Thread: Fire Starter, (Magnesium rods )

Originally Posted by R93

Correct me if I am wrong.....which is a lot by the way........Do you not scrape some of the magnesium with a knife off into your tinder? It lights immediately from memory. I thought that was the point of the thing.

Yeh sorry R93, that was the title of this thread. Doinit, I was referring to the more flint type fire starters (although they are not strictly flint these days).

Originally Posted by Rushy

Yeh sorry R93, that was the title of this thread. Doinit, I was referring to the more flint type fire starters (although they are not strictly flint these days).

Yip I was going on about the stick only version. R93 I was tossing up which one to get and settled on the stick.Like you say,the other you shave of the stuff into a small heap as such then using the other side,strike up a spark onto the fine shavings.I'm sure the stick on its own would last longer.great wee toy.

Sweet. I have not used one for yrs. I would only ever light a fire in an emergency anyway. Never have one for comfort.

The only time I have ever NEEDED to start a fire(long story but wrong side of flooded river pissing rain) the lighter i had been lighting my smokes with all day had died right when i really needed it. Got one going after a hour or so after pulling 5 factory CRIMPED 308 rounds out basically with my teeth.
Hence carrying 3 separate fire starting things now.

Just as a point of interest, I think the current record for raising a flame using a flint and steel, with natural materials only(not paper or rubber) as tinder, is about 10 seconds.

I demonstrated using a flint and steel to mates at work once, using paper as tinder, and bloody near burnt the office out ! !

No denying it can be done but it can be hard in NZ native bush when it has been pissing down for a week.

I think you are supposed to break the crimp by putting it in barrel end and working loose and then using a small piece of pull through cloth, or shirt tail or even the lint from your navel. Shoot the cotton wad through your rifle using one of the empty rounds [primer only] and you should have a smouldering rag to add to the stack of powder and twigs. Don't shoot the cotton at your powder stack as it will blow it to hell-and-gone.