Good firesteels today?

S

Sid Post

Joined
Oct 14, 1998
Messages
4,675
If I missed a good thread in my search, please point me to it.

Who makes the better firesteels today? Light My Fire Army seems to be a little hard to source, there is a newish brand with a German sounding name on Amazon, and then there are the EU/UK versions like Strikeforce. 5col.com also has some for ~$10/ea in a group of six that look tempting.

What are the pro's and con's of the various firesteel options? Which ones are too hard or too soft?

TIA,
Sid
 
Not sure if you mean the ferro rods themselves or the handle/storage units also, but don't sleep on these:

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Sam
 
If you are in the US just go for firesteel.com. Only a couple of factories make the rods, but the firesteel.com guys know their stuff, so their QC and consistency is top-notch. Essentially you can get harder steels that throw a bit colder of a spark and seem to be a bit less corroded when just left alone, or you can get the higher spark, easier strike one that is going to corrode much easier on its own. Where I am the relative humidity generally rolls between 60-80 and so the really soft steels corrode pretty fast, even when treated or oiled, but the harder ones do a bit better, so long as they get at least a little care and attention.
 
gadgetgeek said:
If you are in the US just go for firesteel.com.
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Thanks! I didn't know if that site was legit or not. It seemed a little questionable so I held off ordering from there.

Humidity is pretty high around me being in East Texas so, I stumbled onto on a older firesteel tucked away and forgotten that had a bunch of grey powder on it that I assume is 'rust' or corrosion. Sounds like a hard firesteel rod is my best option.
 
Yeah, they do break down with time, so it's always worth keeping an eye on the stock. So far I've not seen anyone manage anything with a sacrificial corrosion component, I guess the material is just too reactive for that.
As for the website, they are a small op, even to the point of struggling to ship outside of CONUS, but I've bought from them a couple of times, and their carbide strikers are worth their weight in gold. I've taught many kids how to get a cotton ball going, and a big part of that is just how good their carbides are.
 
Sid Post said:
Thanks! I didn't know if that site was legit or not. It seemed a little questionable so I held off ordering from there.

Humidity is pretty high around me being in East Texas so, I stumbled onto on a older firesteel tucked away and forgotten that had a bunch of grey powder on it that I assume is 'rust' or corrosion. Sounds like a hard firesteel rod is my best option.
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Someone posted a video on one of the threads recently by Mors Kochanski, I believe, where he was talking about fire steels. He said that they will dissolve away if left in a puddle. That statement stuck out in my mind, because I had never heard about that before. Pretty sure it was the video where he was wearing a red Mora around his neck. It may have been about feather sticks.
 
Slow or fast, a chemical reaction is what it is. Rust is just a very slow fire. I mean, I'll still take a firesteel over almost anything else when my normal humidity condition range between 60 and 90% because it will still perform predictably, but I'll also expect them to fair somewhat worse than my 1095. this is a case where bigger is better, if for no other reason than more material=longer time to degrade. I looked at my storage box the other day and I have a very old LMF that is mostly grey dust in the bottom of the container.
 
For anyone following this thread, 5COL has the 'good' Austrian original AUERMETALL rods which are the highest quality ferrocerium rods I am aware of right now. These are apparently the same rods used in the Light My Fire Army models.
 
I like these little ones because you can keep them in your wallet, etc. Along with a knife and some duct tape you’ve got spark and tinder everywhere you go…

Ferro Fire brand/composition is good as well - you can slowly scrape shavings then light them with a fast scrape…

Leave the coating on and/or add paint, etc. after use to avoid corrosion…

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ExoTac makes a waterproof case for their NanoStriker. The FerroCerium rod is threaded to keep it oriented, and it is replaceable. Older strikers are 440-C stainless at 60HRC; newer ones are WC (Tungsten Carbide) at 72HRC. Get the one that a magnet doesn’t stick to.View attachment 2047839
 
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