Craig - Well put. Not only is the SparkLight poor at igniting natural tinders, it is also susceptible to failure from exposure to water - as is the butane lighter.

The MagFire, Doan, FireSteels, BSA HotSparks etc will at least remain effective regardless of temperature, humidity, or exposure to water.

Why do I prefer the MagFire? Simple.

1. It has a great, easy to manipulate handle.
2. It's thick enough to provide lots of sparking material without too much risk of breaking during use.
3. It's thin enough to be easy to carry and lightweight in the kit or pack.
4. It seems harder than the rest of the genre, giving equal or far greater amounts of sparks per strike.

While the Doan tool is okay in my book, I do not like giving up half of the sparking (ferrocerium) rod in order to connect it to what I consider to be a minimally useful tinder source. In as far as the magnesium bar goes, I'd rather have that space taken up by an equal volume of vaseline impregnated cotton balls, fatwood, or TinderQuik...

M