Firesteel: technique or...

[joewalton1989]

Hi all,

First post (aside from my introductory post).
Ages ago I purchased a cheap Mil-Tec firesteel which has always been okay for use with my Trangia (meths burner) or my Coleman F1 lite, however as I plunge further into the bushcraft rabbit hole I find it frustrating that I can't get a flame on anything other than (dry) cotton wool balls. (It wouldn't light my p-jelly soaked ones)

I have tried Light My Fire tinder sticks which I shaved down into a bundle with some tinder but it just won't take.
This compounded by the wonderful pre-spring blanket of snow we are currently inundated with.

The striker I have been using is the standard one that came with the steel, but I have read that the striker is somewhere between rubbish and appalling.
I've tried adjusting how I strike, how close to the tinder the steel was but no dice.

I could resign myself to carrying cotton wool with me everywhere but that won't satisfy my need to start a fire more naturally (with a firesteel, I'm not bow drill ready yet...)

So my question after all that:

Does the cost of a fire steel affect how well it works or is it more probably something I am doing wrong?

Sorry for the long winded post

Thanks in advance

Joe

 

[Niels]

I had a cheap fosco one, that ran out far quicker than the LMF ones. You can't go wrong with the Ray Mears one or the LMF.
But I've heard good things about the cheaper ones too. A better striker can work wonders too.

And if I may be so annoying, a firesteel is a piece of carbonsteel used with a flint. What you mean is a ferro rod

 

[g4ghb]

It is partially the quality of the firesteel and partially your technique / striker

I find a sharp blade the best tool to get a big hot stream of sparks (you only need to strike ~10mm if you do it right) You are aiming to 'cut' off a small layer of the steel as this is what burns and produces the sparks and heat. I have tried strikers but find a cheap penknife you are not worried about works as well as anything as you learn your technique.

I have heard you should hold the striker still and pull the steel back on it to save scattering your tinder but I find that really cack handed. I strike the last cm or so of the steel and thus don't seem to have too much problem with scattering.

hope this is of help - it is so much easier to explain when you do it than by typeing!

 

[British Red]

Use a broken piece of hacksaw blade as a striker.

put the tip of the firesteel on the tinder

Push the striker hard at an angle onto the firesteel

Now pull the firesteel whilst holding the striker still

For another tinder get some hairy string (jute). Fluff it up and untwist it until its just a buch of thin threads...like the finest cotton. Try this. If it works, you know you can light bone dry vegetable fibres. Once you have that down, its all about tinder preparation.

 

[joewalton1989]

Brilliant thanks for the tips guys.

I'll ill do some research into tinder preparation as well to make sure I'm giving myself the best possible chance.

Will look into an LMF or Ray Mears one come next pay day.

Sorry for my rookie error I'll be sure to not make the same mistake twice. Ha

 

[Hibrion]

I presume the sticks you are using are fatwood, packaged by light my fire?

If so, then it will help to use your striker to shave the sticks to form a powder like substance as well as making some fine shavings with your knife. I've found that a few strikes and this usually takes. I'm using a cheapish fero rod too, so it should work for you.

 

[joewalton1989]

For another tinder get some hairy string (jute). Fluff it up and untwist it until its just a buch of thin threads...like the finest cotton. Try this. If it works, you know you can light bone dry vegetable fibres. Once you have that down, its all about tinder preparation.

I knew I had some laying about.

Just tried it out worked a treat. Thanks for that!

Hibrion: yes it's fatwood will try that tomorrow.

Thanks

 

[Bumbler]

I find something flat to lay it on, like a piece of wood. Then use the back of my knife as a striker. I set the knife down with the point on the wood for support. Then drag the fire steel back.
For tinder I use birch bark. For that I use the finest papery leaf thin paper bark from the young birch.

If that can't be found, I use the old and stiff sort. Then I scarpe it with my knife to get a small pile of fluff. Whn that burns I use it to light my feather stick, or a pile of birch bark...

 

[Bumbler]

I knew I had some laying about.

Just tried it out worked a treat. Thanks for that!

Hibrion: yes it's fatwood will try that tomorrow.

Thanks

For fat wood, try and scrape it with your knife. You'll get some almost dust like material, and light that. Then you can use that flame to light your feather stick. It's easier on your fat wood too.

 

[British Red]

I knew I had some laying about.

Just tried it out worked a treat. Thanks for that!

Hibrion: yes it's fatwood will try that tomorrow.

Thanks

Right, so you know the steel works. You want a great fat shower of sparks - not a few weedy ones.

Take your fatwood and make fine curls. Most peoples technique for this absolutely sucks. This is how fine you want (match head for scale). Or as close as you can get .


feather stick by British Red, on Flickr

Feather up a mass like this


26. Feather Stick by British Red, on Flickr

If you cut them off it doesn't matter - just gather them in a pile. Then using the "pull the firesteel" technique I told you about before, drop a load of big sparks on the pile.

It'll light okay - doesn't even have to be fatwood - a handful of dry pine kindling from a pack in the garage will work fine

 

[Dave]

On the quality of firesteels.

I bought a few off someone on a bushcraft website a few years back, and they were great.
But I recently bought some off Ebay, and they were very poor. Small curls of metal, come off without sparking.

Theres a noticeable difference.

Im assuming someone bought a batch of cheap ones from hong kong, and is reselling them from the UK, after adding his mark up.

The last time I was in the market for firesteels going back a few years, they were all good un's.

Nobody in China was making them or flogging them on Ebay.

 

[joewalton1989]

Bumbler, thanks for the advice I finally managed to get out and after some birch bark an I've had successes with both bark scrapings and my ferro rod.

The other minor victory I had in man's eternal struggle to light a fire was I managed to relight the partially use pile of scrapings using nothing but my breath. Which I am quite proud of myself for... Almost smug. If only I had someone to brag to...

Haha

Thanks guys