FireSteel questions

TAH

TAH

Joined
Jul 3, 2001
Messages
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Just bought my first Swedish FireSteel (Army model). The instructions say to "remove paint with striker or knife". When doing this, does the FireSteel spark? Is there anyway to remove the paint without using the striker or a knife? Sandpaper? Nail polish remover? Paint remover?

Also, which will work better as far as throwing sparks, the striker or the back spine of my Fallkniven F1? Just wondering what to expect.

Thanks!
 
I think you're thinking too much. Just use the striker or your F1 and the paint will go and the sparks will come.:)
 
You should get sparks with either. It probably would take less time than to post your question! ;)

When talking about a ferro rod, the term "striker" is inaccurate and can be misleading to someone new to using one. What you are doing is scraping the ferro rod with the scraper, not striking it, as you might do with traditional flint and steel.

-- FLIX
 
Got it! I called it a "striker" because that's what it is called in the instructions. You're right, a "scraper" would probably be more accurate.

I was just wondering if using sandpaper wrapped around the rod would evenly remove all the paint at once.

Sorry, little excited here! :D
 
The ferrocerium will oxidize when exposed to atmospheric or liquid water (esp salt water/sweat). Accordingly, the rod comes with a protective coating that does not, in my experience, interfere with use. Further, between outings, I restore the coating by applying a thin coat of fingernail polish (;) ) to the scraped areas.
 
I'm sure sandpaper would work fine for removing any paint on the firesteel, but it might be better to leave it in place. The ferrocerium could rust if exposed to moisture, so many people coat theirs with clear nail pollish or something similar. When ready to light a fire, one or two scrapes will remove the coating, at least in the area of the rod being used to start the fire.

-- FLIX

Doh! I see that Thomas got there a few seconds before me!
 
Surprising to hear that they can rust. I thought they were pretty much weatherproof. Thanks for the heads up. I'll leave the paint in place.
 
They will oxidize, but will not rust (the orange stuff). With regular use I've never found them oxidizing. And I've been into rain, and they've never oxidized.

Don't be too anal about the paint/or nail polish. Just use them and you're fine!


CZ
 
Corrosion of firesteels has been discussed recently and I think the issue is more related to when they are stored for a length of time in a damp environment, i.e. a BOB or PSK. It's something to be aware of in that regard but not fretted about too much when they are in regular use.
 
cz75b said:
They will oxidize, but will not rust (the orange stuff). With regular use I've never found them oxidizing. And I've been into rain, and they've never oxidized.

Don't be too anal about the paint/or nail polish. Just use them and you're fine!


CZ
Click to expand...
The oxidation results in a white powder.

Exposure to sweat seems to result in shallow pitting. One kid carried his Scout "Hot Spark" in a pants pocket during a hot weekend backpacker. He then threw the pants in the laundry, where they waited over a week for Mom to go through the pockets. The rod (what, 1/8"?) was obviously roughened but still usable.

Don't be too anal retentive. Be just anal retentive enough. :D
 
Blue Sky said:
Corrosion of firesteels has been discussed recently and I think the issue is more related to when they are stored for a length of time in a damp environment, i.e. a BOB or PSK. It's something to be aware of in that regard but not fretted about too much when they are in regular use.
Click to expand...
'Zactly!! I had an Army model (the thicker one) ferrocium firesteel from Light-My-Fire that sat in a car BOB for over a year. When I tried scraping sparks from it, it broke off right at the rod/handle junction. The break showed powdery corrosion extending maybe 1/4-way in from the outside circumference of the rod. I epoxied it back together and haven't tried (stressed) it again, since it is now a backup to a spare. In an emergency, I could have still gotten sparks from the broken rod, so it wouldn't have been a total disaster in the bush.

As Blue Sky noted, the corrosion seems to afflict firesteels when they are sitting around exposed to the atmosphere. I have some Blastmatches in the old NRA survival kits that have remained sealed for at least a couple years in the Otterbox 1000's that the kits are packaged in. I bumped into them the other day, opened the boxes, and inspected the ferro rods. The Blastmatches showed no signs of corrosion of any kind. The outsides of the rods were still that shiny dark polished look they have when brand new.

The reports from various posters have related that firesteels carried in pockets on a daily basis seem to not suffer from rust and corrosion. My pet theory on this is that any corrosion/rust that might form on the surface of the rod gets polished off by the pocket's fabric during normal day-to-day motions like walking, getting in/out of vehicles/chairs, running around, etc. Plus, body heat would tend to dry the pocket fabric (and contents) quicker, resulting in shorter exposure-to-moisture time for what is in the pocket.
 
Try using one to wet form leather around....

corossion even through the paint.

Just repaint it with some fingernail polish as Thomas suggested. No biggie.

BTW, sanding them with a KMG is hellafun. LOL. Now thats what I call throwing sparks.
 
I bought some of the little BSA "sparkers" at $2.49 apiece so I could give a few away to my friends. They have a good sized handle made of black plastic, and I suspect the same plastic formed a protective coating over the ferrocerrium (sparking) rod. Anyway, that coating was tough enough to scrape off that I actually used a knife blade instead of the little scraper that came with it. With similar fire starters in the past I've used a US GI P-38 can opener to strike sparks with good results. They are made of decent tempered steel and they go well on a key ring or a key chain with your "sparker."
 
Hey Guys...

Raindog...

Metal match is used like the word Fridge...
A metal match as far as I'm concerned is a ferro rof on the side of a small container filled with lighter fluid..
The scraper is stored in the fliud,, unscrew it,scrape it across the ferro rod on the side of the container, and the sparks ignites the lighter fluid...

A firesteel is just that,, a Ferro rod and Nothing else...

RokJok...

Can you do us a favor, and stress test your firesteel that had snapped off.. I'd be interested in knowing if the ferro rod itself has lost it's strength all the way down and is now brittle for some reason...

Thanks

Eric
O/ST
 
raindog101 said:
Not to hijack the thread, but is a Swedish "metal match" the same thing as a fire steel?
Click to expand...

Sometimes people, even vendors, will mistakenly refer to firesteels as metal matches, but that is inaccurate.

The item on the right is a metal match:
140932240-M.jpg

It has a small ferro rod embedded in it's side. The metal knob on the top untwists, exposing a rod with a wick and a scraper that in the end. The idea is that lighter fluid is kept in the main body with the scraper/wick sitting acting as a cap. When you want to light a fire, you scrape the scraper down the ferro rod on the side, causing sparks to ignite the lighter fluid on the wick. You end up with a little fire on the end of the scraper, which can be used like a match. Much easier to light cigarettes, lanterns, etc. :)

-- FLIX
 
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