Flint Striker

I've read a few bad reviews of this product, but here's the skinny folks, it's just a piece of magnesium, every company pretty much produces the same quality. This piece is fairly large in my opinion, 9mm diameter x 10 cm of length. The striker plate works best if you ensure the side that says up is facing away from the bar. You'll need to scrape a few time to remove the oxidation that forms on the magnesium strip (it forms faster if wet) then press firmly to scrap off the layer of magnesium (if done weakly it'll fail to spark) It's rated to about 4000 strikes, and that seems likely. It says it works when wet, but let me inform you that it's also harder to scrape properly when lubricated with water (or anything else) One review commented that the bar fell out of the handle fairly quickly, but as large as this bar is, you'd still be able to get a good grip on it. However if it seems like a manufacturing issue, then just return it for a non-defective one. Magnesium flint strikers are not going to light wood, unless that wood is coated in something fairly flammable (feather sticks are an exception) You need tinder; light, highly flammable material such a dryer lint, feather sticks, chemical fuels, birds nests, ect... hold the stick fairly close to the tinder, or directly on top of it and scrap the magnesium into it with a lot of force. The sparks will likely go out almost instantly, to if you're far away, it's not going to work. This flint striker functions exactly as it should, as almost all of them do. I give it five stars because I love the super size, if you lit one fire a night with 2 strikes a try, it should last you at least 5 years. Normal use? probably the last one you'll ever need until you lose it.

ORDERED THREE OF THESE AND, SURE ENOUGH, AS MANY OTHER REVIEWERS HAVE STATED, THE ROD IS LOOSE, WITHIN THE HANDLE ... BUT ... I am thinking ... THAT MIGHT BE A **GOOD** THING ! Well, Kids ... Take all this with a grain of salt because I just got these and only opened one of them, as yet. ... I confirmed that it throws a very decent spark (after the coating is stripped) ... Probably "AS GOOD" as a Light My Fire Swiss ARMY Fire-Steel, in terms of it's "spark-ability". And, yup ... The one I opened is kinda loose ... The rod wiggles in the handle (slightly) ... i was unable to twist or wiggle the rod enough to pull it out, by hand, on the first try, but it feels as if I could easily remove it with pliers (or in the course of repeated use). I see the fact that the steel can be removed from it's plastic handle as a HANDY OPTION. I mean ... I may wish to stash one or more of these inexpensive steels in a low-profile PSK (Pocket Survival Kit) or to the back of a knife sheath using Ranger Bands (rubber bands made from bicycle tire inner-tubes, of various sizes). So ... I could attach one of these and a number of FIRE-STRAWS (search YouTube) to a knife sheath or into a pocket tin or a dry-bag. The other (Standard) option is, of course, to do what everyone else does and just apply a liberal amount of Gorilla Glue to the hole in the plastic handle and re-insert the rod and allow the glue to set. Note that this appears to have the same 3/8ths diameter, as an LMF ARMY but it is something like an inch longer (easily a half inch longer and probably more). I *LIKE* IT !! ... At this price, snag two or three ... What's not to love ?

These work good. Nice amount of spark. Fires right up like it should.

Let me qualify this review by first saying that the only EASY way of starting a fire is with a lighter or matches. If you think that ANY flint/steel combo is going to be that easy then you're going to be disappointed with whatever you buy. Having said that, if you're interested in and willing to invest the time practicing the art of making a fire by striking a shower of sparks onto dry tinder then Coghlan's striker is a fine option. Once the protective coating of black paint has been scraped off (applied for safety during transit from factory to end user), you'll find this striker consistently provides a strong shower of sparks with each firm strike of the steel. Moreover, each shower invariably includes 1-3 longer burning "embers" that will ultimately be what starts your fire. I like that the flint is longer than some others on the market. This makes it easier to generate more sparks and gives more surface area if you plan to keep the flint in a loop on a knife sheath. I also like the size and shape of the handle at the top of the flint. It's certainly large enough and properly designed to comfortably and easily hold on to as you draw the flint across the steel. While any piece of carbon steel can be used as a striker, with the back of a camp knife being a common option; I find the included steel, when laid flat (rather than up and down) against the flint to be the best option for most easily generating the most sparks. To that end, I made the simple modification of tying the two together using a 12" length paracord so I can guarantee they never become separated unless I untie the knot. This setup can then be easily looped to your belt, pack, etc. for quick and easy access that you can trust will be there when you need it. The only other modification I made was to wrap some duct tape around the "handle" of the steel to give me better purchase when drawing the flint across it. The only negative comment I can make is that the flint and its plastic handle did become separated during one of the first uses of the set. The simple solution was to apply some super glue to the hole in the handle and reattach the two. Since then, through several uses, there has been no further instance of this problem whatsoever.

This is a great item to have as a backup in the woods, in case something happens to your matches or lighter. The rod comes coated in black paint that you have to scrape off before use. I didn't bother to remove all of it, just a thin strip of exposed surface is enough. With the included striker, this thing puts out a lot of sparks as long as you use enough pressure. Too little pressure, and you'll get nothing. The rod and striker come attached to a lanyard, but you'll want to remove at least one of them. The short length of the lanyard makes them awkward to use with both attached. Works great, and much less expensive than other brands. I'm glad I bought it.

Many outdoorsmen swear by using flint/ferrocerium rods to light their campfires, stoves, etc. With that in mind, if you are intending to buy this as your only fire-starting tool (you should always have a backup), then look elsewhere. This Coghlan's Flint Striker does start fires with some practice and patience, but I cannot vouch for how many times it will start a fire before the rod separates from the handle. After using this starter to start about 5 campfires, the flint rod fell off the handle of the when I tried to strike it. I measured the gap in the handle that holds the flint rod in place, and to my surprise, there is only a 1/4 inch hole and some epoxy securing the rod. The metal striker that is used to scrape the flint rod to produce sparks does not produce many sparks, and I recommend using something else such as the back edge of a carbon steel knife or a scraper manufactured by another company. One more thing: If you are torn between a flint striker or a ferrocerium striker, this flint rod will not wear down as quickly as a ferrocerium rod, but the sparks will not be as hot or last as long, so it may take more strikes on this rod to start a fire. You also have to be closer to the tinder to start a fire with this flint rod than you would have to be with a ferrocerium rod. PROS: - It's cheap compared to some of the other fire-starters. - It can start a fire if you are patient. - It throws fairly good sparks if you use a separate scraper. - The unit is a good balance between being lightweight and having a large flint surface area. - The material in this striker will not wear as quickly as many ferrocerium fire-starters. CONS: - The handle can fall off the rod easily. Only 1/4 inch of a gap and some epoxy holds the rod to the handle. - The striker that this comes with is useless. Use a knife or another striker instead. - The sparks that this throws are not as hot or long lasting as a ferrocerium rod. - You have to get close to the tinder to light it, so you can easily bump the striker or rod into the tinder pile and have to reform it. In conclusion, I think that this may be worth the money if you can't afford to spend any more on a quality ferro rod, however in my experience, you get what you pay for with this type of product. You may start a few fires, but this definitely not a fire starter that I would rely on as my only source of fire. However, if you just want to play around with fire-starters this may be the product for you.

I ordered the coghlans firesteel with low expectations and as a backup piece of kit which I never really intended to use, maybe play around with it id that, prior reviews pointed out a poor bond between the handle and firesteel in addition to bad performance. Well... Mine came with an excellant bond. You can see an abundance of epoxy where the handle and rod meet, the bond is very stong. As for fire starting well...... Buy A Lighter Or 2 Or 3..... However lighters get wet and dont work in addition to running out of fluid or loosing them and because of that you should head outsoors with backups and the coghlans firesteel will work just fine. And the pricepoint dictates you should purchase 2 maybe 3. As with anything 1.learn to use it 2.learn to use it and 3.learn to use it. The striker kinda blows out of the package but simple fix.... Scuff up the edges on concrete,rock or whatever you get the point and for you newbies you have to scrape off the black coating in the spot you are using, silver metal = sparks black = nothing. This product simply put works as well as any other and although haveing a firesteel as a primary fire starter is ..... Well .... Not the best idea. (lighter..bic...99 cents) a firesteel is an invaluable piece of kit, keep a couple of them and know with expierience coghlans firesteels will get the job done.

This is a good rod. Like other reviewers mention, you can get better sparks with a better striker. I think the issue is that the striker that comes with the Coghlan rod is made of steel that is too soft. Just get an old hacksaw blade and break off a 3 or 4 inch section. Use a bench grinder to grind off sharp edges so you don't cut yourself. Hacksaw blades are made out of very hard, high carbon steel and will produce a great shower of sparks when scraped down the rod. You will have to wear through any paint or laquer on the hacksaw blade before you get any sparks. If you don't have an old hacksaw blade, buy a new one--they're inexpensive. For tinder, its hard to beat cotton balls that are "teased out" a bit. Rub vaseline on the cotton ball for even better, longer burning tinder. When you go camping, you can store the vaseline impregnated cotton balls in a medicine bottle or any small waterproof bottle you have lying around.

The flint technically works, but the rubber holder the flint rod is glued into comes apart. Needs to be reglued with something more substantial, however, as I only wanted the flint, gaffa tape around one end of the rod makes quick work, and is usable.

Cumple con lo prometido es bueno

I bought this for my go bag because it was the cheapest I could find on Amazon... I was really surprised when I received it... it was actually better than I thought it would be and it worked well!... Is it the best quality?... No... but I don't need it to be... I'm preparing for emergency/occasional use... it just needs to make good sparks so I can start a fire without using matches or a lighter... if I was more serious or a frequent user I would have spent the money and gotten the best I could find... so in the context of infrequent/emergency use, it is value for money... one thing for anyone who buys one... make sure to prime the rod by scraping it a few times until you get sparks... there is a coating on the rod and it won't spark until you get down to the metal... better to test it now before you get to the field where you might get frustrated or confused... all in all, a good purchase...

Bon produit, de taille imposante (les firesteel trop petits ne sont pas faciles à manipuler). Permet de faire de belles étincelles une fois qu'on a pris le coup de main. J'ai payé ce produit 6€ ce qui en fait un excellent rapport qualité prix par rapport à d'autres marques plus connues. Un inconvénient (mais qui est récurent sur ces produits) : le manche est trop petit. Alors oui, ça prend moins de place, mais l'intérêt d'un firesteel c'est entre autre de pouvoir être manipulé avec des mains engourdies. Pour les plus bricoleurs ça peut être amélioré, voir par exemple ici : [...] Concernant le fil au lieu d'avoir une longue boucle (qui forcément divise la longueur par deux) j'ai simplement attachés les deux éléments avec deux noeuds plats tous bêtes, donc je ne comprends pas trop la critique à ce sujet. Sur l'intérêt d'un tel produit : ceci n'est pas un simple gadget. Contrairement à un briquet un firesteel ne craint ni l'humidité, ni le froid, et ne nécessite pas de motricité fine (quand on a froid et qu'on a BESOIN de faire un feu, on s'engourdit !). Dans 95% des cas le briquet sera suffisant. Dans les 5% restants le firesteel rempli son rôle pour peu qu'on se soit entrainé à le manipuler et à allumer un feu (un peu de coton et d'huile ou de produit hydroalcoolique et vous devenez le macgyver du feu !). Et quel plaisir de maitriser une telle technique ! :)

Great quality