I have tried vaseline-impregnated cotton balls as tinder, and like it, but have never tried Fire Tabs. They look interesting, though, and I know that some people like them. Has anyone compared Fire Tabs with vaseline-impregnated cotton balls? I am curious about which one is easiest to light, which one burns hotter and which one burns longer.

I have one concern about using the vaseline-impregnated cotton balls as tinder. If you have vaseline residue on your fingers after handling the tinder and then try to use something like the Spark-Lite, will the Spark-Lite still work properly?

I find that they're both practically equivalent if all you need to do is start a fire. The vas/cotton can be stuffed in many more places. Also, there are secondary uses:
Think of the vaseline on your fingers as an ASSET.
Wipe on your lips/nose, skin. Or wipe your hands on your
pants and spark away. You won't ignite.

I prefer the vaseline cotton balls as tinder. Easy to make and carry, catches sparks easily, burns hot and long. Here are my two main fire kits. The keychain is a purple Bison capsule stuffed with several cotton/vaseline balls with a BSA HotSpark and the larger kit is a Swedish firesteel, Maya wood, and an Areka Clic-Clac candy tin with several vaseline cotton balls.

This mint tin is my favorite carry method. The tin is 45 mm diameter and 12 mm high. Push down on the top it clicks open, squeeze the lid "fingers" it clacks shut.

Schwert:

Lovely little kits, indeed. I am inspired.

Thanks for sharing them.

Bear

i had a hand covered in vaseline monday and lighted a campfire with mine firesteel, the fire burned like a charm, not mine hands <img src="images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Folks, I must apologize. I apparently miscommunicated in my second paragraph. When I asked about using the Spark-Lite while having Vaseline residue on my fingers, I was not concerned about ME igniting. I was wanting to know whether the Spark-Lite would work, since it depends on a certain amount of friction, and the friction would be reduced if the Vaseline residue got on the flint or sparking wheel.

Randy,

That is attractive kit.

What are the details re the tube on the ferrocerium rod of your Hot Spark? And why does the Firesteel not have one?

I have the same 2 rods. I have wondered about the risk of rusting after the first use but have not experienced any yet (probably due to a fairly dry climate). I have been carrying an unused Hot Spark in my pocket for about a year. The rod does not show significant wear or deterioration, however the edges of the scraper seem to have lost some of its sharpness!

Thanks,

John

if you can turn the striker, it will work. mine hands are almost always covered in vaseline ( bad skin there ) and wenn i spark mine sparklite, i have never encoutered any problem, the striker has a very good grip.

The wheel has fine sharp teeth that rip some material out of the flint. That´ll work even when the wheel is slightly greased (I do not recommend coating the wheel though). I´ve handled several lighters with sparking wheels. It worked fine even with some vaseline residue on my fingers. With the first few strikes the sparks were a bit weaker but still could light the fuel or cotton balls.

So where's a good place to the BSA HotSpark and the Swedish firesteel for a good price?

I've been trying to find some smaller size flint and magnesium rods but the one link Doug mentions doesn't seem to be in business anymore.

Thanks.

<img src="images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

I found some really small flint rods in a hardware store. They are used for lighting torches and they are pretty cheap. I glued some to small magnesium bars, that I had after trimming the usual bar to a convenient size for my kit. Epoxy resin works well for this. For the other rods I use a helical spring to attach them to my keyring. Here´s a picture of the rod and the bar ( the coin is a quarter):



For EDC I protect the rod with a transparent tube and the bar with shrink tubing.

John,

The tube on the BSA Hot spark is nylon plumbing tubing I picked up at Home Depot. I put it on there to protect the rod from my keys etc in my pocket and make it a bit less likely to break if I dropped the whole mess. It fits very tight and would have to be cut off or pulled off with pliers or my teeth...that is why it is a bit long. A softer tubing would be easier to get off, but this stuff was the right size for a tight fit.

I did not cover the Swedish Firesteel as it is my primary steel, and I carry it in a nylon pouch in my vest pocket. A looser fitting tube for it may be a worthwhile addition, but I have not gotton around to it. I have also considered painting the scrapes with nail polish....but never done so.

I have not had any difficulty with my firesteels crumbling but these are both less than 2 years old. The BSA has never been scraped and the Swedish firesteel has only been used a few times within the last several months. I have lots of the BSA steels spread through most of my gear, and they seem to be holding up.

Best places for BSA Hot Sparks is your local Boy Scout retailer....around $2 each.

Best place for Swedish Firesteel is from forumite Bagherra......Piet Henskens at phenskens@hotmail.com

Piet does not always have the Steels, but contact him and find out. His service is absolutely exceptional and the proceeds benefit his Scouts in the Neatherlands.