How to Make Pine Tar at Home (Traditional Method)
Feb 15, 2026
Field Notes Entry 01: Making Pine Tar
By Dylan Strachan — Creator of Woodbrew, Benchlore, and Proven Hands
These entries are part of my personal field notes — lessons learned while working with my hands, testing old methods, and documenting my projects. I keep records like this so useful knowledge isn’t lost, and so others can follow along and try it themselves. *Use these notes at your own risk.
Before modern day film finishes...
People used pine trees.
For most of human history, pine tar was one of the most valuable materials a person could make. It sealed boats, preserved cabins, waterproofed rope, protected fence posts, healed wounds, treated animals, and even kept insects away.
And the wild part?
You can still make it yourself using nothing more than pine wood, a couple metal cans, and a fire.
This week I tried doing exactly that.
First — Sap, Resin, Pitch, and Tar (They Are Not The Same)
These words get used interchangeably, but they are actually different stages of the same substance.
Sap – watery liquid the tree uses to move nutrients. Mostly water. Not what we want.
Resin – the thick sticky material that bleeds out when a pine tree is injured. This is what you collected around tree wounds. This is the useful material.
Pitch – resin that has hardened.
Pine Tar – resin that has been slowly cooked without oxygen until the oils separate from the wood.
The Simple Kiln (Traditional Pine Tar Kiln Design)
Below is the exact setup I used:
What You Need
-
A metal can with a lid
-
A smaller metal can
-
Shovel
-
Fatwood or resin-rich pine
-
Firewood
How It Works
You bury the small can in the ground.
This becomes your collection pot.
Then you punch holes in the bottom of the large can and pack it completely full of fatwood. The lid goes on. *make sure the lid has a small vent hole to avoid creating a dangerous pressure pot.
A fire is built around the outside of the can — not inside it.
You are not burning the wood.
You are cooking it in a low-oxygen environment.
As the wood heats up, the resin inside liquifies and runs downward, dripping through the holes and into the buried can. What’s left behind inside the big can eventually becomes charcoal.
So you end up with two useful products:
• Pine tar
• Charcoal
The wood is basically sweating out its natural oils.
What You’ll See During the Burn
The fire goes through clear stages:
Steam and white smoke (water leaving the wood)
Thick smoke
Smoke begins to thin
Small flames at the vent hole (vapors igniting)
Smoke almost stops
When the smoke nearly disappears, the resin has been driven out.
That’s when it’s done.
Depending on your fire and wood, this usually takes 3–6 hours.
What Is the Liquid Besides the Tar?
When you pull your collection can out, you’ll notice the pine tar is thick and black — but sometimes there’s a thinner liquid mixed in.
That liquid is wood turpentine.
It’s a natural solvent distilled from the same pine resins. Historically it was used for:
paint thinner
medicine rubs
cleaning oils
insect deterrent
You can leave a small amount in your sealer — it actually helps the tar soak deeper into wood — but too much will make the finish slow to cure and smell stronger.
My Pine Tar Wood Sealer (Traditional Outdoor Wood Finish)
Here is the simplest useful recipe I found.
Wood Sealer
50% Pine Tar
50% Raw Linseed Oil (Avoid Boiled Linseed Oil)
Mix Well
First apply a thin coat of raw linseed oil to the wood.
Then apply two thin coats of the tar/oil mixture.
This creates a breathable finish. Instead of trapping moisture like polyurethane, it soaks into the fibers and protects them from within.
Why It Works
Repels water
Slows rot fungi
Discourages insects
Expands and contracts with the wood
Won’t peel
The smell also naturally deters many insects because pine resins contain terpenes — compounds bugs avoid.
The Downsides
Strong smell for a while
Darkens wood
Needs occasional re-application
Can stay tacky if applied too thick
But for outdoor wood — fences, barns, tool handles — it’s incredibly effective.
Pine Tar Glue (An Old Wilderness Adhesive)
This is one of the oldest glues humans ever used.
1 part powdered charcoal
3 parts pine tar
Gently heat the tar (do not boil)
Stir in crushed charcoal
Let it thicken
Reheat small amounts when needed and apply like glue
It becomes a reusable adhesive. Historically it held arrowheads onto shafts and sealed containers.
Pine Tar Hand Salve
This one surprised me in a good way! *Please use this at your own risk.
Salve
50% Pine Tar
50% Oil (olive, coconut, avocado, or castor) *any skin safe oil
Optional:
10–25% beeswax (firmer)
5–10% powdered charcoal (drawing salve)
Traditionally pine tar was used on:
cuts
burns
rashes
cracked hands
dry skin
The reason is simple: pine resins are naturally antibacterial and mildly antiseptic.
Pine Tar Soap (My Notes)
*Use at your own risk
10 oz coconut oil
7 oz olive oil
9 oz lard
2 oz shea butter
3 oz pine tar
1.5 oz castor oil
10.5 oz distilled water
4.5 oz lye
essential oils optional
activated charcoal optional
After mixing, pour into molds and let sit overnight. Cut the soap into smaller blocks and let cure 4–6 weeks for the best results.
Why People Stopped Using Pine Tar
Not because it stopped working.
Because it was slow.
Modern finishes:
dry faster
look clearer
are faster to apply
scale to factories
Pine tar requires patience, fire, and a little tolerance for mess. But it is renewable, repairable, and historically proven.
For thousands of years, cabins, ships, tools, and hands were protected by something a person could make themselves.
That’s what I like most about it.
It isn’t a product you buy.
It’s knowledge you carry.
From My Workshop — Dylan, Proven Hands
I record projects like this because useful skills disappear faster than we realize. Every belt, notebook, and product I make comes from the same philosophy: learn real skills, make things that last, and pass the knowledge forward.
Work Hard. Wear Proven.
