A laboratory study was set up by the U.S. Forest Service with the ultimate objective of determining model laws for properties of wood fires, including rate of spread. This is a report of the first phase of the work, the development of a suitable bed of solid fuel and the technique of study. The bed chosen for initial study is in the form of long cribs of wood sticks. The technique is to start the crib burning at one end and to move the crib so as to keep the flame in a fixed position in space. Thermocouples in the convection column, radiometers, Pilot tubes, gas sampling tubes, and other equipment are stationary. After an initial period of growth, the fire reaches a steady state. The effect of such variables as species of wood, density of wood, moisture content, size of fuel particle, spacing, dimensions of crib, wind, and slope, on the rate of the fire and the partition of energy can be measured.