Fail safes???

[tytek]

Thanks for all the very different replies.

You have all shown a little bit about yourselves in your answers and attitudes towards awkward situations.

 

[DavidJT]

As far as Im concerned theres no cheats in fire making the need for fire outweighs that ,
A bit of inner tube and a bik lighter for me if all else fails .
Twodogs

What he said x 2

 

[nac mac feegle]

As said above if you have to use a failsafe then you are probebly past caring how you get warmth food and drink so light it anyway possible

but if you have time energy keep trying the hard way until you find the magic trick to make it work

 

[Klenchblaize]

Pulling a bullet to reveal 40 plus grains of powder does the trick for me. You can end up looking like Catweasel if not careful though!

Cheers

 

[John Fenna]

My main method is - flint, steel, charcloth, birchbark.
My backups are - candlewax and sawdust firelighters/fuel (homemade)
Cotton wool and Vas
Firesteel
TurboFlame lighter
Gas stove

The number of backups I carry depends on the aims and objectives of the trip. the distance I have to carry my kit and how severe the weather is going to be.
If the aims of the trip are to be as "Purist" as possible, I am going a long way on foot and the weather is foul then it will be fllint and steel set and the stove. If I am not walking far - all of the options!
As a wise man said "It all depends realy....."

 

[MrEd]

i just use a lighter most ofl the time, but then i use a trangia. i carry a firesteel and slow match as back ups if the lighter fails.

call it cheating if you like but i cant be arsed to use a file steel and blow an ember to life and mess about with tinder bundles every time i want a brew lol. however i do regularly practice as there is no point carrying stuff if you cant use it, and i quite like the joy of getting a fire from just a spark

 

[pango]

In my rucksac, enclosed in a dry-bag, is an emergency kit containing numerous means of making fire; a magnesium fire-rod; 2 mechanical disposable lighters; a Maglite and wire; a tin containing tinder-fungus, birch bark, cotton wool/vaseline, bog-cotton, a gel-capsule of lighter fuel, rubber inner-tube, steel wool, a firelighter wrapped in foil and a couple of T-lights: Also in my rucksac are a number of disposable mechanical lighters which are out of fuel but still spark. I carry either a gas or petrol stove with a litre or 2 of petrol.

In my head, I carry the ability to use a bow and drill and the knowledge of how and where to find things that will burn - pine candles, pine resin, bog pine, bog-cotton, etc, where to find dry fuel and the knowledge of how to dry out wet fuel and keep a fire going in any weather. But my main asset is in having confidence in that knowledge. I do practice the use of my various means of firemaking at my leisure, often when the fire is already going. There's little point in practicing only on pleasant sunny days, however. Foul weather is a must!

I am no purist! I've been cold, wet and miserable and had my teeth rattling around in my head too often for that kind of luxury. When it comes to lighting fires in difficult conditions, my philosophy is Pragmatism. I use a lighter and whatever resources come to hand... failing that, there's always the Benghazi Burner!

Someone, I'm sure, mentioned what I think is an electronic lighter. Avoid them like the plague, as in wet or even damp weather you've got as much chance of a spark by banging your head off a rock!

Cheers!