Oh, yes. The grade of steel wool definitely makes a difference. I found some steel wool that a fellow student had handed out as a "freebie" (I think the Brits call it a "gizzit") at the Wilderness First Aid Instructors class I took back in February. I could see as soon as I looked at it that it was much finer than the coarse soap pad I was using. I took a tiny sample (about the size of a postage stamp when it was stretched out) and applied the 9V battery. The cotton wool burst into flames within a few seconds.

Oh, well, my one consolation is that it's better to kill a patient in training than in the real world. <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />