Knife and ferro rod

You might check out the knives on the self reliance outfitters website. It's run by one of the original dual survivor guys. The website/store sells the stuff required for his wilderness survival classes, one of which is knives that meet a very specific set of requirements (sparking as one of them).

It's been a while since I really poked around their store, but I think most of the knives they sell are approved for his classes, and thereby spark.

Other than that, I have no clue. :)

My Mora knife throws a good spark. I have a Clipper 840.

HJ

A stainless knife will throw sparks from a ferro rod just fine. It just needs a square spine, rather than a rounded spine.
If the stainless is hardened/tempered very soft, then the edge will round in use from scraping the ferro rod.
Carbon (non stainless) knives are usually hardened a few Rockwell points harder than stainless :)

Ps: Stainless won't work for making sparks with a piece of actual flint (rock).
The flint chips off a piece of steel, which must be hard enough to glow orange-hot when the molecular bond is broken.

In comparison to flint, ferro rods make huge amounts of sparks, much easier, and they are orders of magnitude hotter.
Ferro did sparks will light wood shavings. Flint sparks need char-cloth or something similar.

"A stainless knife will throw sparks from a ferro rod just fine. It just needs a square spine, rather than a rounded spine."

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This is the key. My Mora knife wouldn't throw much of a spark from a Ferro rod when I bought it. I read that I needed to file the top edge to square it a bit more, so I did. Now, it throws a nice shower of sparks when I strike the rod with it.

AHA! Yet another little pearl of wisdom from BPL contributors. Nice to know.

Watch my video and try the technique once you get your knife to making some sparks.

it's relatively easy to square a spine up if your knife isn't throwing adequate sparks

if you're using a Swiss Army knife, try the awl (if it has one)- I guarantee you the sparks will fly :)

Mora also sells the "FireKnife" with a wide square spine and a "Swedish Firesteel" built into the handle.

Too heavy for BPL though.

The Fallkniven F1 might be larger than what you're using but it's an incredibly functional knife. I take mine on very trip regardless of the weight penalty. It has a very sharp squared off spine and absolutely throws sparks.

Another lighter route would be an Opinel #8. This is a carbon knife with classic wood handle and locking barrel collar. It's revered throughout Europe, cheap, much sturdier than it looks, and does well in conjunction with a ferro rod.

And there darn sure is no need to buy a $100++× half pound knife just to strike ferro rods.

Most lightweight ,inexpensive knives (like the Moras,Vic Parers, etc)either come with a spine from the factory that will scrape a ferro rod OR are made from steel soft enough that the spine can be easily squared up with nothing more than a file or carbide paper if clamped in a vise.

The little $10 Mora 511 series in either steel are easy to get a square spine on and only weigh about 2 oz.

And, Mike M is spot on about those Vic SAK awls..The things are wicked sharp and great for scraping a ferro rod.

You're certainly right about this. I do the majority of my cooking with an alcohol stove. On rare occasions I bring along my fly rod. If I catch trout I need a thin knife to filet them and like to stay in practice using ferro rods and bow drills to make fire.

Thanks,
Jambeaux

I have both the Mora LMF combo as well as separate ferro and striker set. Ultimately the separate ferro/striker combo and a multi-tool are slightly heavier than the Mora LMF which if I recall weights in at 3.9oz with sheath. Even when bike packing I feel better with a proper knife in the kit and even used it on the last trip when my friends Squirt just didn't cut it…

A small piece of hacksaw blade weighs almost nothing and the backside of it is already squared nicely. Drill a hole, tie it to the ferro rod. Use to to break out of jail also, multi-use.

The Mora carbon steel knife is only 3.5 oz and sure throws sparks. The Mora light my fire is stainless but has a squared back for sparking and a ferro rod in the handle. But my favorite is the 2 oz knife I made, which is light enough to float, thin enough to prepare fish, and has a ferro rod in the handle.

If all else fails, you could carry a dedicated firesteel scraper. The Exotac firesteels have very effective scrapers built in. I dont use a firesteel for everyday things like stove lighting, using a Bic for that stuff.

The polystriker has a plastic handle and is the least expensive
and lightest at .5oz. It lives on my pocket survival kit with an Olite flashlight, whistle, Leatherman Style tool, and tinder capsule.
http://www.exotac.com/polystriker/

I wanted one to EDC and got their nanostriker which is sealed and pocket-friendly and you can replace the ferro rod. The cap has an excellent scraper built in. It tips the scale at 0.51oz.
http://www.exotac.com/nanoSTRIKER

Nice job Bob, I really like the shape and proportions.

thank you Tim, I'm loving that knife. My only issue is I have yet to make a sheath for it. The firesteel is a small diameter one, and is capped in place with a bolt from a bicycle crank. Its a blade made by Helli, and the handle is fat enough to give good grip, but its light enough to float.

I've had good luck with these, they're inexpensive and they fit in a kit or on a lanyard.
http://usaknifemaker.com/ferro-rods-fire-starters/steel-stiker-for-ferro-rods.html

Using the back side of the knife tip often works well. That requires a little more dexterity than I'd probably have in a hypothermic situation though. I decided to just carry the small striker the rod came with. (Light My Fire brand)

Nice knife Bob!

Did you use a blade blank for that bob or did you grind the blade yourself?

While not a fixed blade. My spyderco ladybug salt's spine throws a great spark off of a ferry Rod.

Use a miniature Ferro Rod and for less than an oz.