Bitcoin Self-Custody Tutorials

Free, open-source guides and device emulators for securing your own Bitcoin. Step by step, device in hand.

What This Is

A complete, beginner-friendly tutorial site for Bitcoin self-custody. Covers seed generation, signing devices, wallet software, steel backups, and multisig - with browser-based device emulators so you can practice before buying hardware.

No tracking. No paywalls. No affiliate links. No sales CTAs.

Maintained by Bitcoin Butlers

Live Site

bitcoin-butlers.github.io/bitcoin-self-custody

Or run locally: python3 -m http.server 9000

Emulators

Practice with real device firmware in your browser. No hardware needed.

Device	Approach	Status	Reference
SeedSigner	Pyodide (Python in browser via WASM)	Working - webcam QR, mobile touch, tutorials	SeedSigner/seedsigner
ColdCard Mk4/Q	Docker + noVNC (SDL simulator wrapped)	Planned - Dockerfile + scripts ready	Coldcard/firmware unix/simulator.py
Jade	Docker + QEMU web display	Planned - official Dockerfile.qemu with --webdisplay	Blockstream/Jade
Passport	Docker + noVNC (SDL simulator wrapped)	Planned - Dockerfile + scripts ready	Foundation-Devices/passport2 simulator/

SeedSigner works fully client-side (no server) because its firmware is pure Python. ColdCard, Jade, and Passport are C firmware requiring QEMU/Docker and a host server to run.

Guides

Seed Generation

Guide	Method
Hardware Wallet	Let your device generate the seed
Seed Picker Cards	Shuffle physical BIP-39 word cards
Dice Rolls	99 rolls for 256-bit entropy
Camera Entropy	SeedSigner hashes a photo
Entropia Pills	3D-printed capsules with BIP-39 words
Codex32	Pen-and-paper generation with hand-verifiable checksums
Seed Generation Overview	All 6 methods compared

Each guide includes device-specific steps via dropdown selectors (SeedSigner, ColdCard Q, ColdCard Mk4, Jade, Passport) with direct links to each device's open-source code.

Signing Devices

Guide	Device
SeedSigner	SeedSigner / SeedSigner+
ColdCard Q	Coinkite ColdCard Q
ColdCard Mk4	Coinkite ColdCard Mk4
Passport	Foundation Passport
Jade	Blockstream Jade / Jade Plus
Compare Devices	All 5 side by side

Software

Guide	Software
Sparrow Wallet	Desktop coordinator for single-sig and multisig
Bull Bitcoin	Non-custodial hot wallet
Multisig with Sparrow	2-of-3 multi-vendor multisig

Backup (At Rest)

Guide	Topic
Steel Backup	Single-sig and multisig steel plate backups

Checklists

Checklist	For
First Setup	Just got a device? Start here.
Backup Verification	Prove your backup works before you need it.
Inheritance Planning	Make sure your Bitcoin outlives you.

Roadmap

Done

• 17 guides: 6 seed generation methods, 5 signing devices, 3 wallet/multisig, steel backup, device comparison, seed overview
• 3 checklists: first setup, backup verification, inheritance planning
• Codex32 (BIP-93) guide with Shamir splitting and hand-verifiable checksums
• SeedSigner web emulator (Pyodide/WASM - real firmware in browser, webcam QR, mobile touch, guided tutorials)
• Device-specific dropdown selectors with GitHub source code links (seed.py, seed.py, random.c, SECURITY.md)
• FOSS vs source-available licensing distinction in device comparison
• Tutorial site: hash routing, glossary tooltips, browser history navigation, internal link routing
• GitHub Pages CI deployment

Next (grant-dependent)

• ColdCard web emulator - Docker + noVNC wrapping MicroPython/SDL simulator (Dockerfile + scripts ready, blocked by upstream submodule TLS issue)
• Jade web emulator - Docker + QEMU with --webdisplay (official Dockerfile.qemu, needs linux/amd64 host for build)
• Passport web emulator - Docker + noVNC wrapping SDL simulator (Dockerfile + scripts ready, build not started)
• Emulator VPS hosting (C firmware emulators require a server, unlike SeedSigner's client-side WASM)
• Shamir backup guide (beyond Codex32)
• Passphrase guide (25th word)
• Video walkthroughs
• Translations (Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese priority)

References

All tutorial content is original. The following external sources are referenced throughout the guides:

Bitcoin Standards

• BIP-39 - Mnemonic code for deterministic keys (word list)
• BIP-93 - Codex32: Shamir secret sharing for seed backup
• BIP-85 - Deterministic entropy from BIP-32 keychains (child seeds)

Device Firmware (source code linked in guides)

• SeedSigner/seedsigner - src/seedsigner/models/seed.py (FOSS, MIT)
• Coldcard/firmware - shared/seed.py (source-available)
• Blockstream/Jade - components/random/random.c (FOSS, MIT)
• Foundation-Devices/passport2 - SECURITY.md (source-available)

Wallet Software

• Sparrow Wallet - Desktop coordinator (Apache 2.0)
• Bull Bitcoin - Non-custodial mobile wallet (GitHub)

Tools

• secretcodex32.com - Codex32 worksheets and volvelles
• Ian Coleman BIP-39 Tool - Offline checksum calculator

Manufacturer Documentation

• coldcard.com/docs - ColdCard firmware and upgrade docs
• Blockstream Green - Jade companion app (iOS/Android)
• Envoy - Passport companion app (iOS/Android)

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

Ways to help:

• Fix errors or outdated info in guides
• Test emulators on different platforms
• Add screenshots or diagrams
• Translate guides
• Build new emulator integrations

License

• Documentation (guides, checklists): CC BY-SA 4.0
• Code (emulators, scripts): MIT