Warning

 

Close
Confirm Action

Are you sure you wish to do this?

Cancel Confirm
AR15.COM
4/23/2009 7:01:40 AM EDT
Bought a Coghlan's fire paste and Fire Ribbon from REI.  Tried them both and I see no difference except the Fire Ribbon is a $1.50 cheaper.  Have you tried the two before? Just wondering if you noticed a difference between the two.

Fire Ribbon

Fire Paste

Thanks.
556man
4/23/2009 9:49:41 AM EDT
[#1]
not sure if it is the same stuff but I got some plastic packets of fire starting gel somewhere last year. use them to start recreational fires.
4/23/2009 11:23:48 AM EDT
[#2]
It may take a looooooooooong time, but the stuff in the tubes does not store forever.  Just FYI.
4/23/2009 2:48:23 PM EDT
[#3]
Quoted:
It may take a looooooooooong time, but the stuff in the tubes does not store forever.  Just FYI.


Is this after it is opened or from date of Mfg ?

4/23/2009 3:40:24 PM EDT
[#4]
Quoted:
Quoted:
It may take a looooooooooong time, but the stuff in the tubes does not store forever.  Just FYI.


Is this after it is opened or from date of Mfg ?



Date of Mfg.  I reckon it would lose its' volatility and harden up much more quickly once opened, but in that instance, you would probably be using it on a regular basis, so there might be little lost due to aging.

My point is that it will go bad eventually, even sitting unopened on a shelf.  Will take years, but it will become useless at some point.

4/23/2009 4:29:58 PM EDT
[#5]
FYI the hand sanitizing gels can be had very cheap and are excellent as fire starter assistance and offer the second use of sanitizing your hands (and other things as well)
4/24/2009 8:58:20 AM EDT
[#6]
Is this stuff better than petro. jelly and cotton balls/lint?  That's what I use for firestarter, it's cheap and burns for a while.  I've actually been able to start very wet wood on fire with it.
4/25/2009 10:49:48 AM EDT
[#7]
In terms of starting a regular fire, made of wood or something like that, the cotton balls/ PJ idea is probably the way to go, since it is DIY/cheap.  The paste/gel will do, however.  I don't know for certain, but I would be willing to bet that the two items are essentially the same thing.

Where the paste and similar stuff is handy is pre-heating liquid fuel stoves.  After a bit of experimentation, one squeezes a pre-determined amount on the end of a longish object (handle of spoon/tip of knife), spreads it around in the pre-heat cup, and then ignite the goop.  shortly thereafter, the stove is pre-heated, and ready to run on its own.  You can also use a bit of liquid fuel to do the same thing, but that can be a bit of a hassle under some conditions.
4/25/2009 12:55:49 PM EDT
[#8]
Ah, got it. Thanks Raf.
4/26/2009 2:49:02 AM EDT
[#9]
Thank you all for your input.  Raf is right. Did some testing and burn times are pretty close to each other and both paste smells the same.  It's probably the same stuff.  Went to a 99 cent store and got some 200 pcs of cotton balls and petroleum jelly.  Tried it and that works really good and it's dirt cheap.  Thanks again for the tips.

556man