Fire practice/feathering tips??

[scdub]

Hey Folks!

I just spent a little time on the deck practicing my wet wood fire making with a knife that was recently re-ground by our own D davidmary .

It’s a Scrap Yard Knife Co (SYKCO) “Alpha Dog” in INFI steel. It was a bit thick behind the edge for woods use for me from the factory, but now it’s a great cutting field knife.

It’s been raining for days here so I grabbed a chunk of seasoned oak from the pile, chopped it in half, split it open (after carving a wedge to help), then feathered a bit. The knife did beautifully. I used my Entrek (spine on the SYKCO is coated and I wasn’t about to jack up the edge for no good reason!) with a ferro rod and got a little flame. The knife stropped back to shaving sharp in about 4 minutes with some diamond grit - go INFI!!

Do you have any fire making pics? Feel free to post!

 

[scdub]

I just edited my title to include “feathering tips”, because after my little session yesterday I happened to watch a few fire making videos and couldn’t help but notice that my feather stick was, umm, sub-par.

I know the stick I was using was a bit short, but the wood still seemed less cooperative than usual.

I know it wasn’t the knife - it did much better than the Entrek. Maybe it was the particular oak I was as using, or oak in general? Maybe the grain was too twisty?

Certainly my skills could be improved, but I’d appreciate any tips you folks might have to help my feathering game.

 

[scdub]

No tips?? Ok I guess I’ll have to give Youtube another whack and try some other woods…

 

[C_Claycomb]

1/2” to 3/4” thick wood. 8” to 14 inches long. Knot free, straight grain. Experiment between cutting curls tangential to growth rings and perpendicular. Pine tends to like the latter while many hard woods like the former.
Curved cutting edge gives best curls. Kneel so you are up over the wood, hold knife in hammer grip, no thumb on spine, a straight arm and using body weight to make the cut helps control the angle the bevel contacts the wood throughout the cut. Actively press the bevel against the wood.

Tilt the knife so that you can throw shavings to the left, right and center of the stick. Work the ridges created between shavings.

BushcraftUSA forum has some good info too.

Remember that the aim is to shave enough of the stick that the shavings will ignite the remaining solid wood. If the wood is too thick to start with, this becomes very difficult. Harder wood, finer shavings, need to start with a thinner split of wood.


Chris

 

[rhino]

 

[scdub]

That’s what I’m talking about! Curly!

I’ve got a couple days off - will try to incorporate the above advice and give it another go.

 

[GAGL]

best way to make a featherstick:

stick your knife in a stump/piece of wood and pull your wood along the edge.

edit: check out David Wests YT channel, he is a firemaking wizzard

https://m.youtube.com/c/DavidWestBgood2ppl/videos

 

[rhino]

That’s what I’m talking about! Curly!

I’ve got a couple days off - will try to incorporate the above advice and give it another go.

I know that most experienced individuals recommend keeping the knife rigid and pushing in a straight line, but when I add a bit of a slicing motion as I push, I get the curlier curls.

 

[rhino]

If you want to see world-class feathersticks and curls, check some of the photos on bushcraftusa.com. Some of those guys are wizards with a knife and a stick.

If you intend to make a fire, always make more curls and feathersticks than you think you will need. You may not need them all, but if you do need more, it will be too late to recommence carving.

 

[scdub]

best way to make a featherstick:

stick your knife in a stump/piece of wood and pull your wood along the edge.

edit: check out David Wests YT channel, he is a firemaking wizzard

https://m.youtube.com/c/DavidWestBgood2ppl/videos

Yeah I re-discovered this method on a video. I’ve never tried it but will soon.

 

[scdub]

Well, I got some practice in, but I’m hesitant to say I made much progress.

Tried oak, redwood, madrone, and other unknown woods with mixed results. Very noticeable/distinct difference between types of wood.

I didn’t really have any nice straight grained wood, and I’m thinking that would’ve made a big difference as suggested above. I noticed that many of my curls would be cut away where the grain direction changed.

Also tried the method of hammering my knife into a stump and dragging the wood across the knife, and while it worked, and could probably make lots of big curls quickly, I found I had more control and could make smaller curls. Anyway, they all lit with a ferro rod and would certainly have started a nice birds-nest of tinder had I wanted a full fire. (Haha - edit to add - of course a nice birds-nest of tinder would also light with a ferro rod. )

Thanks again for the tips and feel free to add to the list.

 

[AntDog]

Well, I got some practice in, but I’m hesitant to say I made much progress.

Tried oak, redwood, madrone, and other unknown woods with mixed results. Very noticeable/distinct difference between types of wood.

I didn’t really have any nice straight grained wood, and I’m thinking that would’ve made a big difference as suggested above. I noticed that many of my curls would be cut away where the grain direction changed.

Also tried the method of hammering my knife into a stump and dragging the wood across the knife, and while it worked, and could probably make lots of big curls quickly, I found I had more control and could make smaller curls. Anyway, they all lit with a ferro rod and would certainly have started a nice birds-nest of tinder had I wanted a full fire. (Haha - edit to add - of course a nice birds-nest of tinder would also light with a ferro rod. )

Thanks again for the tips and feel free to add to the list.

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Looks like you did fine.

As big of a Busse fanboy as I am, thinner knives are better suited for this work. I mean, it’s possible to do it with a Bussekin but it isn’t optimal (even though I know yours has been reground). Try something thinner if you have it.

 

[C_Claycomb]

These are some good videos, Mors Kochanski, posted by Karamat. There is quite a lot of wisdom in them if you look close.

General shaving of wood.

Of particular note, the length and size of wood, the interest and care in using wood that feathers well, not just going with whatever is nearest to hand, the speed of cutting, the thickness and width of the main bulk of shavings and the proportion of the stick that is turned into shavings.

I think it is in the first video that Mors says that there is skill in preparing the knife, choosing the wood, and in performing the cuts.


Chris

 

[C_Claycomb]

Specific for feather sticks. Be sure not to miss the end (14:46 on)

 

[C_Claycomb]

Finally, this is a good demo about wood selection and things not working well, even for a master...with some baton work thrown in.

 

[scdub]

Finally, this is a good demo about wood selection and things not working well, even for a master...with some baton work thrown in.

Awesome I will definitely check those out.

I actually just got the book “Bushcraft” by Kochanski. I haven’t started it yet but I’ve heard it’s a great book.

 

[scdub]

Hello knife people!

Did some comparative feather sticking today and was interested by the results.

In general, for me, it was easier to produce thin curls consistently with my larger knives, and convex edges seemed more important than thin edges.

The knife I expected to do the best was actually the worst. It’s got a “zero edge” “scandi-vex” edge that bites into the wood very aggressively. I can make fine curls if I concentrate and go very slowly, but the blade just wants to cut, not curl.

The Taliwhacker has a very acute convex which also tended to bite into the wood more aggressively than I prefer.

The pic below shows ease of feathering from left to right, and the small feathers are examples from both extremes while going at full/survival speed. The one on the right is from the Takeda.

The one on the left is from the Swamp Rat SawManDu which surprised me as the best feather stick maker. It’s the thickest behind the edge of the group, but because it came quite thick I quickly knocked off the shoulders and put a freehand convex edge on it.

The Siegle was a close second. The edge is considerably thinner than the Swamp Rat (and everything else except the Takeda and the H.I. ) but it’s still wearing a v-grind as I’ve only lightly sharpened it a couple of times, and this makes it bite in too aggressively. After a few more sharpenings this will also have a convex edge. Combined with the inertia of the large blade and the recurve section, I think it’ll be my best feathering knife.

I’m interested to hear what knife you prefer for this task and what kind of edge it’s got…


(L-R: Swamp Rat SawManDu, Siegle Chopper/fighter, Scrap Yard AD-6 with regrind by David Mary , Himalayan Imports Mini Ang Khola Bowie, Entrek Companion, Swamp Rat Taliwhacker, Scrap Yard WS 10-20, Shosui Takeda Kogatana)

 

[Hammer67]

Somehow I managed to build fires in the woods my whole life without ever seeing or needing a featherstick, until I got on some bushcraft forums. Is it fun to fart around with and share pics of? Sure. And I suppose it's good for practicing your edge control. Is it a necessary skill for building a fire? Not at all.

When I worked in the field in Alaska, I would keep a small zip-loc bag full of dry cedar shavings in case I needed to start a fire in the rain (and it was raining most of the time). All I ever used for that was a SAK.

 

[scdub]

Somehow I managed to build fires in the woods my whole life without ever seeing or needing a featherstick, until I got on some bushcraft forums. Is it fun to fart around with and share pics of? Sure. And I suppose it's good for practicing your edge control. Is it a necessary skill for building a fire? Not at all.

When I worked in the field in Alaska, I would keep a small zip-loc bag full of dry cedar shavings in case I needed to start a fire in the rain (and it was raining most of the time). All I ever used for that was a SAK.

I’ve never “needed” a feather stick, and anyone with the proper gear (like dry tinder) shouldn’t either.

The idea however is that with this method you can create adequate tinder from a single source of wood in the unfortunate instance that you’re caught out in the weather without a good tinder source.

In theory if you have a knife and a fire-steel or other starter (or just some cordage and bow-drill, etc. skills) you can make a fire with just a single chunk of dry wood.

I always have a knife and fire source on my person while bopping around town, but I’m not carrying tinder (unless I’m planning to make fire) because I know I can make my own in an emergency.

 

[Hammer67]

I’ve never “needed” a feather stick, and anyone with the proper gear (like dry tinder) shouldn’t either.

The idea however is that with this method you can create adequate tinder from a single source of wood in the unfortunate instance that you’re caught out in the weather without a good tinder source.

In theory if you have a knife and a fire-steel or other starter (or just some cordage and bow-drill, etc. skills) you can make a fire with just a single chunk of dry wood.

I always have a knife and fire source on my person while bopping around town, but I’m not carrying tinder (unless I’m planning to make fire) because I know I can make my own in an emergency.

Yup, I get that. I just think it's kind of funny how "feathersticking" has become such a thing. But the ability to split a piece of wood to access the dry wood inside, and make shavings, is of course a very valuable skill. I like having options when it comes to the sort of situation in which I might truly need to make a fire (as opposed to just wanting to), and with that in mind, I find that carrying a little dry tinder in my pack, whether it be dry shavings or some commercially made tinder like "WetFire" takes up almost no space and is very lightweight.

I've been in some situations where I truly needed to make a fire due to hypothermia and deteriorating conditions, and the urgency and potential downward spiral that can happen in that situation, along with the loss of fine motor dexterity, have taught me that if/when I'm in that situation again, it's not a time to be effing around - I want fire as fast and as easily as possible.