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Wondering what your experience is with fire pistons.
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'I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.' - Henry David Thoreau -
I knew someone who had one.
The technology is great. It worked every time i tried it. The secret is the type of fungus you use. I believe it was developed in the Phillipines.
There once was a german who was with some Indigenous Phillipine natives and was introduced to the fire piston. He took it home and used the technology to invent a new type of engine.
His name?
Rudolf Diesel
Hawk"If future generations are to remember us with gratitude rather than contempt, we must leave them more than the miracles of technology. We must leave them a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning, not just after we got through with it." Lyndon B. Johnson -
Never used one , but they look like a fun and interesting back up
But , for practical use , I'll stick with my bic , waterproof matches , and fero rod with dryer lint and / or some cotton balls soaked in petrolium jelly
Phil
“The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly is to fill the world with fools.” —Herbert Spencer
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I've looked at them with a longing eye to experiment with yet another unique gadget... but the quality made ones are quite expensive. In the end, triple redundancy cheap bic lighters, with maybe a magnesium sparker having a permanent home in my pack seems a lot more practical and "sure-fire"."Now I see the secret of making the best person, it is to grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth." -Walt WhitmanComment
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No, but I've been thinking about getting one.-Rob
There's a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot. - Steven WrightComment
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Why not make one?
Simple engineering.
Hawk
These were originally a very primitive type tool. The barrel was made from young bamboo (I think) and used grass fiber as the gasket."If future generations are to remember us with gratitude rather than contempt, we must leave them more than the miracles of technology. We must leave them a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning, not just after we got through with it." Lyndon B. JohnsonComment
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Here's what looks like a pretty good link, with a discussion of the technology and some plans.
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They definitely appeal to my old school tendancies.
It seems that they would make a light weight, dependable backup for starting fires and it looks like they could be made fairly easily with a little wood working talent. Unfortunately I have very little wood working talent.
While I always carry a lighter in my emergency kit, I have had the flints corrode to powder and therefore become useless after a period of time. So triple renundancy might be good in my case.
Rudolf Diesel? Sounds familiar. Doesn't he have a son in the movies?
'I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.' - Henry David ThoreauComment
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I'm thinking about making one this weekend if my canoe plans don't arrive. I've seen a few home made ones on-line. Seems like it's mostly trial an error.
Any one have an idea or thoughts of what the ideal chamber size would be at full compression? I suppose it would depend on the diameter of the piston, and that smaller would be better. What do you guys think?
EDIT: I just noticed the link above shows a chamber size of 3/16 for a 1/4 inch piston.-Rob
There's a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot. - Steven WrightComment
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"If future generations are to remember us with gratitude rather than contempt, we must leave them more than the miracles of technology. We must leave them a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning, not just after we got through with it." Lyndon B. JohnsonComment
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^ that's one of the sites I'd been looking at. I think I'm going to try wood though.
Unfortunately for my desire to build afire piston, my canoe plans arrived in the mail a few minutes ago.-Rob
There's a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot. - Steven WrightComment
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