Making a char cloth for a beautiful fire
If you want to make fire with flint and a fire striker, you'll need a char cloth. Char cloths are actually pretty simple to make yourself. A great alternative to char cloth is a waxed fire starter, also known as a wax cloth.
Making char cloth
What do you need?
-fabric made from 100% natural, plant-based fibers
-scissors
-small tin
-nail
-hammer
-heat source
How to make char cloth:
Use a nail and hammer to punch a hole in the lid and bottom of the tin.
Step 2:
Cut your fabric into pieces. The pieces should fit in the tin without needing to be folded.
Make sure the fabric is made from 100% natural, plant-based fibers. Cotton canvas works great for this, but other cotton or linen works just fine too.
Step 3:
Place the fabric pieces in the tin and close it. Don't cram the fabric into the tin, but place the pieces carefully on top of each other with some air between them.
Step 4:
Place the closed tin on or in your heat source. Red-hot coals in a fireplace work really well, but any heat source can work. A wood or camping stove also works great, but they burn hotter than an open fireplace, so you'll need to keep a close eye on the process to prevent the fabric from actually burning.
Step 5:
Watch the smoke coming out of the tin. Once there's no more smoke coming from the tin, flip it over. Wait until the tin stops releasing smoke from this side as well.
Remove the tin from the heat source and let it cool. Don't rush to open it, the cloth can still catch fire if it's exposed to oxygen too quickly.
Once the tin has cooled down completely, you can open it to take out the cloth and inspect it.
Perfectly made char cloth is completely black, still somewhat soft and not brittle. If the cloth isn't completely black, you can simply cook it again. If the cloth is too brittle and falls apart, the cloth is overburned and not usable. The cloth will shrink a bit during the cooking process, so your char cloth will be smaller than the pieces you put in the tin.
Making waxed fire starters
What do you need?
-fabric made from 100% natural, plant-based fibers
-scissors
-beeswax or candle wax flakes
-heat-resistant container
-water
-pan
-stove
-aluminum foil
How to make waxed fire starters?
Step 1:
Place the wax in the heat-resistant container. For example, you can use an empty (and clean) vegetable tin or a thick glass bowl. Fill the pan with enough water so heat can be transferred to the container, but make sure the water doesn't get into the container with the wax.
Put the pan on the heat and wait for the wax to melt.
Step 2:
While you wait for the wax to melt, cut the fabric into smaller pieces. Make sure the fabric is made from 100% natural, plant-based fibers. Cotton canvas works great for this, but other cotton or linen works just fine too.
You can also use cotton makeup remover pads.
Step 3:
When the wax is completely melted, dip the fabric pieces in the wax so they're covered as much as possible. Be careful not to stick your fingers in the wax, as this can cause burns. For safety, you can always use a tool like tweezers to hold the fabric.
Step 4:
Place the wax-coated fabric pieces on some aluminum foil to cool and dry. Wax generally cools quickly, so this won't take long.
