@@BrockNessMonster1991they sell them that way in a little tin as well. Dave Canterbury and the Pathfinder group had them I believe. I know it's 4 months after your comment, but maybe that helps... It's nice to not have to make them... But they are easy honestly... But either way... They're freaking awesome and light
@@DontLookBehindYou1 hard to beat Vaseline and cotton balls. For $4 you can make a years worth of fire starter. I package it in tiny little cocain baggies to be used for individual use. Light up the baggie and your hands stay clean.
You can soak the cotton disks in melted Vaseline, let them cool down, and then coat them in wax. You end up with little "cakes" that are reasonably waterproof and can start a pretty nice fire.
While yes there is so many options for things we can make and buy for our fire kits..... about a year ago i went on a expedition to make the absolute best fire starter one could make... and i tried everything out there..... while most things i tried all worked well..... it was the really long burn times is what i was going after.....everything seemed to burn out so fast.... so i thought id try something a little out of the norm..... and landed on melting wax and petroleum jelly together in an old pan then i would dunk round make up pads into the wax mix then let dry on foil and what i found was the ultimate fire starter as it's completely water proof extremely flammable with very good burn times and only needs a spark to get lit!!!! Once they dry you end up with alot of really awesome cheap fire starters that work way better than most anything you can buy.
Great little video. I like the addition of the tea candle. It has the benefit that it will burn all on its own, for up to a couple hours, (packages say 1-4 hours?) In an emergency, it's a small simple heat source. I would consider, supplementing this kit, with a second bottle, with more tea candles. Yay. Then, for giggles, one could find a third bottle, which could hold the larger fat survival candle. The 24 + hr candle. That, and while you're at it, a pill bottle filled with your cut to fit fatwood sticks. Great little storage containers for the various components. Kit 1, everything you need. Kit 2-4, essentially refills. Love.
My wife uses those cotton facial pads and those are what I add petroleum jelly to. This idea of using a medicine bottle is so simple I dont know why I haven't heard or thought of it. Thanks for the help and keep up the wandering.
Nice video, looks like you could add some lamp wick which has the end charred, it can be used similar to char cloth to facilitate making a birds nest type fire, also birthday candles work well….
A very good vid nothing I would dare complain about at all there ,it would all fit in a small belt pouch and be a superb emergency back up .My main fire kit I keep in my "British army mess tins" (no major reason for the choice it is just that I am British and we have a lot of them here very inexpensive and effective .) which contain 2x 8 hour burn time night lights an old film canister as you have with Vaseline impregnated cotton wool (often magnesium shavings too depending on how many blocks I have .) Waterproof matches plus life boat matches and striker cards and a Bic lighter and ferro rod. I also found a match shaped fire lighter used to start BBQ's here apparently ,about 4 inches long strikes like a match and is about an inch square which I call my last resort fire starter a little OTT perhaps but it works all that plus a Hexi stove I love it . Of course this is separate from what I keep in my pockets and belt pouches because if I lose my pack for whatever reason ,I have everything I need for fire water and protection from the elements ,with a small first aid kit and my main knife ,I get into some pretty remote places so I like to be certain of the basics and always have back up kit that will get me home or at least keep me alive until I am found . I do like your presentation style it is straight forward no nonsense, easy to follow and wonderfully practical without relying on all the latest gear .Thank your for your hard work .
Always sort your shavings on a solid piece of duct tape for "anchoring". If a fire is necessary for survival, then conditions are probably not likely to be equivalent to this demonstration of still, controlled conditions.
Dryer lint is a good starter. If you can still get plastic drinking straws, cut them down to either half length or in thirds, melt one end closed. Then push as much lint in. Then bend the other end and melt it closed. Easy carry in the kit. Just cut it open, and you have dry dryer lint.
For the Tea-lite candle, light it and set it on a thin piece of tree bark. Slide it in under the fire lay and let it burn under your twigs. Works great for damp tinder. Once the fire is established, slide the candle out from under the fire and save it for later.
I have 2 birches in front of my apartment building, I have picked up quite a few pieces of the bark that falls off it. I like to keep some of that in my fire kits
Dryer lint, especially when washing raw, natural fabric before sewing, works really well to fill in the spaces and as a spark catch. The smaller ones, I saw the fatwood down and keep the shavings to save time. Great idea with the duct tape on the outside! May be nice to also add some bankline for extra cordage.
I'd come to a similar conclusion with the plastic pill bottle, I saw YT bushcrafters with fire kits as big as my entire possibles pouch and it's not really necessary, especially when you are walking a good few miles. You have to carry that backpack full of unnecessary junk. If you live in an urban environment and haven't access to fatwood don't be ashamed to put an old newspaper or something in your backpack until you find some fatwood. If you get soaked stuffing your boots with newspaper at night is a good way to dry them out and many other uses, weighs nothing and costs nothing extra.
I cut the Jute Twine in 6-inch pieces and then separate the three strands to form the bird nest to catch the spark. Add the petroleum jelly to extend the burn time.
I will say that the white petroleum impregnated cotton balls are amazing and probably the cheapest and easiest fire starter around. 1 strike of the ferro makes these things ignite immediately. Neat fire starter ever. Dried tree sap and birch bark work amazingly as well
Great practical video. I particularly like the fact that you included a fairly long metal striker with your kit, easy to handle when cold , or, for whatever reason, you might not have a knife. See how you would like to use cotton PADS cut to size and dipped in liquid Vaseline then coated with candle wax as a fire starter. You need to fluff them up, but they certainly start a fire when you really need it. Keep up the great videos.
This is a great video. Than you sir. I know that the different kits with multiple items is great to have, but I really like this. It doesn’t break the bank. Now I wish that I still had all of the film canisters that I used to.
I’m more of a fan of using those big pill bottles as hand reel fishing kits. I keep my fire kit in an organization pouch that is waterproof and fits two Altoids tins. Although I could use other containers for making char, I prefer to have these as dedicated components in my fire kit.
I have everything in my kit lol my hubby says i watch you to much and spend too much money but ya know what he's still around even though he thinks I'm nuts lol😂. I have cotton balls and discs with vaseline & wax matches galore. Cant find weather 1s not even @ our Walmart bic lighter knife ferro rod pens paper marker pencil & sharpner. Plus something to make me happy.😊 Also going to make coffee can kits for my friends cars as bday gifts
I know it’s late, and not to be supercritical, but pull bottles are neither airtight nor watertight. You can see many posts on the pharmacy subreddit of people who come into pharmacies trying to get drugs replaced after the “wash” them by forgetting them in their pocket and they go through the wash cycle. Granted a washing machine is a much harsher environment then most of us will encounter, but for a few extra dollars you can pick up a water/airtight container. As an aside many people, back when marijuana was more criminalized than now, have been busted as those pill bottles aren’t airtight.
I would add some cotton balls covered in Vaseline and zippo fluid wrapped in aluminum foil most just use Vaseline i like adding zippo fluid to it too. Works great burns for a long time
