Items that are useful and others may not be aware of.

Been trying to think of a ways I could use this...
Using a single jumbo straw you could have a ferro rod+small striker and a few tinder bundles all sealed up as a small fire emergency kit together.
Emergency fire starter kit you can leave in a cars glove box and most people wouldn't look at it twice, just thinking its a deformed straw.
Since Ferro rods and water don't mix it would also make a good backup in wet environments, just need to think of something small enough to fit in a straw that will make a decent striker.
druid189 said:
Plastic drinking straws make awesome containers for a wide variety of things...

Salt
Pepper
Garlic powder
Onion powder
and...::drumroll::......

Crisco for cooking.

What you need:
Heavy drinking straws [like the ones from Burger King]
needle nosed pliers
candle or torch
very small [flask type] funnel
whatever ingredients you are using.

For dry ingredients:
Cut the straw into 1" lengths [or whatever suits your use].


Using a candle, heat the pliers and heat-seal/pinch one end of the straw closed.
Insert the funnel into the other end and fill the straw, all but the last 1/4". heat seal it shut.

For the Crisco,
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Phoynix said:
Been trying to think of a ways I could use this...

There are literally dozens of ways to use this. I only listed a few, the rest is up to your imagination.

Using a single jumbo straw you could have a ferro rod+small striker and a few tinder bundles all sealed up as a small fire emergency kit together.

Exactly. There are "mini" Ferro rods available from several sources [including Fleabay]; but I'd separate the following into separate straws [from the ferro+striker]: As far as tinder, one could take saw dust as either a dry substance or mixed with a flammable binding agent [vaseline, et al]...or vaseline+cotton balls, etc. Simply tape the 2 straws together...one ferro+striker to the fire starting agent.

Emergency fire starter kit you can leave in a cars glove box and most people wouldn't look at it twice, just thinking its a deformed straw.

Except for LE....we look for the "out of the ordinary." Just store them in Altoids tins, inside your bug out/day bags marked as "fire starter."

Since Ferro rods and water don't mix it would also make a good backup in wet environments, just need to think of something small enough to fit in a straw that will make a decent striker.
Click to expand...

In honesty, it doesn't take much to dry a ferro rod. I've been soaked 'to the bone' already...simply blowing on the ferro will remove much of the water. Keeping pure alcohol in your bag will aid in evaporating water as well.

Coping saw blades are typically carbon steel, are thin enough to fit and you can make several out of a single blade.

99847-03-1000.jpg
 
There's an idea. A course coping saw blade could be made into a small bow-saw. Sure we think about cutting big wood with saws, but there is a range of timber that could be opened up with a coping saw blade if you were using a rather small knife.

Love to see the thread "had to convince LEO that my fire straw was not a new type of drug" Well, maybe not
 
Druid my problem isn't drying for use, Ferrorods dissolve when wet in just a few days and you can lose a good portion of the rod to powdery mush(personal experience). Ferrorods work fine soaked with the scraper dripping wet too. Except perhaps the burning scrapings stick to the scraper... fall on your finger... and hurt like a bitch as they burn into your finger(Personal experience with that too ;))

At least mine do... I buy cheap ones from china... because I never seen the expensive ones performing better...

I do use a tungsten carbide paint scraper blade as my striker... The striker seems to be more important in my opinion then the brand name of firesteel you have.


When I said trying to think of ways to use them, it was for me personally. I use small 50ml pharmacy grade tins you often find ointment and creams in, they are waterproof when screwed up tight don't rust(aluminum) and you can buy them very cheap unused in bulk for 10-20c per tin... they are extremely useful and pretty much cover most of the things I can think of what I would use a straw for.
Tea sugar and seasoning etc...
 
Phoynix said:
Druid my problem isn't drying for use, Ferrorods dissolve when wet in just a few days and you can lose a good portion of the rod to powdery mush(personal experience).

hmph....I've never had that happen to mine and I have them exposed to the elements on the loops of sheaths.

Ferrorods work fine soaked with the scraper dripping wet too. Except perhaps the burning scrapings stick to the scraper... fall on your finger... and hurt like a bitch as they burn into your finger(Personal experience with that too ;))

LOL...never had that issue.

I know they work when wet but I've never had them degrade on me like you said they do for you. Maybe I'm doing something wrong?

At least mine do... I buy cheap ones from china... because I never seen the expensive ones performing better...

Not me...

I do use a tungsten carbide paint scraper blade as my striker... The striker seems to be more important in my opinion then the brand name of firesteel you have.

That could be. I usually use the spine of my blades or a hack saw blade.

When I said trying to think of ways to use them, it was for me personally. I use small 50ml pharmacy grade tins you often find ointment and creams in, they are waterproof when screwed up tight don't rust(aluminum) and you can buy them very cheap unused in bulk for 10-20c per tin... they are extremely useful and pretty much cover most of the things I can think of what I would use a straw for.
Tea sugar and seasoning etc...
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Ah, I see.
 
Fingernail polish is wonderful stuff.

Clear - I use this to coat my ferro rods. Makes them waterproof until I need them, and it's easy to scrape off. I agree with posters that ferro rods disintegrate when wet, even here, in dry Colorado, I've had a couple pretty much fall apart on me until I started coating them.

White - Good for front sights on a pistol.
Orange - Good for rear sights on a pistol.

Fingernail polish is also a good low-strength thread locker. It's easy to take off, ask any woman. The best part is buying it - I always get a smart remark from the cashier - until I tell them it's for my gun sights, then I get silence. :D
 
Druid, Given that it seems those kits have an insane false positive rate, I'd make sure I had the number of a good lawyer memorized. But I'm off topic.
Sandisk makes a USB memory stick that is about the size of a thumbnail. Really handy for scans of important docs, even just photos, never know when you'll need something to speak for you.
 
Phoynix said:
Care to be more specific, I'm quite happy to change my view point on things when given new evidence.
Click to expand...

All good, but I suggest a few searches on the actual numbers as what's implied is historically inaccurate. To my knowledge the IDF employs the "israeli bandage".
 
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tiguy7 said:
Exotac Nanostrikers protect their ferro rods with a water proof case.
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Protect them from what exactly? Do they breakdown if it's not salt water? I'd think they would dry out pretty quickly if it's just a matter of being wet.
 
Care to actually point me to what numbers you are using... we are talking ratio of wounded to dead here...

Wide selection of material is used to treat wounds, I at no point claimed Leukoplast was magical and only thing armies needed. Adhesive tape is needed for treating things such as a sucking chest wound along with a watertight film(say candy bar wrapper) or the inside of a sterile bandage wrapper. Its adaptable and has a multitude of uses that can allow it to cover a lot of other things, its not magic. IT was standard issue as rolls to Germans and I have seen a large adhesive leukoplast dressing with elastic bandages attached to it that was for applying to serious abdominal wounds that was made for the IDF. I don't know what its called however if any IDF soldier wants to speak up(even if they dont know what I'm talking about)

Also since I have already been accused of dishonoring soldiers...
My information maybe out of date... USE may be USED.
Also just so I don't get accused of implying it... I am not currently and have never served in the military...

B34NS said:
All good, but I suggest a few searches on the actual numbers as what's implied is historically inaccurate. To my knowledge the IDF employs the "israeli bandage".
Click to expand...
 
I like fingernail polish but if the rods shoved in a car glove box or pack the constant moving could cause it to chip and wear off, why I was thinking of something more long term and durable like a straw
sodak said:
Fingernail polish is wonderful stuff.

Clear - I use this to coat my ferro rods. Makes them waterproof until I need them, and it's easy to scrape off. I agree with posters that ferro rods disintegrate when wet, even here, in dry Colorado, I've had a couple pretty much fall apart on me until I started coating them.

White - Good for front sights on a pistol.
Orange - Good for rear sights on a pistol.

Fingernail polish is also a good low-strength thread locker. It's easy to take off, ask any woman. The best part is buying it - I always get a smart remark from the cashier - until I tell them it's for my gun sights, then I get silence. :D
Click to expand...
 
Phoynix said:
Care to actually point me to what numbers you are using... we are talking ratio of wounded to dead here...
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Again, part of what's so offensive is that you don't even see a problem with what you're saying. No, we aren't talking the ratio of wounded to dead here and won't be. It's irrelevant to your own OP.

History is a personal endevour, if you're ever curious about where to find solid resources, by all means I'm an open book, but you should really look up the "facts" behind your claims for yourself.

Now, to add something of value to this.

Road Flares. Unglamorous, but so useful.
 
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You want to ignore numbers(I wonder why) and then with the history is a "personal endeavour" crap. Not smelt so much manure since our neighbor's fertilized paddocks with chicken shit and the wind was blowing it directly our way in 40c heat...

B34NS said:
Again, part of what's so offensive is that you don't even see a problem with what you're saying. No, we aren't talking the ratio of wounded to dead here and won't be. It's irrelevant to your own OP.

History is a personal endevour, if you're ever curious about where to find solid resources, by all means I'm an open book, but you should really look up the "facts" behind your claims for yourself.

Now, to add something of value to this.

Road Flares. Unglamorous, but so useful.
Click to expand...
 
Phoynix said:
You want to ignore numbers(I wonder why) and then with the history is a "personal endeavour" crap. Not smelt so much manure since our neighbor's fertilized paddocks with chicken shit and the wind was blowing it directly our way in 40c heat...
Click to expand...

I know the numbers, so I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. I know they don't teach history in schools anymore, I get it. I didn't see how it added to the gear discussion you started. I figured I'd give you a chance to clarify. So far all you've put forward is:

Phoynix said:
chicken shit and the wind
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:cool:



Aside from this history lesson, does anyone else carry a roadflare, or flares with them?
 
B34NS said:
This couldn't be a more factually wrong or offensive on the 71st anniversary of D-Day.
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How is that offensive even if it was wrong?

If it were true and I couldn't find proof it would be actually ironic that some stuff which was used primarily by Nazis to save their soldiers would now be employed to save Israeli people. After all Israelis are mostly Jewish and Nazis would have killed all of them if they could.
How would the monsters feel if their invention (not saying the Leukoplast inventor himself was neccessary a Nazi) was used to save their victims descendants?
Pretty funny to picture their faces angrily grinding their teeth.

I guess you might have thought the OP was proud of Nazi history and that Israelis used that stuff shows in an ironic way that not all Nazi stuff was bad and even Jewish people use it.
I'm pretty sure he didn't mean it like that and it was more along the line of what I said above.

Anyways I get how one might always assume the worst of us Germans even today. There are millions of reasons for that.

Also looking forward to see some real numbers.
 
Jens Schuetz said:
How is that offensive even if it was wrong?

If it were true and I couldn't find proof it would be actually ironic that some stuff which was used primarily by Nazis to save their soldiers would now be employed to save Israeli people. After all Israelis are mostly Jewish and Nazis would have killed all of them if they could.
How would the monsters feel if their invention (not saying the Leukoplast inventor himself was neccessary a Nazi) was used to save their victims descendants?
Pretty funny to picture their faces angrily grinding their teeth.

I guess you might have thought the OP was proud of Nazi history and that Israelis used that stuff shows in an ironic way that not all Nazi stuff was bad and even Jewish people use it.
I'm pretty sure he didn't mean it like that and it was more along the line of what I said above.

Anyways I get how one might always assume the worst of us Germans even today. There are millions of reasons for that.

Also looking forward to see some real numbers.
Click to expand...

Didn't mean to stir up any controversey here. That's why I felt it reasonable just to drop it and get back to the thread. Just didn't feel like it added to any of the real positives OP mentioned to its modern day application or alternate uses in modern camping. I appreciate you trying to help here Jens, although the reasons you suspect I was initially thrown off are not it, all the more reason just to get back to having fun in the thread. One things for certain, I don't see how this beats duct tape or super glue.
 
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