Strike Anywhere Matches

Brian Andrews

Brian Andrews

Joined
Dec 11, 2006
Messages
1,659
Ohio Blue Tips used to rock. Too bad they seem to be out of business and no longer available.

Diamond makes "strike anywheres" but they do not seem as good as the old Ohio Blue tips.

Came across this video to make your own. Any thoughts? Other than they seem to be super sensitive.

[youtube]Fs9VI4ylEAY[/youtube]
 
Yowza, that is a bit sensitive isn't it! The cotton tip seems like you're asking for trouble, unless you made it vaseline impregnated cotton.

I always use those diamond strike anywhere's, though they're probably not the best. It's only out of easy of acquiring the diamond brand.
 
wow, that looks pretty cool. those would be great for emergency situations. i wonder about just using a pile of that stuff in a container, and then rubbing it with a stick to give a magnesium-like flash, but at a lower flashpoint.
 
siguy said:
wow, that looks pretty cool. those would be great for emergency situations. i wonder about just using a pile of that stuff in a container, and then rubbing it with a stick to give a magnesium-like flash, but at a lower flashpoint.
Click to expand...

I'll let you carry that in your pack down the mountain. :D
 
i figure if they are kept in an airtight metal container (like a matchsafe) then if they go off by accident nothing will happen except you will be out a few matches. you should have extra firestarters with you anyways...;)
 
I use a mini Bic for my routine fire chores and carry REI Storm Proof matches in a K&M long match safe, as well as a fire steel and a spy capsule full of tinder. The NATO matches sold by BCB and others are good too, but expensive for routine stuff. It has been harder to find strike-anywhere matches period and I wonder if that is due to changing markets or liability issues. I grew up with wood heat and the appreciation for good matches. I feel your pain!
 
I pretty much never use matches regularly. Just around for backup. But, I do miss the good ones. It would be nice to have them around again.

As an aside, my friends dad told me that when he was a kid, Ohio Blue tips where much more potent. He claimed he could ignite them by throwing them on the concrete. Not merely dropping them, like in the above video. So not quite that sensitive. Interesting though.
 
in the video it looks almost like they ignite in the air, but i think that would be a bit ridiculous...:D

Gene sent me some blue tips, but i had alot of trouble getting them to ignite. maybe they were too old or something, or my match-fu is just weak...
 
briangandrews said:
I pretty much never use matches regularly. Just around for backup. But, I do miss the good ones. It would be nice to have them around again.

As an aside, my friends dad told me that when he was a kid, Ohio Blue tips where much more potent. He claimed he could ignite them by throwing them on the concrete. Not merely dropping them, like in the above video. So not quite that sensitive. Interesting though.
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That`s true about throwing them on the concrete. Something else we used to do is put them in the barrel of a .22 caliber pellet gun, with no pellet, pump it a couple of times, then richochet them off of concrete at night. Kind of a "poor man`s tracer" :D
 
My dad always carried the strike anywhere matches in his pants pocket when he smoked. Now and then they would light in his pocket. It made him do funny dances.;). We used to throw them and the gravel driveway and they would usually light. However I don't recall what brand they were. I carry a good supply in my kit and have a small piece of sand paper glued on the under side of the lid of my match box.
 
I use the diamond brand, and usually pick through the box and get the good ones out. There are alot of crappy ones in the box.

I wish the REI stormproofs were strike anywhere.
 
The nickname for stike anywhere matches was "Barnburners" because rats would grab them, take them to their nest and chew on them. The chewing would light the match and Bye-bye barn. At least that is how the story goes.

I bought 4 boxes of Ohio blue tips years ago and have kept them in a ziplock ever since. They seem to work fine, but i don't see much diffrence in those and recently purchased diamonds.
 
PrimitiveMan said:
.......I bought 4 boxes of Ohio blue tips years ago and have kept them in a ziplock ever since.......
Click to expand...

I have about 50 OBTs left.
I kkep them in polystyrene vials from here:
http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/category.asp?catalog_name=USPlastic&category_name=15&Page=1

Great folks to deal with too and you can buy in small quantities.

Ohio Blue Tips, the factory, is done, defunct. I get my strike-anywhere matches from Lehman's Hardware, in Kidron, OH. Shipped, you'll pay the haz-mat fee.

http://www.lehmans.com/

Lehman's are also great folks and probably have other items of interest to WSS members although their prices are high on there GB axes and such.

The local ACE Hardware carries Diamond brand and, I believe, they work better after having "aged" a while in whatever you are going to carry them in. You will find the most evident difference in the number of culls when you sort those with the best primary ignition heads and stoutest sticks. About 25% to 30% are acceptable for re-packaging in your match safe.
 
Jeff H said:
The local ACE Hardware carries Diamond brand and, I believe, they work better after having "aged" a while in whatever you are going to carry them in. You will find the most evident difference in the number of culls when you sort those with the best primary ignition heads and stoutest sticks. About 25% to 30% are acceptable for re-packaging in your match safe.
Click to expand...

thats a good estimate. seems to ring true with my experiances too.:thumbup:
 
Those look dangerous. Cool, but dangerous.

I carry diamond, never had a problem.

I carry REI stormproof as back-up.
 
In my experience, strike anywhere's don't work when you really need them often enough that, frankly, I do not consider them sufficiently reliable. I think the so-called strike-anywhere heads do not offer enough advantage that they are actually better than REI storm proof matches. But REI matches are far from perfect too. While the REI matches have the striker as the weakness, the strike-anywhere matches sometimes just won't light, not even if I use a conventional striking strip. In my opinion the best way to overcome the weaknesses of both style of matches is to consider all types of matches as tinder and just use a zippo or butane lighter to light both styles of matches. In my case, butanes have traditionally been much more reliable for the purpose of generating a flame, per se, but inadequate for lasting long enough to catch something else on fire. In the past few weeks we have read reports from fellow forumites about their difficulties in making fire under high relative humidity, low temperature, windy conditions. If memory serves, one guy suceeded by lighting his matches with a lighter. I have always considered myself to be a 2.5 sailor, i.e. "recognizes right answer when told", and for me this is a very good answer. Along with some naptha, in the container of your choice, some waxed cardboard or paper, vaseline cotton balls, wax cotton balls, fatwood, a couple of different types of waterproofed matches, a ferrocerium/magnesium device, a fresnel lens, I carry a bic lighter or two. My goal is not only to be able to start a fire, but to actually have sustain that fire for several minutes, with careful management, just by the contents of my fire kit. And if my local REI has some small flat whistles, I might consider adding them to my fire kit too. Some of them really go to town when you barely touch them with a flame.:)
 
Redbird brand matches are the only ones that I have found to be very reliable, both in the regular size, and pocket size. light on nearly anything with practice, from zippers to tight denim (that one is fun) I also have some touch brand pocket matches that are alright, but strike on box only.
a few things i learned from I dad, use the dead or broken matches to add to the tinder pile (lots of people throw them away like they are evil) Two matches together are more than twice as good. And as long as your matches are dry, you have that many chances for fire. if your lighter breaks that is your only chance gone. I carry lots of methods just in case, but I know that matches require the least amount of dexterity on my part.
 
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