Start A Fire With Flint & Steel
Demonstrated by Flies With Ravens
(Mark McCain)

Please note that the Florida Frontiersmen promote and maintain high standards of safety in recreating skills of our ancestors. The following step by step instruction will start a REAL fire and should be followed only by an adult.

The Florida Frontiersmen accepts no responsibility for damages resulting from the improper and/or unsafe use of this information. Above all, use your Common Sense at all times!

Supplies You Will Need

A) Monkey Hair (or any natural dry fiber)
B) Leather Carrying Pouch
C) Dried Spanish Moss (or any natural dry fiber)
D) Flint
E) Charcloth
F) Steel Striker
G) Tin Can to make charcloth

Let's Get Started!

First gather all the supplies you need. The ones listed above plus graduated tinder, from small twigs on up to good sized logs.
Then clear a safe spot for your fire or create a fire pit.

 Mark forms the Spanish Moss into a birds nest shape. You could also use another natural fiber like monkey hair or what ever is available.

Set the birds nest on the ground.

 Get out two pieces of charcloth.
Place one piece in the birds nest.
Keep the other piece of charcloth in your hand.

 Place the charcloth on top of the flint, hold the flint still and strike the steel against the flint. This should create a spark.

 
When the charcloth in your hand gets a spark on it start blowing gently on it and place it into the birds nest and pick it up. Fold the nest in half enclosing the glowing charcloth in the center of it. Lift up the nest and hold it at least 6 to 8 inched from your face all the while blowing into the nest. Blow until you get a flame.

Lay the flaming nest into your prepared fire area and start feeding it small sized sticks. Keep feeding it and building it up until you can add logs.

Price Thomas shows you where you can find monkey hair.

Monkey hair close up.
How To Create Charcloth
Purchase a 100% cotton fabric. Mark recommends a cotton gauze fabric. Put the fabric in a metal can like the one pictured at the top of the page. It should be sealed except for a small hole in the top. Place this can with the fabric in it in a blazing fire. Watch the can, smoke will come out of the hole as the cloth is charred. When the smoke stops coming out of the top the charcloth is done. Pull the can out of the fire and allow it to cool.

Mark keeps his charcloth in a small tin like the one above.

Special THANKS to Mark McCain for demonstrating this skill, to Suesie McCain for taking the photos used on this page and to my son Price Thomas for showing us where to find the monkey hair.