Why Firestels and such?

R

R.H.Clark

Joined
Aug 23, 2007
Messages
771
Please tell me why firesteels or any other gadget is better for starting fires than a Bic or Zippo? I know they are cool and such but if you are going to carry a firesteel wouldn't it be just as easy to carry a Bic? I've seen knife pouches with a ferro rod holder.Why wouldn't a mini Bic holder be just as good? I know it wouldn't be near as cool or fun but I'm asking from a practical standpoint.

I've never used anything else to start a fire and I really want to know?

Thanks
R.H.
 
Not really any advantage under most conditions IMO.

The main reason I like them (firesteels) is in general in my area you usually need some sort of tinder to get a fire going anyway so a firesteel with some really good natural tinder or with some cotton balls or tinder quick tabs just lasts so much longer than a bic so I'm not throwing something away a lot of times.

I guess the firesteel would also have the advantage of working when wet and having less moving parts that could break also, but the aspect of having less stuff moving into the waste stream from the firesteel is really what motivates me to have one. THAT AND THE COOL FACTOR;)
 
Hi R.H.-

If you use the search function you will find this exact conversation in several other threads. The basic concern is that Zippo's can run out of fuel or get soaked or break, and the same can happen with Bic's. They aren't very 'storage friendly' and can just go bad. It's not as if they're both failing left and right on the streets, but we're not talking about ordinary conditions. We're talking about being certain that you have a means of making fire in the worst weather in the worst circumstances.

The firesteels don't require fuel, and there are no moving parts to go wrong. All you need is some tinder (a hundred kinds that can be carried along or picked up on the trail) and a striker, and you've got flames. Once the Zippo or Bic goes wrong all you've got is a complicated version of a flint.

You can certainly carry whatever floats your boat, but there is a reason firesteels are so popular.
 
Backups. Fire is important. Thats why so many of us learn, and carry, alternate ways to start them.
 
A scout model firesteel= approx 3,000 uses
An Army model firesteel = approx 10,000 uses

+ all of the answers listed above
 
That's a fair question, bro. For ease of use some think that a bic is the choice... however... I can light my BBQ from three feet away and I actually find it easier for campfires, too. From a wilderness perspective... let's say its Northern Ontario in November and your canoe has tipped over. You are soaked to the bone and in your pocket you have a bic and a firesteel... which would be more reliable? Yeh, maybe your bic would dry out, but why take the chance. Plus it gives folks that feeling of "primitive" firelighting even though it is far from that... lol. There are many other reasons for carrying a firesteel, as I'm sure the members will tell you when they start chiming in.
Rick
 
+1. Fiddleback may have been in the situation many of us have been in, in your primary method of fire starting failed. Or could have. Or you relied on your buddies expertise and he coud not get the fire started. I carry a blaze orange Windmill as my primary and a firesteel as my secondary. I always USED to carry a zippo but now its job is lighting a fire in my fireplace.
 
Thanks guys,..I intend to get a new knife soon with a firesteel attached to the sheath.I can see getting wet and wanting a fire before a lighter dries out.I also think it is a good idea to have several backup fire starting sources.I just can't see someone only carrying a firesteel when a Zippo or Bic seems so easy.
 
Ya I'm with them. Firesteels are nice, but a bic is my primary. I don't believe in making jobs tougher. I'll use the ready fire source if it still works. But if it doesn't, it's pretty tough to make a firesteel fail.
 
2006_1010Image0085.jpg

2006_1010Image0087.jpg


the firestarting wife getting into the cool factor
2006_1010Image0052.jpg

2006_1010Image0053.jpg
 
I use the firesteel all the time. I had a firesteel that was under water for more than a month. It took five-six strikes to take away the oxidation but then it worked like it was new. :)
I even have a stripped scout model on my keyring.
 
Hollowdweller: Love the last pic LOL!

R.H.Clark: As others have said, the firesteel is usually carried as a no fail backup to a bic or zippo. A bic in your pocket and a firesteel with your knife, or on your key chain, PSK, etc. :

*If your lighter falls out of your pocket, you still have a way to start fire.
*If you fall in the river and your lighter no longer works, you still have a way to start fire.
*If you didn't realize your lighter ran out of fuel, you still have a way to start fire.
*If you fall and break your lighter, you still have a way to start fire.

They aren't quite as easy to use as a lighter so most people make a habit of using there firesteels to start fires as a way to keep in practice. There's not much of a need to practice using your lighter, if you can start a fire consistently with your firesteel, you'll have no problem using the lighter if it still works and you need a fire now.

A firesteel will ALWAYS work, not so much can be said of a lighter, but lighters are easier and faster to use in everyday situations.
 
It is real hard to light that pretty girl's cigarette with a fire steel.

I'm getting close to 60 and the only time I have had a problem with a lighter is in a high wind. I use lighters with translucent sides so that I can see how much butane is left. I have even used lighters without fuel to start fires. I found that the right type of plant fluff will light from a Bic striker wheel. I usually pack a second lighter if I am going afield. If it is cold weather I throw an automobile flare in my pack. Now that will get a fire going in any condition where there is fuel.
 
R.H.Clark said:
Please tell me why firesteels or any other gadget is better for starting fires than a Bic or Zippo? I know they are cool and such but if you are going to carry a firesteel wouldn't it be just as easy to carry a Bic? I've seen knife pouches with a ferro rod holder.Why wouldn't a mini Bic holder be just as good? I know it wouldn't be near as cool or fun but I'm asking from a practical standpoint.

I've never used anything else to start a fire and I really want to know?

Thanks
R.H.
Click to expand...

Failsafe backup plain and simple. When everything else is wet and broken and out of fuel, the firesteel is in a holder bolted to my knife sheath. I use a mini Bic for general fire starting chores like my camp stove.
 
Yep...like the others have indicated, a fire steel should still provide sparks after it has been soaked. They are small and no trouble to carry.

However...when everything is soaked, or when you need a fire or light in an emergency situation...you generally need it immediately. In my experience it is always hugely easier to light a fire with a flame rather than a spark...and it is darn near impossible to ignite even slightly damp tinder with sparks from any source.

I have several fire steels and I like them. However if I was going some to place where fire could save my life, I would carry more than one lighter or container of reliable matches, and at least one of these 'spares' would be safely stored in a water-tight container. It is also a good idea to carry something like innertube rubber or a stub of candle to help you light a fire in wet conditions.

I reckon appropriate clothing and a decent rain coat or poncho (or tarpaulin or sheet of plastic etc) are at least of equal importance to fire-starting equipment.

I've never had to light an 'emergency' fire, but I generally will always carry some means of lighting one if I am in the bush. I think it is good to practice lighting fires with a fire steel...especially the part where you coax sparks into a flame. I scrape only the last 3/8" of an inch or so of my fire steel. This tends to taper the end of the firesteel fairly quickly, but I figure this is better than scraping along the whole length and making it so thin eventually that it is likely to snap before it is worn out.
 
Rarely will a lighter take much to be usable after dunking, just flick it a few times and it will light. Take one and soak it overnight, it doesn't take that much.
They do run out of fuel leaving you with a weak sparker at best.
Better to have a good firesteel and a bic, or multiples of both.

And firesteels are cool.:D

Truthfully I think the magblocks are the answer to soaking wet with no dry tinder but I carry all three.
 
As other have stated, to me its just a back-up source of fire starting. Depending on your age and or health, nothing can be more critical to your survival than a fire. This is in more true when you live and travel a lot up here in the Dakotas where sub zero temps are the norm.:(
 
I actually prefer to use a firesteel to light my MSR camp stove - since there's a flare-up when the priming fuel is lit, it's just a little nicer to throw sparks at the fuel rather than jerk your hand back when the flame of a Bic touches the fuel.

But generally it's just a dependability issue - I carry both Bic and firesteel, but I've had Bics fail on me from getting wet or losing fuel from accidental discharge. I've never had a firesteel fail.
 
Hello

Noshtero..

Noshtero said:
Ya I'm with them. Firesteels are nice, but a bic is my primary. I don't believe in making jobs tougher. I'll use the ready fire source if it still works. But if it doesn't, it's pretty tough to make a firesteel fail.
Click to expand...

Let me ask you...

Do you train, and train alot with a Firesteel ??

I know alot of people who carry a firesteel and don't know how to use it, or use it properly...

A Firesteel isn't one of those magical things that just because you own one, its a sure thing..

What I'm getting at is that unless you have intimate knowledge of the firesteel it doesn't mean you'll make fire...

I'm not sure why alot of people say the Firesteel is their "Backup" fire making source..

I think it is looking at a possible problem in reverse..

One should use the hardest method possible... If you can work a firebow,, which I still can't, time permitting, I would be using a firebow Constantly until I could do it in my sleep..

For me,, I don't have a problem with spark based methods. I'd say, the biggest problem, which really isn't a problem is finding the proper tinder to use with the steel itself...

So basically what I'm saying is use these prim fire making methods as your first line tools and keep the mindless matches and lighters as your backup...

At a recent Scout camp I promised to show a few people some different techniques, including firesteel,chemical, fire piston,electrical flint/steel and maginfying glass as well as flashlight reflector..Ended up with a crowd of 30 people by the time everyone told their friends about it...

There were several old timer Scouts there that carried a firesteel, however weren't using it properly,or didn't know how to use it. Several of them couldn't use flint/steel, had never seen fatwood,PCB's, or char cloth, and never even Thought about using steel wool..

You simply can't teach kids to make fire with a lighter. You are doing them a disservice...

If you are going to dabble in wildreness skills , knowing a firesteel well is an absolute Pre-Req!.


ttyle

Eric
O/ST
 
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