A number of years ago I was practicing with a plastic Spark-Lite and I dropped it in the fire. It was totaled. I'm wondering if I did the same with the aluminum or brass Spark-Lite, would it fare any better? It stands to reason that the handle would survive but what about the rest of it?

There's something else I've wondered about. The aluminum and brass Spark-Lites have the replaceable flint. Does replacing the flint really extend the life of the Spark-Lite?

Jeanette Isabelle

The flint is the part that is used up by striking. Replacing the flint adds more life to the device. Like a cigarette lighter, the non-disposable kind.

If it stays in the fire for a longer time, the spring may loose its hardness. Maybe it can be replaced with a spring from a disposable ligther. The wheel may get soft too.
The brass may oxidize and get a rough finish in the hole for the flint. That can impair the function of the Spark-Lite.
If you are really unlucky, the handle may melt.

I expect that the aluminum version would hold up at least a little better vs a fire, but I would hate to push it too far.

You are supposed to START the fire with it, not throw it in. It ignites the tinder, it is not fuel.

Hahaha! I've been doing it all wrong! Seriously though I read that to mean it was accidentally dropped in the fire but I could be wrong.

I accidently dropped it in the fire.

Jeanette Isabelle

I was joking also. All of the comments on whether it could survive the fire just sounded amusing to me.

Having used the Spark-Lite, I'm aware of its limitation, namely it does not produce the sparks of larger units I've seen demonstrated. What are other good fire starters?

The Aurora looks to be a good product but I don't know if it lives up to its hype.

http://soloscientific.com/aufisteqwisu.html

Is it any good? How does it compare to other fire starters?

Jeanette Isabelle

I am partial to the Blast Match: Blast Match

And its little brother Sparkie: Sparkie

I am not generally a fan of Ultimate Survival Technologies products as I have tested many that failed straight out of the package, but these two seem to work consistently and produce very good and hot sparks. They can even start a fire with pine needles, dry grass and leaves with no other tinder. They can also be used with one hand. I have not purchased one in a while, so I have not tried any newer ones. The older ones do work well. They are not small, and the Sparkie can have a tendency for the mechanism that locks it closed to fail, but it still works to produce sparks.