I bought those blue rhino matches 3 boxes for like two dollars. I bought 6 boxes, spread them all over the house and in the GHB, but it is important to realize that this also supplemented by lighters and a flint w/ magnesium.

All three may fail, highly unlikely, but then that is where skills and knowledge comes in. You must know the principles of fire building and how to meet a fires needs without the three crutches listed above.


I'm sorry, by the way those matches have lasted two years and the striker board looks and works like new.

 

Yeah, I bought some of the 'strike on the box' Diamond brand wooden matches. I hadn't bought any in so long, I didn't realize they weren't the good ol' 'strike anywhere' of my youth.

I haven't used too many, but I know for sure the box won't outlast the matches. I'm not happy about it. The free matches (books) at the corner store are more reliable IMO.

 

Matches are something that people take for granted. everyone thinks they can start a fire with one match. If you havn't done it for a while ,try it you will probably be surprised at how many matches it takes you. Matches are cheap and plentiful, there is no excuse not to have a large supply, plus they will be great for trading.

 

like bryan cc tx alluded to, matches are part of a fire making system. In foggy or high humidity weather matches can become damp and not light. A cheep bic and a flint and steel set up are impotant to have.

In the winter I practice with all 3 when starting a fire in the wood stove.

 

I'll assume my friend just gets the wrong brand or something....

 

I was curious about peoples interest in strike everywhere matches. I was like, if you are going to carry matches around, you could as well bring the matchbox, no?

When I hunt, I transfer the matches to a waterproof container. In that instance the box is no longer needed so I don't carry the empty box just to have the striker.

I could tear off the striker portion and put it in the container, but if they are strike anywhere matches I don't need that either.

 

Strike anywhere matches are still available online by the case. I thought I had a link for them but cant find it at the moment. I read somewhere they arent on store shelves anymore because they are used in illegal drug production, maybe meth. Big Brother watching out for us again.

 

I think they may be classified as Semi-Automatic Assault Matches and are therefore , oh forget it! Some tree hugging rocket scientist thought they should have some haz-mat rating I heard so shipping on them went up.
I'm just north of Dallas and I have'nt seen them on the shelves for some time

 

I see strike on box matches everytime i shop at Publix.

 

I use an expended shot gun shell with caps at both ends.
One end is filed to create a striker surface and the other forms the base.
Small, waterproof and re-usable.

 

I was curious about peoples interest in strike everywhere matches. I was like, if you are going to carry matches around, you could as well bring the matchbox, no?

I often repackage the strike anywhere matches anyways because matchboxes are often not durable enough and will often get crushed, damaged, torn etc. Another thing is that "regular" matches will not ignite without the box strip. Half the chemicals to ignite the match are in the head and the other half are on the strip. So if something happens to the box, you have worthless matches.

Also, from personal experience, if you are trying to start a fire in the cold your hands and fingers get the shakes pretty bad. I have seen friends fumble matches on the boxes pretty bad at that point. I can see where a strike anywhere match would be more helpful in this case. I finally got mad at my friend and started the fire with my lighter!

 

The other day I went car camping/fishing and was cooking breakfast. I went to the car to grab my lighter out of the car bug out kit and realized all the butane had leaked out over a long time! Thank god I had 2 extras, but it brought things into focus quick.

I found strike anywhere matches in walmart (kitchen gadgets aisle), grabbed a small water proof box and a flint & steel from the camping section. Got home added a bag of dryer lint to complete my fire kit for my car.

 

I am a fan of cheap Bics. I will place a thin strip of card board paper over the top of my BOB bics. I secure it with duct tape. I like it because I now have duct tape and dependable bics.

 

Matches are highly overrated. Back when I first started prepping I bought a case of them. Then I realized that there are many, better methods of fire starting. If it's sunny, you can use a magnifying glass. If it's dry and calm, you can use a flint and steel, or sparking fire starter. If it's damp, you can use a magnesium block starter. If it's windy, you can use magnesium or firestarter tinder and sparks, and of course there's the ubiquitous Bic lighter that holds what, a thousand starts? The best part is you can carry all of these in the same space as 100-150 matches.

One of my wholesalers occasionally has Bic lighters by the gross for about 35 cents each. I bought 5 gross. The matches will be used as barter goods now.

 

The only thing I use matches for is lighting my charcoal 'chiminey' to heat coals for the grill. I can soak the coals with fluid, then toss the match in from a safe distance. whoosh!
Beyond that, as a practical matter, matches are pretty much obsolete in my world.
No, I don't like that. Like millions of other kids, I grew up 'playing with matches' (so much for mum's advice). Generally, butane lighters have taken over at my house.
If a butane lighter gets wet.. no big deal.
I still keep matches around,.. if only to light some up on occasion for nostalga's sake.
I smoke a few cigars a year.. light them with a butane lighter to avoid any sulphur taste from a match. I miss the old days sometimes.

 

Strike anywhere has now vanished from my small town. I still buy the others thought. I use them to light my pipe every day. Get one of those food sealers and seal them up.

 

The reason I like the strike anywhere matches is because it's more economical for me to buy the boxes of 250, which is too big to carry in my BOB, so I put some of the matches in a container that goes into my bag. If I have strike-on-box matches, I would have to cut the striking patch off the side of the box, and I wouldn't have it for the REST of the matches. With the strike anywhere matches, it's not an issue.

 

Or you could use a lighter! :

 

Do the bic lighters leak after a long time? I keep strike anywhere matches soaked in wax in an empty vitamin screw top plastic bottle with a few petro jelly soaked cotton balls. Also a firesteel on the side of the pack and a few disposable lighters tucked here and there.

 

They might leak, but it'd probably take a lifetime for you to notice.

Years ago, I found a Bic lighter laying in the desert. It had been there so long that the sun had bleached the color out of the plastic, and the chrome plated steel had completely rusted. It was almost rusted solid, but I managed to get it to turn slowly. After the rust powdered off the wheel, it lit right up.

Recently I dug out some cheapo camping supplies that I had as a kid to give to a neighbor's kid. They had been in storage for about 30 years. In the box was a Bic I used to carry when I camped. It looked like new, was full of fuel and lit on the first strike.

They're pretty durable to be so cheaply made.

 

I've purchased the bulk packs of Bic lighters from BJ's Wholesale club, and I keep them all over the place, including in coat and vest pockets, glove boxes, etc. Also have boxes of Ohio Blue Tip matches in ziploc bags scattered about. -Nick.

 

If you are going to use Strike Anywheres, dip them in candle wax for waterproofing and additional burn time. Just be careful to lightly scrape the wax off the end before attempting to fire one up. The light blue tip needs oxygen for ignition.

 

logical

You should always have three different ways of starting fires because depending on the circumstances, one of them will be better than the others and of course you can also decide which is the most economical at the time.

If you're in a hurry, then a match. If you can take a little more time, then magnesium, etc.

I always try to get strike-anywhere matches, after all, even if you have the box you can use them but you have the added advantage of being able to use them even if you don't have the box. Whereas, with the strike-on-box, you're kind of stuck.

 

I've found that the BEST sources for strike anywhere matches are stores that deal with the local Amish and Mennonites around here. Most other places only carry the strike on box kind, but I have found one LOCAL (NOT chain) grocery store, and one Mennonite store that carries them.

 

You can make strike anywhere matches out of the strike on the box matches. Sand the strike material off the box.Crumble up several of the match heads.Keep the two separate! Finely grind the match heads. In a few drops of water,mix the two components to a paste. Dip the remaining "strike on box" matches in this paste and allow to air dry for awhile. You now have strike anywhere matches! You see, the strike on box matches need the chemical in the match head AND the chemical in the strike material to ignite. The reason we are having trouble getting strike anywhere matches is they are now considered Hazmat, from a shipping liability stand point. Anyway,there you have it,home made strike anywhere matches. More trouble than it's worth,but nonetheless. TP