The magnesium is good to have if tinder is damp or cold. Allows for longer burn and a better chance for fire start up. You can do the same with ferro rod. You can scrape fine pieces off your rod into the tinder for same result.

Wait until you have slightly damp tinder. Scrape a dime to quarter size pile of magnesium into the tinder and strike it with the ferro rod in the magnesium bar. The 5400°F ignition temp of magnesium shavings will help drive moisture out of the tinder and make it more likely to light and stay lit. Put it in a little cheap cylindrical gasifier wood twig stove like an Ohuhu. Feeding it damp tinder will cause it to smoke like crazy until it dries out, but once it starts to gasify you should be able to feed it slightly damp wood below the secondary burn vents and have it burn the smoke off before it leaves the stove.

My dad gave me a magnesium rod when I was 12 I'm 48 years old right now I still have that same magnesium right and still use it today I've lived in places in Alaska and used it to places like Texas and used it I don't know about that for a ride too well but that magnesium rod I do

Nice comparison under favorable conditions. Thanks for sharing.

I have always carried both. The mag bar was the first fire starting device besides the common lighter that I began to use.

The mag bars typically have smaller ferro sparking rods, so as you noted, they wear out faster. I like to have both. I like the magnesium, if things are damp/humid; but, I like a chunk ferro to spark off of, better than the little guys. As you say, i'd be happy with taking either into the woods. But, like trying to pick a favorite child...I just rather have both.

Thank you never saw anyone address this subject I have started fires with both use fatwood with both never had a problem in humid or rain good video

I have both in my bag,,,they both work great

Mag bars are cheap and readily available. That's one upside to them.. I tend to have some everywhere. Ferro rods are nicer, usually just one or two strike (unless tinder is wet/cold, then mag bar) but both are equally nice

Thanks for this video! Great info.

Good video. Thanks!

I think the biggest problem I have with any of these fero rod/magnesium type of firestarters, is that if you are prepping to take all of this stuff with you, just take a storm lighter/jet lighter, and it will light anything in pretty much any weather conditions.it’s not as though a ferro rod is traditional like a Flint and steel - it is a very modern man-made item. So just use a gas lighter.

I enjoyed this. Great job! Personally, I use a ferro rod but after seeing your video would be comfortable using either one👍😉

Don't buy the crap from Harbor freight. They have a lower magnesium amount than the more expensive ones. Spend the extra few bucks. Magnesium tip, wrap some aluminum foil around it a few times and carry it like that. When you get to where you're going, lay the aluminum foil down and scrap the magnesium onto that, so you can pour them into a pile wherever you want to start the fire. This also takes sparks a lot better and keeps the magnesium from flying everywhere when scraping it off the block. Or, use a large leaf. Either or.

I carry both and 6"×1/2" ferro rod and a magnesium block with attached ferro rod. Like you indicated, the small rod is very soft so I'm saving it for if I lose my large rod and both bics.

Thank you I’m amazed

I was gonna vote for both, but someone already beat me to it. BTW great background music choice., fit the video perfect in my opinion.

I bought a ferro rod when they first hit the market, they were called a "Metal match" back then. The instructions said to shave off a little pile of shavings, then strike them with the sparks. Nice, except you would keep igniting the shaving you were trying to collect a pile of while you're trying to shave it off without sparking. Collecting some good tinder instead you could just use the sparks to ignite that tinder. I've done it a lot of times with just a couple of strikes. The magnesium, though, makes it easier to collect that pile of shavings, and, once struck, they will DEFINITELY ignite your tinder. While I have a collection of ferro rods, my first choice to carry is the magnesium block one. I have the best of both worlds then.

Great video and information

Did you mix them up at the end? It seemed like the ferro worked a bit better.

thanks

dont forget the Fresnel lens it works great when the sun is out

That sure was helpful. Thank you very much. I use both including the instafire fire starter. And still struggling with learning to get a fire without the above.

to me the only advantage to the magnesium is when you don't have tinder or it is too wet to light on it's own. Scraping magnesium on dry easy to lite tinder is a waste, it just falls down in it and really doesn't aid in lighting at all it will burn a little hotter but that also means it will burn the tinder faster. have one but don't really use it, it is a hassle.

Both would be the best!

I own both and would use either on. Guess it would be which one I have on me when the need arises.

I keep the magnesium in my pack just in case. I practice with different material. Cotton balls, birch bark and evergreen wood shaving all work well. Add petroleum jelly or wax like lip balm to make it burn longer.

And with ALL DUE RESPECT...Try that on a humid...wet or Rainy or snowy day....disasters and emergencies DON''T advertise forthcoming adverse weather or favorable weather...Magnesium will ignite even on wet material...a Ferro Rod will spark, but that's about it....Just sayin.!

You can use a Ferro Rod the exact same way as Magnesium, scape off shavings, and strike for a super hot start, even in damp conditions.

On a emergencies situacion both are good👍👍👍

When it comes to making a fire a Bic lighter,strick anywhere long wooden matches,cotton ball mixed with petroleum jelly.plus a magnesium fire starter as a bckup

tip. Use a folding box opener for a striker on fero rod . works great

I’m new to this and I also have both as well as the carbon Garberg, at first I was sure the large ferrocerium rod was the best until I started getting that wash board lumpy pattern on it more so than yours and now it doesn’t seem to work as well as it did on that section of the rod. I don’t know if this wash board effect is normal or if I don’t have a good quality rod. Maybe it my technique.

I swear by Ferro rods. I've struck fires using a Subway napkin rubbed with Chapstick and had it light within two swipes,

I carry both plus a bic lighter, as well as pine pitched cotton balls soaked with lighter fluid, strips of fatwood, and 3 or 4 military trioxane Firestarter bars. It seems excessive, but it'll make wet kindling burn.

I'd take both into the woods, a Zippo with extra fuel as well.

On the mag bars, everyone used to say that Doan was the best brand.

I use magnesium fire starter as backup to lighter and matches as a last ditch system heard you can create wood spindle or bow drill or flint steel. or even magnifying glass ( or wait for lightening to strike a tree ) try to stay with matches

i liked your video. i've never had good luck with those mag blocks. but i 've used magnesium rods with good results. i do have to say, wouldn't it be a good idea to clear a spot for the fire? lots of pine needles all around you. js

Don't forget to clear the ground area where you are going to build your fire.

I used to use a magnesium one when I was in boy scouts I remind you of 50 now so you can figure out how many years ago I just recently got into the Pearl rods they both good

Great Video and Channel! Any chance on maybe doing a product review of our Firestarter?

Is it a ferro rod on the side of the magnesium?

Magnesium is waterproof: if it gets wet just wipe it off at 1:14. If you wipe off the water, will you not be wiping off the magnesium grains also?

If my life depended on it. Ferro rod all the way. I have both devices and they work great. However, when the flint piece falls out of the magnesium block. You are screwed. I have 3 of these. Did have 4, but the flint fell out of the 4th one. So best to carry more then one way to get a fire.

dryer lint will catch a spark real well , under your tender

Well, just tuday I've got the ordered MAGNUM XL ferrorod, which is 6 inches long and diameter is 1 inch... But I have a large magnesium rod too, pure magnesium, it has also approx. 1 inch diameter and it is 3 inches long... But I have many, many other ferrocerium rods, too, in different sizes, because I have several 1 inch long mini ferro rods hanging on the zipper pull of my backpack and also on my trouser belt which I braided from paracord, I also have a slightly longer ferro rod in my purse, and hidden in my summer hat, but I also hid it in my winter bonnet. Moreover, even on both legs, my ankles above it, there is a "weighted belt" that originally contained sand (it used to be a sports item originally), so I took the sand out of them and put all kinds of useful stuff in the many small pockets, so now I have a super but not too big "bugout bag" which I always have with me... it has room for a lot of EDC stuff! Among them is ferrorod. Even a knife that I made myself, the blade comes from a broken pocket knife and the handle from the bone of a roadkill deer. There is ferrorod in the cavity of the bone handle of this knife... And all of it is not at all visible when I wear wide leg pants... So I am thoroughly equipped with ferrorod. Very cool stuff, I love it!

ferro for me! Great video!

I find the Mag bar does best when the tinder is damp or the weather is wet, or if you don’t have great tinder. Otherwise it’s too much trouble. And the striking problems with the Mag Bar is its ferro rod on it is not the best. I don’t use the rod on the Mag Bar. I use a six inch Ferro, The Mag Bar and the Ferro Rod don’t go head to head well since they have slightly different purposes

Does your knife gets dull from the ferro rod

Truthfully, the one you have with you. Because either will do fine. Many forget the old ways of flint and steel, which works great on dry tinder, but with a homemade tinder(hemp rope, char cloth, waxed sawdust, or oiled cotton ball) it will do the trick also.

G’day from Australia down under 😎☕️ I liked your video on the magnesium bar & ferro rod. Well done Thank you Australia

I have 500 pieces of Fat Wood and over 100 Ferro Rods , Some of the Ferro Rods have Fat Wood Handles , I simply scrap the handle then light the shavings , If the handle ever wears out , I will simply replace it with another one , I usually start at least 5 Fires each day just to stay in practice , I have all sizes of Ferro Rods from small 3/16 all the way up to 1 inch diameter by 10 inches long

Well the mag "block" has a small ferro rod on the side that you are striking so it's not mag vs ferro rod it mag scrapings lite by a ferro rod. A rather small not good quality ferro rod on the mag block. Or am I missing something?

My first mag bar I had, I kept in my tackle box for a few years, just in case. It got wet in there, somehow, and the ferro rod on the bar disintegrated after sitting in the moisture for some time. Don't know if that's common to all ferro rods, but the mag bar still exists.

👍

I wish that you had cleared the ground, first, before the demonstrations, so that there would have been less danger of the fire spreading.

Do that with damp wood and tell me which one works better.

I think I would stick with the ferro rod only because it lights quicker 😊

I’m a magnesium guy. Yes keep two or more ready in your fire kit.

Civilization have not ended yet, I still prefer my method of starting a fire in the bush, a BIC lighter and liquid fire starter.

dilema? take both, ferorod as lighter for magnesium cube in hard weather

I use both. I lit a wet paper towel using magnesium. Just showing off for my 14 year old nephew. Haha, he thought Uncle Ben was Good. Why tell him now!? Ha🤠

They are both ferro rods, one just has a magnesium block with it!

What I see is the magnesium comes with a ferro rod while the ferro rod does not. So technically even if you didn’t want to scrape mag. You could still just use the rod on the magnesium. So technically the mag can be saved for during damp conditions when you need remove moisture out of items. So Magnesium is the best bang for buck

Why does it have to be "vs"? Carrying both is a combo that is hard to beat!

Good comparison! A few slivers or small sticks of fat lightered would turbocharge this technique 😉

is ferro rod waterproof?

I would need BOTH tested in wet conditions to make a more informative answer

I use both but for some reason I have more luck with ferro rod.

From the comment section it seems the magnesium bar is easier for super beginners (like me....), am I right? And you need a knife with it right? Thanks :))

We can also scrape off some ferro rod and burn it

Your not doing magnisium fere ferro tho as a mag block has a ferro rod on? Kinda silly video tbh. What works better ferro rod or ferro rod with additional ignition material....

You should really clear around your burn area, safety first

My Ferro Rod has a Fat Wood handle , It's 100% percent water proof and will Fire even if it's wet , Just strike an you got a Fire

Until right now I thought they were both the same

I take both cause redundancies

I use a lighter.. but ferro rod ftw

Mg stick $2. Ferro rod $20.

There is a difference between a ferrocerium rod & a mischmetal rod... The mischmetal rod contains a higher % of magnesium mixed in with the ferrocium making the rod lot softer, however you will get globs of avg 4000 degree sparks, downside is because its soft you will not get as many strikes.. The ferrocerium rod contains considerably less magnesium, however because less concentrate magnesium the rod is a lot harder & does'nt throw as many sparks, nor as hot, but it will give you many more strikes... If u live in a dry, arid climate ferrocerium rod will suffice.. if you live in wet, cold climate miscmetal rod will obviously serve you better... regarding the magnesium bar.. if your natural tinder is wet, moist, does'nt contain natural resins, oils you can have a magnesium bar size of a brick & wont get ur tinder going..

Ferro rod

You guys do realize that the magnesium rods have small ferro rods on the side right? You can't start a fire with just magnesium. You need something to ignite it.😑

Why are these always considered for survival but a lighter isnt???

Ferro rod is always better. More ferrocerium per gram of material. Magnesium scrapings is just for newbies who aren't experienced enough to properly prepare tinder. Another major issue with magnesium block is that the ferrocerium rod is very thin and small. It gets used up quickly . Another thing is that it is joined by a glue and sometimes falls off. Without ferro rod magnesium block is useless. It doesn't help much that your lanyard goes through the magnesium but in case of other one it goes through the rod. You can't lose it. Ofcourse the ferro rod will make easily 5x the amount of fire a magnesium block can make. ##LittleUrbanPrepper

You do know the mag bar has a ferro on it right?

i'd use a lighter.bics have 3 years of minimum life time and a pack of 3 is 1€

Both! Combined and used wisely can resul of maintain fire for 2000 yrs over...FACT

I’ve found the the mag blocks from china are junk. The American made magnesium strikes 100% better. Only a few bucks more

Ferro rod all the way.

Ferro.

WTF i paid 17,50 on the magnesium one :(

Carry a bic lighter and get the job done. These are bushcrafting toys.

Bow drill..

A genuine question.. why don’t people carry a cigarette lighter instead of a ferro rod or magnesium rod ?.

You realize that your using a ferro rod in both scenarios.

Maybe clear the ground first. This is an ad for forest fires.

With The first fire starter you literally used a fero rod to strike the sparks to “ignite” the magnesium! 🤦🏼‍♂️ magnesium works great as a fire kindler but u still need to strike a fero rod to throw down sparks to ignite them

Do you really not know why the magnesium with an attached FERROCISIUM rod was designed for. THEY ARE BOTH FERROCISIUM rods. Your loack of knowledge is very disconcrting. You have no clue.

You kinda used less magnesium in the natural