Coghlan's Magnesium Fire Starter

Product was described and delivered as advertised.

Great buy especially when you can’t find it in the stores

Good.

I now have several of this type with different company names. So far I have been lucky in not having one of those that don't work at all. They all perform about the same. That is the reason for the five stars - the Coglans works as well as the one with a Federal Stock Number or the one from the Friendly Swede. It is an effort to remove shavings from each. Most of the strikers/scrapers you get with magnesium bars and ferro rods are not very effective. The effectiveness of removing shavings depends on how good the scraper is. That depends on how sharp a flat edge it has. How big a pile needed depends a lot on the tinder being used with it and weather conditions. A few shavings will ignite and burn in a flash with only some ash and soot remaining. A "pile" will burn into it's center, staying hot, and will work much better. It takes an effort to learn what is needed to start a fire, particularly in bad weather, with this or other means.Magnesium is available which works well. It comes in different forms. Magnesium fire starters which come in cylinder form rather than bars work much better for me than the bars. The cylinders I have are softer and easier to get shavings. I have one called Survivor which works well and the one I prefer. If all else fails, magnesium can be bought in shaving form - quality will still be an issue as most is not by a name brand.I read some prior reviews which said this was put with other prepper stuff, and another said it was a must have. One said it wouldn't be good in a boy scout kit. Others were unhappy with the preformance of the bar or the way the ferro rod was stuck to it. Consistent quality is problem in the day of foreign junk.I feel fairly safe in saying the folks in Puerto Rico who just lost all their belongings and using wood from their furniture or the tree in the yard aren't looking for a magnesium bar to start a cooking fire. Maybe after all the lighters run out of fuel, this would be handy- otherwise I would be reaching for some matches or a lighter.These are good as a training devise for adults as well as boy scouts. They help teach how to prepare tinder and combustables to make fire in a more basic way. This carries over to making fire in a more technically modern way. Waterproof matches or a lighter are far better in a have to situation and should be in your pocket, your 72 hour kit, your car or where ever. For hiking/camping, take more than one lighter - they weigh very little. If you really want a ferro rod & magnesium kit that works well, spend the extra money and buy a Survivor one or one from FireSteel.com or other really good source. Then put the effort into learning how to use it.

It’s small perfect for a key chain or a small bag for camping.

Very satisfied

When you find yourself in a survival situation the ability to make a fire to signal for help, boil drinking water, or warm your food or yourself, even after being soaked to the skin, this little tool can be the difference between fire or no fire. Produces lots of sparks, and the magnesium shavings are very flammable to help ignite a hot tinder bundle asap. You can carry it easily and have it when you need it . I can recommend this.

Okay so your cold, it's gonna get colder, you need fire and your matches are soaked... You probably wont care how long it takes to get one going.PROS:It works! If you have the time and patience to sit there and scrape the side of this little wonder for 20 or 30 minutes until you have enough shavings to get started, it WILL get you a fire going. You'll need a pile big enough to cover between a quarter and a half dollar. Once you have it the flint striker does wonders as the pile will flash after just a few quick strikes. Make sure your tinder is already covering it or only a second away as the magnesium burns quite hot but also quite fast! With some basic fire builders skills you'll be warm in no time.CONS:Time, collection, noise, knives, and wind... As I mensioned, 20 to 30 mins to get a pile big enough to burn. Add to that the time it takes to find wood and tinder and this could be an all evening process. Trying to collect these little shavings into a pile is kind of a pain. Though a little trick I thought of works well. Lay down a coffee filter and use that to collect them. The filter doubles as added starter. Even wet the filter wont hinder the burn ability of the magnesium. Noise, for the duration of the scrapting your have to listen to a very loud squeek with every pass of your knife. Just think metal on metal. Speaking of knives, your going to have to dull a knife doing this. So I recommend carrying a "cheap" lock blade just for this purpose. (Not too cheap though, as the cheapest in my collection actually got a notch carved in it by the magnesium and you do want a locking mechanesem that can withstand the downward pressure your going to have to put on it.) The final issue is any firestarter's worst enemy. Wind... Gathering a pile of shavings is tough enough but having them blow away is just insult to injury. So if there's any breeze at all, you might consider doing this from inside a tent or shelter.This truely is a survival tool but one worth having. If your outdoors in the fall or spring without a fire you'll spend every sleepless minute of that seemingly never-ending cold night wondering what made you decide NOT to get a flint and magnesium fire starter.