firesteel tips needed

[fast but dim]

just got a firesteel off andy: how do you get the sparks to catch? couldn't get the paper in the stove to light, so how easy are they to use for real?
im no fool, but how do you ensure the sparks ignite something? It just seems to me it'd be far easier to carry a lighter or matches. Either im missing something or firesteels aren't that good.

 

[running bare]

paper isnt really that good as a tinder. you could try cotton wool, dry wood shavings, fluff, or if your out in the woods birch bark is good if you scrape the back side and collect it in a pile on the bark and set a spark to it. good luck
tom

it all comes down to practice any idiot can use matches the skill is in using firesteels or friction

 

[Goose]

Birch bark has already been said, fluffy seed heads(like dandelions or thistle), string(natural, not nylon) and cigarette papers are good too.
A firesteel is better than matches and lighters after a soaking, they are not necessarily easier to use, they need some practice, but after you get the hang of it what ever happens you will be able to get a fire going!





hopefully

 

[Longstrider]

You might find that whatever tinder you use it will tend to catch better if you use the firesteel as the moving part rather than the striker. I've seen people struggle whilst wiping the striker down the firesteel with the firesteel wedged into the tinder. The resulting sparks tend to scatter over quite an area. It's often better to push the firesteel through the tinder, place the striker on it (against the handle) and draw the firsteel out sharply. This tends to concentrate the sparks into one place, helping to make sure that the tinder becomes well lit.

 

[Greywolf]

You might find that whatever tinder you use it will tend to catch better if you use the firesteel.....

I cut the quote down but its all af tho post Im replying to

What a fantastic tip, seems obvious really, but then I am a bit slow on the uptake at times

now all I need is to convince the Boss I NEED a firesteel


Greywolf

 

[wanderinstar]

now all I need is to convince the Boss I NEED a firesteel


Greywolf[/QUOTE]
You mean your not the boss? LOL Join the club.
Ian.

 

[Razorstrop]

Collect the lint from your tumble dryer filter...and spark away.
Also for super weather proof tinder, get a small ball of cotton wool and soak it in vasaline.

Mr Strop

 

[innocent bystander]

Check out this thread :
http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2918&page=4

It was on here originally, but i cant seem to find it now...

 

[rich59]

I am not sure if others will agree with this tip as it may leave your firesteel a bit "chewed at the end" looking. However, what I have found is that if you put a lot of pressure with your sharp edge on the firesteel near its tip then a significant sized flake of burning metal flies off that will ignite most things. I think I did get paper to go once.

Edited:-

I have just compared this with Longstrider's technique. His is the better! I got first a pile of birch bark paper and then also a heap of slightly damp crumpled newspaper to go with dragging my firesteel across a sharp edge, whereas my "big chip" did not succeed with either.

 

[Ahjno]

And ... to get even more sparks, with which you can even light a candle (only managed to do it once ): bin the striker and use your knife. (Use the square bit of the spine - my fav' method is using the tip of the knife and move this, rather than the fire flash). The technique described above doesn't work for me ... because I have to hold my knife in my left hand (I'm right handed) - otherwise I don't have enough controle over it

 

[Zeewulf]

Try taking some of the wife's make up cleaning cotton wool balls and squeezing a dab of Vaseline thru them... squeeze the excess out, then tease the fibres out a little. Your firesteel will ignite it on first strike and the tinder burns for a minute or two, with some dry pine shavings you'll have a blaze quick enough.

 

[fast but dim]

thanks for all the tips, longstrider: simple and good: I'd never of thought of that; razorstrop: the fluff worked lmfao
I am a bit dissapointed though,i expected to be able to carry just the steel,not tinder too.Matches still seem a better bet.

 

[Longstrider]

Fast but dim, You can still carry matches...... but keep them in a match safe coz they're useless if you ever get them wet. The firesteel will work no matter how wet you've got it, again and again.
You don't need to carry your tinder with you if you don't want to. As long as you carry a knife you can always find a way to get a fire going with the two items and a little thought. Even on the wettest of days you can find a piece of standing dead wood that you can split open to reveal dry wood. A little scraping with a sharp knife will soon produce enough fine tinder to get a fire lit with the firesteel. (Use the knife edge at right angles to the wood and scrape, then use the rest of the wood to make "fuzzy sticks")
I often find that it's nice to gather a little tinder as I walk if I plan on fire making later in the day. This keeps your eyes on the alert looking for suitable materials and helps you spot no-end of other things that you might have otherwise missed.The possibilities are just about endless with the firesteel, and like I said, it will work no matter what you've done to it in the way of soaking, dropping in the mud, and other general mishaps that will render matches useless.
Experiment (in other words, play with the thing) and you'll find that it's not only as useful as matches but it's far more fun too.

 

[Goose]

You still need to use tinder with matches or a lighter!
The more tinder you use the better the heat builds up to get the kindling lit.

 

[Longstrider]

You still need to use tinder with matches or a lighter!
The more tinder you use the better the heat builds up to get the kindling lit.

Granted, you'll need tinder even with matches, but theres tinder.... and there's tinder. Lighting otherwise unprepared dead nettle stalks with a firesteel is a sod, but not too bad with a match. It all depends on how fine your tinder is. Matches just don't require such fine tinder.

As for the lighter. I use a 3 flame "jet flame" lighter and believe me, if that thing won't light something, it doesn't burn! *LOL*

 

[gregorach]

As a smoker, my experience with lighters is that they always run out at the most incovenient times... I usually have two in my pocket, and they still sometimes end up both empty. Given the option, I'll usually prefer to save the gas in my lighter(s) for really important tasks, like lighting fags.

 

[william#]

yeh i have had to light a fag a few times with flint and steel - yes its a bit fiddly but hey because of the addiction i almost always have a flamamble tinder for flint and steal on my person
hehehehehhe

 

[twelveboar]

Use your firesteel with a bit of steel wool and you'll get a result no problems. I started my first fire using a steel (file) and flint last weekend and I'm chuffed to bits. It's a really nice way to light fire, from a tiny orange spark.
I think the reason these techniques are worth learning is because matches and lighters run out or pack in, as long as you know how to catch a spark you're laughing.

 

[Jeff Wagner]

yeh i have had to light a fag a few times with flint and steel - yes its a bit fiddly but hey because of the addiction i almost always have a flamamble tinder for flint and steal on my person
hehehehehhe

I finally gave up smoking last year ( thanks to the new woman ) however when I still had the habit I found the fire piston with tinder fungus to be an excellent way to get a light in the wind. Flame devices can be rather finicky about staying lit in a stiff breeze. The fire piston just burn hotter. I used this method to light up quite a lot while sailing.

 

[gregorach]

Yeah, I've been toying with the idea of getting a piston for that very reason. Bit pricey for a fag lighter though...