Fire piston up and running.

I made a slightly nicer version of my prototype fire piston at work last night. It doesn't work as miraculously as the ones you can watch on youtube but it works. I would consider it more of a toy than a "forever fire starter" because it relies on an O ring and a way/materials to make char cloth. As evidenced by it early usage you could make a packing out of a lot of things and a lot of different material could be turned into char material. Me? I have enough ferrocerium rods to last me until long after I'm dust. It was still a fun project and I may try a few different versions I have swimming around in my grey matter. Definitely baffles the thought challenged people who see it in action though, it's worth it to make one just to see peoples reactions. :w00t1:

Thanks for all the pics. Is that a rubber o-ring? Is it so tight that it needed lube? I'm trying to get an idea of how tight it needs to fit.

It's a pretty tight fit, but it tears up the O ring without lube. I tried with oil, shortening and chapstick with good results. I need to polish the bore up a bit I think, for optimum performance.

How about a little KY...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wrench1957

How about a little KY...

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So, you're implying I should grease up my rod with KY before I jam it in? My wife has been non stop with the "so, you have get your rod all greased up first" since I started yapping about this project. I love her but she's challenged. No offense implied to anyone who has a loved one who is challenged or retarted. Gotta make sure I'm PC or the guy from survivalistboards.com who can make 500 yard shots with just iron sights will come for me.
Oh spare me etrnldrk!!!!

Wow,

I thought I was one of the smart guys.....

Can anybody give me a "Readers Digest Condensed" version of what this is and what it does????

Please?!?

Thanks!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bellson

Wow,

I thought I was one of the smart guys.....

Can anybody give me a "Readers Digest Condensed" version of what this is and what it does????

Please?!?

Thanks!

---

bellson - here is the super condensed version. :D
It is a fire piston. A small piece of char cloth or punk is put into the small opening on the end of the rod. The rod is put into the bigger piece with the hole (barely put in) and holding the big piece in one hand and the small rod knob in the other hand give a quick push down on the small rod. The quick push will cause a form of friction and compression (think car engine) and the char cloth or punk will start to smolder. It can then be used with some fine tinder to be made into a large fire, or some will light their cigarette with it to "amaze" people. :)

This is the super condensed version that skims over it. They are a neat device. I have two fire pistons here. The one made from Coco Bolo is the pretty one. :D

ashhoe - nice work, and thanks for sharing the pics.

Wildwood Survival - Fire - Fire Piston
http://www.survivalschool.com/produc...re_Pistons.htm
and
http://www.onagocag.com/piston.html
these sites have some more info, pics, etc about firepistons (the last one is more in depth).
Hope these help explain how it works. :)

From what I read , our American wood species are not dense enough to hold the compression. Hence the coco bolo and other exotic woods, anlter, and aluminum in this case. I'll be using aluminum, maybe incase it in wood or antler for a more traditional look.
Charcloth can easily be made in a Sucrets or Altoids can on the bbq grill.

Would it work with cotton balls soaked in petroleum jelly? That would be a good available fuel in current society, and a good stable fuel you could pack into 20oz soda bottles to store for ATSHTF, and it would lube the o-ring to keep it from wearing out too quick.