Best Fire steel/ferrocium rod?

I guess Im #5 for light my fire,there are some others that are almost as good,but I've never found one better.
 
Clearly you get more sparks thrown from a larger rod, but I have never had trouble getting my lowly little BSA Hotspark to provide fire. Plus, they are very small, and I get them for $2.40 at the local BSA store, so I can have several stowed in all my gear for less than the price of 1 of those others. I do chunk the crappy striker, and use fine toothed jigsaw blades, tied with a wrapped jute lanyard so I can remove a bit for tinder, and my whole starter kit is always together. I have struck jute, shredded tp, paper towels, cotton balls, and crushed & shredded cedar bark. They are carried in conjunction with my magblock w/rod, a couple bics, and cotton wrapped waxed kitchen matches. Redundancy is key to me when it comes to fire. :)
 
Maybe a better question would be, "Have you ever had a brand of ferro rod that wouldn't work?" And if so, what brand?

Doc
 
DOC-CANADA said:
Maybe a better question would be, "Have you ever had a brand of ferro rod that wouldn't work?" And if so, what brand?

Doc
Click to expand...

The aforementioned hotsparks would barely, if at all, spark with the included strikers. I thought at first the rods were bum, then I slapped a carbon Mora on them and they struck like crazy. So in the spirit of that question, the stock strikers for BSA hotsparks would not work for me, on 3 different rods.
 
I've had some from the bay that were pretty bad, they were brittle and hard to get a good spark from.
 
I had some of the bay too, but they were all great. A little on the soft side, but that was only a bonus, because they threw a lot and very hot sparks, without much pressure.

CZ
 
Wouldn't surprise me if many of these different brands had rods made in the same factory. I can't be sure of course.

I think that while a simple rod is convenient to carry, one stuck to a magnesium bar is more likely to give better results when you really need a fire in a hurry.

I have some BSA Hot sparks sticks. They seem just fine to me. I strike just the last 3/8" or so of the rod so as not to make the rod too thin to the point that it might snap. The rod soon gets a taper this way, but it still works well.

While it is sensible to always have a ferro rod, I think it is a good idea to carry matches and/or a lighter in a waterproof container. Instant light and flame. It is a heck of a lot easier to get a fire going in a hurry when you have a flame compared to just a spark.
 
If I'm correct 90% of the "rare earth" material is produced in China, and a smaller part in Canada. But again, I could be wrong.

At least more then 75% of the firesteels as we know them (flints for lighters, welding etc) come from China.

CZ
 
Light My Fire models are all good, BSA works just fine for the size, perfect for a keychain or as a zipper pull. I have a Gerber Strike Force, although bulky, throws huge showers of sparks, can almost weld with this bad boy:)
 
There is a guy around here somewhere that'll make you a custom one...:rolleyes:
 
I have just got a light my fire army model and like it very much but have to say that the blast match produces a heck of a lot of sparks and can be used one handed
 
I have used just about every ferro rod on the market and even have some custom models. I've heard they all come from Romania. That being said, I carry a BSA hotspark with me just about everywhere. On my knife sheath, I have the Army model firesteel. In cold weather, I use the Strike Force because of the larger pieces ease of use with gloved hands. These are my favorite production models. Marty Simon sold me some 3/8"x4" ferro rods that I had Greg Haugh of Lone Rider Custom Grips put handles on. They are some of my favorite overall.

While not a ferro rod, I do like the Spark-lite system the USAF uses in its kits and the tinderquick is just plain awesome. I'm not a fan of the blastmatch and have seen 2 or 3 break. The striker broke off on each one. If that striker falls off, it is difficult to strike it with just a nub of metal. For what its worth, it is possible to use a ferro rod with one hand if you step on it with your foot. In fact, this skill is practiced in reputable survival schools.

Just my .02 cents.
 
I remember seeing something back a few years.
It was similar to the Blast Match but instead of having to push down,
it was spring loaded and you pushed a release button and the rod shot out.
Anybody remember what it was called?
 
I've usually seen them referred to as Swedish Firesteels. By the way, my Light My Fire one works very well. Tip: Wrap some kleenex or other tissue paper around the striker, and rip it a bit so the pointed part of the striker touches the firesteel. Then strike as normal, and slide the tissue paper off when it catches. I can often get a light on the first try with this.

I didn't discover this by myself, I saw a link to a youtube video of it on Britishblades.
 
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