I am hoping I can become part of the Friction Fire Fellowship, saw this thread and went to work on the challenge right away.
It has been a good 15 years since I have done this but I got the bug again because of this website and set to work making a bow from some native desert catclaw acacia. It is all over the lower deserts here but I cut this right off a tree in advanced base camp...my side yard at 2400'.
First, a spindle and base board of yucca stalk were tried as it had worked before when I tried my first times, but the stuff I have is just too soft, made some black powder and ate right through the board before a coal caught. Plan B, native juniper. This grows in the southwest from 3000' to 8000' and some species grow as high as 9000'. The board and spindle went quickly with my little puukko and juniper proved perfect for making a quick coal but also very durable. The same drill hole was used several times and still has plenty of material left for more fires.
I set it all up in shade but dappled sunlight intruded before I got fully ready so not very good photography. It took longer to set it all up with the camera and materials, and tools than it did to spin up a coal. That took only the 15 seconds that the camera timer was set to. It did not smoke much but a bit of wispy smoke is visible here.
A good durable black coal appeared in seconds but I knocked it off the thin, wide shaving of juniper I had placed under the notch. It held together as I pushed it back on and a very thin wisp of smoke still emanates in the image.
Girlfriend kept on pushing the shutter but the camera was set on 15 delay as I started blowing on it. The tinder bundle is very thin shaven juniper.
The dry juniper was like gasoline. It exploded into flame in the 15 seconds between the time I started blowing until the camera tripped once more.
I'm not an expert when it comes to primitive skills and as I've said it has been a long time since I have even tried this. But like the first time years ago, I found that getting down to business and fashioning the kit takes a lot longer than getting fire. I know that materials are important and they vary from location to location. Good seasoned juniper is almost like wood with gasoline in it. LOL I can see why some from the east favor Eastern Cedar.
The one thing I have held onto is the sea shell I found down in the Sea of Cortez. It makes the perfect bearing and the smooth inner surface sort of turbocharges the spindle speed, doesn't make it drag like some bearing blocks do. It is thick and that is important. The thin shells got way too hot and this one heats up too so thick leather gloves make it bearable. The entire kit took me about an hour to make with my bumbling but it felt good to have the knife in hand and seeing something come out of the woods with the magic of fire from sticks as a quick result.
This was a very fun challenge and a super way to make a flame. Way back 15 years ago I could make friction fire with just a hand drill, well one time anyway. That took some doing, a lot more strength than I have now. The bow still makes it possible.
