Uploaded March 2018 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Don't feel like carving a notch in your hearth? If you get a few key things right, you might be able to get away with skipping it.
You'll need a platform of tinder that can catch the falling dust and hold it up near the hot spindle. You'll also want to put a pointed tip on your spindle and position close to the edge so that a bit of it is hanging over the side.
Tilt the hearth slightly toward the tinder platform to make it easy for the dust to collect there. Finally, you may need to alter the angle of your drill to keep it in the sweet spot where it cuts its own notch.
Get all that right, and you might just end up with an ember. In reality, it's a lot less complicated just to cave a v-notch, but this could be helpful if you were working without a proper cutting tool.
Unfortunately, when the hearth tilted, the curls ended up obscuring the view a bit. If you want to see this demonstrated from a better angle, here is a link to and older video showing a similar method.
No Notch Bow Drill (Silver Fir)
youtube.com/watch?v=hMRSFkTemXc
The set in the older video was made with very dry Silver Fir, so I was able to get away with keeping the drill away from the edge, but I recommend trying to get the spindle overhanging at least a little for optimal results.
The set was Red Alder and the knife is a Terävä Jääkäripuukko 140
Special thanks to BCUSA member @rsnurkle for helping me fine tune this method with thoughtful questions.
bushcraftusa.com/forum/threads/friction-fire-tuesday.44962/page-119#post-3395303
Don't feel like carving a notch in your hearth? If you get a few key things right, you might be able to get away with skipping it.
You'll need a platform of tinder that can catch the falling dust and hold it up near the hot spindle. You'll also want to put a pointed tip on your spindle and position close to the edge so that a bit of it is hanging over the side.
Tilt the hearth slightly toward the tinder platform to make it easy for the dust to collect there. Finally, you may need to alter the angle of your drill to keep it in the sweet spot where it cuts its own notch.
Get all that right, and you might just end up with an ember. In reality, it's a lot less complicated just to cave a v-notch, but this could be helpful if you were working without a proper cutting tool.
Unfortunately, when the hearth tilted, the curls ended up obscuring the view a bit. If you want to see this demonstrated from a better angle, here is a link to and older video showing a similar method.
No Notch Bow Drill (Silver Fir)
youtube.com/watch?v=hMRSFkTemXc
The set in the older video was made with very dry Silver Fir, so I was able to get away with keeping the drill away from the edge, but I recommend trying to get the spindle overhanging at least a little for optimal results.
The set was Red Alder and the knife is a Terävä Jääkäripuukko 140
Special thanks to BCUSA member @rsnurkle for helping me fine tune this method with thoughtful questions.
bushcraftusa.com/forum/threads/friction-fire-tuesday.44962/page-119#post-3395303
