More Stuff

All off topic conversation held here. Have fun and play nice. =)

Moderators: Bookworm, starkruzr, MrFireDragon, PrettyPrincess, Wapsi

User avatar
Atomic
Posts: 2948
Joined: Tue Jul 31, 2012 12:39 am
Location: Central PA
Contact:

Re: More Stuff

Post by Atomic »

Alkarii wrote: Mon May 31, 2021 8:44 pm About the only thing I'm really missing is a stainless steel container for boiling water and making char material.
A wad of dryer lint and a dozen some wooden toothpicks fit nicely into a pill bottle for fire starting.
Don't let other peoples limitations become your constraints!

My Deviant Art scribbles
The Atomic Guide to Basic GIMP Stuff
Alkarii
Posts: 1854
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2014 3:02 pm

Re: More Stuff

Post by Alkarii »

Yeah, but I can't boil water (to kill bacteria, viruses, and parasites) in a pill bottle. Plus, I have waterproof matches in their own container somewhere.

Ah, crap... I forgot that I need a sail needle... And I need to learn how to use it, too.
There is no such thing as a science experiment gone wrong.
User avatar
AnotherFairportfan
Posts: 6402
Joined: Thu May 01, 2014 2:53 pm

Re: More Stuff

Post by AnotherFairportfan »

Atomic wrote: Tue Jun 01, 2021 1:42 am
Alkarii wrote: Mon May 31, 2021 8:44 pm About the only thing I'm really missing is a stainless steel container for boiling water and making char material.
A wad of dryer lint and a dozen some wooden toothpicks fit nicely into a pill bottle for fire starting.
Steel wool makes good tinder - and you can light it by striking sparks on it with a lantern battery...
Proof Positive the world is not flat: If it were, cats would have pushed everything off the edge by now.
User avatar
Atomic
Posts: 2948
Joined: Tue Jul 31, 2012 12:39 am
Location: Central PA
Contact:

Re: More Stuff

Post by Atomic »

Alkarii wrote: Tue Jun 01, 2021 1:49 pm Yeah, but I can't boil water (to kill bacteria, viruses, and parasites) in a pill bottle. Plus, I have waterproof matches in their own container somewhere.
I was addressing the "making char material" part of fire starting. Matches along may not be enough if you have no good tinder available. The metal pot is up to you!
Don't let other peoples limitations become your constraints!

My Deviant Art scribbles
The Atomic Guide to Basic GIMP Stuff
FreeFlier
Posts: 2492
Joined: Mon Oct 26, 2015 11:33 pm
Location: Land of the webbed feet

Re: More Stuff

Post by FreeFlier »

I carry a magnesium fire-starter bar . . . scrape some of the magnesium off with a pocketknife or other steel tool, pile the shavings around the tinder, and strike the steel down the spark-strip so the sparks fall in the shavings and ignite the magnesium.

It'll start a fire under most conditions.

--FreeFlier
Alkarii
Posts: 1854
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2014 3:02 pm

Re: More Stuff

Post by Alkarii »

I have a couple of small ferro rods, actually, but I should probably get one of the larger ones.

From what I hear, you're supposed to keep at least three different methods of starting a fire in your survival kit, but all I have are lighters and a few small ferro rods.
There is no such thing as a science experiment gone wrong.
User avatar
TazManiac
Posts: 3701
Joined: Fri Nov 29, 2013 6:53 pm

Re: More Stuff

Post by TazManiac »

Don't forget, a few Birthday Cake Candles are a great addition to any Fire-starter kit...
User avatar
Catawampus
Posts: 2145
Joined: Fri Jul 12, 2013 10:47 pm

Re: More Stuff

Post by Catawampus »

Alkarii wrote: Wed Jun 02, 2021 12:12 pm I have a couple of small ferro rods, actually, but I should probably get one of the larger ones.

From what I hear, you're supposed to keep at least three different methods of starting a fire in your survival kit, but all I have are lighters and a few small ferro rods.
A magnifying lens works nicely, too, on sunny days, and is about as simple and eternally-lasting as you can get. I've seen tinder boxes that have one built into the lid: you take off the lid, unscrew a cap to uncover the lens, and then shine it on the tinder.

And you can use it to help remove ticks or splinters, or to look for clues if somebody gets murdered.
Alkarii
Posts: 1854
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2014 3:02 pm

Re: More Stuff

Post by Alkarii »

I'll have to try to find one of those. It'd save me the trouble of trying to dig out two separate items. The plus side is, so long as there's enough sunlight, I can save lighter fluid, or not have to scrape a ferro rod.

I've also actually lit a fire with a magnifying glass... I wasn't building a campfire, though.

Oh! I picked up some fatwood, and once I actually have a tinderbox, I can put a bunch of the dead bamboo leaves from the thicket next to the house.

Seriously, there's so much of those leaves on the ground, a person wearing only khaki clothing could lie down in it and hide from any aircraft not equipped with FLIR cameras.
There is no such thing as a science experiment gone wrong.
FreeFlier
Posts: 2492
Joined: Mon Oct 26, 2015 11:33 pm
Location: Land of the webbed feet

Re: More Stuff

Post by FreeFlier »

I know/knew three different men who started a fire with a jug of water . . . and a friend nearly set his pickup on fire with bottled water . . .

There is a reason that the logging companies forbade clear glass water jugs! They had to be brown glass, painted, or have an opaque covering. Withy basketwork also protected the glass. (Nowadays they use plastic or metal.)

To spell it out, the clear glass container of water can act as a magnifying lens and ignite anything dry and flammable at the focal point.

BTW, I would not count a magnifying lest, etc as one of the three methods . . . too much chance you'd need a fire at night or in cloudy weather.

The last time I needed a fire in a hurry, I used a road flare . . . worked great.

--FreeFlier
Typeminer
Posts: 807
Joined: Tue Jul 31, 2012 9:34 pm
Location: Pennsylbama, between Philly and Pittsburgh

Re: More Stuff

Post by Typeminer »

One sunny day a few years ago, I smelled smoke while I was working. And then I noticed that a magnifying glass that had been standing in the pen jar for at least 5 years was trying to light up my desk.

It lives in a drawer now.
Saccharomyces cerevisiae is the linchpin of civilization.
Warrl
Posts: 1723
Joined: Sat Jul 20, 2013 10:44 pm

Re: More Stuff

Post by Warrl »

Redundancy is really good in some circumstances. I know that people who go exploring caves (and know what they are doing) demand that EACH person in the group carry TWO sources of light.

(I read of a college group that went out and, not 15 minutes into their exploring, heard a voice ahead of them: "OH THANK GOD! IT'S REAL!" The group's plans were delayed as they escorted three non-members to the cave mouth and summoned paramedics to treat the three for dehydration and hypothermia. The idiots had gone in with a cumulative grand total of ONE light source... and dropped it into a pool. About the same time the previous day.)
FreeFlier
Posts: 2492
Joined: Mon Oct 26, 2015 11:33 pm
Location: Land of the webbed feet

Re: More Stuff

Post by FreeFlier »

Warrl wrote: Thu Jun 03, 2021 12:29 pmRedundancy is really good in some circumstances. I know that people who go exploring caves (and know what they are doing) demand that EACH person in the group carry TWO sources of light.
I remember it as three separate sources of light.
Warrl wrote: Thu Jun 03, 2021 12:29 pm(I read of a college group that went out and, not 15 minutes into their exploring, heard a voice ahead of them: "OH THANK GOD! IT'S REAL!" The group's plans were delayed as they escorted three non-members to the cave mouth and summoned paramedics to treat the three for dehydration and hypothermia. The idiots had gone in with a cumulative grand total of ONE light source... and dropped it into a pool. About the same time the previous day.)
And this would be why.

In fact, I habitually carried three sources of light every day . . . something about being at work in the back of studio A when the power went off (some drunken idiot whacked the one power pole that could knock out all of lower campus) and having to crawl out in the dark - it seemed that the emergency lights all needed new batteries!

--FreeFlier
User avatar
Dave
Posts: 7584
Joined: Tue Jul 31, 2012 5:58 pm
Location: Mountain View, CA, USA

Re: More Stuff

Post by Dave »

FreeFlier wrote: Thu Jun 03, 2021 9:56 pm I remember it as three separate sources of light.
Having one of them be a chemical light-stick is a good idea. "Intrinsically safe" (cannot spark an explosion), waterproof, can produce at least some light for quite a few hours, comes in multiple light-colors so you can color-coordinate with your outfits, or use different colors to mark different sorts of hazards.
Alkarii
Posts: 1854
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2014 3:02 pm

Re: More Stuff

Post by Alkarii »

Yeah... I have a few glow sticks, in several colors; some are 8 hour sticks, and a lot are 12. I grab some every now and then, so I'm up to 18. I have this thing called a crush light, and I can recharge it via USB, or the solar panel on top. I also have a couple of headlamps, and one of those Fulton military flashlights. You know the kind I mean... Green, shaped like an upside down L, and comes with a bunch of lenses.

What I don't have, though, is a solar recharger for batteries.
There is no such thing as a science experiment gone wrong.
User avatar
Atomic
Posts: 2948
Joined: Tue Jul 31, 2012 12:39 am
Location: Central PA
Contact:

Re: More Stuff

Post by Atomic »

FreeFlier wrote: Thu Jun 03, 2021 9:56 pm I remember it as three separate sources of light.
"There are FOUR Lights!"
Don't let other peoples limitations become your constraints!

My Deviant Art scribbles
The Atomic Guide to Basic GIMP Stuff
User avatar
lake_wrangler
Posts: 4300
Joined: Sun Aug 05, 2012 8:16 am
Location: Laval, Québec, Canada

Re: More Stuff

Post by lake_wrangler »

Atomic wrote: Fri Jun 04, 2021 12:52 am
FreeFlier wrote: Thu Jun 03, 2021 9:56 pm I remember it as three separate sources of light.
"There are FOUR Lights!"
"I understood that reference."
Warrl
Posts: 1723
Joined: Sat Jul 20, 2013 10:44 pm

Re: More Stuff

Post by Warrl »

FreeFlier wrote: Thu Jun 03, 2021 9:56 pm
Warrl wrote: Thu Jun 03, 2021 12:29 pmRedundancy is really good in some circumstances. I know that people who go exploring caves (and know what they are doing) demand that EACH person in the group carry TWO sources of light.
I remember it as three separate sources of light.
I definitely remember reading it as two. However, I could easily imagine someone saying that it's three for small groups or solo (and solo is probably discouraged). Then to avoid arguments over how many people are in a "small" group, going for three all the time.

There's this lovely phenomenon called "cave dark". Commonly found in, obviously, caves. Nobody will ever really see it... because the human brain refuses to believe it can be THAT dark, and creates spots of light that aren't really there. Unfortunately, these spots of light do not actually provide any illumination. Thus, by the time a rescuer's lamps show up, the lost light-less person may have learned not to believe in the light they see. (And if they're in bad shape, they may decline to call for help from yet another hallucination.)
User avatar
lake_wrangler
Posts: 4300
Joined: Sun Aug 05, 2012 8:16 am
Location: Laval, Québec, Canada

Re: More Stuff

Post by lake_wrangler »

Here is the quote (from my wallpaper changer) which greeted me, as I came on my computer:
“Love is an exploding cigar we willingly smoke.” - Lynda Barry
Think what you want...
FreeFlier
Posts: 2492
Joined: Mon Oct 26, 2015 11:33 pm
Location: Land of the webbed feet

Re: More Stuff

Post by FreeFlier »

Dave wrote: Thu Jun 03, 2021 10:04 pm
FreeFlier wrote: Thu Jun 03, 2021 9:56 pmI remember it as three separate sources of light.
Having one of them be a chemical light-stick is a good idea. "Intrinsically safe" (cannot spark an explosion), waterproof, can produce at least some light for quite a few hours, comes in multiple light-colors so you can color-coordinate with your outfits, or use different colors to mark different sorts of hazards.
Yep.

There are little bitty ones intended for fishing lures that make good markers, and the slender flexible ones that make good personnel markers (wear them as a bracelet or necklace), and oversize ones for more light, and super-high-intensity lightsticks for illuminating large areas . . . the military adds IR ones that can only be seen with night vision gear . . .

One use I've seen suggested for multi-story residences is to put a door key on one, so if you have an intruder and and trapped on an upper floor, you can pop the lightstick and throw it down to the police, so they don't have to break the door down. The nightstick lets them find it immediately. I had that set when I lived in a third-floor apartment.

One night the power went off, and I took lightsticks down to the elderly folks that lived downstairs . . . then I didn't have to worry about them messing with candles. (There'd been a fire from candles up the street . . . three dead.) (It turned out that the retired gentleman in back had an electric lantern.)
lake_wrangler wrote: Fri Jun 04, 2021 1:02 pm
Atomic wrote: Fri Jun 04, 2021 12:52 am
FreeFlier wrote: Thu Jun 03, 2021 9:56 pmI remember it as three separate sources of light.
"There are FOUR Lights!"
"I understood that reference."
but that's most relevant in a mica-lined room.

--FreeFlier
Last edited by FreeFlier on Sun Jun 06, 2021 7:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Post Reply