Lets bust some bushcraft myths...
Like the one that says that stainless steel is bad for throwing sparks with a fire steel...actually you can throw sparks with just about any sharp edge...even a rock.
Or that a bic ligher is not reliable as a fire tool as it won't work when it gets wet.
Victory awaits the one, that has everything in order - luck we call it
Defeat is an absolute consequense for the one that have neglected to do the necessary preparations - bad luck we call it
(Roald Amundsen)
Bumbling Bushcraft on Youtube
Nordisk Bushcraft - The Nordic bushcraft blog and forum
I believe somewhere in the past ferro rods and flint with stainless got mixed up. The video proves this.nice post.
Alan
By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.(Benjamin Franklin)
Good to see another couple of bushcraft 'urban myths' shot down.
Richard
South Wales UK
True that...and of course some people still confuse flint with a ferrocerium rod which makes things more of a messOriginally Posted by Valantine
I believe somewhere in the past ferro rods and flint with stainless got mixed up. The video proves this..
My blog, New England Bushcraft
"Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe."
~ Abraham Lincoln
"Be prepared, not scared."
~ Cody Lundin
I posted this in the comments on the first vid:
Nice vid! Sadly too few people are aware of most of what you shared here.
There are two main sources of myths in the outdoor world: liars and misunderstandings.
In this case it is a misunderstanding. The terms fire steel, firesteel, strike a light, etc are used interchangeably even though people are referring to completely different materials. What is critical to understand is whether you are referring to a ferrocerium rod or the steel in Flint (the rock) and Steel.
As you noted, a ferro can be scraped with anything harder than itself that is also sharp enough to scrape material off. In addition to the glass, rocks, sandpaper, carbon steel and stainless steel you showed, tin cans and shells such as freshwater clam, mussel, oyster, etc work.
The steel in Flint and Steel can be some forms of stainless steel and still work, though none I've used so far work well. I've successfully used 1055-1095, W1, W2, O1, O2 and L6 with F&S. Some items such as saw blades, axes, knives, fish hooks, OLFA blades, files, etc work.
No matter whether you are using a ferro or flint (the rock) - it is never the carbon that burns. It is the lanthanides, iron and magnesium in the ferrocerium or the iron in the steel with F&S that burns. Never the carbon that burns nor any reaction with the carbon. All the carbon ever does in either case is allow the too soft iron to become hard enough steel.
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