How do i use a fire steel and can some one recommend me a knife
- Thread starter chris p
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Hi, Clas Ohlson sell good quality Mora bladed knives from £5. To light a hexi block, i'd scuff the surface to make a pile of fine shavings on top of the block for the spark to catch. Hope that helps.
I havent used hexi blocks for years, so cant help there, but as for a good knife, I'd echo what Badger74 says about a mora knife, or maybe a hultafors HVK. Excellent knives, easy to use and most importantly, not much of an issue when they get lost.
As with what the two above said, a mora is a great first knife, long-lasting, tough, and isn't such a worry if its damaged or lost. As for lighting a fire with a firesteel, you'll need a little pile of fine tinder such as birch bark, cotton wool, perhaps even fine tissue paper which will be able to catch from the sparks.
Hold knife reversed (blade towards you) or striker in left hand. Kneel with right knee down and left knee up. Brace left hand on toe of left shoe (if you are right handed). Hexi block will need to be shaved into fine pieces to be lightable tinder. Even then, not easy - best tinder of all is Swedish Firecard, slit open and the fibres pulled out. Place tinder beneath knife or striker. Hold firesteel in right hand and draw towards you under spine edge of knife / striker which is facing downwards towards the tinder. Draw slowly and with some upward force . You should get a very nice controlled shower of sparks. NB firesteel may need roughing up first and the lacquer taking off before it will spark.
If using the spine of the Mora to generate sparks, then give it a file to roughen it up and make sharper edges.
Works for me.
If using the spine of the Mora to generate sparks, then give it a file to roughen it up and make sharper edges.
Works for me.
Get a mora to start with. For bushcraft or woodwork any scandi will do better than a more expensive knife with a different grind. If you want something with more character,more pleasing to the eye, get a helle or an enzo. If you want to do traps game prep, food prep try the mora 2000. It's a great all round knife. Little strange looking
I have a Light My Fire knife with fire steel in the handle. It was about 23 quid, and you get a Mora clipper type knife and nice fire steel in one package, so I thought it is a good idea.
Indeed the fire steel works well, and the knife is a razor sharp actual Mora.
For lighting up, I use cotton wool half dipped or smothered in candle wax. They are kept in waterproof army plastic case. With these in the middle of feather sticks and one strike on Light My Fire Steel by the knife spine, fire will start 99.9% first time and every time.
Indeed the fire steel works well, and the knife is a razor sharp actual Mora.
For lighting up, I use cotton wool half dipped or smothered in candle wax. They are kept in waterproof army plastic case. With these in the middle of feather sticks and one strike on Light My Fire Steel by the knife spine, fire will start 99.9% first time and every time.
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Here is an old post about ferro rod use: http://woodtrekker.blogspot.com/2010/08/lighting-fire-with-ferrocerium-rod.html
As far as hexi starters, just scrape some of it, or brake them up. It will make the job easier.
As far as hexi starters, just scrape some of it, or brake them up. It will make the job easier.
I always found that the best way to brew up using Hexi was to chuck it in the bin and get my Jetboil out. Dreadful stuff it is, I've seen squaddies out on Dartmoor who've burned through an entire box of matches and still can't get it going.
I gave my nephew a light my fire ferro rod when he joined up. When I next saw him I asked was it any use; "Yes, because I've been able to light my hexi stove and the others can't".
One very bad man I used to know, decided it would be fun to melt chocolate over bits of Hexi and give it to iraqi children as sweets. How he laughed until he got caught and demoted from Sgt to Private.
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