Last night, I had to use a couple of wooden matches from the supplies. I went to light one match and it snapped in half. Tried another, same thing. Long story short, all the wooden matches I tried, be it factory waterproof or regular strike anywheres are extremely dried out and brittle...although they all light.

These matches were 9-10 years old and so I bought new matches today to replace them with.

Any suggestions on what to do with 500 - 600 old brittle matches?

make a Giant Match???

When striking, use a "push" move against the striker. That often works well for me. If in a real problem with striking them, use your BIC lighter to light the match.

sell them on Ebay as Vintage....and use the money to buy
a lifetime supply of Bic's--

Mail them to me and I'll dispose of them properly. Oh so VERY properly!

-Blast

Get out the blast-bandages...

Use them as tinder.

Sue

First off, I have no idea how you tried lighting the matches. So this isn't addressed at you. But, this seems as good a place as any to comment that I am noticing that many folks today, especially younger people, have no clue how to light a match, other than an abstract sort of theoretical knowledge. They never have had to! Things many of us take for granted, are no longer "normal."

When I watch them try, they inevitably hold the match at the end (got to avoid that flame) and are surprised when it snaps. Eventually they figure out that won't work. They are totally flumoxed by book matches.

Just FWIW....

Speaking of book matches, I was back home visiting my family for the holiday and needed to light a candle. The only matches I found were a pack of book matches from around 1978 or so. Lit up with no problem, although the paper did break too far down on one and (seeing this as a good opportunity to practice a last match survival scenario) I wound up burning my fingers. But hey, I lit the candle. Note to self, use tweezers next time. Anyway, point is, if paper matches from 25+ years ago are still useable, I'm pretty sure yours are. Like DR said though, you just have to strike them properly. Try holding your index finger over the head while striking so you don't put any stress on the wood.

I learned how to light a self lighting match the old fashioned way...part of fraternity "education" was to strike a match using your pants leg and then say the greek alphabet 3 times before blowing it out.
If you didn't strike, broke the match or didn't complete the alphabet 3X, it was "hit the floor for 25 pushups" time.
I still know how to stike, light and even the speed say the greek alphabet to this day.

But now that would all be considered "hazing" and someones feelings might get hurt, and we can't have that, can we now?

Ever try lighting book matches one handed? Trust me, it's easy.

As for breaking wooden matches, I gotta agree with Doug. I've worn the tips off matches that had aged and wouldn't light, but I've never broken a stick. Then again, I lit my first strike anywhere match and lit a fire with it about 50 years ago. . . it's all in the wrist

Good point Doug,

As part of the hands-on teaching I do with youth groups I get them each to strike a match and flick a lighter. These kids are usually 12 to 14 years old and many have never done it before. A few are very nervous to go through with it and have to be encouraged/reassured that doing so is OK; I think because they have been insulated from dealing with fire all their lives (e.g. don't play with matches). I then teach some of the more difficult ways to creat a spark/ember and the kids have the choice of what method they want to use to light their own campfire. Most pick the Bic lighter but some of the adventurous ones try a ferro rod or magnifying glass. We also have a detailed discussion on fire safety and responsibility.

I have not had a child yet that did not get a real feeling of accomplishment after toasting a marshmellow over their own fire.

Mike

"use your BIC lighter to light the match"

I know you intended that as a joke, but this fall on a camping trip I started to light a Coleman lantern with strike anywhere kitchen matches (the classic tool for that purpose). When I unscrewed my so called "waterproof" match case my matches were damp and would not strike. So what did I do? You got it! Light the match with my Bic and then used it to light the lantern.

I've used a Bic to light a match and then used the match as a sort of quick tinder to get some natural tinder hot and lit from underneath were it's awkward to hold the Bic.

Has anyone used the "strike a fire" product from Diamond matches? Its a small piece of tinder log with a match head on one end, tinder and match in one. Might good to carry one or two for emergencies, if they work.

Use the old matches to make fire starters. In doing this fire starters require no fire source like matches or a lighter to get a fire going as they have their own built in fire source. I make these several inches long and just cut off what I need.

Here is a picture showing them. It’s at the bottom below the stove.

O.k. I am 13 and i can light a match no problem. But then again I have a B.O.B that I made myself and can make a fire with one stike of a firesteel. I hold it between my thumb and middle finger and put my index finger on the head. Seem to work well for me as I have never broken a match. the sad thing today is that of you have any firestarting knowledge you are considered a pyro and kinda crazy. Just presenting another view point.

ATTABOY Climberslacker,

In every group I teach I always have a few kids that have no problem lighting matches or a fire and are toasting marshmellows before you know it. You can quickly tell which kids have had exposure to outdoor activities and who have not. But with hands-on direction within a short time even the inexperienced ones get quite good at lighting fires.

I sometimes worry or have people comment that teaching kids to light a fire is only encouraging them to "play with fire". I do not know what the correct answer is here. My friends and I were all involved in Scouting when I was young and were required to carry matches (also knives) and light fires; we never played with it or burnt our houses down. Fire was just like a tool and you were still responsible for your actions when you used it.

Good to hear that you are getting lots of outdoor practice Climbslacker, it does not make you "crazy", just an experienced member of this Forum.

Mike

Not really within the original topic, but I have seen a way of stiking a match that I have mastered, but might be of use.

A friend of mine went when in high school to Russia and studied. While there, he learned to use the paper matchbook as a shield for the match. The Russian matches went out quickly in wind, so the nicotine crazed Russians would take the match book and bend it so that it made a circle, with the striker inside. Then, the match would be put inside the circle, struck and kept inside the circle, so it would not blow out. My buddy learned how to do this and still did it, last time I saw him light a match.

I have not tried enough times to feel like I have it down, and now normally am using wooden matches from some type of box.

FWIW, Dad showed me how to light a match at a young age.

Hi Dan, that is a useful tip on how to shield the flame.

I had a bad experience doing something similar. When I was a kid, I had seen people tear off a paper match, place it on the striker strip, compress the folded match book cover over the match, then pull the match, which came out ignited; Cool.

So I tried it, the problem was that I must have been gripping the match through the cover too tightly, because the ignited matchhead seperated from the stick, burned through the cover and blistered my thumb!

I do not use that method any more.

Mike

A little off-topic, but hey, I feel like typin'.

Once I was playing with one of those metal matchsafes, you know the old cylindrical Marble brand ones with the rough striking surface on the outside. I had it full of strike-anywhere matches. I pulled a match out and didn't screw the end back on the matchsafe completely. I struck the match, and somehow a bit of the burning head went flying back inside the matchsafe. Before I knew it, I had a little mini-bomb in my hand that I quickly got rid of.

Morale: Screw the lid back on the matchsafe before striking.

I did that many years ago with a box of wooden matches... the burning tip flipped into the open box. Talk about a 'fire starter'!

Sue

Show them this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsbSMplJ6g4
Ray at his best.

To revitalize the matches try bundling them up with a rubber band, putting a little water in a cup, then place the matches butt end down in the cup. Let it sit there a day and slowly absorb the water into the wood. This "should" make them as good as new.

-Bill Liptak

You are a better man than I. I have owned (still have one somewhere) of those pieces of junk over the years, and never could get a match to light from the knurling on the case. I always used a rock, or my Levis. Never had the guts to use a tooth...

For some reason this makes absolutely no sense to me. Matches are supposed to be kept from water I can not see how this would revitalize them.

That Mears video was good I may have to get this set. It reminds me a lot of my grandfather teaching me things like that in the Maine woods.

I always deepen those grooves a bit with the sharp corner of a small file. Then, they work fine as long as your strike-anywheres are fresh. Really, though, if the matchsafe is wet, there's almost no way to prevent a drop or two of water from getting inside when you open it. It should be wiped as dry as possible, and sheltered as well as possible, before opening it. Frankly, I would rather bank on a fresh Cricket butane lighter and a candle as a firestarter. I have had stellar experience with those even at 8000 feet or so.