stainless steels: poor choice for sparks?

S

SkinnyJoe

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I noticed that when I strike a flint with a stainless steel Leatherman tool that maybe one in 20 strikes results in a puny, barely visible spark. With the same flint (embedded in a Magnesium bar), a pair of old, rusty scissors throws sparks like a grinding wheel.

What's the deal?


Thanks.
 
With your LM you should use your saw or some type of tool on it with a very sharp spine or edges. On my leatherman wave I use my saw spine to make the sparks fly pretty good.
 
A ferro rod- fire steel whatever you prefer to call it doesn't care if it's carbon or stainless,as long as the steel is hard enough and sharp enough ( or has a sharp corner) to bite. I use the awl or the saw on my saks and it works very well. Though I like a hacksaw blade the best, just because it's handy to have with the fire steel.
 
Are you using a "flint" or a "ferro rod". I am assuming you are using a "ferro rod" if it is the kind that is stuck to a magnesium bar. Use the spine of your saw on your leatherman. The saw spine of my Wave throughs sparks better than anything I have, but the spine of the knife isn't so great. Just experiment with the different tools on your leatherman to see which one works best. You need a sharp 90degree angle. With a ferro rod stainless steel will work, but with a real flint, only carbon steal will work.
 
I thought the same about my SS Clipper until I squared the spine to dead flat and now it sprays sparks like a flint tongued dragon.
 
You're probably not using a fine enough corner on your leatherman, or maybe that portion isn't very hard.

A ferro rod throws the sparks, not the striking device. IE, you can get sparks out of it with glass, which isn't steel at all.

When using flint and steel, its the steel that throws the sparks. It must be carbon steel, and it needs to be hardened carbon steel.
 
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