Magnesium Firestarter
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Knowing how to build a fire and maintain it is Survival Skills 101. Firecraft is good survival knowledge.
Magnesium Firestarters Work Even When Wet
The problem is how to start a fire when your survival gear may be wet or even damaged for the myriad reasons we get ourselves into survival situations. Waterproof matches and butane lighters can fail, that is a proven fact sadly recounted dozens of times by those who managed to live and tell the tale of their lack of having a fire. These firemaking tools are fine to carry with you but never rely upon them alone.
Fortunately there is a tool start a fire that you can rely on whatever the weather and conditions you are in. Not only does this tool always produces a flame no matter how damp the conditions, it has no unreliable or breakable parts and is intrinsically its own tinder!
What I am writing about is commonly known as the “Magnesium Firestarter”. The magnesium firestarter is simplicity itself - just a bar of soft magnesium metal with a hard flint running the length of one edge. It is inexpensive, small, very light weight, and its flat shape makes it very easy to pack. All excellent attributes for the survivor on a budget who likes to go light.
How to use a Magnesium Firestarter
To use a magnesium firestarter to make a fire, the usual physics of fire apply. First gather up some kindling. The usual bits of bark, small twigs, charred cloth, hairy dry material, etc will do just fine. Then you merely scrape metal shavings of magnesium from the bar and gather them into a small pile about the size of a dime on top of your kindling. Because water cannot soak through the bar of magnesium, it is automatically a dry pile of metal. Use the edge of a knife, a rock, a key, or whatever hard surface is at hand for a scraper.
Next, use a hard surface to quickly scrape down the side of the firesteel that is built into the bar of magnesium. The back of a knife, a hard rock or piece of glass will do nicely. This action will create a shower of hot sparks that when aimed correctly will instantly catch the magnesium metal shavings on fire. No blowing of air on the pile is needed – it goes off like a flare. And the magnesium fire is a hot fire, over 1000 degrees F that would possibly burn clean through to your bone if it were on your body.
Because the magnesium burns so hot, it can set ablaze even damp kindling in the hands of a reasonably skilled firecrafter. If your first attempt at building a fire using a magnesium firestarter fails, no worry – the bar is large enough to start fires by the hundreds.
Get a Magnesium Firestarter for Your Survival Kit
I recommend you always have a magnesium firestarter handy in your survival kit wherever you go. When you are in a difficult situation and you need assurance that your firemaking tool will come through for you, a magnesium fire starter could very well save your life.
Survival Camp
Louisiana
I have had pretty good success out of the blastmatch. I like that I don't have to use shavings to spark against. The blastmatch sparks on it's own, and I didn't think the sparks would work on it's own at first, until I lit my tinder with it and watched the flame grow. It doesn't require shavings, and is operated with one hand, allowing use of the other hand to shield your tinder from the wind. It takes about ten strikes to break it in, then emits alot of hot sparks. I found it was worth the try.
colorado
Norway
The firesteel is a must but I have a pretty foolproof way to keep matches working. Prepare a block of candle stearin that you melt and make to your preferred size at home on the stove. Keep the matches inside the block, you put them in there when it is melted. Keep the wicks from the candles you melted too.You now have working matches and material to make your own candles or candle heather.
Chesapeke, VA
I've tried to "shave" some magnesium off one of those blocks and it can be difficult. I took a high speed rotary tool w/a cutting head and reduced about a third of that block to shavings and powder and placed that in a test tube with a cork and then wrapped the tube in clear cellophane tape.
Survival Topics - I advocate the use of FireSteel, which is much easier to spark and gives better results.
MD
My primary fire-starter is a BiC Butane Lighter - Not 'Uber-Survivalist' 'Kewl', but it usually works very well!
Of course, if it's out of gas, lost, broken, wet, too windy, etc, etc, I have MANY Back-Ups!
- Waterproofed Strike-Anywhere Matches - I use Varnish instead of Wax - Wax Melts and gets Messy!
- Windproof NATO Life-Boat Matches - Waterproof, Wind-Proof, and the Burn Long Enough to start a Decent Fire! To Light them, I 'Double-Up' one with a 'Strike-Anywhere', Best of Both Worlds!
- "Spark-Lite" and Good Tinder, "Tinder-Quik" or Vaseline+Cotton-Balls if GOOD Tinder can't be found. Easy, Water-Proof, One-Hand Operation!
- FireSteel will ignite most Tinders VERY Well! If you want to Survive, in a REAL Emergency, Practice, and PRACTICE Some MORE, with a Wide Variety of Tinders and Strikers.
- I still carry my Magnesium Firestarter - I use my saw or file to make shavings, and a LOT of striking - Last Resort, but still good to Practice - Options are Life Savers!
I also know and practice using Magnifying Glasses (actually, a Fresnel Lense), Fire-Bows and other 'Rub Two Sticks Together' techniques, Flint and Steel, Fire Pistons, Glycerine + Potassium Permangenate, etc.
Tinder Blowing Away? Use a small piece (2"x2") of DUCT-TAPE, sticky side up, and Tinder Stays Put! Plus, Duct Tape is a decent Second-Stage Tinder!
Utah
To those saying the shavings blow away I assume you are kneeling or sitting an arms length away from your kindling. I can see how this would pose a problem in high wind. Next time try this. Build up your tinder into a large ball. Lay down right in front of the tinder in the fetal position with the wind at your back and make the best wind shield you can. Bring the tinder ball right into your chest. Pretend your back in school protecting your test papers from cheaters and cup your arm around it. Lay almost on top of it if you have to. Shove your magnesium stick right into it so that as you scrape the bar the only place it can go is into your kindling ball which is somewhat getting into your knife's way. it won't all be in one spot but you will have a good field of magnesium to aim into and if any of it takes you have fire. High wind?
Utah
One other thing I thought deserved its own comment so as not to get lost at the bottom of my other one. I haven't seen mentioned that if the magnesium is on wet tinder it can flare up an amazingly large ball of flame. The magnesium gets hot enough to separate water into its two elements oxygen and hydrogen which when in a gas state around a flame source will create quite the fireball. It is a short enough duration that it would likely not cause any real problems with secondary ignition of clothing etc but could cause a burn on the hands or face and temporary blindness. Also I carry magnesium powder in a plastic bottle with a screw top applicator kind of like a mustard bottle. Very fast and light and goes right where I put it.
MIDDLE GEORGIA USA
I've had 100% success with my magnesium fire starter. It is the block type with striker bar as illustrated. A small amount of scrapings on paper or pile of leaves or dry wood and zip, a fire instantly. It beats a gas match charcoal lighter by BIC. Always carry one in by pocket or glove compartment.
WV
I have used this firestarter in different conditions, to compensate for wind just create a shield so to speak;by getting two peices of wood and forming an inverted v shape. Start the fire on the inside of the v.
You can also put mangnesium shavings in tightly folded paper packets flash paper works great, but regular tissue paper also works very well, that includes things like toilet paper and facial tissues, some types of leaves also fold into packets well.
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