Titanium fire starter tool

[BenR.T.]

Hey everyone. I don't post a lot over here, but I have a question for all of you fire making gurus!
I am working on a prototype titanium pocket tool/fire starter. You would use the tool itself as the striker.
My question is whether or not titanium would work well as a striker for ferro rod.
I have done some testing and get a good amount of sparks, but I am not sure if it would hold up well in the long run.

The other Alternative would be to make the tool out of hardened 1095 steel, but that would sacrifice the lightness of titanium. One side benefit to this route, is that the tool could double as a fire steel.

I would like some opinions on what you guys would prefer.

Thanks for your time!!

 

[rgoonis]

Ti should be fine the ferro rod will wear down a lot faster then the ti will.

 

[TLR]

My question would be how well the sharp edge on the ti striker would wear. The striker itself may not wear down but would you have to dress the edge more often thus leading to the striker wearing faster?

As far as weight goes, how much are we talking about here? I can't think there'd be a huge weight difference between the two. You don't need a very thick piece of hardened steel.

 

[sutured]

How about a tungsten-carbide scraper blade, sort of like the knife "sharpeners" use, attached to the titanium tool? I don't have much experience with titanium for a cutting/scraping edge, but my inclination is to shy away from it.

good luck

 

[pitdog]

I tend to be a little ' old school ' and love my 1095. As you mention the added benefit of being able to use it as a firesteel is a big bonus !
I've often fancied one that could be worn around my neck on either Paracord or leather strap.

 

[BenR.T.]

Thanks for the input so far guys!
Anyone else have any experience or preferences?

 

[fmajor007]

I use a cheap, broken-off 'steak' knife (with handle!!!) as a striker for my firesteel. I'm a 'traditional' kinda guy myself and prefer steel because i *know* it works - whether it's 1095 or not i don't care - so long as it creates huge, globby sparks!!!

 

[Joe Calton]

i just sharpen part of the riccasso on my hunting knife { to around 90 degrees} as my knives are differentialy hardened and use that, the spine wont throw sparks off a ferro rod. I have seen folks using shards of glass to get sparks off a ferro rod but Ive never tried it.

never played with titanium, I dont know what the sparks would be like using it. but as long as it is hard, and has a sharp angle to scrape lots of material off the rod it should work. the ferro rods are a mix of steel and flint as far as i can tell.