10 years ago before I knew anything about ferro rods, I went to Academy Sports and bought a Bear Grylls'. I got lucky because it was a soft, provided big gobs of molten metal, never rippled, nor corroded. I wore it out pretty quickly and then bought a Light My Fire ferro rod. Again, it happened to be soft and easily ignited tinder just like the Bear Grylls'. As a gift, I was given a very hard 6" x 1/2" ferro rod (a Ripple Rod). Still unaware of the differences, I struggled to get hot enough sparks to ignite tinder as it just kept on RIPPLING more and more. I chalked it all up to my inexperience. Until, one day when somebody gave me a good soft bayite keychain ferro rod. LOL! It all became clear to me had been going on. Bayite is still the brand I use today, these 8 years later. It's a soft 3 1/8" long by 5/16" in diameter, throws gobs of hot sparks, never ripples nor corrodes. Hard ferro rods ARE usable but undesirable to say the least. Just a heads up. Please follow the LINKs below and SUBSCRIBE. Thank You! Ferro Rod Playlist th-cam.com/play/PLkoXX8XsMW3lI6k8TH1Bljf57Yvp9K1WD.html Why I Grind A Point On My Ferro Rods th-cam.com/video/B5NWgKsRV6w/w-d-xo.html
Yup ... The "Bayite" Ferro rods are the preferred spark makers in my camp. If an American maker can reliably produce anything comparable, I'll stock up on their rods. Thanks for sharing, Dave ... God Bless
I had no idea there were differences in the hardness. No wonder I have been having problems throwing sparks. Just a WOW moment here. Bayite will be my very next Amazon purchase. Thank you sir.
I’ve had some that are too hard and you’re on spot with this observation. Also have “skating” with knife back unless really bearing down or spine not freshly ground flat. No fun when compared to soft. Good video.
I'll be sure to order some. Just added it on my eBay watch list. My first one was a light my fire and I have a handful of those I save in emergency kits. The only others I have are Coghlan's that I use every day. I've learned to deal with them, but I throw the strikers away and I keep a good sharp 90 on the spine of my knives. Don't know how many Mora Companions I have, but for my EDC I always have my LT Wright Genesis as their spines are not only sharp, but hard as well and stay sharp.
It's been hard for me to go from hard to soft ferro rods, but I suppose I need more dirt time with it. I'm hoping to do that this summer, you've inspired me to want to work on this skill. It is possible to shave hard ferro rod ripples off with a metal file,, though I could see why someone wouldn't want to waste the material
Thanks David for the tutorial on fire steels. I've run into problems with some ferro rods too, but was uncertain as which ones were the good ones. I do like the keychain ones from Bayite as they are handy.
👍👍👍Always a pleasure watching your posts. Under correction, I am lead to believe that some of the harder rods are imports from a land to the East .. similar to the 'Magnesium Blocks with built-in Striker. I have a Coghlans bought many, many years back in which the magnesium is nice and soft and gives a good, robust burn. Bought way before 'Ferro Rods' made their appearance on the Outdoor scene. I understand that later versions of some Magnesium blocks are made of a harder 'alloy' (?) which do not work nearly as well. Perhaps this is the same with Ferro Rods .. the more 'alloy' therein, the harder the rod? A good share .. thanks .. take care ..
Hard ferro rods contain higher amounts of iron. They don't produce as many sparks as softer ones and are harder to scrape off, but they do last longer. Softer ferro rods, on the other hand, tend to produce big, bright sparks because of their higher magnesium content. They are cheaper, but they also wear out faster.
Is it safe to say all (or most) Bayite rods are good and soft or do they put out the occasional stinker? I'm very new to this and that's really the only brand I've heard of.
Thank you David for that information. I’ve been having the same problems. Can you tell me the name of a good ferro rod ? Thanks again , another great video.
Thank you. Good info. After scraping my ferro rod I notice a yellowish residue on my knife blade. It wipes off fairly well, but not 100%. Is this residue toxic if I go to use the knife in cooking or eating? Should I keep a separate knife for fire starting? I don't know the compounds that make up the ferro rods.
That's residue from the burning ferrocerium. All strikers get marked with it. I've had all those questions myself. I consider it toxic and trear it accordingly. Oh by the way, we're breathing that stuff too. Just something else to consider.
10 years ago before I knew anything about ferro rods, I went to Academy Sports and bought a Bear Grylls'. I got lucky because it was a soft, provided big gobs of molten metal, never rippled, nor corroded. I wore it out pretty quickly and then bought a Light My Fire ferro rod. Again, it happened to be soft and easily ignited tinder just like the Bear Grylls'. As a gift, I was given a very hard 6" x 1/2" ferro rod (a Ripple Rod). Still unaware of the differences, I struggled to get hot enough sparks to ignite tinder as it just kept on RIPPLING more and more. I chalked it all up to my inexperience. Until, one day when somebody gave me a good soft bayite keychain ferro rod. LOL! It all became clear to me had been going on.
Bayite is still the brand I use today, these 8 years later. It's a soft 3 1/8" long by 5/16" in diameter, throws gobs of hot sparks, never ripples nor corrodes.
Hard ferro rods ARE usable but undesirable to say the least. Just a heads up. Please follow the LINKs below and SUBSCRIBE. Thank You!
Ferro Rod Playlist
th-cam.com/play/PLkoXX8XsMW3lI6k8TH1Bljf57Yvp9K1WD.html
Why I Grind A Point On My Ferro Rods
th-cam.com/video/B5NWgKsRV6w/w-d-xo.html
your not wrong but i think they develop ripples from a slow strike, i aim and shoot the sparks, both my rods have ripples but still function amazing
@@nobodykayaks1041 Haha, I wondered about the dynamics, and if David’s view would differ from his younger blue-collar STRENGTH days. ......I still love those good old days too.....had lots of them.........ffs............. (© Paul Ricketts).
Have you used a ceramic striker enough to have an opinion of them?
Yup ... The "Bayite" Ferro rods are the preferred spark makers in my camp. If an American maker can reliably produce anything comparable, I'll stock up on their rods. Thanks for sharing, Dave ... God Bless
God bless you friend!
I had no idea there were differences in the hardness. No wonder I have been having problems throwing sparks. Just a WOW moment here. Bayite will be my very next Amazon purchase. Thank you sir.
Bayite, Light My Fire, and Bear Grylls are soft and good ones.
Good to see you and the fire table in my feed again.
Welcome back friend!
So calm, I really enjoy your videos. From Aus 🇦🇺
Thank you very much!
I didn't liked ferro rods till i came across the swedish light my fire Army ones. I always EDC one of them
I loved my LMF!
Thanks again David.
I’ve had some that are too hard and you’re on spot with this observation. Also have “skating” with knife back unless really bearing down or spine not freshly ground flat. No fun when compared to soft. Good video.
You know. TY!
Thanks for the advice👍 worth it's weight in gold.
Magnesium. LOL!
Thank you for words of wisdom and the recommendation!!
Any time!
Good advice Mr west thank you so much 👏👌
My pleasure.
I'll be sure to order some. Just added it on my eBay watch list. My first one was a light my fire and I have a handful of those I save in emergency kits. The only others I have are Coghlan's that I use every day. I've learned to deal with them, but I throw the strikers away and I keep a good sharp 90 on the spine of my knives. Don't know how many Mora Companions I have, but for my EDC I always have my LT Wright Genesis as their spines are not only sharp, but hard as well and stay sharp.
I didn't know that about LT Wright spines.
Thanks again for your observations. It really helps while I’m learning.
My pleasure!
Good advice David , thanks for sharing , God bless brother !
Thanks, you too!
It's been hard for me to go from hard to soft ferro rods, but I suppose I need more dirt time with it. I'm hoping to do that this summer, you've inspired me to want to work on this skill.
It is possible to shave hard ferro rod ripples off with a metal file,, though I could see why someone wouldn't want to waste the material
You'll see a big difference. Yes.
Thanks David for the tutorial on fire steels. I've run into problems with some ferro rods too, but was uncertain as which ones were the good ones. I do like the keychain ones from Bayite as they are handy.
Thanks Starling!
Great information. Thanks
Glad it was helpful!
David …What makes the Bayite rods good … the rods Gerri or striker. These keychain rods give a lot of sparks.
Thanks. Great job ☝️☀️🇺🇸
Yes, sharp... stay sharp strikers are important.
I don't know what type mine is but its never let me down anyway, yet..
Thank you!
👍👍👍Always a pleasure watching your posts.
Under correction, I am lead to believe that some of the harder rods are imports from a land to the East .. similar to the 'Magnesium Blocks with built-in Striker. I have a Coghlans bought many, many years back in which the magnesium is nice and soft and gives a good, robust burn. Bought way before 'Ferro Rods' made their appearance on the Outdoor scene.
I understand that later versions of some Magnesium blocks are made of a harder 'alloy' (?) which do not work nearly as well. Perhaps this is the same with Ferro Rods .. the more 'alloy' therein, the harder the rod?
A good share .. thanks .. take care ..
Hard ferro rods contain higher amounts of iron. They don't produce as many sparks as softer ones and are harder to scrape off, but they do last longer. Softer ferro rods, on the other hand, tend to produce big, bright sparks because of their higher magnesium content. They are cheaper, but they also wear out faster.
Hello David, you make it look easy. God is good.
All the time! TY!
So how do you know if a rod is hard or soft before you buy one God bless you brother stay safe
Reviews on TH-cam.
Is it safe to say all (or most) Bayite rods are good and soft or do they put out the occasional stinker? I'm very new to this and that's really the only brand I've heard of.
A person told me that their bigger bayite rod was hard, but I wouldn't think so. A rookie with a dull striker could think that.
hey dave! can you tell exactly which ferro rod on amazon that you get?
Bayite keychain ferro rod, 3 pack, with cable key rings.
Thank you David for that information. I’ve been having the same problems. Can you tell me the name of a good ferro rod ? Thanks again , another great video.
Bayite
@@DavidWestBgood2ppl Thanks David.
Is it safe to keep a fero therod on a key chain with keys?
It takes pressure and speed at the same time to spark one.
Thank you. Good info.
After scraping my ferro rod I notice a yellowish residue on my knife blade. It wipes off fairly well, but not 100%.
Is this residue toxic if I go to use the knife in cooking or eating?
Should I keep a separate knife for fire starting?
I don't know the compounds that make up the ferro rods.
That's residue from the burning ferrocerium. All strikers get marked with it. I've had all those questions myself. I consider it toxic and trear it accordingly. Oh by the way, we're breathing that stuff too. Just something else to consider.
@@DavidWestBgood2ppl Thank you.
🙏
👍
shut that bird(s) up lol
Free music to help divert attention away from the car struggling to get up the road with no muffler on it.
Do not buy FerroFire. HARD! Very hard.
There are a lot of hard ones out there with a lot of people trying to sell them to you.