Epic fail!!!!!!!!

[Raining]

So, would you buy a striker from the same maker again? Or do you suppose any of them would have broken based on what you did?

 

[Blue Sky]

I'm extremely ignorant here. I have no idea what that thing is or what you were doing.

Dan

That thing is a hardened steel striker, and when knocked against flint, tiny peices of steel are cut off and they are very hot: sparks. Catch that spark on a piece of tinder, get a coal and blow it into a flame. Very old school, but effective if you learn how to do it.

Link

 

[Rick Marchand]

So, would you buy a striker from the same maker again? Or do you suppose any of them would have broken based on what you did?

I would still trust the maker. It is common to make strikers overly hard. They do cast sparks better that way. That said, if it was a knife I would be a little concerned about that kind of grain growth and would definately talk to the maker.

Ken watched me temper back the striker knife I gave him. (The handle to blue and the spine/edge to straw.) It'll take the abuse and still throw sparks like a dragon.

NO REPELLING WITH THE STRIFE, KEN!


Rick

 

[KBobAries]

Blue Sky,

Thx for the link. Interesting reading and like you said, it looks like it's very old school.

Dan

 

[kgd]

Blue Sky,

Thx for the link. Interesting reading and like you said, it looks like it's very old school.

Dan

Sorry Dan, I misread what you were saying. Yes, it is a primitive form of fire making. It is a lot of fun to do once you get the hang of it. Think of it as a challenging way to get a fire going, but not so challenging as a bow drill or hand drill that you have to set aside 15 minutes to get a coal.

Many of us sort of went through stages, from matches to firesteels (ferroceium rods) to flint and steel then finally learning friction fire. As per above, flint and steel is something you can do regularly without it being too onerous. Also, the one unique attribute of the technique is that wind is your friend. It really is the wind proof fire starting system, although not the best in ultra humid/damp weather.

Regarding the striker - yeah, I'd get the striker from the same supplier. I've used it vigorously on striking and didn't have a problem. I'm also still able to use it so it isn't complete failure.

The Strife knife is clearly a superior instrument, but then again it is build like a knife.

 

[aarya]

As large grains as shows in that cross section, is not needed for anything other than looking like a superman. (Take a piece of steel in your hands, and snap it like a twig.)
Grain in steel, however hard it is, should be very fine. That said, small items like strikers heat up quickly, so one bad striker from a maker, does not mean that all items are bad.
Just as an fyi to folks.

 

[Rick Marchand]

...That said, small items like strikers heat up quickly, so one bad striker from a maker, does not mean that all items are bad.
Just as an fyi to folks.

Right you are.... sometimes bad ones slip through.

Did Ragnar make that one, Ken?

Rick

 

[kgd]

No it came with my KSF firewallet, which is a superb piece of kit IMO.

 

[Joezilla]

You ain't supposed to baton with one of those!



Thats an iron one right, not one of them garage door springs.

 

[Thomas Linton]

Here's what I don't get.

When I learned, the steel was called a "fire steel." You stuck it a glacing blow with your flint in the same fashion that a flintlock works. A favorite method was to pin down some charred cotton cloth with a short length of old file. The steel was then struck, and the resulting spraks were directed somewhat by the flat steel down on the charred cloth.

Now most places call the steel a "striker" and show the steel striking the flint. Since the object is to shave steel off with the flint, what's that all about?

I suppose one could fix an axe in place and hit it with a log to "chop" the wood.

 

[kgd]

You can do it both ways, but I find it easier to strike with the steel while holding the flint. The steel strikers are made to hold as a striker and offer a 'knuckle guard' when using the d-type ones as shown by my broken piece. If you find striking with the flint works better for you than by all means use it that way.

p.s. I have been known to rip the package away from a match rather than the other way around, I'll sometimes eat desert before my main course and I have this weird habit of taking off my shoe and then untying my laces....

 

[Joben]

Blue Sky,

Thx for the link. Interesting reading and like you said, it looks like it's very old school.

Dan

If you want to see it done Cutlerylover has a pretty good video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNn0RRi1Ni8&feature=channel_page