Char-cloth

in this instructable I wil show you how to make char cloth, char cloth is the product of having the oxygen and hydrogen taken out of the cloth making it pure carbon which does not burn with a flame, it burns as an ember and is very easy to catch on fire, it usually takes about five sparks to start it up, or sooner if you have a magnifying glass

Things you will need:

100% cotton cloth

a tin with a hole in the lid

a pair of tongs

and fire

most people think you need 100% cotton but that is not true, any organic fiber will do, that's how people make lump wood coal, but I do admit that 100% cotton is the easiest to use, you can find it in most t-shirts

find a tin that is air tight with a lid (ex. a paint can), once you have one, poke a hole in the top about 2 to 3 mm. wide make it small but not to small, the hole will act as an escape for the gasses to burn off in the fire creating a vacuum inside the tin

cut the cloth to your desired length, make sure it fits in the tin.

place the cloth inside the tin as best you can, don't over pack it because if you do you will have a difficult time getting the cloth out later

make sure you have something to get the tin out of the fire with safely

once you are ready go ahead and start the fire place the tin inside where it wont get knocked over

once inside the fire after a minute or two, you will notice some smoke and maybe a flame, don't be alarmed, that means its working and the gasses are burning off, once you see that there is no more smoke or fire coming out of the tin then it is ready to be taken out and placed aside.

have a place ready to put the tin, it will be very hot so use the tongs to move it, do not remove the lid right away or it might be ruined, because if a ember is in there when you open the lid the oxygen will rush back in and burn the cloth, so let it cool for 15 minutes with the lid on

once it is cooled and you can touch it you may remove the lid, be careful because the cloth is very fragile, so gently remove the cloth from inside the tin.

once it is removed take a small piece of the cloth and light it with a match, if it burns with am ember and there is no fire then you have done it right

this project is dangerous and involves fire, I am not responsible for anything that may happen, this is for educational purposes only

If you make this project please post a picture and show others how you made it, and feel free to expand on this idea I would love to see your ideas, and we can learn from each other and always be safe.