Posted: 10/29/2025 1:11:45 AM EDT
[Last Edit: fordtuff][Edited]
Ok looking for some Firestarter suggestions. I do a lot of winter bank fishing and we're allowed to have fires on the shoreline which is really nice. I can bring a little kindling in my pack and your allowed to burn drift wood. It's cold and often snowing or raining. Anything out there that burns hot and easy? I have a torch lighter and a couple of ways to start it. I see a lot of stuff that burns like a candle for a while 
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| What kind of weight and space requirements are you working with? If you are bringing kindling a little propane or similar torch is hard to beat. I'll never forget when a friend of ours showed up with one of those firstarter logs the yuppies use and we all talked a lot of shit but honestly it worked pretty well. One of those things where it just depends on what you want to pack. I wasn't a big outdoorsman when I lived in Alaska but I got to light a few. In my backpack I just carried a strikeforce which had the little firestarters in the handle but never had to use it. |
BikerNut:
Normal people like motorcycles. Real people like motorcycles.
People who don't like motorcycles are just... weird.
Normal people like motorcycles. Real people like motorcycles.
People who don't like motorcycles are just... weird.
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I always have a piece of lighter knot with me. Go find a fallen pine tree, and look for branches near the base. Cut them off at the trunk and the last 2-4 inches will be pine knot. It smells like pine turpentine, if that makes sense. Also shave some pieces off, don't just light the whole thing. |
Grab it at the bottom!
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Blackbeard fire starters Blackbeard They have entire kits but i just use the plugs for like $15. |
I carry some of these in case everything gets wet. 
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When my daughter was in girl scouts I was tasked with making some fire starter for the troop. I got some pine shavings and drizzled melted paraffin wax over it and stirred it some while the paraffin was still wet. Once it set up I put it into ziplock bags. It made great fire starter. I made quite a bit and a few years after my daughter was out of the scouts I got a text from the troop leader telling me that they were still using it and how good it worked. |
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| I use Rutland fire starters in my wood stove, a couple of squares in a plastic bag make lighting a fire outdoors easy. Available at amazon, or tsc. |
America is at that awkward stage, it’s too late to work within the system, but too early to shoot the bastards....Claire Wolfe
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Originally Posted By ALASKANFIRE: What kind of weight and space requirements are you working with? If you are bringing kindling a little propane or similar torch is hard to beat. I'll never forget when a friend of ours showed up with one of those firstarter logs the yuppies use and we all talked a lot of shit but honestly it worked pretty well. One of those things where it just depends on what you want to pack. I wasn't a big outdoorsman when I lived in Alaska but I got to light a few. In my backpack I just carried a strikeforce which had the little firestarters in the handle but never had to use it. |
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Originally Posted By CNYtrucker: corrugated cardboard dipped into parafin wax thta has had a bit of lighter fluid added takes a spark really well most people already have those things so they are almost no cost I was actually thinking about just rolling up some cardboard and dousing it in cooking grease. |
BikerNut:
Normal people like motorcycles. Real people like motorcycles.
People who don't like motorcycles are just... weird.
Normal people like motorcycles. Real people like motorcycles.
People who don't like motorcycles are just... weird.
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Originally Posted By DD1801: Soak/lather some cotton balls in vasoline, and keep a bunch in a ziplock bag. Cheap option. Obviously, try it out for yourself and see if it works for your intended use. @DD1801 I did a lot of experimentation with Vaseline and cotton balls. For use with flint and steel leave part of the cotton ball fluffy so the sparks will catch the cotton on fire. Once the cotton ball gets going with the Vaseline it's good for 10-15 minutes. It helps to have a fireplace at home in which to experiment. I keep a plastic sealed sandwich bag with Vaseline/ cotton balls at the ready. Water proof matches on hand make this a really good combination in emergencies. |
Sic semper tyrannis!
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1. Save the lint from the clothes dryer lint trap. 2. Beg, borrow or steal old candles or just buy paraffin wax cheaply at a flea market. 3. Save the cardboard egg cartons that your buy eggs in. 4. Put a ball if lint in each of the egg carton egg holders. 5. Melt the candle/papafin wax in a double boiler. 6. Pour a few tablespoons of wax on each ball of lint in the egg carton egg holders. Let them cool/solidify. We do this once every two years or so. We make a couple hundred firestarters at a time and use them during the winter to start fires in the woodstove. They work like a charm and cost next to nothing. |
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Originally Posted By robmkivseries70: @DD1801 I did a lot of experimentation with Vaseline and cotton balls. For use with flint and steel leave part of the cotton ball fluffy so the sparks will catch the cotton on fire. Once the cotton ball gets going with the Vaseline it's good for 10-15 minutes. It helps to have a fireplace at home in which to experiment. I keep a plastic sealed sandwich bag with Vaseline/ cotton balls at the ready. Water proof matches on hand make this a really good combination in emergencies. Originally Posted By robmkivseries70: Originally Posted By DD1801: Soak/lather some cotton balls in vasoline, and keep a bunch in a ziplock bag. Cheap option. Obviously, try it out for yourself and see if it works for your intended use. @DD1801 I did a lot of experimentation with Vaseline and cotton balls. For use with flint and steel leave part of the cotton ball fluffy so the sparks will catch the cotton on fire. Once the cotton ball gets going with the Vaseline it's good for 10-15 minutes. It helps to have a fireplace at home in which to experiment. I keep a plastic sealed sandwich bag with Vaseline/ cotton balls at the ready. Water proof matches on hand make this a really good combination in emergencies. Great tip, especially if using flint. I usually just carry some matches. I do have a flint rod somewhere, haven’t used it in over a decade. Definitely should dig it up and use it again, lest I let that skill perish. |
The Emperor is naked.
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Originally Posted By DaGoose: I carry some of these in case everything gets wet. www.amazon.com/dp/B07K7RCVBG I keep one in the pocket of every pfd and extras in my kayak bags as well as carrying one or two in my daypacks and backpacks. For use where I'm not worried about weight I just use a regular road flare; I'll grab a handful from Walmart when they're on sale and since I don't use them often they last a long time if you keep them in a sealed container/bag. Just pile up whatever wood you have, ignite flare and stick it in the middle, enjoy fire. You can get those small blocks of compressed sawdust and wax with a built in storm match coating on one end and the pocket sized Duraflame firestrraters are cheap too; they're like the fireplace logs but smaller. Stick it in the pile and light the wrapper. Walmart usually clearances firestarters out cheap when they start bringing in spring stuff (so regular price right now). When they go on sale I'll buy a couple handfuls of them and they'll last through the year. Yes, I'm perfectly capable of building fires using a lot of methods, some of them quite ridiculous, and I normally build a regular fire but when I'm around water or during the winter when your hands may be shaking and you need a fire right then, the flares are an emergency item I've carried since Boy Scouts. |
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He’s bank fishing, not on a survival trek. He won’t be that far from his tru k. Take some basic tinder with you. Father enough driftwood to not only last you for the day but hopefully Build a windbreak/reflector your fire. (BTW this is a great use for those space blankets if you can find a way to secure them). Build you base fire setup and out the Tinder inside and give it a couple spritzes of lighter fluid. Ignite and tend to it for a few minutes till it gets going and then get your lines in the water. OR do it tue hard way and test your survival skills using wht you keep in your pack for emergencies. If you are out there all day it’s also a great way to test the various foodstuffs you keep in your bag to see how they really perform in the field. Also a great way to rotate things out. |
| Instead of using vasoline on your cotton balls, try triple antibiotic cream. Dual purpose for wounds and fire starters. If you get cut from a sharp gill plate or catch a spine from a fin in your hand, that antibiotic cream might come in handy. |
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All good recommendations. But, doesn’t sound like weight is an issue so, how about bringing a few road flares? Easy fire starting. I keep these at my house for starting fires in the wood stove. Yes I can start a fire without them….and do occasionally for practice. But when I want a quick fire, these work great. https://www.amazon.com/Duraflame-Firestart-Cubes-Firelighters-Pack/dp/B0FVB5RHY5 |
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Originally Posted By DoubleTaps: I always have a piece of lighter knot with me. Go find a fallen pine tree, and look for branches near the base. Cut them off at the trunk and the last 2-4 inches will be pine knot. It smells like pine turpentine, if that makes sense. Also shave some pieces off, don't just light the whole thing. This 100%. A GOOD chunk of fat wood and a ferro rod will start many, many, fires. Just make sure your knife will work as a striker or have a dedicated one. |
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Another method I keep in my kit is good old fashioned dryer lint. By itself it works great. A great add is impregnating it with magnesium shavings from your deep rod in advance so you don’t have to do it in the dark or freezing cold. This REALLY gets things going!!! The Mautz fire is another sure fire truck to get things going and really works well in wet weather. |
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Couple of these in your tackle box to save and use for when it's really raining, snowing, high winds and the wood may be damp/wet. I wouldn't waste one if conditions were good enough for regular tinder and/or cotton balls,etc. https://enolagaye.com/ultimate-match/ https://youtu.be/oEiI_3twPp4?is=Gsw704M3nMu6E1kI https://youtu.be/IUJkmTdRNSY?is=tEQM1wDgY1JfYOIy |