Flint and Steel Kits

[Kmrere42]

Hi,


I am looking into setting up some kits for emergency use,  What alloy would be best for the striker.

I work at a machine shop and can get a number of different alloys cheap or free. 

1045, 4140ht, 1095 ?  I have access to a small electric furnace to heat treat.




Thank you,



Paul

[SDS-GEN]

I like the magnesium starters commercially available.  They are small, cheap, and work.  Any soft, non-stainless, steel will work.  I snap a used utility knife blade in half and grind of the edge and points and tape it to the side of the starter.

[frontiersman]

I use the magnesium blocks also. I just use a piece of hacksaw blade with the hole already in it and grind off the corners. Make sure to leave the teeth though as it can be used to scrape the side of the block to make tinder.

[canon6]

IMHO the best  fire steels are made from files,soften, then shape and harden at a bright cherry red.Now you have a proper flint striker,   Doug

[Yankee1]

If you want  these kits to work very well include some char cloth to catch the spark. I made some flint and steel kits with leather pouches. I took some old air gun pellet tins and filled them with homemade char cloth. They were very fast to use which I attribute to the char cloth.
                                              Yankee1

[pab1]

I have always heard that high carbon steels work best. I purchased my steels at a traditional muzzleloading shop and I'm not sure what alloy they are. I agree that char cloth is the way to go. The red shop towels sold in auto parts stores make great char cloth. One bundle cut into 3"X3" sections will last a while. A magnifying glass can also be used to light char cloth quickly on a sunny day.

[kmystry]

I love using traditional flint and steel...prefer it actually.  I have an old Uco brand candle lantern that came with a little parabolic reflector made of a lightweight polished steel.  It'll light a piece of charcloth in an instant if held to the bright sunshine.  But there is nothing like breathing life into a fire from a piece of steel and some flint.  I also always carry charcloth if I'm going woodsbumming.  You never know if and when you'll need it.  It's handy stuff. So is jute twine. I bought my steels from a mountain man shop near home...they're the traditional "C" shaped ones.  I can light a fire with them very fast.

[Kmrere42]

Hi,


After a long winter I pulled out my kit and was trying to light up some wood punk (didn't light), I tried some char that was part of the origional kit and it would not light either...!!!...   

Does char go bad after a while or is it an indication of incomplete conversion to char??? I am glad that I found this out now and not during an emergency....!!!...


Paul

[Yankee1]

Sounds like something is wrong with your char cloth.  when a spark hits char cloth it will stay lit.  When I make char cloth I use a brand new one gallon paint can with a nail hole in the bottom and a nail hole in the top. The holes are about 1/16".  I cut the 100% cotton cloth into about 2" squares and fill the can about half full.  Then place it on the Coleman stove.  Smoke will pour our of the top nail hole for about 10 minutes. At This point grab the bail on the gallon can with a pair of pliers or a wire hook and move it off the burner. Be careful, it will be very hot.  NOTE If the gasses escaping from the top ignite the top will blow off. with a big bang. Thats why I use a new paint can. No harm except for the bang.
So be careful not to ignite the escaping gasses.  Let the whole thing cool down and then remove the top and test a piece of the char cloth to see how well it captures a spark. If it works well. Your done. If not you may need a couple of minutes more on the burner.  After a few tries you will have the timing right.
Using this method I make up a pretty good supply to last a while.
                                         Yankee1

[Yankee1]

Paul.  I want to add that one hole in the top and one hole in the bottom of the can is all you want to use. The idea is to control the amount of air that gets in the can so as not to burn up the cloth.
                                            Yankee1
   

[pab1]

Let the whole thing cool down and then remove the top and test a piece of the char cloth to see how well it captures a spark. If it works well. Your done. If not you may need a couple of minutes more on the burner. 

Thats the key to making char cloth. You can't go by how it looks, it has to be tested. Make sure the cloth you use has not been treated with a fire retardant also. Did you light a piece of char cloth from this kit when you first puchased it?

[Kmrere42]

HI Pab1,



Yes, It was part of the original kit.  I remember trying some out but it might not have been part of this particular kit as I had purchased several as gifts.  I have not made any myself.  I have been thinking of doing so but I have not had the opportunity to do so.

Still, can char cloth if properly prepared then fail at a later time???


Paul

[stubshaft]

HI Pab1,



Yes, It was part of the original kit.  I remember trying some out but it might not have been part of this particular kit as I had purchased several as gifts.  I have not made any myself.  I have been thinking of doing so but I have not had the opportunity to do so.

Still, can char cloth if properly prepared then fail at a later time???


Paul

I've had issues with the char cloth picking up moisture in a humd environment.  I keep it in and old tobacco tin but over the course of time it may go bad.

[pab1]

I just lit a piece of char cloth that is about 3 years old with no problem. It has been stored in a tin the whole time. I do live in an area with low humidity. My only concern with the kits is whether or not they are testing the cloth when they make it.

[jsh]

I was fortunate enoguh to be able to set in on a seminar this last weekend. The speaker was Peter Kummerfeldt. I was cooking for the group of about 75, so the first half I only got in on bits and pieces. The second half I got in on a fair bit of.
He had an item he sells he calls a metal match. Very simple tool and works if it gets wet. A metal striker that looks to be a hacksaw blade with the teeth ground off and a metal rod of some kind stuck into a wooden handle to grip. Just strike the hacksaw blade on the rod and you get a LOT of spark.Anyone know what this might be?
He had some char cloth, but when wet it is useless. Waht he had was a 100% cotton, cotton ball. Pull it out into a thin disk. Then you take a BIG blob of vasaline and work it into the cotton ball.  He put this ball of cotton/vasaline into a cup of water and let it soak. Pulled it out, squezzed the water out ane tufted it a bit. Started pretty easy. One of the guys there did the same thing only melted the vasaline over a double boiler and dunked the cotton ball into it. He was with the BSA and the boys had timed one of these and they burned like a candle for 45-50 minutes.
Jeff

[pab1]

Cottonballs covered in vasoline is my main emergency fire starting method. I just put them in a Vasoline container and stir them around with a plastic spoon. I stuff 3-4 of them into a 35mm film canister and carry a couple in my pockets and a few more in my backpack. I also form a book of matches to the side of the film container, put them both in a sandwich bag and seal them with tape. They light easily either with a match or Swedish firesteel and burn for a long time. I still like my flint and steel/char cloth when I'm roaming the woods with a muzzleloader.

[Foggy]

the lint from a dyer works well too

[Cornbelt]

Gunny sacks, tow sacks, pokes, jute, or whatever you might call it lights real quick; especially if washed and dried in the dryer. Used it in bee smoker for years, ' cause it'd smolder a long time.

[mechanic]

I've made a number of strikers for people out of drill rod.  Economical high carbon steel source thats easy to shape.  When done, just heat it red and quench in old motor oil.  It will be plenty hard.  One 36" section will make a LOT of strikers....