On-Site Hand Drill with a Skinny Spindle (Real Time Drilling)

Making and using a quick hand drill set made from two very common species in the Pacific Northwest; using materials gathered on-site.

I noticed an especially straight piece of salmonberry that I couldn’t pass up, but it was quite a bit thinner than what I would consider an ideal hand drill spindle diameter.

A thin spindle does concentrate the heat and provide more rotations per stroke, but the downside of this is that this concentrated force can bite into the hearth too quickly and bore through before enough heat is generated for ignition.

Ordinarily, I look for woods that have partially decayed but with this smaller spindle I picked out a red alder that appeared to be rot-free, but still dry in the upper portions.

I generally speed up the drilling footage in these videos to keep them a watchable length, but I think it may be helpful to occasionally show this stage in real time to better illustrate both the actual time spent drilling, and the sights and sounds of the process. Feel free to skip ahead if you are pressed for time.

I had a close call with a drop of sweat that fell from my face just as the ember was building strength. I have extinguished a few like this before, so it is a good reminder to manage your own moisture if you are working in warm temperatures. It was only a bit of luck and about an inch and a half that made the difference between success and failure on this one.

Materials Used

Spindle: Dead Salmonberry Stalk (Rubus spectabilis)
Hearth: Dead Red Alder Sapling (Alnus rubra)
Tinder Bundle: Green Moss (species unknown)

Knife: ESEE Laser Strike

Music:

Scandinavianz- Wanderlust
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Poe37HkCOGc

Luca Stricagnoli The Last of the Mohicans Guitar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Kbv1OpIpaA