Fun with my HEST

[Gaurdian_A1]

I decided to make some cool firestarters with my HEST tonight.

First off you cut a pop can ( in my case a beer can!) so that there is about an inch to and inch and a half of popcan left from the bottom.

The hest makes for a pretty rough cut, so clean it up with some scissors!

Then you roll up some cardboard, ( cut to fit) and stick it in the pop can....Boil some parafin wax and pour into the popcan/cardboard.

After it cools down, you can go ahead and light it! It burns like a candle!

Now, it burned for a total of exactly 1 hour 53 min...We put it inside of my barbecue and acheived 275 deg F. Impressive for one little firstarter.

Now that doesnt mean that every single firestarter like this anybody makes will burn the same or put out as much heat but it should be damn close...this is a totally effective wet weather firestarter that you can make at home with a few " pop cans"

A pic with my HEST

The next one we make is going to be out of a metal coffee can...for winter applications...Stay tuned...Enjoy and have fun!

-Gaurdian

 

[Doc13]

Sweet!! Thank you for posting this man

Keep'em commin'

 

[basb]

That is one neat firestarter for home or when you have enough room in your pack when weekend tripping.

Curious to see the coffe-can variant.

 

[Wanderlust]

that is an awesome idea I may have to try it out one of these days.

 

[Gaurdian_A1]

Yeah in a camping situation it would be useful but i wouldnt put one in my PSK. They throw alot of heat too!

 

[styx]

well it could be used in an emergency when everything else fails like a hurricane

 

[A.L.]

Very cool! So you just boil it until it starts to bubble? Is it easily flammable?

 

[eloreno]

That's cool! Good idea!!

 

[Gaurdian_A1]

Very cool! So you just boil it until it starts to bubble? Is it easily flammable?

I just melted the parafin until it was totally clear..soon after that it starts to smoke. Once the parafin has totally melted you are ready to go.

 

[DOC-CANADA]

Let me suggest that you don't just boil it. Paraffin has a flash point and can burst into flames.

A quote from http://www.shamrockaffiliations.ws/Paraffin_Wax_Flash_Points.php

"Paraffin waxes ignite at the following temperatures:

•Paraffin wax without additives: 199°C (390°F).
•Paraffin wax with additives: 249°C (480°F)."


Instead, use a double boiler. This can be as simple as a can floating in the water of a larger can.

In other words, partially fill a can with water. Into this water float a smaller can into which you place the wax. Boil the water in the larger can, which in turn will heat the smaller can and melt the paraffin, but not allow it to surpass 212 degrees (boiling point of water).

Doc

 

[maverick3981]

Looks like the HEST came clean after the cut! My Izula had some battle scars on the coating after i tried a similar can.

 

[Gaurdian_A1]

Looks like the HEST came clean after the cut! My Izula had some battle scars on the coating after i tried a similar can.

There was minor scratching to the blade coating but not much..and thanks for clearing that up for me DOC!! Thats a cool idea about useing a double boiler!

 

[A.L.]

Ok, thanks for the answers guys!
Is there any relation with paraffin wax and paraffin oil?

 

[6shooter]

I'm really impressed with the burn time and temperature of this. Would make a good wintertime heater/firestarter out in the snow. I assume you could blow it out and save some for later if you wanted to?

 

[Mossyhorn]

Paraffin melts easy enough on a hot plate. I've made some waterproof matches by dipping strike anywhere matches.

 

[oruacat2]

I swear I'm not trying to be argumentative - but how can it be a "fire starter" when you had to light it with a match? Would it light with sparks from a standard flint/steel?

 

[Gaurdian_A1]

I swear I'm not trying to be argumentative - but how can it be a "fire starter" when you had to light it with a match? Would it light with sparks from a standard flint/steel?

We failed to light them with a firesteel, we used a match. On that note the next ones we make are going to have fatwood shavings sprinkled on top so they can catch a spark instead of direct flame.

The reason I call them firestarters is because they can burn for a very long time, allowing you to ignite damp wood more easily. Or if you are in a snowshelter you could lite 4 or 5 of them and be toasty warm.