Easiest way to carry fire starter?

bodydamage

bodydamage

Joined
Jan 10, 2007
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Whats the easiest and most convienent way to carry a fire starter and tinder w/ you every day.. I was thinking a rod and cut down hacksaw blade heat shrinked together on your keychain along w/ a spy capsule w/ a vaseline soaked cotton ball.. Can you get those capsules anywhere other than ordering them?? How long will a ferro rod last banging around on your keys??

Or one of those para cord lanyards that that guy makes and sells on ebay with everything built in.. I really like that idea, except that if you want to teach someone, its kind of useless after that..
 
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Give that a go - I did that over a weekend with just a cordless drill.
Just use the forum tools thing at the bottom left of the WSS page to find threads by me. That'll give you some good instructions to get started.

Edit-
Found it -http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=534067
 
bodydamage said:
Whats the easiest and most convienent way to carry a fire starter and tinder w/ you every day.. I was thinking a rod and cut down hacksaw blade heat shrinked together on your keychain along w/ a spy capsule w/ a vaseline soaked cotton ball.. Can you get those capsules anywhere other than ordering them?? How long will a ferro rod last banging around on your keys??

heat shrinked together? Do you own a rod/flint already? I have few different models and many of the smaller ones I see are already attached to a key ring, or at least the included flint/steel have a hole in them making it easy to attach them on your key chain.

Spy Capsules? Please post a link to that maybe I know of something similar.

A ferro rod should last a very long time banging around on your keys.

As for a Vaseline soaked cotton ball, unless your really good or your flint is, or you just get lucky, a Vaseline soaked cotton ball may be frustrating. Even igniting a regular cotton ball can be tough to ignite. To make things easy mix in some Steel wool in the mix. 0000, or 0001, throw a spark on steel wool and watch what happens:D It turn bright red and vaporizes before your eyes. Mixed with Cotton, blowing on it ignites the ball. I use cotton balls with steel wool mixed in and soaked in Vaseline, wring them dry, then pack them in empty pill containers. Works great. So do film canisters.

As for those Paracord lanyard necklaces, please post up a link to it and others can chime in. If its good then I would buy for a "Just in Case" scenario. I have a few different kits myself. You can view pictures and or read what others have done to there's. I don't think anyone has theirs stock as it's to much fun to modify and add your own to the mix to fit your possible needs. Example: take out the P38 can opener and replace with a SAK classic. Now you have a can opener, little knife and file, tweezers and toothpick:thumbup:
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DrivebyTrucker said:
As for a Vaseline soaked cotton ball, unless your really good or your flint is, or you just get lucky, a Vaseline soaked cotton ball may be frustrating. Even igniting a regular cotton ball can be tough to ignite. To make things easy mix in some Steel wool in the mix. 0000, or 0001, throw a spark on steel wool and watch what happens:D It turn bright red and vaporizes before your eyes. Mixed with Cotton, blowing on it ignites the ball. I use cotton balls with steel wool mixed in and soaked in Vaseline, wring them dry, then pack them in empty pill containers. Works great. So do film canisters.
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Not sure how you going about it but cotton balls are just about the easiest thing to light. Even the cheap china made firesteels can work with it. My baby sis who is 7 lit a cotton ball 3rd go, got the vaseline one on the 5th.

I think you may be over saturating yours - try just smearing the outside.
 
nick-nack said:
Not sure how you going about it but cotton balls are just about the easiest thing to light. Even the cheap china made firesteels can work with it. My baby sis who is 7 lit a cotton ball 3rd go, got the vaseline one on the 5th.

I think you may be over saturating yours - try just smearing the outside.
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This was inside a garage using a dry cotton. You couldn't ask for a better environment. The flint I have is much smaller then the one you modded and produces less sparks. I like practicing with the smallest flint I have. I have handed this flint/steel to adults while outside during the holidays so they can try to light a cotton ball and most give up before succeeding. I would be impressed with your skills if you managed to ignite a dry cotton ball in under 5 minutes using this one http://www.nextag.com/norob/PtitleS.../3xHTNQE06nFeb/yJMBrAhUGEE1N&ptitle=564876964
It's on the back of the match case. It's small but it works with practice and good tinder. I also have small flint/steel that fits on my key chain that's only 1in long with a larger diameter. It's vastly inferior to the Swedish Fire Steel you posted. I have one of those to. Also the flint/magnesium bar from walmart. If you can get a fire going with the small flints; your well prepared for when using the better ones. Here is the one I take in the field http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0oGkjr4Q...ival.com/product_view.cfm?product_line_ID=156 One hand operation and showers tinder with sparks. Not as fun as the smaller flints
 
DrivebyTrucker said:
This was inside a garage using a dry cotton. You couldn't ask for a better environment. The flint I have is much smaller then the one you modded and produces less sparks. I like practicing with the smallest flint I have. I have handed this flint/steel to adults while outside during the holidays so they can try to light a cotton ball and most give up before succeeding. I would be impressed with your skills if you managed to ignite a dry cotton ball in under 5 minutes using this one http://www.nextag.com/norob/PtitleS.../3xHTNQE06nFeb/yJMBrAhUGEE1N&ptitle=564876964
It's on the back of the match case. It's small but it works with practice and good tinder. I also have small flint/steel that fits on my key chain that's only 1in long with a larger diameter. It's vastly inferior to the Swedish Fire Steel you posted. I have one of those to. Also the flint/magnesium bar from walmart. If you can get a fire going with the small flints; your well prepared for when using the better ones. Here is the one I take in the field http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0oGkjr4Q...ival.com/product_view.cfm?product_line_ID=156 One hand operation and showers tinder with sparks. Not as fun as the smaller flints
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I have as a matter of fact - i regularly practice with a BSA hotspark which is very small.
The one I have pictured isnt as big as it looks - it is only the scout sized version - second smallest on the regular market.
The one my sis uses is the BSA hotspark because a) she thinks it looks cute b)she can hang it on her necklace and c) its cheap enough that i wont kill her for losing it.

People have made it many thousands of years rubbing sticks together - I consider a firesteel a luxury out in the woods.

But i think this thread has sidetracked enough.

OP if you want to protect the firesteel a tip that I received was to get some heatshrink tubing and shrink it on to the ferrocium. Leave a little tab sticking out and when that tab is still hot grip it with a pair of pliers so you create small grooves which aids in removal. Kind of like jimping.

Dont shrink it too much otherwise it is too hard to be removed.
 
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I carry a nitroglycerin pill fob, as you see in the picture. It is very small and doesn't bulk up my keys, and it holds half a PJ cotton ball. It actually saved my ars earlier this year when I was in Ohio. You can get nitro pill fobs in any drug store.

You can also see the hacksaw blade in the pic for a striker.

What you can't see, is the 1/4" x 2.5" blank firesteel that I also keep on my key ring. It is a blank steel that I drilled a hole in at one end and add a small split ring.

You can also add a firesteel and fatwood stick to your leatherman sheath. I carry my leatherman every day, so actually I have two firesteels, fatwood, and PJCBs, on me at any given time, but noone would know it.
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bodydamage said:
Whats the easiest and most convienent way to carry a fire starter and tinder w/ you every day.. I was thinking a rod and cut down hacksaw blade heat shrinked together on your keychain along w/ a spy capsule w/ a vaseline soaked cotton ball.. Can you get those capsules anywhere other than ordering them?? How long will a ferro rod last banging around on your keys??

Or one of those para cord lanyards that that guy makes and sells on ebay with everything built in.. I really like that idea, except that if you want to teach someone, its kind of useless after that..
Click to expand...

bodydamage,

The easiest way would be to put a BSA Hot Spark on your keychain, along with a spy capsule with PCBs (Petroleum Jelly Cotton Balls). I've had the same Hot Spark on my keychain for the past three years and it looks like it will still last quite a long time. I have used it to start dozens of fires. Pretty darn good for $2.99!

You can usually find something like spy capsules at drug stores (pill containers) but they are pretty expensive. REI has spy capsules for a buck or two. I also have a bunch I've been meaning to put up in the exchange.

drive by,

My guess is that the "cotton balls" that you were using were not 100% cotton. Often times today the ones you buy in the store say "Cotton Balls" on the package but are really synthetic. The only other thing I can think of is that the PCB was too squished. You need to fluff them up so the tiny fibers can catch the spark. I like using steel wool as well, and if it is working for you, great. It just shouldn't be necessary to use it to coax your cotton balls to ignite.


-- FLIX
 
DrivebyTrucker: You must be doing something wrong, I can usually get a cotton ball going in one strike. I also don't soak my cotton balls though, I just heavily smear the outside with vasaline, and open it to get to the dry stuff inside. If you can't start even a dry one though, something is wrong, I don't think there is an easier tinder to light.

ETA: Flix has something there. Check your cotton balls and make sure they are 100% cotton. That is actually the best explanation why you can't get them going.
 
the easiest way for me to carry a firestarter with me every day is a Bic lighter in my left pocket...

but if you are asking about a firesteel, i use about a 2.5 foot long piece of bright yellow paracord, thread a LMF scout firesteel onto it with a bimetal reciprocating sawblade striker and a pill case (similar to the spy capsule) filled with PJCB. i tie the cord into a loop and i can wear it as a necklace, tie it to a pack, toss it into a cargo pocket, etc. if i had any fixed blades with pockets on their sheaths i could stick it in the pocket too.

i also have a bare rod that i drilled and put on a small split ring, i tied it to a striker and that is my minimalist version. i could wear that on a keyring easily.

someone cut off a piece of paracord and slipped that over his ferro rod to keep it from getting too banged up. a ferro rod should do pretty well on your keyring, but if you are that worried about it, or get wet frequently, you might want to look into a product that is a ferro rod but it has a built in aluminum case that has a striker attached to it...i can't think of the name of it i will try to find it.
 
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