Things that dont realy work

ANY & ALL insect " repellents that are "natural" or "eco friendly" and lacking DEET. Simply put they DO NOT WORK. :mad::mad::mad:

RAT i'm curious about why you think aerial pen flares dont work? :confused::confused::confused:
 
How about that Mylar blanket should keep 80% of body heat if all you do is wrap yourself in it.... Thats if you can keep it from tearing. But it does work as a reflector for a good fire.
 
How about that Mylar blanket should keep 80% of body heat if all you do is wrap yourself in it.... Thats if you can keep it from tearing. But it does work as a reflector for a good fire.
 
It might have been me that didn't like the doan firestarters.
My problem is how do you get the magnesium powder? You have to have a file or ruin your knife edge.
 
Hey Liam! No, it wasn't you I think, the person struck me as a real hardhead and I've never read any of your stuff that I can remember where you came off like that! The person I am speaking of said that the Doan-type flat out didn't work, that even the ferrocerium was B.S., basically. I think it was one of the guys from the Zipperhead Department of the Bic Cult. :D

Most of us are carrying some type of multitool and I would bet that of those people in this forum, most of them are carrying a Leatherman Wave or a close variant. You just use the file, you can use a knife if you have to and the magnesium is really not too hard on it...but files from multitools work very, very well.

You can hog off a lot of magnesium in an incredibly short period of time with the file on a Leatherman Tool or something like the metal file in a Swiss Champ. I've tried it with Swiss Tools, The Swiss Champ, Gerber Multi-Pliers, Leatherman Wave and Leatherman Super Tool.

Along with the duct tape trick I mentioned earlier and then someone came in and mentioned it again, it really is a great way to start a fire with slightly stubborn materials available.

And, really, no one should be concerning themselves with mere duct tape any longer. No, instead, you should try the Gorilla Tape from the fine people that brought us the creeping but fantastic glue, Gorilla Glue! Great stuff!
 
Those little "fire cubes" that were once included in that massive Gerber flint/steel contraption. Once exposed to air, they would dry out to the point of being 100% useless!

As for the Doan's mag block, I have attempted to use them under less than perfect conditions (0 degrees, windy, and cold hands) with less than perfect results.

Carrying a good steel and keeping quality tinder dry is not rocket science and if packed correctly, takes up less space than those mag blocks.
 
Don Rearic said:
And, really, no one should be concerning themselves with mere duct tape any longer. No, instead, you should try the Gorilla Tape from the fine people that brought us the creeping but fantastic glue, Gorilla Glue! Great stuff!
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Yeah, until you carelessly spill it on something that you don't intend to glue...like a fabric couch cushion!

my GF called the company fo help and was politely informed that there was no known solvent to remove it.:D
 
I'm not a huge fan of those magnesium blocks, but they can work. Bryan Breeden showed me that if your knife has a decent sharp spine you can make pretty good shavings off that and save the edge of your knife.
 
Why does everyone keep saying, "can work?" Hahaha! They do work, period. It all boils down to personal preference. Some people, as stated above, think it's bulky for what it is. If a Swedish Fire Steel works, the Doan will work because it's a ferrocerium rod epoxied to a magnesium bar. As I alluded to earlier, there was one knucklehead who doesn't believe in ferro rods either, they just don't work for him.

As for the Gorilla Glue, you have to be very careful with it, you can use just the smallest amount possible because it looks like The Blob once it gets going if you use too much. A company saying there is no solvent for it instantly makes me realize that somewhere between Coca-Cola and WD-40, something is going to work on it. :D
 
I never have any luck with button compasses. I may just get cheap ones, but the needle never spins right. I gave up on them and have a fullsize one I use now. I still toss a button one in my PSK though. If nothing else I can be annoyed by it.
 
Liam/Don,

I haven't tried it in a long time but I used to be able to get magnesium dust and magnesium ribbon from chemistry supply places. As one might expect, the dust was very fine and easy to light. Put a small piece of magnesium ribbon on the dust and it will yield a very hot fire that lasts longer than just the dust will.

DancesWithKnives
 
Drill a hole through a piece of magnesium and keep the coiled strips that come out, they are fun to light ablaze, lol. Many dirt bike crankcase covers were made of magnesium, you could probably find a few in a motorcycle bone yard for drilling.
 
Goretex and ankle high water proof boots are a couple.
Learned my leason on the boots the hard way in a late november canoeing trip.
I also bought a set of hippie friendly overpriced goretex that cost me a bundle and wore out quick.
The only goretex I have now is a german surplus set and a austrian field jacket, the jacket and set cost me 1/3 of the comercial set.
Another thing I found out about was sealskinz socks, not really socks(blisters).
They work great though with a pair of lightweight socks.

Now that I have learned a thing or two I wear light cotton british soldier 95 and 2000 BDU's in the summer with altima ripple sole jungle boots(non-waterproof, best boots ever), and wool or syntetic in the winter with eather irish setter elk hunters or mickey mouse boots.
 
I use the awl on my SAK to shave the magnesium, and the saw spine to strike the ferrocium. When everything is wet and you can't find good tinder a 2" pile of magnesium shavings will burn hot light rough fuzz sticks.
 
http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/169/3/209
is an interesting study on DEET and kids, but I find it interesting that the curve of effectiveness tops out at around 50% concentration, and small concentrations of DEET seem to all last about 2 hours. Personally I prefer the wipes to a spray as most kids left on their own will douse themselves with the junk, probably inhaling a fair amount if they were lucky enough to be given an aerosol can.

as for things that don't work, gore tex+ thinsulate boots. I can't believe I let the salesman convince me that they would stay cooler in summer because of the insulation.
any kind of one piece water-proof mitt/glove. shells with liners all the way.
 
Brian Jones said:
Regarding some items like wire saws: If I had my choice of saws, I would not choose a wire one.

If I was in a SHTF scenario, and the only thing I had available to me was that same wire saw? I'd be kissing the ground in gratitude like I'd never known.

It's all relative...:)
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I think this goes for most everything that doesn't work as well as planned...
 
Noshtero said:
I never have any luck with button compasses. I may just get cheap ones, but the needle never spins right. I gave up on them and have a fullsize one I use now. I still toss a button one in my PSK though. If nothing else I can be annoyed by it.
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You mean it is inaccurate or it won't settle down? Basically, with button compasses you have to hold them as perfectly still as you can. Dry compasses take a little longer to settle down, liquid is a bit more stable, for obvious reasons.
 
The REAL Commander said:
Drill a hole through a piece of magnesium and keep the coiled strips that come out, they are fun to light ablaze, lol. Many dirt bike crankcase covers were made of magnesium, you could probably find a few in a motorcycle bone yard for drilling.
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They also sell the ribbons at gun shows but one should take serious precautions when packing them as the magnesium (in this form) is far from stable (spark-wise).
 
Don Rearic said:
Why does everyone keep saying, "can work?" Hahaha! They do work, period.
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Agreed. They do work as advertised but they also take much more effort, time, and calories than simply igniting quality tinder using a firesteel.

Coghlan's (most of their stuff is "adequate" at best) tinder cubes are excellent and easily waterproofed by wrapping in plastic with another wrap of duct tape.

I have "tested" this method by completely submerging and freezing the packages in a small bucket of water in my freezer.

It has proven to be 100% reliable.

That said, my own kit is redundant with firestarting methods. Matches, disposable lighters, firesteel, 0000-steel wool, fresnel lens, short lenghts of fatwood, and 5-10 tinder cubes are in ALL of my (3) survival kits.

My "trunk kit" has the addition of highway flares. Bulky but will start a blaze in ANY weather!
 
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