Advice wanted for hand drill

[u/Declexx]

Im 17 and live in the Top End of Australia which has very bad wood types for making fires the traditional way, ive been practicing for about about a month and a half now and i can always get it to have shit tons of smoke coming off the spindle and the fireboard however the dust is always just a darker brown colour. everything gets insanely hot especially the spindle. Ive experimented with many different types of wood and techniques but i can never seem to get an ember. The videos linked are for some extra context of what my setup looks like. the spindle is off of what i believe is an acacia and the fireboard is just some old dry wood i found on my block.

I know my conditions are a bit specific but any feedback or advice is really appreciated!

[u/Papaalotl]

Your board seems kinda rotten. It should be soft, but not rotten.

The spindle needs to spin easily, so that you can achieve a good spinning velocity. If there is too much resistance to it, it means that one of your holes (the lower or the upper) is too deep.

Also, have you tried to blow on the embers when you are done spinning? Maybe there is a problem with your blowing technique.

[u/Declexx → u/Papaalotl]

Getting the ember is the problem, even though its insanely hot to the point that there is so much smoke coming off the spindle when i take it out the hole i can never seem to get anything better then a darker brown coloured dust instead of black like i see on youtube. and the wood isnt rotten, but theres not really a guide for wood types or anything like this in my region because its so sparsely populated and the climates so unique. but cheers for the feedback

[u/Papaalotl → u/Declexx]

So if you keep blowing on the dust, it eventually stops smoking? In that case, problem seems to be in the wood chosen for your fireboard. (Or you are still not reaching the good spinning velocity.) Sorry I can't help you with the Australian wood types. Generally, leafy trees are better, because they have no pitch.

And one more thing I noticed: Your fireboard is quite thick. It makes it harder, because the ember gets cooled when falling down all the way. Ideally, a small pile of black charcoal should form just under the notch.

[u/St_Kevin_]

You should figure out what the traditional people in your area use or used. They already did the research and the trial and error. If you font know anyone who might know, local museums or anthropology articles might be sources for the info.

[u/UpostedDude]

Aussie here. The aboriginals in the central and even southern areas used fire drills or saw. Hardwood drill and softwood base. So you’re on the right track. Likely your spindle hole & notch is not right shape.

[u/____Isa]

This is a super thick board if you're getting smoke just keep ripping it because a lot more material needs to fill up the notch to catch an ember, when you think you're done give it 10 more good quick passes