View Full Version : Fire--From a Can of Coke and a Chocolate Bar
While doing a Google search for soda can stove instructions tonight (and I've already found just about everything that could be needed for that on Whiteblaze.net), I discovered the following link:
http://www.trackertrail.com/survival/fire/cokeandchocolatebar/
The premise sounds interesting, but I have to say that I'm somewhat dubious. Even if it's a joke site (and I'm not sure that it is), it seems to me that making fire from a polished Coke can, even if the directions were followed exactly as described would require a tremendous amount of direct sunlight without any cloud cover or haze whatsoever. Also, the site claims that:
it really does work---there are emails at the bottom of this page verifying this
don't prove anything unless you take a few anonymous emails seriously. :rolleyes:
Otherwise, it seems like an awful lot of work for very little payoff. I'm not sure why this would be practical--even if you had a Hershey bar and a Coke handy--instead of using more readily available means like a cheap cigarette lighter or even waterproof matches.
I decided to post this to see what the consensus among hikers would be. If you have any thoughts, please comment.
NOTE: this post is not intended to open another flame war between alcohol stove users vs. canister stove users, or gearheads vs. non-gearheads. I just thought it was funny and thought other WBers might enjoy it.
Let's see.
What hiker wants to spend 1/2 hour at the end of a day polishing the bottom of a coke can?
What makes you think that the sun will still be shinning brightly at the end of the day?
Finally, the first question a backpacker asks is what is the weight saving for using a coke can and chocolate bar vs carrying a lighter?
RedneckRye
01-28-2006, 09:54
"don't prove anything unless you take a few anonymous emails seriously." - wyclif
Anonymous emails?? Isn't that pretty much what is going on here all of the time??:-?
Also, the chocolate bar will get eaten long before it gets used to make a stove.
mweinstone
01-28-2006, 17:52
to produce fire with nothing but the human body is possible.their are many ways. hair as tinder,and your leg bones chewed off and rubbed together.the cornia makes an excelent lens.and by removing fillings and rolling wire,..a crude tesla coil can be made,providing one with all the free electricity needed to make fire.and by mixing the hydocloric acids from the stomach with the saline fluid surrounding the brain,it is possible to get a thermochemical fire smoldering.
Hikes in Rain
01-28-2006, 18:01
Wouldn't it be easier to just carry a Bic??
sleepwalker
01-28-2006, 18:20
I can see how it might be a handy tip in a survival situation. Say the world ends and you are one of the few survivors wandering around the woods right next to the highway where you may find a discarded can on the shoulder. Anyhow, I'm a sucker for things like this so I'm trying it as we speak.
I'm not a true masochist so I opted for some whitening toothpaste as the polishing agent. Fast-forward: I'm 2 hours into the laborious task and the can is looking decidedly more luminous. But a quick test on my wifes hand has produced only a mild warming sensation. I think I will see this thing to fruition, but I've already decided it's not worth trying in a real life scenario. I'd rather spend my time looking for spark producing stones. I will keep you informed as to whether or not I'm able to produce any pyrotechnics although you may need to check back in a week. Sleepwalker
ok, so i read this and tried it but used toothpaste to polish the can. It was late afternoon and i didnt want to start a fire in the driveway today, but i was able to focus the light on my finger and it got to hot to hold my finger there. i believe this could work. A lot of work, but a fun trick. I could see cutting 2 cans in half, doing the more intense polishing that is also on the site, putting the cans together and having tinder and matches inside it to keep them dry. Could probably win some bets at camp with this on on a zero day.
ok, so i read this and tried it but used toothpaste to polish the can. It was late afternoon and i didnt want to start a fire in the driveway today, but i was able to focus the light on my finger and it got to hot to hold my finger there. i believe this could work. A lot of work, but a fun trick. I could see cutting 2 cans in half, doing the more intense polishing that is also on the site, putting the cans together and having tinder and matches inside it to keep them dry. Could probably win some bets at camp with this on on a zero day.
I am thinking I remebr last week seeing an episode of Mythbusters that was all about starting fire-and the myths. And they did start a fire with a polished can.
I'll have to go back on my tivo and find it.....
I was at a conference in Vegas this past week and the MythBuster guys where there talking about a product they've used on their shows (SolidWorks) to help them out.
One of the topics was a rocket propelled by a solid fuel commonly found at supermarkets and refrigerators around the nation - SALAMI. I have NOT seen the episode but after hearing these two guys talk about it I am 100% convinced that I will never doubt a myth until I try it or see, IN PERSON, someone else try it. MythBusters apparently made a rocket using salami as the "solid rocket fuel"... "the first rocket exploded" (amazing that a food caused a massive enough of a force to break a MythBuster assembly). They then redesigned the fuel enclosure using the aforementioned SolidWorks (3D Design Program) to fix the problem. The rocket worked in the end and the lesson was learned...try it and see.
-Riddick
hammock engineer
01-29-2006, 01:39
I saw the MythBuster's everyone is talking about. They did start a fire using a pop can that was polished using a candy bar. They also started one using a ice ball to focus light and a battery. Pretty interesting stuff.
i was touring olympia, greece, the site of first olympic games, about 20 years ago... from what i understood, that sort of convex mirror thing was how they started the olympic fire that burned at their games back then... it was mounted on this huge alter, was estimated to be a few feet across, and was probably made of copper. so i guess it could work... still, a Bic is lighter and faster...
Mythbusters-my dream job.
Let's see.
What hiker wants to spend 1/2 hour at the end of a day polishing the bottom of a coke can?........
More like a 1/2 day, using professional abrasive compounds, and it probably still want work.
http://trackertrail.com/index.html
This site is really cool. Check out the fire from ice lessons too.
Use a small piece of steel wool. OOOO is the finest for the best shine, looks like chrome plated. Can get it almost mirror finish in a couple of minutes. You can also use a Brillo pad but doesn't get quite as polished.
LostInSpace
01-29-2006, 17:52
Use a small piece of steel wool. OOOO is the finest for the best shine, looks like chrome plated. Can get it almost mirror finish in a couple of minutes. You can also use a Brillo pad but doesn't get quite as polished.
0000 steel wool also makes a great fire stater.
The first non-match fire starter we teach the kids to use is steel wool and a 9 volt battery. Just touch the battery end to the steel wool, give a little rub and blow. Poof, up flashes the steel wool. Do i sound like too much of a pyro?
I think I'd come out better swapping a can of coke and a candy bar for a lighter or at least a box of matches.
What a bunch of killjoys! I love this stuff. That site is really cool. Check out the pictures of the snow shelters, too.
DragonStar
04-03-2008, 11:11
I realize that this thread is long dead, but that's the beauty of the Internet... :)
Anyway, for those that use soda/beer can stoves such as Mark Jurey's penny alcohol stove (www.csun.edu/~mjurey/penny.html), this is a useful mod. In fact I suggested it to him recently and it's officially in the directions. ;)
As for chocolate, only use that in desperation. A dremel with a 1" round polishing felt wheel and a little of the red dremel polishing compound works wonders. At first I thought speed and pressure were the key, but that will leave minute gouges in the can. Low speed and pressure is second best, but the best results I got were using moderate speed and light pressure. Just kiss the surface of the can in a back-and-forth motion ("Show me... paint the fence. Show me side-to-side! show!") There is still a slight "venetian blinds" patterns, but the can bottom will work in a pinch, theoretically.
I tried it after a three-day rain on a moderately cloudy day with a stiff breeze that blew the tinder around. I used a dry-ish willow leaf that was the shape of spearmint. A straw or reed might also work. You basically don't want to block the sun, so use something thin.
Partial sun works eventually, but I got almost immediate results in the brief spans between clouds when the sun warmed my face a bit. In those conditions, the leaf started charring immediately.
The problem I had translating this to fire was that I had to hold the can bottom about 18" off the ground to get the correct position. I was burning leaves all day right down to the stem. But the moment the leaf left the hot spot, the charring ceased and the red hot edges faded to ash.
I will try it next with a cotton ball soaked in petroleum jelly, which once caught stays lit, but I can't comment on that yet.
If you're carrying around a can bottom anyway, why not polish it just in case?
Any challenge like this is great experience for getting to know your tinder and kindling better. Besides, way cool think to do on a sunny day.
tina.anderson
04-03-2008, 13:55
Yeah this does sound interesting. I can't wait to try it.
I believe Les Stroud also used this method in an episode of survivor man.
Wedge1173
04-03-2008, 16:32
I saw the Survivorman episode where he did this.
kayak karl
04-03-2008, 20:29
if you can't get it hot enough to start a fire, you could at least cook a snail:D
PS tooth paste or ketchup make good polishes
hootyhoo
04-03-2008, 20:51
:banana:banana:banana:banana:banana
That would be cool.