Ferrocerium and Fire Stick Review Planned - Need Input...

Marion David Poff

Marion David Poff

Joined
Oct 8, 1998
Messages
5,403
OK,

First let me say that this will probably take in excess of a month.

But, I am beginning a review, compare and contrast article about the current ferro rod and fire stick products on the market.... And related....

If I make any typos, please forgive me, I will correct them later... I am manic right now, and working at a good clip, but really need to eat, but won't until I get some things done.

I am finishing a forum members sheath for a Mora Clipper, so I have to sit for a few minutes anyway...

I have the LMF products.

I will cover the carbide sharpeners as strikers

I think I have a Going Gear striker, the black one that USA Knifemaker sells.

I have the old push thing from Ultimate Survival, and the big block of plastic, with the striker and rod inside.

I have some other stuff...

Anyway, I am starting tonight, to get things around, consider a frame-work for the article, recording impressions and thoughts....

But, are there any products you want included? Of course, I will include the thing I posted about the other day, the Spark Lite.

And if you want to contribute something to the review, I will give credit.

Anyway, I need to eat, so I will check back, and keep up on what you guys suggest.

Marion
 
Marion, you might want to include the very popular Going Gear mischmetal firesteel, and contrast it to, say, the LMF rods.

Mistwalker did a little comparison a few weeks ago, but it sounds like you want to do something more comprehensive. I'll be interested to see what you come up with.
 
Marion, take a look at the Nanostriker from Exotac. A cool design that appealed to my "Over-Engineer, Overbuild" perversion.

nanostriker.jpg

nano_rend.jpg


I got one a little while ago and haven't had the chance to test it yet.
 
FLIX said:
Marion, take a look at the Nanostriker from Exotac. A cool design that appealed to my "Over-Engineer, Overbuild" perversion.

nanostriker.jpg

nano_rend.jpg


I got one a little while ago and haven't had the chance to test it yet.
Click to expand...

That's interesting. I've never seen one of those before. Love to know how it works.
 
Perhaps it's worth to use different striking implements, other than the ones provided. These could be knives, hacksaw blades, the spine of a saw of a multi-tool/SAK, etc..
 
FLIX said:
Marion, take a look at the Nanostriker from Exotac. A cool design that appealed to my "Over-Engineer, Overbuild" perversion.

nanostriker.jpg

nano_rend.jpg


I got one a little while ago and haven't had the chance to test it yet.
Click to expand...

I so want want one of those! Now I have to go look it up. Thanks!
 
dawsonbob said:
That's interesting. I've never seen one of those before. Love to know how it works.
Click to expand...
I have used mine to make a fire. It works well. It is a bit small but that was the point. I bought another, which is definitely my seal of approval
 
I suggest that you test these fire starting devices on things that don't light so easily. We all know that fatwood, PJCB, dryer lint, wet fire..ect all light very quickly with almost any fire tool. It would be more interesting to see natural tinder used that doesn't necessarily light very easily. I think that would give everyone a better idea of the quality and usefullness of the tool used.
 
try going gear strikers as well as there fero rods, the rods from USA knife maker supply are my favorite they last as long as the LMF rods and throw sparks like the ones from going gear.
 
newknife said:
I suggest that you test these fire starting devices on things that don't light so easily. We all know that fatwood, PJCB, dryer lint, wet fire..ect all light very quickly with almost any fire tool. It would be more interesting to see natural tinder used that doesn't necessarily light very easily. I think that would give everyone a better idea of the quality and usefullness of the tool used.
Click to expand...

I think that would be a GREAT idea. I see a lot of folks making fuzz sticks, batoning the fuel supply, etc., but not many starting a fire only with the elements on hand while on the trail.

While these are fun to play with, I always use waterproof matches, my Ronson turboflame or something along those lines. The last time I used my Coughlan's mag bar, it took me 20 minutes of work to get the fire going in wet weather. I wound up using most of the park map shredded into tinder to get the deal done. I had to use the bar as my matches were old and crumbled, and my one lighter ran out of juice.

But anytime I get to the end of the trail and want some coffee, or I am up for breakfast, I am in no mood to practice neo-primitive skills. But I would love to see a good system that worked well after some practice with local materials as these things are always a good idea to have along when your other fire starting gear is compromised.

Since this would be something that would be used in the case of loss (or malfunction) or gear, I think naturally occurring tinder (although we would need to remember it would be a regional thing) would provide a more accurate test. Also, in the case of a loss of gear scenario requiring a flint and steel use, why not select an EDC blade or better yet the striker that comes with the rod to test the system?

I am looking forward to the results. Thanks for taking the time to do it. :thumbup:

Robert
 
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I can't wait...I am looking at getting a firesteel and there seems to be so many out there.
Ones I would like to see are the Going Gear and the firesteel.com brands compared. As far as I can tell they are the same, but it would be nice to really find out.
 
An important thing to keep in mind is that anything considered a 'flint' by modern sandards is not actually a traditional flint, but rather a pyrophoric rare-earth metal alloy. This extends to most fire-starter rods, and also the flints in lighters and even acetylene-torch-igniters.

In the old days, flint-and-steel was just that, a simple rock and a simple metal. The sparks produced were bits of steel ignited by the friction of impact with the flint, and were not very plentiful. Sometimes a single strike would produce a single spark. Starting a fire this way was a very delicate procedure requiring greater skill and practice than most of our contemporaries are willing to admit.

Modern fire sticks perform the same function as the steel; when they are struck, bits of it are shaved off and ignited by the friction of the process. However, because the pyrophoric quotient is so much greater in these compounds than in a simple knife steel, they produce a shower of sparks instead of just one or two, especially when they are struck against a harder (or harder-edged) steel.
 
missin_hobo said:
An important thing to keep in mind is that anything considered a 'flint' by modern sandards is not actually a traditional flint, but rather a pyrophoric rare-earth metal alloy. This extends to most fire-starter rods, and also the flints in lighters and even acetylene-torch-igniters.

In the old days, flint-and-steel was just that, a simple rock and a simple metal. The sparks produced were bits of steel ignited by the friction of impact with the flint, and were not very plentiful. Sometimes a single strike would produce a single spark. Starting a fire this way was a very delicate procedure requiring greater skill and practice than most of our contemporaries are willing to admit.

Modern fire sticks perform the same function as the steel; when they are struck, bits of it are shaved off and ignited by the friction of the process. However, because the pyrophoric quotient is so much greater in these compounds than in a simple knife steel, they produce a shower of sparks instead of just one or two, especially when they are struck against a harder (or harder-edged) steel.
Click to expand...

I like that word, "pyrophoric". I used my flint and steel for many years with easy success as long as I had char. The ferro is just something to play with.
 
TOPS firestarter.

it's kind of a hybrid between a Boy Scout Match and a Doans tool.

vec
 
Please consider including the BSA Hot Spark. I realize that it's considerably smaller than some models, but I have them on all my survival keychains, EDC one, and use it to light my Trangia in the woods. So I'd like to see how it compares to other, similar products.

Maybe you have to categorize the various products by their diameter or length or both to prevent apples-to-oranges comparisons?

Bear
 
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