Making Tar from Fatwood - Natural Waterproofing

Making fatwood tar. This tar extracted from Douglas fir fatwood is an incredible waterproofing material that I’ve taken to using on my arrows to keep them from coming apart in the rain. I first started using this stuff over nettles fibers, but now that I’ve been playing with deer sinew, it’s even more valuable as it is much more susceptible to moisture, and it rains a lot here. This sticky goo has been used for hundreds if not thousands of years to waterproof everything from tools and roofs to the British Navy, and it played a huge role in society before the age of petrochemicals.
If you’ve heard the terms “tarred and feathered” or “pitch black”; this is what they are referring to.
The basic idea here is to extract the resin from thin chunks of fatwood using the heat from a fire.
I should start out by saying that this would be much easier with something like a paint can with a fitted metal lid (be sure to poke a hole in it first); but I didn’t have one available and have had success using a big coffee can and aluminum foil, so that’s what I used today.
There is a similar method of extraction using two cans, with one set above the other with a hole in the bottom, but this one is a bit simpler and uses only a single can with a couple of tins in the bottom to keep the charred chunks out of the tar.
I buried the can by the creek and built a fire around it and left it to burn for a couple of hours while I wandered around with the pup. Unfortunately, the shifting fire busted the aluminum foil and I assumed that the entire batch had burned of. The can was full of smoldering ashes so I used some moss and a big flat rock to snuff it out and was surprised to find that I had several ounces of beautiful tar at the bottom.
I’ll share some more primitive extraction methods at some point, but this way is hard to beat for efficiency.
How long and hot you cook it will determine how it sets up when it’s cool. If you kept it relatively cool during the extraction, it will remain a viscous liquid, but if you allow it to boil off the volatile turpenes you end up with a material that sets up hard and isn’t tacky; which is what I prefer for waterproofing fibers on arrows, but the runny stuff can be great for applying to wood; especially if mixed with turpentine or alcohol prior to application.
This might seem like more work than its worth but the final product beats tree sap for my purposes. When heated it becomes very thin and runny, so I can apply a very light coat to waterproof fibers. It also makes amazing pitch glue when mixed with charcoal, but I prefer to save this stuff for waterproofing and use the sap from trees for glue.
The hatchet I used for this project was the excellent little Gibson Axe from ESEE knives. The foreshaft that gets covered with tar at the end of the video is red osier dogwood with a hand ground slate point, secured with pitch glue and deer sinew.

[@annashepard6337]

Man digging hole....Doggo says, "no, do it like this!"...LOL

[@mr.hopper3874]

I wish my dog would help me out like that

[@mattfufu385]

That doggo is a good boi

That dog has some superior skills.

[@mikeemmons1079]

"This is taking FOREVER, one side, pinkie!"

[@krysc3278]

"You fool human, a hole is not made like that, move and learn!"

[@makerofmanythings8447]

I had a WONDERFUL dog like that, her name was Katiebear, she would dig holes for me, help me pull roots up, help pick up sticks before mowing, we REALLY ENJOYED our time together. She was a Golden rottweiler, her birthday was December 1, 2000, she died of old age on her 15th birthday. She died in my arms. She was the best dog ever. We went traveling together all over the USA multiple times. I still talk about her daily, I can't believe it's coming up on 6 years she's been gone, she's buried under a beautiful live oak. I will never forget my wonderful friend.😔

[@mvictorbm]

Seems like she had a wonderful life, I'm happy that she found a friend to live her adventures with. Letting her rest by a wonderful oak is just an amazing thing. Reminds me of the eternal cycle of life: the matter perishes to allow life to go on.

[@makerofmanythings8447]

@@mvictorbm That was my thoughts on putting her under the beautiful oak tree.

[@mayankmeer9359]

🙏🙏🙏

[@sbntony8357]

Me the Same Story like you. But my Dog live just -12- Years . R.i.P .the name of my Dog was = Lady = she also Golden Retriever .this is the most Loyal Dog I ever see . 👍❤️

[@mrflufay5236]

Rip katiebear what a wonderful pup

[@Just_Chuck_It]

Even the dog bushcrafts.

[@nwprimate6416]

👍

[@Simple_potatofarner]

The dogs are getting smarter.

[@quijybojanklebits8750]

Dogs are man's best friend and will do what their masters do. I grew up with a pack of Australien Shepards and they got into every thing in did (i was a high level competitive gymnast), i even had a dog that flipped

[@Killmeplease69420]

Quijybo Janklebits I can’t tell if the grew up with wild Australian Shepard’s is a joke

[@Killmeplease69420]

O

[@eihwvz]

Came for the natural waterproofing, stayed for the BESTEST AND MOST HELPFUL BOY

[@labrat7357]

I like it at 1.15 where the dog says"that's not how you dig a hole, get out of the way and let an experienced hole digger do some digging, boyo"

[@lilfrancis4428]

como una mente canina de netflix lo entiende jaja

[@anythingandnothing1996]

1:15 not 1.15

[@lilfrancis4428]

@@anythingandnothing1996 jajaja

[@dbropx3547]

@@anythingandnothing1996 welcome to the international world where two thousand and a half can be 2,000.5 or 2.000,5

[@mikeemmons1079]

I am really glad you let your human assistant [intern?] do the bits with fire. I wouldnt want anything to happen to that beautiful coat. 15/10 more dogs should post how to vids.

[@hitindahead]

Your dog gave me the biggest smile of my day. Such a good boy.

[@ridebadger]

Beginning to suspect the dog ate his house. Now he lives in the wilderness.

[@PascalSWE]

If you dig another, smaller hole inside your hole and put a smaller jar under the one containing the fatwood (also puncture the bottom of the bigger jar from the inside) you'll have an easier time cleaning up the tar!

[@matthewklingler6186]

Wow that's actually really smart

[@davidharvey5672]

Good to see you and your assistant again.

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks man! :) 👍

[@Cynthia_Cantrell]

Dog: You call that digging?! Hold my beer.

[@82trooper50]

I think it's safe to say that the dog stole the show!

[@nwprimate6416]

Agreed!

[@mannox775]

He protect He attack But most importantly he dig hole

[@2speechless608]

MAN N OX I see what you were trying to do but unfortunelity it didn’t rhyme

[@mannox775]

@@2speechless608 yes that's the irony

[@2speechless608]

MAN N OX See No ironi in it but you do you

[@mannox775]

@@2speechless608 your name speechless makes sense giving you can speak English

[@2speechless608]

MAN N OX Not trying to spark an argument here bro, and my autocorrect keeps fucking my words up

[@a1d0t6]

I just realized that this is basically asmr

[@rivsol]

90% of the comments here are about the dog doing his work, and I’m not even complaining

[@rivsol]

PROTO UNIT bragging what?

[@teabaggervance8]

Braggart

[@Far-North-Bushcraft-Survival]

Awesome and informative as always. Good "seeing" ya again.

[@nwprimate6416]

Always great to hear from you my friend. Thanks for watching. :)

[@angelll6781]

@@nwprimate6416 лома

[@mihaip2006]

@@nwprimate6416 P 90

[@mihaip2006]

@@nwprimate6416 90

[@dirkbergstrom9751]

VERY useful skill. Seal bindings, patch a canoe, patch a pack, seal a hole in your boots, dilute then use to strengthen cordage, seal a vessel for holding water, waterproof a tin or box,... I wonder if char cloth could be held over that steam (vapourized turpentine really) in such a way as to improve it.

[@tallcedars2310]

@@QuantumPyrite_88.9 Soap maker here. What do you like about it?

[@tallcedars2310]

@@QuantumPyrite_88.9 Am getting away from adding commercial proucts and this sounds like the way to go, the more primitive the better, thanks!

[@tallcedars2310]

@UCL2zJbYJTZlyZlHj6aRj9xA Sounds like you are a seasoned soap maker, good to chat with you. Am aiming to go as primitive as possible so ears are always open to natural materials to use. Have yet to try the leaching method. So far have made lye once with the ashes on the wood stove, but it's powerful stuff. About to make the first batch of soap with it but still can't find the homemade lye to lard ratio yet. Pine needle & cone decoctions, will look into that. Been getting back to nature for awhile now and always look forward to new methods to live the good life.

[@nwprimate6416]

I'm not sure but that's a cool idea! 👍

[@mob2244]

I don’t remember the name of the stuff he made in this video but we get a lot of it in our wood burner as residue and it’s highly flammable special on hot fires it’s actually how chimney fires start anyways I don’t know if that would be a problem

[@mikehopper9516]

Very nicely done.. I never thought of doing it that way...Thank you!

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks Mike!

[@PatTheRiot]

I dead ass thought he was going to harpoon that bird on the water rock to prove the concept. Now Im stuck between a let down and some sort of happiness for nature. Which makes me think, dayum youtube did it again, another bushcraft video I never asked for.

[@leonardmilcin7798]

Your companion definitely wants to be helpful.

[@thehawk35]

If you dig a second hole under the fire with a metal pot in it, and put a small hole in the bottom of your main burn chamber you can capture the tar directly in that.

That dog is the frigging man!

[@karldepina8658]

That doggo is a digging machine. Love it!

[@andylewisbushcraft38]

How can 69 people give this a thumbs down?!! Great video, really enjoyed it, thumbs up from me!

[@WayneTheSeine]

Awesome to see you on again. Man.... that dog ain't right.....in the hade. :) Pine pitch is some awesome stuff...love the smell of it. Great job. BTW....I missed Luca too...where is he?

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks buddy! 👍

[@dirkbergstrom9751]

Just a thought... I would appreciate you doing a vid on using ashed tinder and the "Rudiger Roll"? David West channel has extensive experiments with this fire starting method, but haven't seen anyone just split a small dry log, smooth the two faces, then use ashed cotton (or better, cotton with rust), to produce a fire roll with the Rudiger method. Would also like to see the effects you get in your char tin by adding ash and rust as sources of oxygen.

[@nwprimate6416]

I have played around with it, but right now it's more of a backyard trick to me. It's easy with ashes and cottonballs, but I haven't been able to make it work with materials fresh out of the woods yet. My buddy makes it look easy though...check out his channel... kzbin.info/door/ygf2TOIhXFsoHiiCd2wUMA

[@dirkbergstrom9751]

Thanks for the link!

[@billh9643]

I enjoy watching your helper

[@mariocardenas721]

1:05 Dog: "Man, get out the way. Lemme show you how it's done."

[@burpwarrior78]

Dog: I got you bro... I was made for this!

[@goldengoatfilms9059]

Thanks to you and your video I got to read wonderful dog comments thanks everyone

[@linklesstennessee2078]

Good video NWP

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks LT! :)

[@25centsapop]

That's one good doggo. Goodest of boys

[@JamesSmith-pc6bh]

It would have been nice to have some commentary. Like how to recognize the type of tree to use and why dig a hole etc.

[@riverbrown8935]

What a good doggo

[@avidanglerorobsession6127]

Can I just say you are amazing especially your bow drill skills I practice every morning and I'm nothing compared to you you are very skilled thank you for preserving these primitive skills with are being forgotten

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks man! 👍

[@GardenerTobak]

As soon as I saw this, I thought, this guy has got to be somewhere in the Northwest, probably Oregon. I see fir trees, alders, and cedars. Looks a lot like parts of the Mt Hood National Forest. Then I saw the name of your channel, and confirmed that you are indeed in the Northwest, and probably right near where I grew up, or at least a neighboring state. Well done on the video. Very good instruction. Superbly done. Excellent on showing how to do it.

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks man! I'm up here in Washington State.

[@brianferris1233]

Super informative thank you for sharing have a great year ahead

[@brianferris1233]

I did some research in to canoe making and discovered the recipe for pitch for sealing seams in birch bark canoe making (wax) was added in to pitch process to prevent the pitch from cracking in cold and melting in heat) one learns new things every day.

[@nwprimate6416]

Very cool! :) 👍

[@dukedirtywork620]

Welp my dog loves this channel...Subscribed!

[@bcwoodsman876]

Great video! I didn't even consider that fat wood could be processed like this. Love the hairy shovel too!

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks buddy!

[@guns4funcajanajustin]

Nice pine tar there. So many good uses to use it on.

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks! 👍

[@wurthazsmoke8597]

Brilliantly done mate & a great contribution from lupo as well.. Love the dipper at the end too 👍👍👊

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks buddy!

[@Waldhandwerk]

Very nice! Thanks for sharing! Also cool technique with the striker, thanks my friend! Take care, Sepp

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks buddy! Always great to hear from you.

[@YannsKitchenUK]

Beautiful doggy

[@minimaleffort3466]

i really like the dog

[@johnearhart8811]

Awesome video....more please

[@nwprimate6416]

More coming buddy. 👍

[@megatron82195]

Anyone else waiting for an arrow to come out of nowhere and hit that unsuspecting bird at the end?

[@laviwastaken9845]

Me: 1:07 Omg, get out of the way stupid dog 1:10 That's the best dog a man can have.

[@mr.robinson1982]

Dogs are awesome...Great idea, thanks for sharing your knowledge

[@BURNWOODBUSHCRAFT]

very cool! man you keep on killin it. amazing work.

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks man!

[@BeefT-Sq]

"There is only one fundamental issue in philosophy : the cognitive efficacy of man's mind. " -Ayn Rand-

[@GrumpyGrunt]

Good to see you and Lupo are well up there. That boy is a machine out there with you. I've missed seeing you guys. That was a really nice haul of pitch, too. Be well, friend.

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks buddy! :) 👍

[@wfqsfg]

There is a company in Brunswick, GA that does this on an industrial scale. I saw trucks delivering tree stumps, roots and all, to them. The stump would have the highest sap content. Some days the air smelled like Pine-Sol.

[@ThePrimebeef]

The Labrador is the bulb of my female without the equipment of course

[@sbntony8357]

This Super Smart 🐕 Dog 😂 Do Allmost everything what he see the Boy do ...😁 And the Dog emidiatly follow his Action . If the Boy Cut wood ..nthe Dog Qwecly Run and start Bite the wood .if the Boy was Diggings Hole on the Ground ...nthe 🐕 Dog after him start to Digging on the Ground ..😁 🕺👍 it's Very Funny

[@ArthurMorgan-uz1px]

he passed from the stone age to the steel age and skipped bronze and iron age

[@nwprimate6416]

😆

[@downeastprimitiveskills7688]

I'm saving up a large amount of birch bark to render into oil for the inside treatment of my rebuild cedar plank canoe. Enough to fill a 35 gallon drum, The catch drum will be a gallon paint bucket, I hope the gallon paint bucket will be big enough. Recent research has suggested Neanderthals would render birch bark down to an oil and tar glue just by burning bark in large piles on a big flat rock.

[@nwprimate6416]

That's an awesome project! I hope you'll post it up. I remember seeing that article about the Neanderthals and have some ideas along those lines. :) 👍

[@downeastprimitiveskills7688]

@@nwprimate6416 Waiting for the ground to thaw out. its getting there.

[@pacificbushcraftandfirecra6358]

I would think a hole in the bottom of that can dripping into a bowl beneath would be the better route for catching the drippy black goo of the gods. But you did seem to collect a good bit this way. Lupo is a rock star hole digger! He dug that out in seconds! And the way he went after that fatwood!!! GOOD DOGGGGGG!

[@nwprimate6416]

Yeah buddy! :) 👍

[@davefarnsworth3020]

Nice batch of pine tar. Do you suppose Lupo could be taught to dig up pay dirt?

[@nwprimate6416]

He has the right temperment! 👍

[@Ghostyy8]

Vengo por un poco de todo xd

[@foopadr9076]

This doesn't seem to be enough asfalt for my road.

[@nwprimate6416]

🤣

[@josueganchozo9622]

Quien vino por UPDT

[@andrewcall8961]

Thought you were gonna spear that bird doing squats on that rock.

[@franky01ize]

Lmaoff me too

[@cindykq8086]

Same here.

[@santyrochaok]

Esto es Un Poco De Todo

[@Draiphen]

Esto es un poco de todo

[@cactiman6593]

Is that black gooey stuff a byproduct of the tar making? My big brother said that tar is essentially black smoke

[@mgsharnhorst]

What that dog did to that log, he could easily do that to the siding on your house....or to your sofa when your not looking.

[@cameronflack2254]

Very intuitive of you.

[@Flederratte]

Great video! The tar has a very nice consistancy. It is so cute how your dog helps you and enjoys the project :) Have a nice week.

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks buddy! :) 👍

[@fintchhchois8723]

Спасибо за приятную картинку!)

[@jb0433628]

Good video, actual tar is pretty much impossible to find in any hardware store in canada.

[@danielww9022]

Notice he doesn't use his tool beyond what he needs; if the wood he is chopping is small & weak enough to brake with a kick, he spares his blade the extra work. When in the woods, tools are the only precious metals worth their weight.

[@kungfubear4364]

Thumbs up for the dog

[@bradgarrett7790]

Awesome part to this is when the dog took over the digging

[@aktrapper6126]

Great video, been missing these! While we do have some spruce fatwood up here it is rare and hard to find. We make a similar product from the oils and tar in birch bark. I've bought commercial pine tar when I was a young man to treat the bottoms of my cross country ski's as a sub base before applying wax. Great stuff for sure. I sure get a kick out of your companion, he's a big help for sure.

[@tallcedars2310]

Have been wantig to try this but we live in boreal forest country. Good to hear birch bark will work as well and will give it a try, thank you.

[@nwprimate6416]

Awesome! Always great to hear from you buddy.I tried with birch bark once but it didn't work. Good reminder to try again.

[@danbaldwin9511]

Its much easer to get the pitch and sap to melt down for your tar!

[@mikerogers9711]

You got yourself a Fat Wood Black Lab Retriever AWESOME. I just rescued a 10 month old and she is awesome

[@nwprimate6416]

Great dogs! :) 👍

[@utharkruna1116]

Very interesting

[@elmerfudd5650]

And the dog says, "i can do that too!" :-D How cute!

[@dakillah6018]

yeahhh

[@tophatvideosinc.5858]

D.O.G : the harold of destruction

[@allisonjames2923]

Lol “That’s not how you dig dad. This is how you dig!” “See? I don’t just dig dirt, I can dig trees too”

[@nwprimate6416]

Ha!

[@chiefredwater1965]

Seems like a lot of work for so little tar.... and a lot of tree. I still give it a thumbs up for your work put in and the dog!!

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks. Definitely not super efficient, but a fun experiment.

[@MrRoman-lo6ih]

Great video as always. Question for ya..... 3:35 will you keep the charred wood from inside the can for firestarters?

[@nwprimate6416]

I've tried it before and couldn't get it to take a spark, so I didn't keep this batch. 👍

[@treerat6959]

Are you sure he is a purebred lab looks to have a bit of badger in his lineage lol.

[@nwprimate6416]

So true! 👍

[@magicalhoof7431]

Nice! I love videos which just show... and contain zero talking heads. Like my channel.

[@theritz661]

Glad to hear from you again and thank you

[@nwprimate6416]

Thanks Steve! :) 👍

[@miaouew]

The dog is a prehistoric Smart Tool

[@macDaddy1118]

Not gonna lie, thought you were gonna nail that bird at end with the arrow.

[@sparkselot4092]

when the dog started to "help" digging! doggo says "look what i can do!"

[@veteranobushcraft3604]

😁😁🐶👍

[@nwprimate6416]

👍

[@MERLINnecrofan]

Thats some gorgeous fat wood. I love fat wood. Any wood with lots of fat

[@nwprimate6416]

Doug fir fatwood is some amazing stuff.

[@HaggardOutdoors]

Great idea, I did this with fatwood before and Birch

[@nwprimate6416]

Nice! 👍

[@jeffseaton5193]

Nice video. Your dog cracks me up. Labs are so funny

[@nwprimate6416]

Agreed!

[@mastersaimon]

Dog was the best part in here. :D

[@alfonsobarvecho2280]

Senku from Dr. Stone be like:

[@stephenstanley79]

thanks for sharing.

[@nwprimate6416]

:) 👍

[@brianferris1233]

Your arrowhead is fascinating the Indigenous people here made slate harpoon points for seals, walrus, and swordfish and porpoise. They fashioned slate bird darts (bone points to of course) for hunting geese and ducks and other migratory shorebirds. Your arrowhead reminded me of that but I speak of Maritime Archaic while points in other regions of North America and different times will differ from the Atlantic Canada cultural tools.

[@nwprimate6416]

Awesome! I think you'll like the video I upload shortly. ;)

[@koofdome]

Why's it important for an arrow to get a coating??

[@nwprimate6416]

I live in a very wet place and the tar waterproofs the wrap material to keep it from coming loose.

[@mamertogomez780]

Like por el perrito 👍🏼👌🏼

[@PJ_Grateful]

I bet the dog knows how to do a bowdrill 👍😄

[@nwprimate6416]

He's getting there! 👍😄

[@mattdeighton2206]

What's the sardine can like thing in the bottom of the paint can

[@ES-te3io]

Whereabouts is this? The Pacific Northwest?

[@nwprimate6416]

Good eye! Washington State. :) 👍

[@Allauakbar777]

mans using it for water proofing im using it for a molotov

[@nwprimate6416]

🤣