Make the ultimate ferrocerium rod with a fatwood handle

An extra large ferrocerium rod with a custom fatwood handle

Why use an extra large ferro rod?

In preparation for an upcoming winter outing, I purchased an extra-large ferrocerium rod. My main ferro rod to date has been a 3/8” diameter rod that is 6 inches long. It has served me well. If the smaller rod works, why did I just buy such a large new one?

The need for a large ferro rod basically comes down to the desire to maximize my chance of success when starting a fire. More sparks from the ferro rod improve the chances of successfully igniting the tinder. The amount of sparks produced is largely a function of how much of the pyrophoric material is scraped from the ferro rod. This, in turn, is largely a function of how much of the rod’s surface is effectively scraped.

Compared to my old 6” rod, the new 8” rod increase the surface area of the ferro rod that is scraped by 33%. That’s a significant increase. What’s more, over time the diameter of the rod can contribute to an increase in surface area as well, if the rod is consistently used on one spot, thus creating a flat surface.

A fatwood handle for the ferro rod

I had an idea to add a fatwood handle to the new extra-long ferro rod. This would serve two purposes. First, the handle will help to keep my fingers out of the way so I can use more of the rod's length for creating sparks. Second, in the absence of suitable tinder in the environment, I can scrape fatwood shavings off the handle itself.

Schematic drawing showing how to add a wood handle to a large ferrocerium rod

What is fatwood and why is so great? First of all, fatwood doesn’t describe a particular species of tree. Rather, it is a general term that describes dried wood that has been naturally impregnated with flammable resin. Many resinous trees — mostly conifers — are capable of producing fatwood.

The resins in fatwood make it very flammable. Fine fatwood shavings scraped from a larger piece will readily accept the sparks from a ferro rod. They will even light when wet. Once lit, fatwood produces a strong flame that is able to resist gusts of wind and is capable of igniting larger pieces of fuelwood. Finally, fatwood is a material durable enough to serve as a sturdy handle.

Making and mounting a wood handle to the ferro rod

Mounting the fatwood to the ferrocerium rod was pretty straightforward. First, I used wood glue to bond two pieces of fatwood together to make a single piece thick enough to serve as the handle. Next, I used a drill press to drill a 1/2" diameter hole into one end of the fatwood. This is the same size as the diameter of the ferro rod. The ferro rod came with a small lanyard hole in one end. I measured where this hole would be located with the rod inserted into the fatwood, then drilled a small hole through the sides of the wood. I used a hammer to tap a piece of brass rod through both the handle and ferro rod. After trimming the rod flush with the sides of the handle, I peened (hammered) the ends of the brass rod to prevent it from sliding out. Alternatively, you could use a few drops of Super Glue to keep the pin from sliding out.

A modified leather knife sheath for carrying an extra large ferro rod on a belt

Creating a custom leather sheath for the ferro rod

This is a pretty large ferro rod, so I reasoned that it needed its own sheath. I had recently replaced an old leather knife sheath because the bottom seam had started to come apart. I cut the lower end completely off the sheath so the rod could poke through the bottom. Next, I soaked the old sheath in water for about 20 minutes, then fit the rod inside. I manipulated the wet leather to take the shape of the rod and handle. To ensure that the rod would never fall through the sheath, I added two metal rivets to the bottom of the sheath. Finally, I added a leather strap with a snap to keep the rod from ever falling out the top.

Using fatwood to create tinder

The process for using the fatwood handle to create tinder is the same method one would use for any piece of fatwood. The wood is scraped to produce fine shavings. This is often accomplished with the spine of a knife that has been ground to have a sharp 90-degree edge. Invert the rod such that you are using the rod as the handle and brace the fatwood on a stump or other suitable surface. Use the spine of a knife to scrape up and down on one of the exposed corners of the fatwood. Ideally, a golf ball-sized bundle would be made. I may use smaller bundles to extend the life of my handle. However, I don’t have to be conservative. Because glue wasn't used, I can replace the fatwood handle down the road if I wear it down from use.

RESOURCES

• Kräftig 8″ Ferro Rod - this is where I got the one shown in this article

• Leather Knife Sheath - this is the model of sheath I modified to hold the ferro rod in this article

• Fatwood Bundle with Pouch

• Waterproof Wood Glue

• Solid Brass Rod - 3/16"

• Snap Set with Extra Long Posts for Thick Material

• Leather Rivet Set

• Leather Punch

* Some of the links on this page go to Amazon and some go to the website of my friend, Josh Enyart, The Gray Bearded Green Beret. I make a small commission on these referrals. I appreciate your support!

Understanding the Fire Triangle and learning to use it when starting a fire

Understanding the Fire Triangle 

Whether it is for camping, bushcraft practice, a survival situation, or just backyard socializing, lighting a fire can be difficult. As simple as fire starting may appear to be, there are many variables at play. With a better understanding of these variables, the process of starting a fire becomes less mysterious. One model that’s often used to understand the process is called the fire triangle. 

This is the first in a two part article on the fire triangle and how we can use it to better understand what is happening when we attempt to light an open fire.

What is the Fire Triangle?

The fire triangle is a model used to represent the three main components that must be present to make and sustain a fire. These elements are heat, oxygen, and fuel. Why a triangle? There’s no real reason other than the fact that there are three elements and that can be represented graphically with a three-sided shape -- the triangle.

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Heat: Spark, Ember, and Flame

Let’s say you have some dry wood sitting on the ground and exposed to the air. Why doesn’t it burst into flames spontaneously? The reason is we still need the third side of the fire triangle, heat, to jump-start the process we call fire.

Heat can be introduced into the triangle in a number of ways. It may be the ember from a bow drill, the spark from a ferrocerium rod, light from a magnifying glass, or the flame from a lighter or match. 

Oxygen: The Gas Needed for Combustion

The next part of the triangle is oxygen. The air around us is made up of about 21% oxygen -- exactly what we need to create fire. At times we may encourage more air to enter the system by blowing on the fire, fanning it, or creating physical structures that promote air flow.

Technically, there are other gasses that can be used to sustain fire, but in the context of an outdoor fire, we can ignore these for the most part.

Fuel: Tinder, Kindling, and Firewood

The final element in the fire triangle is fuel. For an outdoor fire, this means tinder, kindling, and firewood. 

Our initial fuel is known as tinder. Tinder is a fine, often fluffy material capable of taking a small amount of heat and turning it into flame. Some tinder materials contain flammable compounds while others have very small fibers that are easy to heat up. Tinders may be natural or some form of human-made tinder.

After the tinder, we make use of kindling — matchstick to marker sized sticks — and then work our way up to pieces that are larger still: firewood. 

The Chain Reaction of Combustion

When heat is applied externally to a fuel such as wood, the cellulose in the wood begins to undergo a type of thermal decomposition called pyrolysis. As the chemical structure of the wood decomposes, certain gasses are released or volatilized. 

These gasses react vigorously with the oxygen in the air in a process called combustion. This is another way of saying that we have lit the fuel on fire.

Combustion is an exothermic reaction, which means it gives off heat. Because it does so, it reinforces the continuation of the process. Provided that adequate fuel and oxygen continue to be provided, we have started a chain reaction.

The cycle repeats: preheating of the fuel, gasses being released, and those gasses reacting with oxygen. If everything goes according to plan, the chain reaction continues with larger and larger pieces of fuel putting off more and more heat. Eventually, we have a fire large enough to heat up and ignite fairly large pieces of wood.

With a hot bed of coals established, we can add fuel of almost any size. Why? Because the coals are putting off a tremendous amount of heat and will be capable of starting the process of pyrolysis, which sets the stage for more combustion.

How to Make use of The Fire Triangle 

In part 2 of this series, we’ll take a look at how the fire triangle can be used to troubleshoot problems we often encounter when lighting a fire outdoors.

Resources

Spark Sources	Flame Sources	Other Sources
Ferrocerium rod Flint and steel Flameless lighter	Bic lighter Waterproof matches Lit candle	Glass magnifying lens or Plastic Fresnel lens Potassium permaginate (and water) Bow drill coal Fire piston

Natural Tinder	Human-made Tinder	Improvised Tinder
Tree barks: birch, cedar, aspen Wood shavings Dried grasses Fatwood shavings Dandelion, milkweed, or cattail fluff	GB2 Tinder Tabs Magnesium shavings Jute or waxed jute Char cloth WetFire Tinder	Dryer lint Duct tape Cotton balls in petroleum jelly Potato or corn chips Alcohol-based hand sanitizer

* Some of the links on this page go to Amazon and some go to the website of my friend The Gray Bearded Green Beret. I make a small commission on all referrals.