10 reviews for Swiss Safe 5-in-1 Fire Starter, for Emergency Survival Kits, Camping, Hiking, Black, 2 Pack: Home & Kitchen
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★★★★★
★★★★★
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★★★★★
Castle –
…the first time I used it, the rod flew out of the holder, landed on the floor and broke in half. I was pretty bummed out as it’s beautifully designed and I thought it was going to be my new favorite ferro rod. There was two in the pack so I will probably pull out the rod and put some super glue in this one. These are really nice, just be sure to check if you have a loose one before you use it.Update: I wrote to the seller telling them what happened. They replied immediately and shipped me a replacement box which I received two days later. Outstanding customer support!
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★★★★★
HAMMERFIST –
After scraping the black coating off you can actually catch a nice strike off these sticks.I save the lint from the dryer and pack it into a zip lock bag. It’s light weight and ignites easily with one strike ?
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★★★★★
Mark D. Heinze –
What a great buy. Good price on a nice pair of relatively larger-sized ferrocerium rods. Just got boxyesterday and tested one out. Your first couple strikes will remove the coating and then they’ll spark right up, just like they’re supposed to. The handle feels solid, the whistle is loud and the tiny little button compass actually works very well (for a tiny little button compass). Obviously you can’t do orienting with it but if you were lost and you knew the road was say SW of your location, the compass on these (at least the two I received) would do just fine.
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★★★★★
consuelo Ashworth –
Surprised it really works! I have been practicing with my fire starter, I have to say how easy it is to start a fire. Even my grandkids have learned to use the fire starter. I also found out it can last for years to come. B
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★★★★★
Pete –
As described. The rods are actually quite large and thick, so there is a good deal of sparks to throw for a long while. The compass works, and the whistle does work, even though takes a bit of trying different methods to get it to whistle. I’ve bought other rods in the past and this one I definitely recommend over the bear grillis ones or the cheaper “survival ones” this one seems pretty robust and quality made. I definitely would recommend.
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★★★★★
Amazon Customer –
These aren’t my first fire starters and I must say that the fact that these are multi purpose made me wander if the compass, and whistle would truly be of any use. Once I received these, I noticed that the construction was more than adequate. The first thing I did was check to see if the button compasses functioned properly, as many of button compasses are completely worthless. Much to my surprise, both pointed north without even having to tap on them. Following this, I tried the whistles and just as with the compasses, they also functioned well. As far as the ferro rods go, both are of a good size which should allow for plenty of strikes. I would say that being able to pick up two of these for under $10.00 is a real steal.I would highly recommend these.
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★★★★★
Richard –
I glanced over other fire starters and what won me over with this one was the whistle and compass. It took me a few seconds messing around with the whistle until I got a good sound out of it. I blew it in the house and it got my attention. It would certainly come in handy in case of an emergency. I haven’t tried to light a fire yet but based on the other comments, it doe well. The material feels like it would last a long time, although if the rod were to fall just right on concrete or stone I can see it busting fairly easy. I believe one reviewer had a picture of his that broke so it can happen. Delivery was quick with no issues. I am happy about this purchase and definitely recommend it.
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★★★★★
pkarandi –
This starter works great! The sparks that come off this thing are really strong. I tested it with lint, cotton balls, cotton balls drenched with olive oil, and crumpled up newspaper. Everything but the newspaper lit up almost instantly! With the newspaper, I was having a little trouble getting it to light, so I (like the instructions state) shaved off some of the magnesium into the paper. A few seconds later, the newspaper was up in flames too. Even though I am a fire starting newb, these things made me feel like a pro. They are a steal at this price (2 for $10) too. Tip: spend a couple of extra bucks and get the orange one (instead of the black like I did). The starter will be much easier to find in a bag or any other low-light situation.
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★★★★★
GreenMarineFive-0 –
This is probably the perfect manual firestarter. The old school magnesium firestarter used to be sold in a 1″ ×2″ ×0.25″ slab of magnesium with a flint stick glued in a groove along one edge. They came without a scraper or sparking tool, requiring us to ruin many pocket knives while backpacking.This one represents what happens when you improve an old concept and eliminate issues with the old style.It’s made with a high strength polymer. The whistle has dual cores for generating plenty of volume. The 550 parachute cord is standardized and the rod is shipped with a corrosion Protestant type coating. The big deal here is the convenience of having a small tool attached to the 550 lanyard. The scraper is essentially a chunk of hacksaw blade. The sharp teeth on the blade work great for removing magnesium shavings and the way the device is configured it sends sparks in precisely the right direction. I am able to make shavings and spark enough of them in about twenty seconds to get my fire going. Highly recommended product to keep handy, and priced well enough to stash one in every vehicle, go bag, ruck, or RV you have.
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★★★★★
L. Solomon –
OK, so you’re not a Survivalist, a conspiracy theorist or mountain man (which of course includes women). Still, THE SWISS SAFE fire-starter almost cries out to find it’s home in your glove compartment. For under 10 bucks, this item is handsomely presented, appears well-made and most certainly is a conversation piece.The so-called “other features” include a toy compass that seemingly escaped from a Cracker Jacks box. It also includes a “paracord” which amounts to 14 inches of rugged shoelace cord. I’m not certain what it’s purpose is, but it’s good to have.Which brings us to Fire Starting. Assuming you can find some nice, dry tinder and twigs, you’ll need the enclosed knife to make shavings from its magnesium rod and handle. One then uses the dull blade side to make sparks–which are supposed to ignite the magnesium shavings and tinder into a blazing white conflagration. This is all pretty basic survival stuff, nothing dangerous or new-fangled about this. It’s not as good as a disposable lighter–but lightyears ahead of using a bow, stick and rock.So, go ahead–Buy this, a dozen containers of peanut butter, a few gallons of bottled water and some some vitamin pills. While you’re at it, have a few $100 bills tucked away for safekeeping because when the internet goes down, your Smart Phone and credit cards will be useless. It’s not a bad idea to Be Prepared in case you lose your disposable Bic lighter. Enjoy!
Castle –
…the first time I used it, the rod flew out of the holder, landed on the floor and broke in half. I was pretty bummed out as it’s beautifully designed and I thought it was going to be my new favorite ferro rod. There was two in the pack so I will probably pull out the rod and put some super glue in this one. These are really nice, just be sure to check if you have a loose one before you use it.Update: I wrote to the seller telling them what happened. They replied immediately and shipped me a replacement box which I received two days later. Outstanding customer support!
HAMMERFIST –
After scraping the black coating off you can actually catch a nice strike off these sticks.I save the lint from the dryer and pack it into a zip lock bag. It’s light weight and ignites easily with one strike ?
Mark D. Heinze –
What a great buy. Good price on a nice pair of relatively larger-sized ferrocerium rods. Just got boxyesterday and tested one out. Your first couple strikes will remove the coating and then they’ll spark right up, just like they’re supposed to. The handle feels solid, the whistle is loud and the tiny little button compass actually works very well (for a tiny little button compass). Obviously you can’t do orienting with it but if you were lost and you knew the road was say SW of your location, the compass on these (at least the two I received) would do just fine.
consuelo Ashworth –
Surprised it really works! I have been practicing with my fire starter, I have to say how easy it is to start a fire. Even my grandkids have learned to use the fire starter. I also found out it can last for years to come. B
Pete –
As described. The rods are actually quite large and thick, so there is a good deal of sparks to throw for a long while. The compass works, and the whistle does work, even though takes a bit of trying different methods to get it to whistle. I’ve bought other rods in the past and this one I definitely recommend over the bear grillis ones or the cheaper “survival ones” this one seems pretty robust and quality made. I definitely would recommend.
Amazon Customer –
These aren’t my first fire starters and I must say that the fact that these are multi purpose made me wander if the compass, and whistle would truly be of any use. Once I received these, I noticed that the construction was more than adequate. The first thing I did was check to see if the button compasses functioned properly, as many of button compasses are completely worthless. Much to my surprise, both pointed north without even having to tap on them. Following this, I tried the whistles and just as with the compasses, they also functioned well. As far as the ferro rods go, both are of a good size which should allow for plenty of strikes. I would say that being able to pick up two of these for under $10.00 is a real steal.I would highly recommend these.
Richard –
I glanced over other fire starters and what won me over with this one was the whistle and compass. It took me a few seconds messing around with the whistle until I got a good sound out of it. I blew it in the house and it got my attention. It would certainly come in handy in case of an emergency. I haven’t tried to light a fire yet but based on the other comments, it doe well. The material feels like it would last a long time, although if the rod were to fall just right on concrete or stone I can see it busting fairly easy. I believe one reviewer had a picture of his that broke so it can happen. Delivery was quick with no issues. I am happy about this purchase and definitely recommend it.
pkarandi –
This starter works great! The sparks that come off this thing are really strong. I tested it with lint, cotton balls, cotton balls drenched with olive oil, and crumpled up newspaper. Everything but the newspaper lit up almost instantly! With the newspaper, I was having a little trouble getting it to light, so I (like the instructions state) shaved off some of the magnesium into the paper. A few seconds later, the newspaper was up in flames too. Even though I am a fire starting newb, these things made me feel like a pro. They are a steal at this price (2 for $10) too. Tip: spend a couple of extra bucks and get the orange one (instead of the black like I did). The starter will be much easier to find in a bag or any other low-light situation.
GreenMarineFive-0 –
This is probably the perfect manual firestarter. The old school magnesium firestarter used to be sold in a 1″ ×2″ ×0.25″ slab of magnesium with a flint stick glued in a groove along one edge. They came without a scraper or sparking tool, requiring us to ruin many pocket knives while backpacking.This one represents what happens when you improve an old concept and eliminate issues with the old style.It’s made with a high strength polymer. The whistle has dual cores for generating plenty of volume. The 550 parachute cord is standardized and the rod is shipped with a corrosion Protestant type coating. The big deal here is the convenience of having a small tool attached to the 550 lanyard. The scraper is essentially a chunk of hacksaw blade. The sharp teeth on the blade work great for removing magnesium shavings and the way the device is configured it sends sparks in precisely the right direction. I am able to make shavings and spark enough of them in about twenty seconds to get my fire going. Highly recommended product to keep handy, and priced well enough to stash one in every vehicle, go bag, ruck, or RV you have.
L. Solomon –
OK, so you’re not a Survivalist, a conspiracy theorist or mountain man (which of course includes women). Still, THE SWISS SAFE fire-starter almost cries out to find it’s home in your glove compartment. For under 10 bucks, this item is handsomely presented, appears well-made and most certainly is a conversation piece.The so-called “other features” include a toy compass that seemingly escaped from a Cracker Jacks box. It also includes a “paracord” which amounts to 14 inches of rugged shoelace cord. I’m not certain what it’s purpose is, but it’s good to have.Which brings us to Fire Starting. Assuming you can find some nice, dry tinder and twigs, you’ll need the enclosed knife to make shavings from its magnesium rod and handle. One then uses the dull blade side to make sparks–which are supposed to ignite the magnesium shavings and tinder into a blazing white conflagration. This is all pretty basic survival stuff, nothing dangerous or new-fangled about this. It’s not as good as a disposable lighter–but lightyears ahead of using a bow, stick and rock.So, go ahead–Buy this, a dozen containers of peanut butter, a few gallons of bottled water and some some vitamin pills. While you’re at it, have a few $100 bills tucked away for safekeeping because when the internet goes down, your Smart Phone and credit cards will be useless. It’s not a bad idea to Be Prepared in case you lose your disposable Bic lighter. Enjoy!