lighting a fire-fail [learning from your mistakes+turbo lighter?

[Bushwhacker]

Something been missed here.

Create a windbreak, light the fire out of the wind.

 

[johnnythefox]

i tried with what i had on and around me.
its a open moor

 

[rancid badger]

Wind is a common and regular enemy to most stoves.

You need to prepare your kit and site, in order to combat the wind.

For using a hexi stove, you need to prepare a shallow hole, just slightly bigger than the stove. Remove the turf or soil and use this to form a wall or wind break around the stove. If it's really windy, as it has been lately then you will need to beef up the wind protection with what ever is to hand; logs, turf, rocks, card board or anything that will help stop the wind getting to your stove.

If none of the above is available, then move to a better site.

For lighting your stove, the issue "lifeboat" matches are often useless, even indoors! they have an erratic performance at the best of times. If you want to use these however, pack a few cotton wool balls in an air/watertight container to use when required.When you need it,fluff the cotton up a bit and light it with the match and then light the hexi; with the cotton wool.
an additional "helper" is to pop a little paraffin or kerosine on the cotton wool before putting it in your storage container. If the container is airtight, the cotton will remain moist with the paraffin but also become waterproof and will light up no bother.

Turbo flame lighters can be a better bet for lighting hexi in a windy situation but frankly; it makes no odds if you've failed to prepare a good stove set up, as the hexi will either blow out anyway, or you'll lose most of the heat due to the wind.

Honestly John, I wish you weren't as far down the country, I'd have been delighted to join you, for a day or two's "knowledge sharing"

I might have to sort out a video, of how we used to train our recruits and later on cadets, to use hexi stoves

best wishes

Steve

PS: open moors usually have lumps of rock lying around that can be collected and built into a wall, perhaps using your rucksack to add to the windbreak.

 

[Badger90]

your missing the point they would not of worked today in the wind

It wasn't a dig at you Johnny or the situation you were in ( i couldn't view the vid, internet via dongle ) and i'm sure you tried what you could with what you had, i just feel spending money on something shiny to do a job when something cheap will ultimately ( in my experience ) do the same job just as well.

On the same subject, i was given a chef's blanching torch once and carry it around just in case with little gas bottles that cost £1 from trago, so in a sense i have a similar item to a turbo lighter, but tbh i only ever used it once to toast me marsh mellows

 

[ex member coconino]

Turbo lighters are astonishingly picky about the gas used to refill, and the right quality gas is three or four times the price of normal can of butane.

 

[Highbinder]

You don't have any wind protection. An aluminium foil windshield would help a lot and packs away to nothing. The other thing to do would be to use your jacket and your rucksack as a windbreak till it gets going - using that technique I've managed to roll cigerettes in gale winds.

What about packing those large stormproof matches?

That's the the way to do it, adding a couple of strips of inner tube too guarantees a fire in the soggiest of weather. Stick a cheapo lighter in every pack, jacket or trousers you own so there's always one to hand.

I had a turbo lighter once, it was okay until it needed refilling and then it was never the same again, it was sporadic at best of times and usually refused to work at all.

Zippos are the most reliable but they just don't hang onto their fuel for long enough, okay for weekends in the woods but for longer trips they become dead weight after four or five days. I've tried the inner tube round the opening but it didn't really help that much.

You could carry a zippo ...and a bottle of lighter fluid hehhehheh

 

[johnnythefox]

i had another go in another windy location petrol goes off i am convinced now that this fuel has as well.
i had to use a full packet to get anything,look how the wind is blowing flames out the back.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gejwUiCt6fk

 

[Martyn]

i had another go in another windy location petrol goes off i am convinced now that this fuel has as well.
i had to use a full packet to get anything,look how the wind is blowing flames out the back.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gejwUiCt6fk

TBH John, any stove will struggle in that kind of wind & exposure, even a petrol stove. Even if you can get the thing lit, you'll use 5x the fuel you would need otherwise. You really need to get a windbreak sorted, get the stove into some kind of shelter first, you'll light it easier, it will burn less fuel and your brew will boil quicker. With an esbit in that kind of wind, even if you can light it, you'll probably burn all your fuel before the water gets tepid. Ten minutes preparation will save you a lot of frustration.