Magfire firestarter

[wentworth]

Hi All,
I've ordered the magfire magnesium firestarter and was wondering if anyone had any experience with it.
I only realised how small it was after I placed the order, and so am considering sending it back when it arrives so I can get the (much bigger) swedish firesteel.
Arg! decisions decisions...

 

[wilt]

Hello Wentworth,

My experience with them is that you want to scrape a pile of magnesium no smaller than the size of a U.S. quarter. This will insure you get an adequate flame going. In extreme weather cases though, you may need to scrape larger pile. Experimentation will be the key.

I also have Swedish Fire steels and think they are outstanding!

Mark

 

[TheViking]

It's not a good firestarter IMO. I've had one, but took out the firestarter and made a firesteel of it. The magnesium is lying around somewhere. The magnesium is somewhat hard to scrape off and the pile has to be big to be effecient. Also the pile will scatter if there's just the slightest wind.

Go for the swedish firesteel. It will last longer and are more effecient.

 

[wilt]

You made some good points Andy. It is hard to scrape off and the pile scatters in the wind. It isn't perfect.

If I had to choose between the two, I would opt for the swedish firesteel too.

Mark

 

[Motorbike Man]

one way I used to get around the wind problem and also to get a longer flame was to scrape the shavings onto a piece of cotton wool that has had vaseline rubbed into it. The magnesium sticks to the vaseline so it doesn't scatter in the wind and the whole thing burns for a lot longer because of the vaseline and cotton wool.

 

[wilt]

That should work great to keep the shavings from blowing about. Great tip!

Mark

 

[TheViking]

one way I used to get around the wind problem and also to get a longer flame was to scrape the shavings onto a piece of cotton wool that has had vaseline rubbed into it. The magnesium sticks to the vaseline so it doesn't scatter in the wind and the whole thing burns for a lot longer because of the vaseline and cotton wool.

Good tip, but it would be easier to just use the cotton with vaseline then and light that with a swedish firesteel.

 

[wentworth]

Erm, not sure that there's any actual scraping off of magnesium with this one. I belive its called the magfire because magnesium is one of the 6 metals in it.... i may be wrong.
http://www.magfire.com/
this is the one I was talking about.

Incidentally, I just lit my first non- matches-fire with an old flint striker. It was the best feeling in the world to finally get it right! I just had not got the tinder fine enough the first time. So I rolled some bark up into a fine bird nest shape, and lit it with the flint striker and my opinel! i can see why you all get hooked on this stuff...

 

[Motorbike Man]

Erm, not sure that there's any actual scraping off of magnesium with this one. I belive its called the magfire because magnesium is one of the 6 metals in it.... i may be wrong.
http://www.magfire.com/
this is the one I was talking about.

Incidentally, I just lit my first non- matches-fire with an old flint striker. It was the best feeling in the world to finally get it right! I just had not got the tinder fine enough the first time. So I rolled some bark up into a fine bird nest shape, and lit it with the flint striker and my opinel! i can see why you all get hooked on this stuff...

Sorry Wentworth, for some reason I thought you were on about the bottom firestarter here it's one I've used before and is very succesful, but as The viking says, a ferro rod which is what you have is just as effective straight onto cotton wool and with practice, wind shouldn't be a problem

 

[wilt]

I'm sorry Wentworth, I miss understood you.

The magnesium fire starter I was referring to is a solid block of magnesium with a very small ferro rod attached to it, usually by glue. You scrape off a pile of magnesium and then scrape the ferro rod that is attached to it to create the spark, lighting the pile of shavings. The magnesium lights off readily and burns hot! A ferro rod and tinder contained in one package. Sweet. You can find a pics here, http://www.uscav.com/productinfo.aspx?productid=7562&tabID= and here http://www.tadgear.com/x-treme gear/fire starters main/magnesium_firestarter.htm

The swedish firesteel I referred to is the kind made and sold by Light My Fire, http://www.light-my-fire.com/. It’s a rod made of numerous metals embedded into a plastic handle. You scrape the rod and it produces a shower of extremely hot sparks. The rod will easily ignite plane 100% cotton balls, cotton balls coated with Vaseline, #0000 steel wool, wood shaving, wax paper, gas stoves, etc.

It looks like to me that Light My Fire and Magfire are selling the same product. The smaller size rods are great for small personal survival kits and the large model can be kept with your sheath knife or fire kit.


Mark

 

[ChrisKavanaugh]

Keep the small unit for a pocket survival kit and buy the big one too. Metal matches greatest strength is longevity and potential for hundreds, if not thousands of fire. Drawbacks are a severely hypothermic victim may be to cold to successfully control the sparking. This is when those cheap disposable lighters become your hot survival kit. Firemaking is so basic a need for bushcraft and survival, yet so small everyone should have a redundancy in methods. Once you scrape a metal match the protective film is removed. Some elements ( the magnesium) are subject to oxidation. You may want to apply a THIN layer of nail polish. The mentioned Magnesium bars are infamous for doing this. Mag bars are not my favourite fire tinder. That said, anyone who has the dedication to make a friction fire should learn the mag bar's idiosyncrisies. To many 'experts' become proficient at specific skills. It isn't beyond probability to wind up in a wreck with resources you've discarded as options. BTDT

 

[Hoodoo]

Count me in as a big fan of the magnesium fire starter. It's one of those bombproof options. It will burn hotter than almost any other tinder out there and if the rest of your tinder is damp, this is a plus. Coat the ferro rod in shellac, and you cannot ruin it with moisture. Wind is a problem but scraping the magnesium into a depression in your tinder bundle or whatever depression you can create will get around this. Also, with a couple small mods, you can lighten the MFS and turn it into a handy saw that will take down small saplings without too much work. The back of the saw blade can be used to make magnesium shavings (takes some work though) and spark the ferro rod.

 

[PC2K]

i prefer fatwood shavings instead of magnisum shavings. It scraps much easier and smells beter too. The flame also looks like a flam, is suppose to look and not like a white flash.

 

[spamel]

I got some maya sticks sent to me by Scalpel over on BB. Tried them out and they are fantastic.

I went to the local woods today, just across the road from Bergen Belsen Camp, which is mainly coniferous woodland. I was shaving a stick whilst my Trangia boiled my kettle (no open fire today, it's been very dry here for about a week or two) when I noticed it was full of resin. I lit a small fire in the empty bean tin I had and shaved the stick into it. It worked just as good as the sticks Scalpel sent me, and the smoke drove the insects off.

It was then that I noticed a tree stump with a bit of old white resin on the outside, from when the tree was felled. I cut some of the wood out of the stump and it was full of resin. I believe this is called fat wood, and I had read about it in one of the books by Mearsy, but had never tried it. I now have a huge supply, a trangia pot from today and the stuff Scalpel sent me, which is much more resinous.

I'm happy because I learnt a new thing today

Spamel

 

[Ravenn]

Sorry Wentworth, for some reason I thought you were on about the bottom firestarter here it's one I've used before and is very succesful, but as The viking says, a ferro rod which is what you have is just as effective straight onto cotton wool and with practice, wind shouldn't be a problem

The Doan Mag. fire starter is my choice, coupled with vasoline inpregnated,or fat wood shavings. I use the file on my Leatherman Wave to make fine filings, and catch them in my cup,or a can. They stickto the cotton pretty well. I've never been able to ignite a cotton ball wiht just my scout steel. i seem to get a bigger shower of sparks from the Doan, too.

 

[Hoodoo]

The Doan Mag. fire starter is my choice, coupled with vasoline inpregnated,or fat wood shavings. I use the file on my Leatherman Wave to make fine filings, and catch them in my cup,or a can. They stickto the cotton pretty well. I've never been able to ignite a cotton ball wiht just my scout steel. i seem to get a bigger shower of sparks from the Doan, too.

Ravenn, are you using 100% cotton balls? Also, do you fluff out the cotton ball? A firesteel should light a plain cotton ball up in a heartbeat.

 

[Motorbike Man]

Ravenn, are you using 100% cotton balls? Also, do you fluff out the cotton ball? A firesteel should light a plain cotton ball up in a heartbeat.

I'd agree with Hoodoo, I've never had any troubles at all lighting cotton wool, even just with the spark from an old lighter. Another thing I've done before is to take a cotton wool ball and shred it into a feather stick, gets them alight first strike 99 times out of 100

 

[Ravenn]

Ravenn, are you using 100% cotton balls? Also, do you fluff out the cotton ball? A firesteel should light a plain cotton ball up in a heartbeat.

Yes, I am, I should give it a better try though...sort of wanted the fire like "right now!"

 

[Ravenn]

I'd agree with Hoodoo, I've never had any troubles at all lighting cotton wool, even just with the spark from an old lighter. Another thing I've done before is to take a cotton wool ball and shred it into a feather stick, gets them alight first strike 99 times out of 100

I'll surely spend more time on the procedure. That would the the trick for lighting Maya Wood in a hurry.