Just some advice - you would probably get a strong cordage by making a thinner two strand cord and then doubling it to make it a four strand cord. If you made it long enough you could double that to make an eight stranded cordage. That would be much stronger than a thick two stranded cordage.
Thanks for that thought. We do have experience with what you’re describing and it makes very strong cordage. That would make a great future video topic. This video was more geared towards just comparing the strength of the plants and trees around us to see which was the most durable. Thanks for sharing.
Good video. When using natural cordage I always wrap the string around the spindle twice to eliminate the string rubbing against itself. Also, our natural tendency is to use smaller sections of string as we speed up. I try to use the entire length of the bow when sawing to distribute the wear accordingly. 100 different people do things 100 different ways….
Dogbane is my current favorite for natural bow drill cordage. I have gotten several embers before breakage don't remember the count off hand. Haven't tried nettle or blackberry. I'll be on the watch for them.
How is it that a year after these videos were made that I’m just now seeing your videos!!! What a awesome collection of knowledge! Thank you so much and keep up the great work!
@@wildernessstrong6131 I made some from reed/grass last summer. I think it held a good couple of times, im not sure. I will be sure to notify how strong the willow is, probably early spring/summer as they seem brittlw now in the snow. Found some that pealed well, just have to find more to dry for my thick rope.
i think the cords might b breaking because if u hold the bow horizontal to the ground, the string will rub on itself at the twist area on the spindle. in order to avoid that u have to hold the bow at an angle to the ground so the string spirals around the spindle and doesnt touch itself or rub against itself
I've been AMAZED at how many times I have heard stinging nettle being praised for different reasons! I don't know if it is the same thing or not, but I have stinging nettle growing wild in my yard, and I use gloves, and a weed wacker, get rid of it! I CAN NOT touch it AT ALL, without burning me!!! 😭🤬
Enjoying your works as always. TY. I know this is an older video, but maybe you'll see this and reply... Some time ago I remember seeing somewhere that a short winch was created by soaking a teeshirt and twisting it with branch. Supposedly the water strengthened the cotton fibers and considerable pull was achieved as the shirt twisted., balled and got shorter. But the fibers held... I wish I could remember where I saw it... Anyways, watching some of the cordage fail in this video I am wondering if you guys have ever tried soaking the cord before attempting the bow drill?
For the firebow here in Florida I use from best to still good, Pawpaw (Asimina) bark cord, Yucca filamentosa (Adam's needle) leaf fiber cord, invasive Caesarweed (Urena lobata L.) bark cord, Heartleaf Sida (Sida cordifolia) bark cord, and green Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) stem strip cord. For an invasive, Snake plant leaf fiber cord or Bowstring plant (Sansevieria trifasciata). I have also used wild Hibiscus bark cord to good success with wild Hibiscus board and spindle. I have used other natural plant fiber cords and some better than others when either dry or green but these five or six above are the best in strength and abrasion resistance.
@@wildernessstrong6131 I have something like 28 videos on my channel dealing with cordage and the firebow. Also flint and steel videos, solar fire, and the fire roll method, among wild edibles and other natural use sources for wilderness living skills in Florida.
Hi Wilderness Strong, I really like all the videos, good stuff too improve my outdoor skills. Thanks very much. For me I‘m trying to setup a bowdrill set from scratch pretending a survival situation. In summer is a fire not that vital, but in winter very much and there I start to struggle to make a cordage. Stinging knettle is not really available, Strawberry is very much to woody and dry, aswell is widow! Spruce root is difficult to digging out. I tried also other stuff like Ivy, hazel, what else I could find in Switzerland. Do you have any advices to produce a strong cordage in winter or to separate the fibres properly? Thanks in advance for some comments. Best regards Roman
Another good video from your hands! I have a question about the used technique.......looking ad the video at 5.28 I can see that you're strokes are halve the length of the string/bow. To my opinion it has two downfalls 1) The spindle has twice more "downtime" compared to using the total length, so less efficient? 2) the string wears out two times faster. When using the hole string the wear is over the hole string. So question: can the string hold two time more when making long strokes over the hole string? I look forward to you're next experiment :-) Keep up the good work! Greetz from Holland
have you guys ever tried fireweed cordage? very abundant where i live and seems very tough. I was just wandering if it was worth trying. By the way love the content! Cheers
Very cool video! Thanks for putting this out there. I've been trying to research this. Hard to find info. I'm in San Diego and we have willow and yucca so I'll try those. Have you tried the fresh bark of cottonwood too or only dried? Thanks. Curious about sycamore, it's all over here. Thanks 👍
Hey thanks! Ya we did try green cottonwood, we had good smoke and almost an ember but it broke. I think it’s possible to use if the rest of your equipment is ideal and the cord is thick enough. Willow can do it, and let me know if you get Sycamore to work.
It seems as though to me that you're not using the full length of the string which has the tendency to wear out the string in a small area . Correct me if I'm wrong I'm not very sensitive. I will be honest enough to tell you I use store bought string . However I do know where I can get some of these components to the natural bow string .
I have tried making natural cordage from stringing nettle for bow drill, but it always broke. I'm wondering if it's necessary to dry and re-soak fibers in order to have stronger cordage. (For my cordage I used freshly gathered fibers)
Good question. Yes, definitely dry it first. We avoid using fresh harvested nettle for cordage. We dry it first and then dampen it a bit. Nettle does not need a long soaking. Thanks for the question.
There is a technique that will make your string last much longer . You have to make the front part of your bow dip a little lower and then keep that lower all the way thru the drilling process. This is accomplished by keep the butt of your bow at a level all the way thru the stroke . Try it and just experiment with it in that mode. The string should not rub on itself right at the spindle
Hey brother, check out the Rudiger fire roll, and the video by Boggy Creek Beast about making fire using only natural materials in high humidity and only natural (found) "tools". Try it with the nettles or giant burdock!!
After scraping the thorns off we peeled several strands of fiber to use for cordage. Then we did some scraping to get rid of the outer layer so that it’s more pliable and easier to wrap tightly. After splitting the strands down to the size we want, we’re able to start wrapping and twisting our cord. We tied it off to a limb and twisted each of the two strands clockwise while wrapping the two strands counter clockwise. Keeping tension on the cord. You can also see the basic process from 4:30-7:20 in our Native American Ethnobotany video where we used Willow, but it’s basically the same process. (Except for dealing with thorns of course)
Great question. That’s something we didn’t talk about, but when we’re first breaking in a fresh notch we are usually taking smaller strokes as we’re being careful to not let the spindle pull out of the shallow notch. Once it gets established more we typically take longer strokes, but often we’ve already got our ember by then.
I hear you say a lot of things like "the natives used willow and cottonwood cordage for a lot of the same tasks" Where does this rich knowledge of native american methods come from?
This was very good. Informative no nonsense and providing knowledge that no one I can find is talking about or showing.
Thank you! Really appreciate you watching and commenting.
Was spindle and harth board willow also or bass wood ect
A very inspiring video, you made me go outside and forage some brambles for cordage with my 2,5 year old! Keep up the great work!
So great to hear!
Just some advice - you would probably get a strong cordage by making a thinner two strand cord and then doubling it to make it a four strand cord. If you made it long enough you could double that to make an eight stranded cordage. That would be much stronger than a thick two stranded cordage.
Thanks for that thought. We do have experience with what you’re describing and it makes very strong cordage. That would make a great future video topic. This video was more geared towards just comparing the strength of the plants and trees around us to see which was the most durable. Thanks for sharing.
Good video. When using natural cordage I always wrap the string around the spindle twice to eliminate the string rubbing against itself. Also, our natural tendency is to use smaller sections of string as we speed up. I try to use the entire length of the bow when sawing to distribute the wear accordingly. 100 different people do things 100 different ways….
Great points to make , thanks buddy !
Dogbane is my current favorite for natural bow drill cordage. I have gotten several embers before breakage don't remember the count off hand. Haven't tried nettle or blackberry. I'll be on the watch for them.
Excellent series, thanks! Would love a video of specifics of making the cordage.
We’re on it. We have some future plans for more detailed cordage projects for sure. Glad you liked the Fire Series.
How is it that a year after these videos were made that I’m just now seeing your videos!!! What a awesome collection of knowledge! Thank you so much and keep up the great work!
Thanks! That is very much appreciated.
Yes , ain't it so !
my area has plenty of Blackberry but haven't run across any stinging thistle, good info. I really need to practice making cordage
Great stuff guys 🤠
Glad you liked it! Thanks for watching.
Nice. I will make willow cordage for my bowdrill.
Good choice. We’ve had some good success with Willow. Would love to hear how many attempts it gives you before breaking.
@@wildernessstrong6131 I made some from reed/grass last summer. I think it held a good couple of times, im not sure. I will be sure to notify how strong the willow is, probably early spring/summer as they seem brittlw now in the snow. Found some that pealed well, just have to find more to dry for my thick rope.
Good!
Yep!! Best way to rest cordage is to see if it will bowdrill
love this video, and the channel, great research . really enjoy using natural cordage for bow drill 👍🔥
i think the cords might b breaking because if u hold the bow horizontal to the ground, the string will rub on itself at the twist area on the spindle. in order to avoid that u have to hold the bow at an angle to the ground so the string spirals around the spindle and doesnt touch itself or rub against itself
yeah it's true. but it will be difficult if u have short spindle.
@@Wakwaw796 check out huntprimitive he goes deep on the whole shabang
I've been AMAZED at how many times I have heard stinging nettle being praised for different reasons! I don't know if it is the same thing or not, but I have stinging nettle growing wild in my yard, and I use gloves, and a weed wacker, get rid of it! I CAN NOT touch it AT ALL, without burning me!!! 😭🤬
Enjoying your works as always. TY. I know this is an older video, but maybe you'll see this and reply... Some time ago I remember seeing somewhere that a short winch was created by soaking a teeshirt and twisting it with branch. Supposedly the water strengthened the cotton fibers and considerable pull was achieved as the shirt twisted., balled and got shorter. But the fibers held... I wish I could remember where I saw it... Anyways, watching some of the cordage fail in this video I am wondering if you guys have ever tried soaking the cord before attempting the bow drill?
One 4 that al 🔥 gor 🔥 ithm
For the firebow here in Florida I use from best to still good, Pawpaw (Asimina) bark cord, Yucca filamentosa (Adam's needle) leaf fiber cord, invasive Caesarweed (Urena lobata L.) bark cord, Heartleaf Sida (Sida cordifolia) bark cord, and green Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) stem strip cord. For an invasive, Snake plant leaf fiber cord or Bowstring plant (Sansevieria trifasciata). I have also used wild Hibiscus bark cord to good success with wild Hibiscus board and spindle. I have used other natural plant fiber cords and some better than others when either dry or green but these five or six above are the best in strength and abrasion resistance.
Great info, thank you!
@@wildernessstrong6131 I have something like 28 videos on my channel dealing with cordage and the firebow. Also flint and steel videos, solar fire, and the fire roll method, among wild edibles and other natural use sources for wilderness living skills in Florida.
Hi Wilderness Strong, I really like all the videos, good stuff too improve my outdoor skills. Thanks very much. For me I‘m trying to setup a bowdrill set from scratch pretending a survival situation. In summer is a fire not that vital, but in winter very much and there I start to struggle to make a cordage. Stinging knettle is not really available, Strawberry is very much to woody and dry, aswell is widow! Spruce root is difficult to digging out. I tried also other stuff like Ivy, hazel, what else I could find in Switzerland. Do you have any advices to produce a strong cordage in winter or to separate the fibres properly? Thanks in advance for some comments. Best regards Roman
Another good video from your hands!
I have a question about the used technique.......looking ad the video at 5.28 I can see that you're strokes are halve the length of the string/bow. To my opinion it has two downfalls
1) The spindle has twice more "downtime" compared to using the total length, so less efficient?
2) the string wears out two times faster. When using the hole string the wear is over the hole string.
So question: can the string hold two time more when making long strokes over the hole string?
I look forward to you're next experiment :-)
Keep up the good work!
Greetz from Holland
have you guys ever tried fireweed cordage? very abundant where i live and seems very tough. I was just wandering if it was worth trying.
By the way love the content!
Cheers
Very cool video! Thanks for putting this out there. I've been trying to research this. Hard to find info. I'm in San Diego and we have willow and yucca so I'll try those. Have you tried the fresh bark of cottonwood too or only dried? Thanks. Curious about sycamore, it's all over here. Thanks 👍
Hey thanks! Ya we did try green cottonwood, we had good smoke and almost an ember but it broke. I think it’s possible to use if the rest of your equipment is ideal and the cord is thick enough. Willow can do it, and let me know if you get Sycamore to work.
It seems as though to me that you're not using the full length of the string which has the tendency to wear out the string in a small area . Correct me if I'm wrong I'm not very sensitive. I will be honest enough to tell you I use store bought string . However I do know where I can get some of these components to the natural bow string .
I have tried making natural cordage from stringing nettle for bow drill, but it always broke. I'm wondering if it's necessary to dry and re-soak fibers in order to have stronger cordage. (For my cordage I used freshly gathered fibers)
Good question. Yes, definitely dry it first. We avoid using fresh harvested nettle for cordage. We dry it first and then dampen it a bit. Nettle does not need a long soaking. Thanks for the question.
There is a technique that will make your string last much longer . You have to make the front part of your bow dip a little lower and then keep that lower all the way thru the drilling process. This is accomplished by keep the butt of your bow at a level all the way thru the stroke . Try it and just experiment with it in that mode. The string should not rub on itself right at the spindle
Hey brother, check out the Rudiger fire roll, and the video by Boggy Creek Beast about making fire using only natural materials in high humidity and only natural (found) "tools". Try it with the nettles or giant burdock!!
Ok thanks for the recommendation.
How did you make the blackberry cordage
After scraping the thorns off we peeled several strands of fiber to use for cordage. Then we did some scraping to get rid of the outer layer so that it’s more pliable and easier to wrap tightly. After splitting the strands down to the size we want, we’re able to start wrapping and twisting our cord. We tied it off to a limb and twisted each of the two strands clockwise while wrapping the two strands counter clockwise. Keeping tension on the cord.
You can also see the basic process from 4:30-7:20 in our Native American Ethnobotany video where we used Willow, but it’s basically the same process. (Except for dealing with thorns of course)
@@wildernessstrong6131 Thanks, I was just wondering because I've seen people braid blackberry into rope using the inner parts of the shoots.
👍🔥
You seem to only use half the bow stroke. Is there a reason for that?
Great question. That’s something we didn’t talk about, but when we’re first breaking in a fresh notch we are usually taking smaller strokes as we’re being careful to not let the spindle pull out of the shallow notch. Once it gets established more we typically take longer strokes, but often we’ve already got our ember by then.
@@wildernessstrong6131 Great information. Appreciate the response. Thank you
I hear you say a lot of things like "the natives used willow and cottonwood cordage for a lot of the same tasks"
Where does this rich knowledge of native american methods come from?
Just many decades of obsessive study and practice.
Do you guys have a Instagram page or only on TH-cam
Just TH-cam for now. Other platforms eventually…