Customer Reviews

Brunton Striker Fire Starter (Silver/Black)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Does what its supoposed to, throws hot sparks to light dry tinder. Good tip: us lint from your dryer as the tinder to start fires quick! I carry some with me in a small ziploc bag. Doesn't take much per fire plus its cheaper than other "tinder" you can buy.

In 10 years a Scout Leader (OA & Woodbadge) and as a frequent backpacker, I've used most strikers and find this one is a good product for the price. Size & weight are good. Spark output is adequate. Other strikers can cost twice as much but don't produce twice the sparks.
Obviously, this product is only for emergencies, so don't expect to light your Peak stove on a cold day or start every cooking fire with it. It's only for when you forgot to pack enough waterproof matches. And as with all emergency equipment, practice with it at home before you need it on the trail.
Drier lint is a good tender. Hold the tip of the striker touching the tender when striking. Have coarse tender ready to add to the flame. Alcohol-soaked cotton balls (denatured alcohol, not rubbing alcohol) can also be used, but be careful.
If you keep your tender sealed in a Zip-Lock bag, you'll never have a problem starting a fire in the wilderness with a small striker like this one.

The product works great assuming you have dry tinder. There is a protective coating on the shank which prevents fires during shipping. It is easily scratched off.

I have read several reviews about people not being able to produce sparks with this firesteel. I got mine today and scraped off the protective black coating on the magnesium (they put this on there so it will not spark during shipping). I used the striker that came with the firesteel and only got one small spark. I decided I needed to use more pressure and the thing immediately broke and scrapped up my finger. So I switched to my knife and gave it a shot and I got almost as much sparks as with the Swedish firesteel. This is a decent one but I would go with the Swedish firesteel even though it wears down more quickly than this one.

A reliable fire starter (along with water purification tablets) is one of the most essential items to have along while in the midst of the wilderness. It goes without saying that while hiking or camping being able to start a fire is at the very least helpful and fun, and at the very most can save your life. No form of matches or lighter is a safe bet in the woods. They can be rendered useless by water or damage. Something that the Brunton starter is immune too. You would literally have to smash this with a rock or hammer to make it inoperable. Striking it creates a nice large clean spark that will very easily light dry tinder, or whatever else you have available that is flammable. The other reviewer here that recommended drier lint is giving you good advice. Not only is drier lint amply available in any home, but several fist fulls of the stuff can be crammed into even a small sandwich bag for light effortless toting along. Whether you have lint or some other form of tinder available, I highly recommend that you never venture into the wilderness without this fire starter. It is solidly built, very reasonably priced, and besides perhaps saving your life someday, will at the very least last you many, many, years...

Good durable reliable firestarter a favorite amongs boy scouts, hikers and campers. I small insurance policy to have a way to start a fire that cannot be ruined by a fall into a stream or a bad rainstorm. I keep one in my pack whenever I go into the woods.

The flint fell off when the striker was applied to it. I glued it back together but still could not get a very good spark, so into the waste basket it went.

First of all, one thing to note is that this appears to have some kind of protective coating on the flint, so expect to spend a little time scraping that off the first time you use this.

After the protective coating is removed I found it to be pretty easy to throw a good spark consistently. With this and some good dry tinder starting up a fire is a snap, just don't get frustrated and write it off as worthless because it takes a little work to get those first sparks flying.

Works great, i like the plastic handle and the striker. i used it at the camp site and got the fire going right away.

Great product! Works just as described, I found it easier to use the V shaped end with lots of friction works much better than the "steps" part of the striker. Very small and easy to keep on hand, I tied it to the zipper of my backpack so I'm never without it!