. If I fall through the ice at like -70f I got huge issues that go way beyond making my lighter work, though fire may still help. But I would carry a magnesium starter block just in case and I think the striker bar is made of ferrocerium, but they are only a couple bucks from most military surplus stores. Worth watching because I had no idea them blisters had terpene resin in quantities like that.
Well use a zippo lighter with pure alcohol/ethanol in it as it freezes at -114°C; -173°F and put i strip of duct tape around the seal to keep it dry, that is what i use and keep a rod as a back up(olny take a bic when i cant find my zippo).
Would be a great video idea bic lighter vs zippo/ethanol.
The genital area is one of the warmest places on your body and a good idea if warming the lighter is needed.
Great video. Good information and demonstration.
The smartest think I did after buying a ferro rod was put various tenders in the cast iron skillet in my kitchen (wife was not home) and tried to make fire until it worked every time with just a few strikes. Then I moved to the opening of my wood stove.
The tender really mattered. Chunky stuff , even small chunks of fat wood, was very difficult. Shedded newspaper was easy, too easy as it doesn’t lend well to getting the actual wood tender started. Cedar shavings worked well and let me move on to a small chunk of fat wood then actual fire wood (1 1/2” sticks and such).
Just as instructed in the UA-cam, if you keep your ferro rod (or magnesium) in the original packaging, you aren’t ready for an emergency situation. Practice practice practice. Then anytime you need a fire always use your ferrorod. Impress your friends. Even learn how to ignite a small twig to light that blunt.
Nice video. No offense - you could probably also your some of your beard. ;)
Hair is actually NOT good tinder. Good thought, though.
man, you don't actually need collect tinder, you got beard, floppy N dry!