did you know there’s a way to start a
fire by squishing air in this project
we’re building a tool that does exactly
that and with a little bit of
resourcefulness we can make this for
under a buck
[Music]
the materials for this project cost me
less than a dollar I got these pieces of
scrap acrylic for free and besides those
all I’m going to need are a couple of
rubber o-rings a one and a half inch
bolt and this handle I got off a
lawnmower this piece of clear acrylic
rod fits perfectly into this tube so I’m
ready to form the piston I’ll use a ten
inch piece of rod and secure it into the
Chuck of my drill press a hacksaw is my
tool of choice for cutting a groove in
the plastic rod and with a bit of
guesswork I’ve made it just big enough
to fit this o-ring securely leaving the
rubber edges slightly wider than the rod
next I’ll place the rod in a bench vise
protected with a terry cloth and when
it’s secured use a 3/16 drill bit to cut
a hole right through the side it’s a
clean cut and the spacing is about
quarter inch from the o-ring so I’ll
proceed to my chop saw and make a cut
just barely touching the top of the hole
this has just created a claw that will
hold my tender it’s time to cut these
pieces to length so I’ll mark them at 6
inches and cut them together while I’m
here I may as well cut an inch off the
tubing and a small square piece that
I’ll use in a minute okay I’ve got all
my pieces cut to length so now I’ll
remove the protective paper from this
little square and carefully cement it to
one end of the tubing this will need to
be an airtight seal and I’m hoping this
weight on top will help with that
setting I can get back to making the
piston this time I’m using my drill
press and a quarter inch bit to drill a
hole down the inside of the rod my goal
is to get the hole as centered as I can
and when it’s roughly one and a quarter
inches deep it can be transferred back
to my bench vise for tapping this is a
5/16 coarse thread tap and I’m using it
because it matches the threads on this
bolt to make this handle I carefully use
my vise and a 1/2 inch drill bit to
hollow out the center which made a large
cavity that I’ll be using later I
threaded this hex bolt all the way in
and then secured it tightly using a pair
of pliers you can see the handle and the
rod thread perfectly together and will
just need to be tightened by hand a
little acrylic cement is applied to the
rod near the handle then the one-inch
piece of tubing is added and cemented in
place by dripping glue into the gaps
this piece is to help reinforce the area
where the handle meets the rod that’s
setting and it looks like the tubing is
cured enough to knock down the base on
my belt sander
just a minute of sanding and the base is
rounded and looking much better
to help it cure airtight I’ll clap it
together and leave it overnight to
finish off the piston all I need to do
is slide the other o-ring into place
and this will help cushion the acrylic
pieces from impact with each other as
well as create a slight gap between the
tinder claw and the chamber base a
little bit of lubrication is added to
the o-ring and this $1 fire piston is
looking awesome I even found a little
cap that fits perfectly into the handle
I had enough material to make another
piston I’m gonna test the small one
first using some char cloth I made in a
previous video I don’t need very much
and this little piece should work fine
when that’s rolled up and placed in the
grips of the tinder claw I’ll gently
insert the rod into the chamber until
the o-ring presses inside then with one
swift downward stroke I’ve got ignition
and my tinder is burning I’ll try that
again
and this attempt was just as successful
by compressing the air quickly enough
the temperature shoots up hundreds of
degrees Celsius in a fraction of a
second enough to ignite char cloth and
other types of tinder into burning
embers the cavity in the piston handle
is perfect for storing some char cloth
and the cap will hold it in place to see
if this will work out in the woods I’ve
readied a tinder bundle made from dry
grass and when my fuel is loaded I’ll
give the piston a whack there it is I’ve
instantly got a glowing Ember and using
a piece of grass to transfer it into the
nest works pretty well the heat is
building and this little bundle almost
explosively bursts into flames that
happened pretty fast and before I burned
myself I better get this over to the
fire pit this bundle is a little damp so
I’m adding a piece of char cloth inside
the nest to help it develop a flame and
there it is and it’s taking off fast
yikes I’ve been getting ignition on
nearly every stroke and this is proving
to be an easy and fairly reliable way to
start a fire without matches some people
say this little tool was commonly used
in the 1800s and was the inspiration
behind the diesel engine with this tube
being completely see-through it’s
exciting to witness the actual ignition
point of my fuels and for under $1 it
was definitely a project worth the
investment that’s another item for my
emergency kit and a great way to see
science in action if you liked this
project perhaps you’ll like some of my
others check them out at the king of
random calm
you
fire by squishing air in this project
we’re building a tool that does exactly
that and with a little bit of
resourcefulness we can make this for
under a buck
[Music]
the materials for this project cost me
less than a dollar I got these pieces of
scrap acrylic for free and besides those
all I’m going to need are a couple of
rubber o-rings a one and a half inch
bolt and this handle I got off a
lawnmower this piece of clear acrylic
rod fits perfectly into this tube so I’m
ready to form the piston I’ll use a ten
inch piece of rod and secure it into the
Chuck of my drill press a hacksaw is my
tool of choice for cutting a groove in
the plastic rod and with a bit of
guesswork I’ve made it just big enough
to fit this o-ring securely leaving the
rubber edges slightly wider than the rod
next I’ll place the rod in a bench vise
protected with a terry cloth and when
it’s secured use a 3/16 drill bit to cut
a hole right through the side it’s a
clean cut and the spacing is about
quarter inch from the o-ring so I’ll
proceed to my chop saw and make a cut
just barely touching the top of the hole
this has just created a claw that will
hold my tender it’s time to cut these
pieces to length so I’ll mark them at 6
inches and cut them together while I’m
here I may as well cut an inch off the
tubing and a small square piece that
I’ll use in a minute okay I’ve got all
my pieces cut to length so now I’ll
remove the protective paper from this
little square and carefully cement it to
one end of the tubing this will need to
be an airtight seal and I’m hoping this
weight on top will help with that
setting I can get back to making the
piston this time I’m using my drill
press and a quarter inch bit to drill a
hole down the inside of the rod my goal
is to get the hole as centered as I can
and when it’s roughly one and a quarter
inches deep it can be transferred back
to my bench vise for tapping this is a
5/16 coarse thread tap and I’m using it
because it matches the threads on this
bolt to make this handle I carefully use
my vise and a 1/2 inch drill bit to
hollow out the center which made a large
cavity that I’ll be using later I
threaded this hex bolt all the way in
and then secured it tightly using a pair
of pliers you can see the handle and the
rod thread perfectly together and will
just need to be tightened by hand a
little acrylic cement is applied to the
rod near the handle then the one-inch
piece of tubing is added and cemented in
place by dripping glue into the gaps
this piece is to help reinforce the area
where the handle meets the rod that’s
setting and it looks like the tubing is
cured enough to knock down the base on
my belt sander
just a minute of sanding and the base is
rounded and looking much better
to help it cure airtight I’ll clap it
together and leave it overnight to
finish off the piston all I need to do
is slide the other o-ring into place
and this will help cushion the acrylic
pieces from impact with each other as
well as create a slight gap between the
tinder claw and the chamber base a
little bit of lubrication is added to
the o-ring and this $1 fire piston is
looking awesome I even found a little
cap that fits perfectly into the handle
I had enough material to make another
piston I’m gonna test the small one
first using some char cloth I made in a
previous video I don’t need very much
and this little piece should work fine
when that’s rolled up and placed in the
grips of the tinder claw I’ll gently
insert the rod into the chamber until
the o-ring presses inside then with one
swift downward stroke I’ve got ignition
and my tinder is burning I’ll try that
again
and this attempt was just as successful
by compressing the air quickly enough
the temperature shoots up hundreds of
degrees Celsius in a fraction of a
second enough to ignite char cloth and
other types of tinder into burning
embers the cavity in the piston handle
is perfect for storing some char cloth
and the cap will hold it in place to see
if this will work out in the woods I’ve
readied a tinder bundle made from dry
grass and when my fuel is loaded I’ll
give the piston a whack there it is I’ve
instantly got a glowing Ember and using
a piece of grass to transfer it into the
nest works pretty well the heat is
building and this little bundle almost
explosively bursts into flames that
happened pretty fast and before I burned
myself I better get this over to the
fire pit this bundle is a little damp so
I’m adding a piece of char cloth inside
the nest to help it develop a flame and
there it is and it’s taking off fast
yikes I’ve been getting ignition on
nearly every stroke and this is proving
to be an easy and fairly reliable way to
start a fire without matches some people
say this little tool was commonly used
in the 1800s and was the inspiration
behind the diesel engine with this tube
being completely see-through it’s
exciting to witness the actual ignition
point of my fuels and for under $1 it
was definitely a project worth the
investment that’s another item for my
emergency kit and a great way to see
science in action if you liked this
project perhaps you’ll like some of my
others check them out at the king of
random calm
you
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