anyone ever ACTUALLY use a magnesium fire starter ?

SAR-EMT40 said:

If you can't find your own you can buy it.
Fatwood online
Keith

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I like the challange of finding this stuff outdoors myself. Kind of like a survival training thing, besides it's fun to play with fire.

Cedar is pretty easy to identify, just like anything, when you get use to seeing it. Finding it in our area N.E. doesn't seem to be too easy though.

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But not this much challange. I'm glad you told me before I started looking.

Fatwood has to be cut very tiny and even then it can take some work to get it to take a spark directly. If you can start something else first and then feed some Fatwood in, that works great.

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I'll look for some now that I know about it. I bet it could be ground up or crushed some with a rock to make it catch better?

Thanks

"Bizarre Foods" with that load Andrew Zimmerman did a "Survival" show that was on last night. The resident, hired, expert, guide, survivalist...did I mention he was a hired expert survivalist guide ? ...took almost an hour and a half to get a fire started by magnesium and spark in perfect, dry, windless, sunny conditions . I turned it off before Andrew had to try to start his fire.

Since you guys are playing with fire try lighting a Ping Pong ball some time. They are very lite and burn hot a long time and I would think they are water proof.

For the magnesium firestarter. Get an old hacksaw blade. Break off a 2 inch section and tie it to the magnesium. The hard steel and teeth shaves well, and the hard steel and teeth produce a much better spark than a knife does.

Chip said:

"Bizarre Foods" with that load Andrew Zimmerman did a "Survival" show that was on last night. The resident, hired, expert, guide, survivalist...did I mention he was a hired expert survivalist guide ? ...took almost an hour and a half to get a fire started by magnesium and spark in perfect, dry, windless, sunny conditions . I turned it off before Andrew had to try to start his fire.

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I think that is a new diet approach so Zimmerman can she dsome pounds waiting for the fire....

I have been at many boy scout events where there is a timed competition to start a fire with a mag match and see how quickly the fire can burn a string mounted a set distance off the ground. The scouts get real good at it and its usually about 4 or 5 minutes from start to finish.

The usual trick is very dry tinder and lots of birch bark that has been finely peeled into very thin sheets that are then shredded, then some dry pine, fir or hemlock twigs (about the diameter of matchsticks) that are used "teepee" style to get allow some air flow into the pile.

The junior maine guide program reportedly used to test their members by handing them one pine log that was dunked into the water, an ax, one match and a pot of water, the objective was to see how long it took to boil the water.

I had the opportunity to use my magnesium fire starter over the weekend in a camping situation. We had plenty of pine available and I had scavenged some birch bark from the previous campsite as this campsite did not. The butane lighter that I had used the previous night had disappeared into the nether regions of my kayak.

I broke out the Mg block and found that it was not corroded after two years of non-use. I keep it in a recycled prescription bottle that keeps it dry and in relatively low oxygen conditions despite being lugged over dozens of mountains winter and summer. I held the block in my left hand about 2" over my pile of birch bark. I scraped away with my Leatherman Wave, and deposited some small Mg shavings onto the bark and started sparking from about 2" away. Did not work, it would catch here and there, but no real action.

Then I pressed the block hard into the birch bark with my left hand and created a pile of Mg much more quickly as the block was held more firmly between my hand and the solid ground under the birch bark. It also created a mixture of sizes of magnesium.

I then used the flint side of the block and again pressed it hard into the birch bark with my left hand, this placed the flint and the resulting sparks much closer and more firmly near the MG and the bark. I then dragged the knife once down the flint and POW. It burned very hot and caught the bark. It then became a scramble to feed kindling into the fire.

Pressing the block firmly, into the pile of tinder was the key. Cannot wait to try it again.

How did the blade hold up to the scrapping and sparking?

Magnesium is very soft, there is no issue there, but you can look that up in your CRC. The flint must also be soft although I do not know it Mohs hardness, but I have replaced many flints in the strikers I use in my woodshop. Never had to replace the steels in those strikers. At any rate the blade is still very sharp: urban rumor stuff.

Little Rickie said:

How did the blade hold up to the scrapping and sparking?

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I've used one several times, although never in an actual backcountry situation. I did notice that the blade of the knife I used became somewhat chipped as a result.

The resulting flame is certainly bright and hot.

I used to carry a block with me but don't any more. They are nice but not necessary. I've since become very adept at getting a fire started (even with wet wood), to the point that I no longer feel that having the block as a backup is necessary.

DSettahr said:

I've since become very adept at getting a fire started (even with wet wood), to the point that I no longer feel that having the block as a backup is necessary.

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No matches or lighter ? Sounds like Paradox was without them.

Paradox said:

It then became a scramble to feed kindling into the fire.

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I'm sure more fires are lost that way then not getting the initial flame.

Chip said:

No matches or lighter ? Sounds like Paradox was without them.

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Haha, didn't quite mean it that way- I always carry a lighter.

But yeah, I'm fairly proficient at flint and steel, and have some skill with a bow drill set as well. I could certainly get a flint and steel fire going without question, provided I was carrying charcloth with me too.

Since the last time this thread came up I started used fat wood for fire starting & fire steel to lite my stoves. Fat wood burns wet, fire streel sparks when wet and I don't go reaching for my matches if it doesn't light the stove the first time. I use birch bark a lot too if it's handy. Making a fire is fun.

SAR-EMT40 said:

Grinding up birch bark works good.

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I second this. I'm no expert on fire making. In all the time I've carried matches and a lighter with me I've only once had to build a fire in the winter. In looking around for tinder I was fortunate to be at the right elevation and location to have plenty of birch around. I found that dead birch bark burned like Kleenex. That was something I will admit I did not know. With the lighter I didn't even have to break it up or pulverize it. I just put the flame to it and it burst into flame. The second thing I learned was that in the winter especially, if you can, get going on your search for fuel well before dark. It takes a good bit of work and searching to find enough fuel to keep the fire going.

Birch bark burns wet too. Love that resin!

Chip said:

Yeah.

I've now gotten a decent little pile of flakes, dust and tiny ribbons of the magnesium on my hearth...no wind, no darkness, no snow, no sense of impending doom, able to scrape together what I've shaved off (not losing the dust and flakes to the wind and dirt) and have sat there striking the sparks long enough to get a small, powdery burn to occur. There's no way it would have lit anything near it. I believe you'd need quite a pile of dust, flakes and shavings to get a fire started - which you could pre-shave and have available in your kit. Just heading out with the magnesium - well - I decided I had a MUCH better chance of slicing a dangerously large gash in the hand holding the magnesium then getting a fire lit anytime soon.

I'll stick with butane and "strike anywhere" matches in my emergency kit. Thankyouverymuch !

I'm going to try the old bow stick method tomorrow. At this point I have higher hopes for that then the magnesium.

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I came to the same conclusion you did about 3 years ago...

At least I could still return mine to the store when I noticed how crappy these things work lol

Fish