Fire plough

A fire plough in Vanuatu.

A fire plough (left), as opposed to a hand drill (right).

A fire plough (or fire plow) is a firelighting tool. In its simplest form, it is two sticks rubbed together.^[1] Rubbing produces friction and heat, and eventually an ember.^[2] More advanced are "stick-and-groove" forms, which typically uses a V-shaped base piece of wood, and a "friction stick" as the activator.^[2][3]

The typical fire plough consists of a stick cut to a dull point, and a long piece of wood with a groove cut down its length. The point of the first piece is rubbed quickly against the groove of the second piece in a "plowing" motion, to produce hot dust that then becomes a coal. A split is often made down the length of the grooved piece, so that oxygen can flow freely to the coal/ember. Once hot enough, the coal is introduced to the tinder, more oxygen is added by blowing and the result is ignition.

References

Firelighting
Campfire Bonfire Glossary
Components	Ember Fire triangle Firewood Spark Tinder Wood ash Wood fuel
Topics	Autoignition temperature Combustion Friction fire Minimum ignition energy Smouldering
Early starters	Burning glass (Solar Spark Lighter) Fire piston Fire plough Fire-saw Fire striker Flint Hand drill Bow drill Pump drill
Modern starters	Match Chisquero Black match Electric match Ferrocerium Lighter Blowtorch
Other equipment	Char cloth Feather stick Fire pan Fire pit Fire ring Matchbook Matchbox Punk Tinderbox Torch Chuckmuck
Related articles	Arson Control of fire by early humans Native American use of fire Outdoor cooking Firem'n Chit Pyrolysis Pyromania Survival skills
Fire portal