Fire Starter

[Bullnuts]

What do you guys keep in your packs for emergency fire starting materials? There are a lot of different commercial materials available and a lot that you can make yourself. The best stuff I ever found was shown to me by a search and rescue operator in Colorado. He used dryer lint (the stuff is explosively flammable) for tinder and then had more dryer lint mixed with melted crayons that he kept in a zip lock bag in his pack. The lint by itself will catch a spark from any flint/steel or will burn like crazy if you light it with a cigarette lighter and the stuff mixed with the crayon will burn long enough for you to get your kindling started. It's cheap and easy to make.

[WapitiTalk1]

I've used Coghlan's Waterproof Fire Sticks for a long, long time.. They work when soaked. Not sure what's in them... (I've always called them pitch sticks) but they're inexpensive, light, and work every single time I've used them... RJ

[Swede]

I have a lighter and candle in my pack.

[JohnFitzgerald]

Refillable REI Zippo and Coghlan's Fire Paste.

[N5J]

I carry a bic, magnesium fire starter, water proof matches, cotton balls soaked in vaseline, and toilet paper. Toilet paper...for kinds of emergences!

N5J

James

[hornart]

There are several things that I like to have with me,,steel wool with a 9 volt battery,,nacho cheeze doritos,,they will burn or you can eat them if need be,,and pitch wood

[Lefty]

I have always been interested wilderness survival. Im a scoutmaster Ive been exposed to the way Boy Scouting looks at fire starting.
I ve gone to a number of "survival" programs and lectures.
Having expirience/knowledge is more important than the "stuff"
As a Scoutmaster on the raining portion of Washington state all my scouts could start a fire in poring rain in the woods with cheapo book matches,.. all of them

I have multiple fire- starters in my survival kit. I keep a new bic lighter (remember it has a flint and steel) and three typs of wind proof , waterproof matches and firestarter matches in two different containiers, one is an small emergency firestarter in a smaller than a film canister the other is the whistle compass match container,
Emergency candles, the long burn type, TP

TP fuzz works good for spark, strike fires, other than extreem wet there is generally plenty of dry tinder to start a fire.. candle works for the matches and lighter

Im not sure where I bought them but I bought some emergency firestarter matches; they are short and designed to flame for 1 minute they are impressive
They wernt cheap Something like $4.99 for 10 . Yet are very cheap since they work very well. I havent been able to find them on the interene t

[elkaholic]

I carry a bic, magnesium fire starter, water proof matches, cotton balls soaked in vaseline, and toilet paper. Toilet paper...for kinds of emergences!

N5J

James

The cotton balls in vaseline wrapped in tin-foil work great! They burn for 2-3 minutes an store nicely in empty pill bottles.

[pointysticks]

i do the cotton ball in vaseline thing.

never needed one. but my brother did start a moist fire with a Cheetoh and a lighter. it was like a greasy candle. havent eaten a cheetoh since. ahah.

[>>>---WW---->]

Duct tape makes a good fire starter as well. Fritos are even better.

[bowpackerrob]

Vaseline on saturated cotton balls in an old 35mm film canister. Has been foolproof for 20 years.

[Broken arrow]

Vaseline soaked cotton ball flint n steel matches in a water proof container and some dryer lint. If that don't work well your probably not gonna make it