|
Post by BorderCollieMike on Mar 8, 2017 19:33:33 GMT -8
I'm new to ultra light weight backpacking and am trying to find all the places I can pare back and cut weight. Traditionally I have always carried at least two (and sometimes 3) ways of starting a fire. Usually I carry a butane lighter in my pocket and also have 10 or 12 waterproof matches as a backup in my first aid kit. My Giga stove had its own piezioelectric starter that was temperamental and worked about half the time. When it didn't, a flick of the lighter would start it. Moving to a Whitebox stove, the lighter doesn't seem like a good idea as I have to get too close to the alcohol. Does anyone use a magnesium sparker? I got one as a gift, put it away and never thought about it again. Turns out that it works great with the alcohol stove. But it is 1.5oz, which seems heavy for making fire. What do you use to start your alcohol stove? And what do you carry in the way of making fire?
|
|
foxalo
Trail Wise!
Life is infinitely stranger than anything the mind could invent.---Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Posts: 2,359
|
Post by foxalo on Mar 8, 2017 20:21:58 GMT -8
My son never goes camping without his flint and steel. He's used it to start campfires and a Jet-boil that had an ignitor that didn't work. His patrol members refer to him as the fire-starting king. They are lightweight if you get the very basic.
|
|
BigLoad
Trail Wise!
Pancakes!
Posts: 12,985
|
Post by BigLoad on Mar 8, 2017 20:45:12 GMT -8
I nearly always use a lighter with alcohol. Alcohol isn't conducive to spark-type ignition because it can take some heating to vaporize. Matches are a good backup.
|
|
daveg
Trail Wise!
Michigan
Posts: 565
|
Post by daveg on Mar 8, 2017 20:57:27 GMT -8
I carry one Mini Bic in my pocket, another Mini Bic in my emergency kit, and half-a-dozen matches in my cook set. Usually, I can start my alcohol stove with a Bic. Occasionally, I have to use my Bic to light a match or a stick and use that to light my stove. I have a couple of fire steels but feel they are too heavy so leave them at home.
Last summer I met and hiked for several days with a guy who had a MSR Piezo Igniter. He had been able to get it to work with an alcohol stove. Unfortunately, it quit producing a spark and he went back to carrying a lighter.
|
|
|
Post by Dave Ayers on Mar 8, 2017 21:37:56 GMT -8
For those not already aware, the electronic mini-Bics don't spark reliably at higher altitudes (>7k), so you will want the thumbwheel version for mountain trips.
|
|
|
Post by BorderCollieMike on Mar 8, 2017 21:50:05 GMT -8
For those not already aware, the electronic mini-Bics don't spark reliably at higher altitudes (>7k), so you will want the thumbwheel version for mountain trips. I was unaware, and man, does that explain a lot...
|
|
|
Post by JRinGeorgia on Mar 9, 2017 4:54:18 GMT -8
Mini Bic usually does the trick for my alky stove (Starlyte). If not, just get a small twig or piece of pine straw, dip it in the alky, and light that to keep a steady flame on the stove to get it lit with your fingers out of the way.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 9, 2017 6:02:12 GMT -8
A lighter is in our cook kit. As part of my 10E kit I carry a magnesium fire starter and I am very good at using a fire bow for making fire.
I, when car camping, practice using the magnesium fire starter and fire bow to make a fire.
|
|
|
Post by Coolkat on Mar 9, 2017 6:10:55 GMT -8
I carry a magnesium fire starter I guess I just don't have the touch for one of these. I purchased one of these but even practicing at home I just can't seem to get this to work. How big of a pile do you shave off before attempting to ignite?
|
|
tigger
Trail Wise!
Posts: 2,547
|
Post by tigger on Mar 9, 2017 7:31:11 GMT -8
I use a lighter and for backup...another lighter.
|
|
tomas
Trail Wise!
Posts: 1,906
|
Post by tomas on Mar 9, 2017 7:59:36 GMT -8
A lighter in my pocket, some matches in my emergency kit, and just for fun a firesteel that I always use first.
|
|
mrarrowhead
Trail Wise!
Gear Man at Arrowhead-Equipment.com
Posts: 22
|
Post by mrarrowhead on Mar 9, 2017 8:05:54 GMT -8
I am a big fan of using a small fire steel for just about all my fire ignition needs. I have a few of them but primarily a small one that is attached to my knife. They spark well enough that I don't have to have my fingers right over my alcohol stove to get it to light. If I spend a few minutes prep time I can light a wood fire with one. They don't run out of fuel, not affected by rain or wind like a lighter. They last for years and years of use. I cary a knife any way so I don't need a scraper to strike it. They come in all sorts of sizes and don't weigh very much.
Here is one of my trip videos. About 8:30 I light my stove with the fire steel on my knife.
|
|
Westy
Trail Wise!
Diagnosed w/Post-Trail Transition Syndrome
Posts: 1,960
|
Post by Westy on Mar 9, 2017 8:12:53 GMT -8
I carry one Mini Bic in my pocket, another Mini Bic in my emergency kit Mini Bic usually does the trick Mini-bics rule..particularly white ones. With white you can see the fuel level. The only downside is first click flame in cool and colder temperatures. This is easily resolved by vigorously rubbing mini-bic between both hands or keeping in your pocket for a wee bit. I carry (2) at all times ala daveg
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 9, 2017 8:48:04 GMT -8
I carry a magnesium fire starter I guess I just don't have the touch for one of these. I purchased one of these but even practicing at home I just can't seem to get this to work. How big of a pile do you shave off before attempting to ignite? As part of teaching my wife to use a magnesium fire starter, I had my wife use a cotton ball. I had her spread the cotton ball out and shave about 1/2 a gram unto the cotton ball. I showed her to rest the magnesium starter on the ground and aim the spark at the pile of magnesium. With practice the cotton ball and the larger pile of magnesium is not needed.
|
|
|
Post by hikerjer on Mar 9, 2017 8:56:40 GMT -8
I carry two Bic lighters and a fair supply of matches.
|
|