I just bought some "lifeboat" matches (Pro-Force wind and waterproof safety matches) from REI. My problem is that i want to put them into my survival tin but I only seem to be able to light them on the "sandpaper like" stuff glued to the top of the container. Does anyone have any tricks so that i dont have to carry the container with me all of the time?

AFAIK, these are NOT strike-anywhere matches .....

Excuse me, the meaning of life is...42
as per "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" by Douglas Adams

Hi flashman.

If you get hold of a British Army Ration pack you'll find inside lots of goodies including 10 Lifeboat matches and a Striker pad. The ten lifeboat matches and striker pad will fit into your PSK.
Alternatively you could also carry an equal amount of strike anywhere matches and a strip of ordinary sandpaper.
Stike the strike anywhere match whilst holding it against the lifeboat match, this will ignite the lifeboat match easily. I store both matches in some waxed cardboard which alternately has a row of lifeboat matches heads at one end of the cardboard and the strike anywhere matches at the other end. The waxed cardboard keeps both types of matches waterproof and the waxed cardboard will also act as a useful tinder.

LOT 200 WATERPROOF WINDPROOF MATCHES 40 Packs w/Striker. I get all of my matches from this fellow, they come 5 matches per pack with a stricker. Seeing as I usally pack 10 or so matches per kit, I allway have strickers left over. Go to E-Bay and insert the top line.

REI's waterproof matches come with a small strike pad that is separate from the container. These are very easy to slide into a an oversized matchcase such as the K&M matchcase.

Yup. Go back to REI and buy some of their Stormsafe matches. In addition to the strikers on the box, they have another striker strip, sealed in plastic, in each box. You can store than with ease, and those suckers are the best matches made, at least in my opinion. You can light one, hold it under water, it will go out, then when you remove it from the water it will burst back into flame...

I just can't seem to get those lifeboat matches lit either!! I now use Coghlan's Wind/Waterproof matches for all of my kits.

A piece of fingernail emery board might also do the trick.

As Frenchy says:
"AFAIK, these are NOT strike-anywhere matches ....."

Safety matches work because the striker strip contains phosphorus (and grit to produce friction) and the match head contains potassium chlorate. The friction from running the match head across the striker causes heat which produces a reaction between the phosphorus on the striker and the potassium chlorate in the match head. Thus is fire born.

Better living through chemistry.

Speaking of matches ...

Over the last few years I've basically limited my use of matches to a last resort status. Though I carry a lighter, a sparker, and a K&M matchcase with REI waterproof matches, I tend to try the lighter first, then the sparker, and then dip into the matchcase only if needed.

The one place I've run across that I can't seem to find any alternative but using matches is lighting my Coleman gas lantern (which doesn't have any built-in ignitor). Neither a lighter nor a sparker will get that job done unless I let the gas build up enough to risk a minor explosion.

The problem is that I hate to use my REI waterproof matches for that task, so now I've started carrying the ligher, the sparker, the K&M matchcase with waterproof matches, AND another orange plastic matchcase with strike-anywhere kitchen matches (not waterproofed).

I have had this problem with the B.C.B. matches in a tub. Cheapest solution:
Go down to your local hardware store/newsagents and buy a couple of boxes of ordinary safety matches. Make sure that they have the completely coated striker boards. Not the spotted ones. Strike one of your REI matches against one of the boards, just to make certain that they strike. Cut the striker boards off. Cut the boxes up. Glue the striker boards to the cardboard (makes them stiffer). Trim to size. Problem solved.

I tape two strikers to my match safe. One to use and one upside down, "just in case".