Uploaded December 2017 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
I played around with an alternate hearth design (side-hole) that has worked well for me in the past, but I didn't take the time to make my spindle as straight as I should have and the wobble was too much for it, and I had to resort to the classic notch. I'll put a couple of links to other videos with this hearth design working below if you're interested.
Side Hole Hearth Bow Drill
youtube.com/watch?v=BxFX00RJMnA
Double Side Hole Hearth (Just for Fun)
youtube.com/watch?v=QDcHQdTWKdc
The conventional v-notch is the most reliable for me, but this style of hearth has been more dependable than the other alternative designs like the two-stick, two-hole, or stepped hearths.
One downside of this design that I've learned about the hard way is that it's not very forgiving of a wobbly spindle I didn't take enough time making sure my spindle was straight and that combined with putting the divot too close to the edge the spindle wandered out and broke free. I rather than re-carving the spindle, I switched over to a conventional notch to get the ember.
Questions, comments, and suggestions are always welcome.
I played around with an alternate hearth design (side-hole) that has worked well for me in the past, but I didn't take the time to make my spindle as straight as I should have and the wobble was too much for it, and I had to resort to the classic notch. I'll put a couple of links to other videos with this hearth design working below if you're interested.
Side Hole Hearth Bow Drill
youtube.com/watch?v=BxFX00RJMnA
Double Side Hole Hearth (Just for Fun)
youtube.com/watch?v=QDcHQdTWKdc
The conventional v-notch is the most reliable for me, but this style of hearth has been more dependable than the other alternative designs like the two-stick, two-hole, or stepped hearths.
One downside of this design that I've learned about the hard way is that it's not very forgiving of a wobbly spindle I didn't take enough time making sure my spindle was straight and that combined with putting the divot too close to the edge the spindle wandered out and broke free. I rather than re-carving the spindle, I switched over to a conventional notch to get the ember.
Questions, comments, and suggestions are always welcome.
