[TheForge] Fire Steels
Mike Sweany
[email protected]
Fri Jan 3 14:50:01 2003
do a search for "fire pistons" it is the tribal equvilant of the diesel engine. Actually I think the idea for the diesi came from one of these devices.-
[email protected] wrote:The title of the book is GLI ACCIARINI as has been stated. I have
three copies of the book remaining and the price is $22 plus $2
postage.The book has 141 pages and is filled with color photos of
fire steels. The book is in Italian and English.
The book states that man has had control of fire since about
1500BC and the fire steel was an important fire-making device up
until the mid 1850s when matches took over. Some of the
examples shown in the book are truly works of beauty. The
bibliography mentions DECORATIVE ANTIQUE IRONWORK by
D'Allemagne which must show show some "masterpiece" type of
fire steels.
The most interesting fire starting device mentioned in the book is
the one used in Indonesia. Apparently people walked around with
a small air cylinder in their pocket and when they wanted to make
a fire they would put a little "tinder" in the bottom of this air tube
and rapidly compress the piston in the air tube which would
increase the temperature of the air in the cylinder thus igniting the
tinder. The book also mentions that chopped up mushrooms
soaked in saltpetre was a common tinder.
I think a "google" search on "fire steels" turns up some interesting
reading on the subject.
Norm Larson
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