There was this thread..."which three items for survival"...and quite a few came up with 1. Knife. 2. Firesteel. 3. pot or tarp...
I tried this firesteel thing tonite...what a hassle...vaseline impregnated cottonwool fires with one spark...(i dont have that with me in the three things scenario)...natural tinder has to be real dry, and you have to be sooooo careful....)
i would rather go for a box of matches...or a bic lighter...hey if i had to cross water or somethin, id put it in my mouth...tried this...works after while again...i wud go with matches...then bic...then firesteel...any thoughts?
Firesteels are considered the best survival items because they are practically unlimited in sparking capacity, practically indestructible and completely waterproof. These advantages come at the consequence of ease of use.
A bic lighter is easy to use and long lasting but also easily damaged. Matches are easy to use but run out quick and aren't long lasting.
The other issue is skill. Firesteels are difficult if you don't know how to use them. But, so are flame sources. You don't just start logs on a fire with a match. Taking the scout axiom, to light a fire with one match, is one that encourages skill. You plan your fire first, gathering all your tinder and kindling ahead of time then you light it. Most people that can't light a fire don't get this and they just light something up but can't sustain the fire.
A firesteel is the same, but just requires more planning. You need more flammable tinder and that means you need to work on your skills to identify appropriate tinder. Folks who are good at this rarely find nature to be shorthanded in this regard. You just have to know what to look for. Finally, when you get a flash tinder to accept a spark and convert it to flame, you have to nurse that into a health sustained fire.
In the end, if you practice with a firesteel and can start a fire up regularly using a firesteel, you possess all the skills you need to make a good fire with most types of ignition source. The problem with people relying on matches and lighters is that they never properly learn the discipline of tinder preparation and how that translates into a good fire. Hence, most people don't know how to build a fire. That doesn't change even when you hand them a lighter. Alternatively, maybe they are okay with a lighter in an ideal situation. Then they find themselves in a challenging situation - wet, rain, snow, sleet. Their lighter doesn't work good because they don't know how to collect dry tinder and don't know how to nurse the flame.
Lighters and matches are easier and they force lazy habits. They become a crutch because people falsely assume that fires are easier to start than they really are. They falsely assume that their technology substitutes for skill of building a fire. Certainly somebody who possess skills will always find a lighter easier to start a fire than a firesteel. It just turns out that the guys who use a firesteel are more likely to possess the skills because the use of a firesteel forces them to practice those skills.
I know I'm being redundant as heck above, but we get these questions and comments often enough about primitive fire methods and why not just use a lighter. Once you've mastered firesteel you might even get interested in more primitive methods like a traditional flint and steel or bow drill. These are even more challenging and difficult to start a fire. However, they force you to learn even more skills. With any luck, in the end you start to think of this skill and practicing stuff as being fun to do and then you'll come around to our perspective of things.
You did raise a very good point though. The average joe who buys one of these, throws it in their pack for survival, but never uses it is likely going to be unsuccessful when they most need its services.
