Scam alert!! Please be aware we are not holding a contest or giveaway. Several individuals have emailed that they have received information that they have won a giveaway. This is not us and it is a scam please report this if it happens. Thanks. Dan.
This has been happening to a lot of channels out there. If the reply comes from the channel "via" someone else, it's a scam. Don't go to any link! Just click on the message and report it, marking that it is spam.
It's a new scam going around that's getting old quick. They use Coinbase, Lowe's, Home Depot and a lot others saying you won something and all you have to do is pay shipping/handling . . . using your credit card info of course.
Almost step by step as grandpa showed over 40 years ago. The difference is he used dryer lent, kerosene (or starter fluid) and the same Gulf wax. We did them in egg cartons, then put them in a used bread bag, then in a tin can in the smokehouse til you were going hunting, fishing, etc. I miss Pop. Glad there's someone to teach these things.
I just recently made those type of fire starters using dryer lent and without lighter fluid. We never used lighter fluid for starting fires many years ago. And it still works fine and burns well. After I have lit a candle for it to scent a room I will drain the melted wax onto the dryer lent that I have placed in a egg carton (not the plastic ones...lol) and let dry. I keep them in the carton until ready to use. I might try some with lighter fluid before my hunting trip this week. Thank you for commenting; always nice to know others that learned from their parents outdoor crafts.
If you want to be safe with paraffin, use the "double boiler" method. Set a bigger pot of water on the stove/campfire and bring it to a boil. Immerse the can with wax into the boiling water, but don't let water flow into the can. This controls the temperature of the paraffin to 212 deg F or 100 deg C. It will melt safely, quickly, and there is no risk of a fireball on your stove or campfire.
After dipping pds in the wax mixture, I lay the. Out on sheet of wax paper. Then I cut between the pads and wrap them in the wax paper. The wax paper is just another version of the pads. It protects the starter pads, and also adds to the flame. Also very easy to light.
I was taught to soak the cotton wipes in rubbing alcohol, then put it in melted wax. Been making them that way for about 4 years now. Good video for those that did not know about this.
Doing it with the alcohol mean's your sealing it in with the wax...mixing the wax with the fuel make's sense because they actually combine together to make 1 fuel, very cool idea!
@@robertjenkins5440 When you think about it the stater fluid would evaporate on it's own, although it is sealed in the cotton covered in wax.But when you tear it to expose fibers you will have the insides exposed. I like both ways. I have been using the cardboard egg cartons for a decade or more, I fill then with drier lint which is very flammable, then use the candles I have had that were to short after the woman uses them I melt them down and pour over the lint sealing them to the section of the egg carton and tear off a section when need for a fire, cheap also
@@robertjenkins5440 sealing it is preferred. As you light the wax it melts and the alcohol becomes exposed and ignites. They are also waterproof. This lighter fluid version has got to stink also.
Either one works. Naptha (lighter fluid) is a bit easier to light, with an ignition temp of 44C (as opopsed to 53C for isopropyl). If you're lighting with a ferrorod, that's a non-issue, but if you're trying to use an alternate method (emergencies can be unpredictable) that extra ease of ignition might come in handy. Once lit, both will wick and burn efficiently though and neither is really driving the length of the burn, that would be the parafin. Basically, it's six of one, half a dozen of the other.
I use liquid paraffin lamp oil as my liquid to mix in with the Gulf Wax. So far several years in it isn’t evaporating out of the mix! I mix in just enough to soften the wax so it doesn’t crumble or flake off during it’s time riding around in my pack! I too put a crayon in my mix to make my batches different colors so I can track when I made it and what mix I used. I carried cotton balls and petroleum jelly for years, but this is superior in my experience!
I like your idea and that you have tried and tested these excellent components over time to see how well they stood the test of time. Thanks for sharing your findings with us. I too have been carrying/using Paraffin Lamp Oil and really like it a lot. Although I have never tried Gulf Wax, I think I will, as my current choice of emergency firestarter is cotton ball halves soaked in a 50/50 blend of Paraffin Lamp Oil and Coleman Fuel (White Gas) and I think that yours and Dan's idea of using the solidifying Gulf Paraffin wax might actually be an improvement over my messy Lamp Oil blend for the convenience of not having to keep/carry it in a leakproof lab grade, sealed Nalgene container (75 ml/1 fl oz. bottle). Also glad to finally read someone else acknowledging the fact that those ever popular Vaseline soaked cotton balls, as good as they may be, are simply not the superior choice available. But with all that said, and I certainly mean no disrespect or malice in saying/asking this, it seems that you have combined two of the very best sources of fire starter BASE ingredients for fire longevity but have chosen to leave out the equally important other half of the equation - the fire ACCELLERANT (I.E.- Lighter Fluid, K1, Turpentine, Alcohol or White Gas, etc.) which, IMO, is crucial to quickly taking a Ferro Rod spark in the worst possible weather conditions one may encounter, especially if wind is present. In a true life or death hypothermia emergency situation deep in the woods, especially one involving a fall through the ice for exteme example, I'm not sure I would want to rely on anything less than a 100% instantly ignitable (with a Ferro Rod) firestarter mix with only the base ingredients in it, as good as those are. Perhaps not everyone needs/wants my extreme level of fire starter reliability, but in my mind, if I can't be carrying the very best and most reliably failproof firestarter in the backcountry, or even in the back 40, then it just seems like an unnecessarily incomplete yet easily remediable attempt at fire starting preparedness. Just my opinion though. I would certainly be open to hearing your reasoning for choosing the mix you did. I am not here to start an endless and combative on-line argument with you or anyone about this stuff, and I assure you, I won't - there's already way too much of that going on elsewhere on the Tube, lol. That's one of the things I appreciate most about the YT Bushcraft/Survival community; most folks here are civil and here to learn and share lots of cool and useful info. Thanks for reading my rather lengthy comment, and I trust that you viewed it as the respectfully written one that it was intended to be. Wishing you ATVB. 🔥
So far nothing else has been needed! I was looking for something that worked well, wasn’t messy, was weather resistant etc which was basically a DIY of the fire-starters commercially available. So far the liquid paraffin oil/paraffin wax mix is enough to easily catch a fero rod spark! As a demo 2 Thanksgivings ago I went out into the wet yard I was visiting threw the purple dragon (my kids may be missing a purple crayon) into their pond and then pulled it out and lit it with my fero rod! 2X strike I think, but first one wasn’t a good strike! Ripped in half with the edge fluffed just a bit it burned like crazy for several 4-6 minutes (can’t remember the exact time on this example). If more is ever needed I’ll do more research/experimenting, but so far I have a stable, non messy, easy to use fire starter that is also cheap & easy to make! Another less important factor is they either don’t smell or don’t smell much depending on exactly what you used. I’ve flown with cotton/PJ and like that this really doesn’t smell so I could probably fly with them as well since they’re unlikely to raise anyone’s eyebrows! Smelling isn’t important unless it’s all over your gear! I tend to have a couple wrapped in foil with a fero rod in coat pockets, ditty bags and any day bag I carry. Smelly fuel on several K’s worth of electronics might make a bad day!
@@SheepDoggy68 Sounds awesome! Yeah, I don't think your electronics would be liking you very much after all that, lol. So far, I've never had any leakage issues with my "wet" blend while carrying them in the Nalgene vials/bottles (yet), but of course anything can happen at any time, and if it did - uugghh - what a horrendous mess that could turn out to be, with all that oily, waxy mess all over other important survival gear, food, etc., especially right in the middle of a big backcountry trip with no truly good way to get everything back in order. I also like how well these solid form waxed cotton round pads you guys are using stay dry and flammable even after a good dunking - in a pond. The "Purple Dragon"? And, helping yourself to your kids' purple Crayon? Ha...., luv it! 🤣👍You sound about as bad as me. 😉 Hey, as the parent, you bought it, so....technically it's still yours, right, lol? Unfortunately, that trend seems to reverse when they reach college age and are still living at/studying from home, and you have to start clandestinely and creativly hoarding some coveted food items that you've been eagerly, patiently waiting to show up from the grocery store, lest those items miraculously sprout legs and vanish into thin air, mere hours after returning from the store 😲😤. Or worse yet, the needed food items you specifically purchased expressly for taking to work all of a sudden go awol after you've explicitly forbade anyone from even looking at them sidways, leaving you wondering why you or your spouse even bother with any of those incessant lectures🙄 🤦♀. At that time, the whole so-called "empty nest" concept may actually start looking prrretttty darn good, lol - but I digress. Anyway, those benefits alone would be great reasons to stay with that firestarter design. I'm definitely going to give these a very serious try and see how well they work out. I'll probably still add the accellerant, but in light of how well yours worked without any, will also be giving some samples of the accellerant-free Gulf Wax/Lamp Oil blend round cotton pads a fair try, under very nasty weather conditions. Thanks for sharing your findings with me/us and for your helpful reply. I try to stay open to all different Bushcraft methods and ideas, and will readily adopt/incorporate someone else's idea/design as my go-to item/method if I believe that it will be a legit upgrade to what I had been previously using/doing - always searching for that very best way/item possible. Take care. 🙂
@@wdglockandroll Best? Who knows, but what works for me is to stack several 4-6 ish and wrap them in heavy duty aluminum foil. This puck then gets dropped into a quart ziplock freezer bag with a fero rod, striker, Bic lighter, matches etc and rolled up in a tight bundle and rubber banded. Rolling the bag over givers you many layers of plastic and makes it a fairly compact & durable bundle that can be stuffed in many places. With effort a compact version of this can comfortably fit in many winter coat pockets!
I remember seeing these being made from items around the house. Just grab a paper egg carton, not the foam ones, and fill them with dryer lint and/or static sheets. Pour some of the wax and alcohol mixture over them. Let them set up, and you can tear one off and keep the rest for later. Great way to make use of recyclable items around the house.
Yes, the cardboard egg carton with dryer lint stuffed in it then you just add old recycle melted candles for wax. They were great. They’re plenty compact for backcountry. The only thing I always try to avoid the scented candles for backcountry just in case they smelled too good to passing Bear.
I have used, since 1970 (I was 15 years old then), cotton balls, dipped in melted paraffin, and flattened out into Nickle or Quarter-sized wafers. I have simply ripped them open to expose the frayed fibres (I am Canadian, eh) of the cotton, struck a ferro rod spark . We had something called a 'Metal Match' back in the day, which was a tiny 5/32" diameter x 1-1/2" long ferrocerium rod attached to a little box with a striker that screwed into the bottom. You were supposed to put lighter fluid inside the box that had cotton in it, and when you removed the striker, it was infused with lighter fluid. I never did use it as a Zippo, and never used lighter fluid, because the spark was all I needed. Besides, things run out of gas, but that little tiny ferro rod lasted for hundreds of strikes.. These cotton ball wafers have worked well for me all these 50+ years, without any accelerant inside. I carry a couple in my pocket, always, and forget they are there, but, two or three years later, I can whip one out, fray it, strike a spark, and there is a sustainable flame that last about 3 or 4 four minutes, long enough to ignite finer kindling easily. Yes, I agree, a sure method to get a sustainable flame is necessary in emergencies. Thanks for the video.
@Wayne Eddy I keep cotton rounds by our scentsy warmer. Whenever my wife wants to change sents, she cleans the warmer out with the cotton. Instant fire starter.
Tea candles are a cheap source of paraffin wax, they are often sold in "dollar stores" in big bags for little money. I use them mixed with teflon powder to lubricate bike chains but I will certainly try these fire starters too.
Excellent, thank you! (BTW: I believe you could tint the melting wax by adding a small piece of a color crayon, since crayons are normally made of a soft wax. I've used crayons to color some candles I've made since this method generally costs less than candle dye and may already be available in many homes. While crayons can sometimes leave a bit of residue in the bottom of your melting tin, I don't believe that'll affect the process you showed.)
1st comment, never gotten to say that before. I made a few dozen of these with a mix of candles from birthdays, emergency candles, tea lights and old gnarly crayons, I made mine look camo from all the different shades of green crayons I added in. The crayons seem to make them burn longer. Gonna try to make some orange and red food coloring for higher visibility, lot of people don't know that food coloring is flammable.
@@johngilmore3360 wax paper, a simple square of wax paper between each disc will keep them from melting together. Added bonus the wax paper is also flammable, and can be used to wrap around one of these disks after you break it in half to keep the left over exposed tinder-dry.
For decades I have been making mine from the cotton cosmetic rounds saturated in PJ. I get close to ten minutes of usable flame from a disc. I have used these in adverse conditions throughout the Rockies, Sierra Nevada, Cascades and the Great Basin. I store them in chew pucks and ziplock bags depending on where they are being carried. All of my clothing for the outdoors has a ziplock with several discs in a pocket. All of my packs have a puck as do my vehicles. God bless
@@johnplaisir9042 Hard for me to say exactly because even without lighter fluid they catch fire easily, but I imagine you could reduce evaporation of the lighter fluid on the surface of the fire starters by keeping in an airtight container. 😊
Made these yesterday after watching this video, and it was a 100 percent success!! I bought a pack of tea light candles and a pack of pads from the dollar tree, I already had lighter fluid. $2.50 investment, and it didn't take 25 minutes from melting the candles, to cooling and storing them! Fastest I've ever started my fireplace fire! Thank you, sir!!
This is the best way to carry any kind of Firestarter. They pack easily, they are safe, and they WORK, I even have a couple in my medical bags I have been using this for years. I'm surprised that many people have yet to do this.
This is fantastic. After spending $5 on a pack of 10 store bought starters for my last hike, I can now make hundreds for about the same price! WTG my man. Love the channel.
Surprised no one in comments mentioned this method: two cotton rounds, a fat blob of vasoline in between two rounds oreo cookie style and done. I keep in a light weight plastic watertight container. Ziplock also good but may get squished and get messy. Fire lasts 5 minutes on average; I tested. Take care and thanks for excellent content.
I've always used the square cotton pads, they're segmented in 4 pieces, and just wax. When you break a section off, it has enough "fluff" on the sides to catch with a ferro rod and they burn close to 3 minutes per segment, 12 mins in total. Opposed to about 8 minutes I'd get from a whole square or one round one. 2-3 minutes is plenty to start a fire even in wet conditions, so you can easily light four fires per piece. That's just me. Great video!
Back in the 1970's, when I was a boy scout I made some great firestarters They were made with a (steel) cat food or tuna can, a roll of separated corrugated cardboard (separate the layers to expose more fibers), and paraffin. Essentially I made 3-1/2 wide candles that would start a fire even with damp wood. Before stacking wood around it, the flames were nearly a foot and a half high! The important thing was to dig out the melted metal after the fire was cold, to pack out the trash.
I had the opportunity to be a girl scout, but I had no interest. I sort of regret it now, but I just never really been an outdoorsy person other than going to fairs or water parks or things like that.
@@Lavenderrose73 majority of the books can be had online free via Gutenberg Project and to be honest after watching the documentary about the scouts, there was a whole loft of sexual misconduct going on during the entirety of the program over the years, so you might actually be glad that you wasnt a scout.
@@whysprspick any organization and if you if you want to find something dirty you will find it. It’s the human condition. Look in the papers. Look on the news. Look in the churches. Look in the schools. Look in your neighborhood. Look in the entertainment that most people choose to watch and it’ll be no surprise why you find it rampant everywhere. I encourage you to not disparage anyone or any organization unless you are willing to share your own shortcomings publicly. (May the one who has not sinned cast the first stone).
Man, what an awesome firestarter. Of course be safe using lighter fluid around heat and flames. But I went to dollar tree, bought the round cotton pads, then found a torch fuel at dollar tree as well, so I figured let's try it. Again, at dollar tree bought the 5 hour emergency candle pack and an aluminum foil bread pan. Melted the pack of candles over a fire in the foil pan, removed the pan from the heat, dumped in the torch fuel and started dipping the round cotton pads. They work perfect! Thanks Dan!
I can attest that these also help with wooden coal barbecue lighting as well. We don't have much use for them in the tropics, but are quite convenient for starting fires without using a range or big lighter.
I have already been making fire starters with paraffin wax and cotton rounds for years, but the addition of lighter fluid has really raised the bar on effectiveness ! When the first one I tested was still burning hot after 5 min., I walked away,( after putting it out)I goT some rectangular cotton pads and trimmed them to fit an Altoids can. Thanks for the awesome tip!
Thats great to know. I just made some using parrifin lamp oil and golf wax and ive just been using a lighter and they have been working great. Cant wait to see if they will still hold up
I just finished making these! They worked out great and I have a bunch of 2 inch tins to store them so it's a win-win. As always another awesome tutorial and an excuse for me to play in the backyard on a Sunday.
Absolutely awesome Dan! I had no clue it was this easy to make them. Now that I know how to, I got something to keep me busy and save some money also!!
Aha! Knew there must be some trick I was missing. I made some from tail ends of candles and whatever wax bits were lying around. Don't burn worth a hoot. Sending my husband on a lighter fluid procurement mission ASAP! (The gulf wax is already on the pantry shelf.) Can't wait to try this and cackle like Dan. 😄
This was great, I used these when I was in Boy Scouts. Also, another great firestarter is using the same wax & lighter fluid mix, then you mix it with dryer lint into a large spoonful, and place it in a cardboard egg carton. You can stuff the carton in your pack, tear off one dimple, tear it a little, and light it right up. I used this in Montana all the time up in the mountains. It works great in low oxygen heights because it burns for about 20 minutes.
I’ve made these using cheap votive candles for the wax but never added the lighter fluid. Another tool for the toolbox that I’ll have to try. Thanks Dan!
Damn. That was good. Right now I'm making boonie hats that incorporate Dave Canterbury's 10Cs of survival. This would definitely help in the combustion category given its waterproof characteristics. Way to go Dan. Much appreciated.
@@ryanvalencia1027 Given that I'm mass producing these things, if you'd like to participate in testing I'd be glad to send you a freebie. Not that I require any feedback, as I don't like mandating anything to anybody at anytime, but suggestions, concerns, or ideas to make it better would be appreciated. Last night I was experimenting with one of the hats. I tore off some duct tape from the hat and affixed one of those tiny, button-like flashlights to the brim and it worked magnificently in the dark. I'm not into selling these things. Just sharing. Go to TOPTIE and let me know which color hat you'd like. Or I could just send you a ready made one.
@@ryanvalencia1027 Cordage is simple. 550 cord, about 10 feet coiled inside the hat and taped down with orange (or whatever color you like) duct tape in the form of a big X or two Xs, one vertical one horizontal to hold it in place. Usually I split the tape in half and lay it in that way. That covers 1) Cordage and 2) Cargo Tape. The boonie hat itself is 3) Cover (yeah, I know, it's pretty lame but it is what it is), 4) Combustion devices- matches and/or mini bic lighter wrapped in self-adhesive bandage tape. The matches require waterproofing or just buy them that way. All you need is a few. I camouflage both of them in appropriate colored camo tape and stick them in the hat band. 5) Cotton bandana- I go with orange for signalling or whatever and simply fold and stick inside the hat on top of the cargo tape. 6) Cutting tool- I use duct tape to marry a guitar pick with a box cutter blade. The guitar pick gives you a good grip. Have to angle it a certain way so that your forefinger rest on top of the pick next to the blade. I use the self adhesive bandage tape and wrap it around several times to make the blade safe, then stick it in the hat band. 7) Candling device- I use a flat button flashlight. They can stay on for 15 hours. They fit into the hat band easily and yes I wrap it in the adhesive tape. 8) Compass- use a air-filled button compass made by Stanley of London. Very accurate. Provides cardinal directions only. 9) Canvas needle- I thread the needle with a heavy duty waxed thread, then roll it up and down onto the needle, then wrap it with adhesive tape. I stick it into the hat band and take a small piece of cork to apply to the needle head. 10) Container- this was the hard one. I use a Whirl-Pak Stand up bag. Holds half a gallon, maybe? A foldable, sealable plastic bag which I put a few purification tabs inside. Goes inside the hat under the cotton bandana. It's best to get an extra large hat which allows one to carry more cordage. But that's it. In practice I would lay a decent pocket knife into the hat and when in use stick the pocket knife into a pocket while keeping the box cutter blade as a backup.
Dan, these fire starters are fantastic! I made some yesterday, using melted candle stubs and adding an equal measure of charcoal lighter fluid. I dipped the cosmetic rounds and laid them out on the snow to cool. I lit one with a couple strokes of my ferro rod, and I was amazed at the blaze it produced.
I am making these! I had an incident on my adventure bike in the middle of no where desert 30 miles from anywhere and zero signal. I thought we might be spending the night. It had me rethinking some basic stuff to take on every single ride. One of them is fire starters. I had a lighter with me, but it can be really tough to get questionable wood and damp kindling actually going. A firestarter could be a lifesaver. I was going to buy them but I just want to learn to make them this way. I used to make the egg crate style in scouts. Back when scouts taught boys how to not die in the woods.
Ive used wax and kerosene. I got a 5 minute burn time. I added in some Vaseline and made it kinda gel like. That increased the burn time to 8min. Still remained waterproof too
Adding the fire starter is a great idea Dan. But I just pour a little mineral oil into a ziplock bag of cotton balls and throw it in my fire kit. Quick, easy, cheap, and it works great. Plus, the mineral oil comes in handy for protecting and lubricating anything that’s going to be around food, like my carbon steel knives and the lid to my Trangia burner.
Haven't been on in a while, love the new intro! I've been a huge fan of the petroleum jelly/cotton ball starter for quite some time, and also like to make them with triple antibiotic ointment. I am really looking forward to learning this new (to me) recipe.
Great! They also work well without the lighter fluid. My son and I showed how to make these in one of our videos a while back, too. We ended up just using some scented soy candle wax and melted it in a potpourri pot 👍
I've been using hand sanitizer! It's everywhere now a days. It's easy! I stack my fire small on bottom to big on top. Then just dump the sanitizer down the middle, and light it. Love the channel. Keepm coming. 🤠👍💯
Since the pandemic we've got it everywhere at work, but very few people are bothering to use it any more. I'm gradually stockpiling it for firelighter use!
Good idea! Used to be high priced, but now at my local Ollie’s, I often see a large bottle of hand sanitizer for a buck! These disks would pack nicely in my altoids fire kit!@@jonfisher9214
I just made some a few weeks ago w/o the lighter fluid & they lit but adding fluid will be going into the next batch that’s a really great idea 💡. Thanks for sharing
I checked the out the cotton disc wax- fire starters. The burn time was reproducibly 4 1/2 minutes. Just like on Dan's video. A great addition to my fire kit.
These pads are great. Thanks. I personally always used Hexamine/Esbit tablets as fire starters (they burn for +-10 minutes) and cost a few cents per tablet. But I will definitely make these pads as well.
When I was 11 in 1963 the Boy Scouts taught us how to make fire starters.Gulf wax, cardboard . We'd cut the cardboard into equal sized squares,tied them with string.Melt the Gulf wax ,dip the cardboard into the melted paraffin let it sit in the wax for just a second then pull them out.They always worked really well.Made enough to last for years .Still worked after ten years.Dont need the lighter fluid.
I forgot ,stack the pieces of cardboard four or five together,then tie them together and dip them.Cardboard boxes work the best because they are corrugated.They will truly last forever..
I like the addition of the light fluid. I use the same but without that and it works well. A mate suggested coating them in Vaseline (Petroleum Jelly) as that too is flammable but I have not tried that yet.
Went and made a batch of these. Just happen to be snowing outside when I called my bro-in-law to show him. Wind is blowing and snowing but this lit on first spark and burned down to nothing. Impressive to say the least.
Awesome, I made these and they work great! The addition of lighter fluid as a catalyst is a great idea. One step up from my vaseline coated cotton balls.
I have used this technique to make fire starters since the mid 90's but I like to use less lighter fluid than wax for a more stiff and slower to light version. I also embed a strike-anywhere match in the wax and make sure that it is also covered and protected by the wax. Then just pop off the wax from the tip of the match, strike it on a rock or your zipper and your off to the races. I use folded up paper towels rather than the cotton disks. I don't really need the super small fibers as I embed the match and also always have a bic, and can get still carefully shred them and get them to light with sparks if I needed to, I don't ever need to though with the match. Also you can source cheap wax by buying candles at thrift stores which is what I do when I do not have a almost burned out candle of my own that I can use the leftover wax from. And last but not least I use zippo lighter fluid/ronsonol lighter fluid, not charcoal grill starter fluid, though that is probably cheaper if you were to use a large amount of wax and needed a large amount of fluid but I make small batches and have the "good stuff" on hand.
@@rockytopwrangler2069 Maybe not now, considering how whooped they've become. But I was a Boy Scout back in the 70's. And Yes, we used both lighter fluid and petroleum jelly. We even started our own fires to melt the wax. . . OOOOOO Scary. lol
Awesome video! So I tried this but I did it a little bit differently in that I did 1 part wax and then 60/40 lighter fluid/petroleum jelly for the rest. Never made these before but my first tester burned over 5 mins. Thanks for the ideas! Love this channel.
I made some of these before seeing the video and they had no charcoal fluid in the wax. I was impressed so I'm making another batch with the fluid. Thanks for the info about adding the charcoal fluid!
I once made some fire starters from old scented candles (I believe it was Apple cinnamon and vanilla) . I was quite proud of myself until I doubted the wisdom of carrying food scented fire starters in bear country…😅
Unless you people are in griz country or have psycho killer black bears as soon as they find out you are a you and not a them they will run away. Why are people so afeared of black bears? Oh, city folks. Right.....
Hey Dan instead of buying specific candle dye, could you simply use the left over wax from a colored candle that has come to the end of its wick? Or would a cheaper option ( I realize that Gulf Wax is not expensive just killing two birds with one stone) be to buy a dollar package of colored tapered or votive candles and melt them to the amount that you need? I love these DIY firestarters! Thanks for sharing! Love your channel!
Awesome. I did that in my apartment but just with the lighter fluid and a very small pile of tiny wood shavings from a small dry tree stick and my ferro rod - it started pretty quickly.
Could use a small chunk of a crayon onto the mix to add color or, add/ use a colored candle to add color, preferably a bright colored one, so will be easily spotted in snow.
@@bushcraftone7240 That was my first thought too, but I don’t think food coloring would work very well since it is water based. It won’t mix with the wax.
Alot of great questions and tips in these comments. Short soak time vs long soak, different ratios of wax and fuel, optional waxes (not all candles are the same), adding other proven fuel types (petrolium jelly either melted or smeared, crayon coloring, questions of odour and storage, evaporation and long term storage, adding tinder or matches to pad...this could take years of dedicated experimentation might even need a notebook haha. Have fun and don't get careless and burn yourself or the house down. Have fun! I will be testing some things.
On my AT thru hike I used those cotton pads with my wood burning stove. I could almost always get a fire started using 1/4 of one pad using paraffin wax only. Yours probably start easier with a ferro rod due to the lighter fluid but I had no problem with a Bic. Yours also seemed to initially flame up more. Thanks for sharing. I recently subbed btw. Outstanding channel.
If your wife is like mine, then you have a metric crap ton of candles around. You can melt the wax out of leftover candles and mix 2:1 wax with Vaseline and they work great.
Neat idea. I’m fond of the old “Vaseline cotton ball” trick, though I use bag balm because it’s a bit better for other purposes than Vaseline in my opinion. Question: have you played around with the ingredients any? For example: beeswax instead of paraffin or zippo/ronsonol lighter fluid instead of charcoal lighter fluid (they’re not quite the same thing I think)
I have been doing this since I was a kid using zippo/ronsonol lighter fluid far less fluid than wax like 75% wax 25% zippo fluid and I use paper towels rather than cotton disks. I also embed a strike-anywhere match (or 2) in each of mine.
Good info. I’m from the Vaseline, cotton ball or lint mixture. They don’t seem to deteriorate. I’ve used the fiber egg cartons too. Always glad to learn something new. At 70, I keep learning.
I'd be interested in seeing a side-by-side comparison of one without the lighter fluid. I wonder if, over time, the lighter fluid would evaporate off, leaving you with one that's basically just the same as the one without it, or if there's some residue from it that stays put, long-term.
Who doesn't like fire - probably Smokey the Bear to start with. Back when i was in the scouts, the go to fire starter was a tuna can with a spiral of corrugated cardboard and dryer lint mix covered with paraffin. The wax didn't cover the cardboard totally, making it a wick to light.
@John Scheib Thanks for the trip down memory lane... i remember making those too but no recolection of how well it worked. Maybe its time to try it again. I'm thinking it was to be like a little stove burner or somthing...that was a long time ago haha!
@Shyam Lynn they'll definitely work for that. It's going to get a bit heavy to do multiples when out, but its a fairly solid bad weather one. If I had an empty shoe polish container that might be better if you mix in a couple of the makeup rounds as wicks, it should be a good tight seal to keep it dry.
Scam alert!!
Please be aware we are not holding a contest or giveaway. Several individuals have emailed that they have received information that they have won a giveaway. This is not us and it is a scam please report this if it happens.
Thanks.
Dan.
This has been happening to a lot of channels out there. If the reply comes from the channel "via" someone else, it's a scam. Don't go to any link! Just click on the message and report it, marking that it is spam.
I'm finding that the key word is "telegram me". I could be wrong though, so just report it.
What kind of knife was you using I like the size of it
It's a new scam going around that's getting old quick. They use Coinbase, Lowe's, Home Depot and a lot others saying you won something and all you have to do is pay shipping/handling . . . using your credit card info of course.
Yeah, if they say send a gift card also. C'mon sewer rats leave us alone!
Almost step by step as grandpa showed over 40 years ago. The difference is he used dryer lent, kerosene (or starter fluid) and the same Gulf wax. We did them in egg cartons, then put them in a used bread bag, then in a tin can in the smokehouse til you were going hunting, fishing, etc. I miss Pop. Glad there's someone to teach these things.
I have a friend that we go 18th century primitive camping with who always has a few lint/egg carton "fire cups" in his kit. They really work well.
I just recently made those type of fire starters using dryer lent and without lighter fluid. We never used lighter fluid for starting fires many years ago. And it still works fine and burns well. After I have lit a candle for it to scent a room I will drain the melted wax onto the dryer lent that I have placed in a egg carton (not the plastic ones...lol) and let dry. I keep them in the carton until ready to use. I might try some with lighter fluid before my hunting trip this week. Thank you for commenting; always nice to know others that learned from their parents outdoor crafts.
i have made those as well, and they were a big success as well...
If you don't have access to candle dyes, chunks of crayons work fine for coloring.
If you want to be safe with paraffin, use the "double boiler" method. Set a bigger pot of water on the stove/campfire and bring it to a boil. Immerse the can with wax into the boiling water, but don't let water flow into the can. This controls the temperature of the paraffin to 212 deg F or 100 deg C. It will melt safely, quickly, and there is no risk of a fireball on your stove or campfire.
And whatever you do ... do not forget about the can of wax with water displacement or you will have water in your wax
Safety Sally 🙄
Like melting chocolate
I like balls of fire..
This is by the way the best method if you want to melt chocolate for a cake etc. without burning it.
After dipping pds in the wax mixture, I lay the. Out on sheet of wax paper. Then I cut between the pads and wrap them in the wax paper. The wax paper is just another version of the pads. It protects the starter pads, and also adds to the flame. Also very easy to light.
I was taught to soak the cotton wipes in rubbing alcohol, then put it in melted wax. Been making them that way for about 4 years now. Good video for those that did not know about this.
Doing it with the alcohol mean's your sealing it in with the wax...mixing the wax with the fuel make's sense because they actually combine together to make 1 fuel, very cool idea!
Hmm. I'd have to try both as this make prevent evaporation and improve long-term storage. Personally I always carry mugwort and fatwood
@@robertjenkins5440 When you think about it the stater fluid would evaporate on it's own, although it is sealed in the cotton covered in wax.But when you tear it to expose fibers you will have the insides exposed. I like both ways. I have been using the cardboard egg cartons for a decade or more, I fill then with drier lint which is very flammable, then use the candles I have had that were to short after the woman uses them I melt them down and pour over the lint sealing them to the section of the egg carton and tear off a section when need for a fire, cheap also
@@robertjenkins5440 sealing it is preferred. As you light the wax it melts and the alcohol becomes exposed and ignites. They are also waterproof. This lighter fluid version has got to stink also.
Either one works. Naptha (lighter fluid) is a bit easier to light, with an ignition temp of 44C (as opopsed to 53C for isopropyl). If you're lighting with a ferrorod, that's a non-issue, but if you're trying to use an alternate method (emergencies can be unpredictable) that extra ease of ignition might come in handy.
Once lit, both will wick and burn efficiently though and neither is really driving the length of the burn, that would be the parafin.
Basically, it's six of one, half a dozen of the other.
I use liquid paraffin lamp oil as my liquid to mix in with the Gulf Wax. So far several years in it isn’t evaporating out of the mix! I mix in just enough to soften the wax so it doesn’t crumble or flake off during it’s time riding around in my pack! I too put a crayon in my mix to make my batches different colors so I can track when I made it and what mix I used. I carried cotton balls and petroleum jelly for years, but this is superior in my experience!
I like your idea and that you have tried and tested these excellent components over time to see how well they stood the test of time. Thanks for sharing your findings with us. I too have been carrying/using Paraffin Lamp Oil and really like it a lot. Although I have never tried Gulf Wax, I think I will, as my current choice of emergency firestarter is cotton ball halves soaked in a 50/50 blend of Paraffin Lamp Oil and Coleman Fuel (White Gas) and I think that yours and Dan's idea of using the solidifying Gulf Paraffin wax might actually be an improvement over my messy Lamp Oil blend for the convenience of not having to keep/carry it in a leakproof lab grade, sealed Nalgene container (75 ml/1 fl oz. bottle). Also glad to finally read someone else acknowledging the fact that those ever popular Vaseline soaked cotton balls, as good as they may be, are simply not the superior choice available.
But with all that said, and I certainly mean no disrespect or malice in saying/asking this, it seems that you have combined two of the very best sources of fire starter BASE ingredients for fire longevity but have chosen to leave out the equally important other half of the equation - the fire ACCELLERANT (I.E.- Lighter Fluid, K1, Turpentine, Alcohol or White Gas, etc.) which, IMO, is crucial to quickly taking a Ferro Rod spark in the worst possible weather conditions one may encounter, especially if wind is present. In a true life or death hypothermia emergency situation deep in the woods, especially one involving a fall through the ice for exteme example, I'm not sure I would want to rely on anything less than a 100% instantly ignitable (with a Ferro Rod) firestarter mix with only the base ingredients in it, as good as those are. Perhaps not everyone needs/wants my extreme level of fire starter reliability, but in my mind, if I can't be carrying the very best and most reliably failproof firestarter in the backcountry, or even in the back 40, then it just seems like an unnecessarily incomplete yet easily remediable attempt at fire starting preparedness. Just my opinion though.
I would certainly be open to hearing your reasoning for choosing the mix you did. I am not here to start an endless and combative on-line argument with you or anyone about this stuff, and I assure you, I won't - there's already way too much of that going on elsewhere on the Tube, lol. That's one of the things I appreciate most about the YT Bushcraft/Survival community; most folks here are civil and here to learn and share lots of cool and useful info.
Thanks for reading my rather lengthy comment, and I trust that you viewed it as the respectfully written one that it was intended to be. Wishing you ATVB. 🔥
So far nothing else has been needed! I was looking for something that worked well, wasn’t messy, was weather resistant etc which was basically a DIY of the fire-starters commercially available. So far the liquid paraffin oil/paraffin wax mix is enough to easily catch a fero rod spark! As a demo 2 Thanksgivings ago I went out into the wet yard I was visiting threw the purple dragon (my kids may be missing a purple crayon) into their pond and then pulled it out and lit it with my fero rod! 2X strike I think, but first one wasn’t a good strike! Ripped in half with the edge fluffed just a bit it burned like crazy for several 4-6 minutes (can’t remember the exact time on this example). If more is ever needed I’ll do more research/experimenting, but so far I have a stable, non messy, easy to use fire starter that is also cheap & easy to make! Another less important factor is they either don’t smell or don’t smell much depending on exactly what you used. I’ve flown with cotton/PJ and like that this really doesn’t smell so I could probably fly with them as well since they’re unlikely to raise anyone’s eyebrows! Smelling isn’t important unless it’s all over your gear! I tend to have a couple wrapped in foil with a fero rod in coat pockets, ditty bags and any day bag I carry. Smelly fuel on several K’s worth of electronics might make a bad day!
@@SheepDoggy68 Sounds awesome! Yeah, I don't think your electronics would be liking you very much after all that, lol. So far, I've never had any leakage issues with my "wet" blend while carrying them in the Nalgene vials/bottles (yet), but of course anything can happen at any time, and if it did - uugghh - what a horrendous mess that could turn out to be, with all that oily, waxy mess all over other important survival gear, food, etc., especially right in the middle of a big backcountry trip with no truly good way to get everything back in order. I also like how well these solid form waxed cotton round pads you guys are using stay dry and flammable even after a good dunking - in a pond. The "Purple Dragon"? And, helping yourself to your kids' purple Crayon? Ha...., luv it! 🤣👍You sound about as bad as me. 😉 Hey, as the parent, you bought it, so....technically it's still yours, right, lol? Unfortunately, that trend seems to reverse when they reach college age and are still living at/studying from home, and you have to start clandestinely and creativly hoarding some coveted food items that you've been eagerly, patiently waiting to show up from the grocery store, lest those items miraculously sprout legs and vanish into thin air, mere hours after returning from the store 😲😤. Or worse yet, the needed food items you specifically purchased expressly for taking to work all of a sudden go awol after you've explicitly forbade anyone from even looking at them sidways, leaving you wondering why you or your spouse even bother with any of those incessant lectures🙄 🤦♀. At that time, the whole so-called "empty nest" concept may actually start looking prrretttty darn good, lol - but I digress. Anyway, those benefits alone would be great reasons to stay with that firestarter design. I'm definitely going to give these a very serious try and see how well they work out. I'll probably still add the accellerant, but in light of how well yours worked without any, will also be giving some samples of the accellerant-free Gulf Wax/Lamp Oil blend round cotton pads a fair try, under very nasty weather conditions.
Thanks for sharing your findings with me/us and for your helpful reply. I try to stay open to all different Bushcraft methods and ideas, and will readily adopt/incorporate someone else's idea/design as my go-to item/method if I believe that it will be a legit upgrade to what I had been previously using/doing - always searching for that very best way/item possible. Take care. 🙂
What’s best to store them in?
@@wdglockandroll Best? Who knows, but what works for me is to stack several 4-6 ish and wrap them in heavy duty aluminum foil. This puck then gets dropped into a quart ziplock freezer bag with a fero rod, striker, Bic lighter, matches etc and rolled up in a tight bundle and rubber banded. Rolling the bag over givers you many layers of plastic and makes it a fairly compact & durable bundle that can be stuffed in many places. With effort a compact version of this can comfortably fit in many winter coat pockets!
I remember seeing these being made from items around the house. Just grab a paper egg carton, not the foam ones, and fill them with dryer lint and/or static sheets. Pour some of the wax and alcohol mixture over them. Let them set up, and you can tear one off and keep the rest for later. Great way to make use of recyclable items around the house.
I presume the static sheets need to be used? Those are good ideas and variations, cheers.
This is exactly what I do. we use them all the time in the firepit as our starters.
I make these with fatwood shavings and wax, burn times around 10-12 minutes
Fine for around the house but too bulky to carry in a bag
Yes, the cardboard egg carton with dryer lint stuffed in it then you just add old recycle melted candles for wax. They were great. They’re plenty compact for backcountry. The only thing I always try to avoid the scented candles for backcountry just in case they smelled too good to passing Bear.
I have used, since 1970 (I was 15 years old then), cotton balls, dipped in melted paraffin, and flattened out into Nickle or Quarter-sized wafers. I have simply ripped them open to expose the frayed fibres (I am Canadian, eh) of the cotton, struck a ferro rod spark . We had something called a 'Metal Match' back in the day, which was a tiny 5/32" diameter x 1-1/2" long ferrocerium rod attached to a little box with a striker that screwed into the bottom. You were supposed to put lighter fluid inside the box that had cotton in it, and when you removed the striker, it was infused with lighter fluid. I never did use it as a Zippo, and never used lighter fluid, because the spark was all I needed. Besides, things run out of gas, but that little tiny ferro rod lasted for hundreds of strikes.. These cotton ball wafers have worked well for me all these 50+ years, without any accelerant inside. I carry a couple in my pocket, always, and forget they are there, but, two or three years later, I can whip one out, fray it, strike a spark, and there is a sustainable flame that last about 3 or 4 four minutes, long enough to ignite finer kindling easily. Yes, I agree, a sure method to get a sustainable flame is necessary in emergencies. Thanks for the video.
I made a bunch of these just by using cheap candles for their wax and they work fine. Never thought to add some lighter fluid!
Thanks Dan!
I do the same..👍🏻
Have added a scentsy block to the mix for scented fire starters..👍🏻😂
@Wayne Eddy I keep cotton rounds by our scentsy warmer. Whenever my wife wants to change sents, she cleans the warmer out with the cotton. Instant fire starter.
Tea candles are a cheap source of paraffin wax, they are often sold in "dollar stores" in big bags for little money. I use them mixed with teflon powder to lubricate bike chains but I will certainly try these fire starters too.
@@stillwatersforge3957dang, _I_ need to keep that in mind!
@Murgoh dog gone, I'm always burning those in my bathroom for ambience! I guess I could just toss a pack of _those_ in a go bag if I need to. 😊☕️
Melted petroleum jelly takes the guesswork out. Been lighting campfires with those for 30 plus years.
Do you mix it with candle wax?
@@redcros93 I haven't personally used candle wax but I do see other people doing it and that seems to work well too.
The unadulterated happiness of the guy squirting flammable liquid on fire made my day 🤣
"We're old and we're still playing with fire" love it!!
Excellent, thank you! (BTW: I believe you could tint the melting wax by adding a small piece of a color crayon, since crayons are normally made of a soft wax. I've used crayons to color some candles I've made since this method generally costs less than candle dye and may already be available in many homes. While crayons can sometimes leave a bit of residue in the bottom of your melting tin, I don't believe that'll affect the process you showed.)
Why
A couple birthday candles would work. But like he said unless you're in snow/ sand white is probably the best color
That is a great suggestion!
Thank you.
Colored tea light candles are the right kind of wax an are readily available at dollar stores
1st comment, never gotten to say that before. I made a few dozen of these with a mix of candles from birthdays, emergency candles, tea lights and old gnarly crayons, I made mine look camo from all the different shades of green crayons I added in. The crayons seem to make them burn longer. Gonna try to make some orange and red food coloring for higher visibility, lot of people don't know that food coloring is flammable.
It's pathetic!!!
Crayons do work well.
@@youtubekeepscensoringme3357 what's pathetic?
Have any suggestions on keeping them from sticking together when they get warm if not individually wrapped?
@@johngilmore3360 wax paper, a simple square of wax paper between each disc will keep them from melting together. Added bonus the wax paper is also flammable, and can be used to wrap around one of these disks after you break it in half to keep the left over exposed tinder-dry.
For decades I have been making mine from the cotton cosmetic rounds saturated in PJ. I get close to ten minutes of usable flame from a disc. I have used these in adverse conditions throughout the Rockies, Sierra Nevada, Cascades and the Great Basin. I store them in chew pucks and ziplock bags depending on where they are being carried. All of my clothing for the outdoors has a ziplock with several discs in a pocket.
All of my packs have a puck as do my vehicles.
God bless
What is PJ and what are two pucks?
@@timothybuchanan1611
PJ, petroleum jelly. Puck, chew containers ie: Copenhagen, Skoal.
Made these a couple weeks ago. They are very effective. I used cheap dollar store candles instead of paraffin. They work great!
Can confirm, these fire starters are excellent. Easy to light, long lasting, compact, and cheap and easy to make! 😊
Don't you mean LITTERLY excellent
How long lasting are they? Does the lighter fluid not dissipate, even when encased in wax?
@@johnplaisir9042 Hard for me to say exactly because even without lighter fluid they catch fire easily, but I imagine you could reduce evaporation of the lighter fluid on the surface of the fire starters by keeping in an airtight container. 😊
Excellent. Your neighbourhood church will likely have a box of scrap wax or half used candles (mine does!) looking for a good home.
Once I used fishing reel grease as a firestarter. There was the only thing that I had in my fishing tackle. It saved the day!
Made these yesterday after watching this video, and it was a 100 percent success!! I bought a pack of tea light candles and a pack of pads from the dollar tree, I already had lighter fluid. $2.50 investment, and it didn't take 25 minutes from melting the candles, to cooling and storing them! Fastest I've ever started my fireplace fire! Thank you, sir!!
I love these videos! That said, I’m also a vaseline and cotton ball guy. It just works and is vastly easy to make.
Same here learned it in scouts , we used to put them in film containers…. Good luck finding those now days!
@@brockbutz6641 *FEEBAY*
Old medicine bottles
This is the best way to carry any kind of Firestarter. They pack easily, they are safe, and they WORK, I even have a couple in my medical bags
I have been using this for years. I'm surprised that many people have yet to do this.
This is fantastic. After spending $5 on a pack of 10 store bought starters for my last hike, I can now make hundreds for about the same price! WTG my man. Love the channel.
Surprised no one in comments mentioned this method: two cotton rounds, a fat blob of vasoline in between two rounds oreo cookie style and done. I keep in a light weight plastic watertight container. Ziplock also good but may get squished and get messy. Fire lasts 5 minutes on average; I tested. Take care and thanks for excellent content.
I remember using these in a couple of your classes. Now I know how ya made em. Thank you.
I've always used the square cotton pads, they're segmented in 4 pieces, and just wax. When you break a section off, it has enough "fluff" on the sides to catch with a ferro rod and they burn close to 3 minutes per segment, 12 mins in total. Opposed to about 8 minutes I'd get from a whole square or one round one. 2-3 minutes is plenty to start a fire even in wet conditions, so you can easily light four fires per piece. That's just me. Great video!
Back in the 1970's, when I was a boy scout I made some great firestarters
They were made with a (steel) cat food or tuna can, a roll of separated corrugated cardboard (separate the layers to expose more fibers), and paraffin.
Essentially I made 3-1/2 wide candles that would start a fire even with damp wood. Before stacking wood around it, the flames were nearly a foot and a half high!
The important thing was to dig out the melted metal after the fire was cold, to pack out the trash.
Buddy burners, every time i made them, everything got all sooted up
I had the opportunity to be a girl scout, but I had no interest. I sort of regret it now, but I just never really been an outdoorsy person other than going to fairs or water parks or things like that.
@@Lavenderrose73 majority of the books can be had online free via Gutenberg Project and to be honest after watching the documentary about the scouts, there was a whole loft of sexual misconduct going on during the entirety of the program over the years, so you might actually be glad that you wasnt a scout.
@@whysprspick any organization and if you if you want to find something dirty you will find it. It’s the human condition. Look in the papers. Look on the news. Look in the churches. Look in the schools. Look in your neighborhood. Look in the entertainment that most people choose to watch and it’ll be no surprise why you find it rampant everywhere.
I encourage you to not disparage anyone or any organization unless you are willing to share your own shortcomings publicly. (May the one who has not sinned cast the first stone).
Thanks again . I have found burnt motor oil and cotton balls work really well for almost a 10 minute burn
Man, what an awesome firestarter. Of course be safe using lighter fluid around heat and flames. But I went to dollar tree, bought the round cotton pads, then found a torch fuel at dollar tree as well, so I figured let's try it. Again, at dollar tree bought the 5 hour emergency candle pack and an aluminum foil bread pan. Melted the pack of candles over a fire in the foil pan, removed the pan from the heat, dumped in the torch fuel and started dipping the round cotton pads. They work perfect! Thanks Dan!
I can attest that these also help with wooden coal barbecue lighting as well. We don't have much use for them in the tropics, but are quite convenient for starting fires without using a range or big lighter.
I have already been making fire starters with paraffin wax and cotton rounds for years, but the addition of lighter fluid has really raised the bar on effectiveness ! When the first one I tested was still burning hot after 5 min., I walked away,( after putting it out)I goT some rectangular cotton pads and trimmed them to fit an Altoids can. Thanks for the awesome tip!
U ever tried them a year later? Does it evaporate?
@@pvmelite4230 yes, ihave just recently... they worked fine! :)
Thats great to know. I just made some using parrifin lamp oil and golf wax and ive just been using a lighter and they have been working great. Cant wait to see if they will still hold up
Where would you get rectangular cotton pads?
@timothybuchanan1611 ive seen them in my dollar general. Might be in the makeup section or nesr some first aid stuff
I just finished making these! They worked out great and I have a bunch of 2 inch tins to store them so it's a win-win. As always another awesome tutorial and an excuse for me to play in the backyard on a Sunday.
Absolutely awesome Dan! I had no clue it was this easy to make them. Now that I know how to, I got something to keep me busy and save some money also!!
How do you store them? Bag or maybe metal tin with cover?
Aha! Knew there must be some trick I was missing. I made some from tail ends of candles and whatever wax bits were lying around. Don't burn worth a hoot. Sending my husband on a lighter fluid procurement mission ASAP! (The gulf wax is already on the pantry shelf.) Can't wait to try this and cackle like Dan. 😄
This was great, I used these when I was in Boy Scouts. Also, another great firestarter is using the same wax & lighter fluid mix, then you mix it with dryer lint into a large spoonful, and place it in a cardboard egg carton. You can stuff the carton in your pack, tear off one dimple, tear it a little, and light it right up. I used this in Montana all the time up in the mountains. It works great in low oxygen heights because it burns for about 20 minutes.
I’ve made these using cheap votive candles for the wax but never added the lighter fluid. Another tool for the toolbox that I’ll have to try. Thanks Dan!
Loved the opener! Made these right before my trip this past weekend. Worked splendidly! Thanks for the tip!
Good afternoon from Syracuse NY USA brother and thank you for sharing your adventures and wood lore
Thanks Dan! The best fire starter I’ve found so far (next to a road flare)! An old shoe polish can makes a great storage container too.
Badass! I needed to watch this, I'm tired of wasting money on fire starters that either take too long or are too expensive. Thanks bud!
We used crayons to color our wax candles way back in the day…… maybe that had some influence on my joining the Marines back in ‘77. 🇺🇸
😮😆🤣
Damn. That was good. Right now I'm making boonie hats that incorporate Dave Canterbury's 10Cs of survival. This would definitely help in the combustion category given its waterproof characteristics. Way to go Dan. Much appreciated.
Can you elaborate more? I have some ideas for boonies that I haven't seen applied at all
@@ryanvalencia1027 Given that I'm mass producing these things, if you'd like to participate in testing I'd be glad to send you a freebie. Not that I require any feedback, as I don't like mandating anything to anybody at anytime, but suggestions, concerns, or ideas to make it better would be appreciated. Last night I was experimenting with one of the hats. I tore off some duct tape from the hat and affixed one of those tiny, button-like flashlights to the brim and it worked magnificently in the dark. I'm not into selling these things. Just sharing. Go to TOPTIE and let me know which color hat you'd like. Or I could just send you a ready made one.
@Thomas S. I only found generic brand stuff on Amazon, do you have a link? Or pm me more direct info, I'd love to try one out
@@ryanvalencia1027 How about I send you a list? Won't take long.
@@ryanvalencia1027 Cordage is simple. 550 cord, about 10 feet coiled inside the hat and taped down with orange (or whatever color you like) duct tape in the form of a big X or two Xs, one vertical one horizontal to hold it in place. Usually I split the tape in half and lay it in that way. That covers 1) Cordage and 2) Cargo Tape. The boonie hat itself is 3) Cover (yeah, I know, it's pretty lame but it is what it is), 4) Combustion devices- matches and/or mini bic lighter wrapped in self-adhesive bandage tape. The matches require waterproofing or just buy them that way. All you need is a few. I camouflage both of them in appropriate colored camo tape and stick them in the hat band. 5) Cotton bandana- I go with orange for signalling or whatever and simply fold and stick inside the hat on top of the cargo tape. 6) Cutting tool- I use duct tape to marry a guitar pick with a box cutter blade. The guitar pick gives you a good grip. Have to angle it a certain way so that your forefinger rest on top of the pick next to the blade. I use the self adhesive bandage tape and wrap it around several times to make the blade safe, then stick it in the hat band. 7) Candling device- I use a flat button flashlight. They can stay on for 15 hours. They fit into the hat band easily and yes I wrap it in the adhesive tape. 8) Compass- use a air-filled button compass made by Stanley of London. Very accurate. Provides cardinal directions only. 9) Canvas needle- I thread the needle with a heavy duty waxed thread, then roll it up and down onto the needle, then wrap it with adhesive tape. I stick it into the hat band and take a small piece of cork to apply to the needle head. 10) Container- this was the hard one. I use a Whirl-Pak Stand up bag. Holds half a gallon, maybe? A foldable, sealable plastic bag which I put a few purification tabs inside. Goes inside the hat under the cotton bandana. It's best to get an extra large hat which allows one to carry more cordage. But that's it. In practice I would lay a decent pocket knife into the hat and when in use stick the pocket knife into a pocket while keeping the box cutter blade as a backup.
Dan, these fire starters are fantastic! I made some yesterday, using melted candle stubs and adding an equal measure of charcoal lighter fluid. I dipped the cosmetic rounds and laid them out on the snow to cool. I lit one with a couple strokes of my ferro rod, and I was amazed at the blaze it produced.
I am making these! I had an incident on my adventure bike in the middle of no where desert 30 miles from anywhere and zero signal. I thought we might be spending the night. It had me rethinking some basic stuff to take on every single ride. One of them is fire starters. I had a lighter with me, but it can be really tough to get questionable wood and damp kindling actually going. A firestarter could be a lifesaver. I was going to buy them but I just want to learn to make them this way. I used to make the egg crate style in scouts. Back when scouts taught boys how to not die in the woods.
Great video! I love making all my own firestarters. I have made these and they do work very well and pack easily.
Thank you very much Dan, I love all the video clips you produce for your channel. Greetings from Montreal 🤠
Awesome! whats the best storage ,method for these? in an Altoid tin, or Aluminum foil in a zip lock bag?
Another good dye is a crayon. Wax base. We used to use them for making “sand candles” when I was a kid vacationing on the Washington beaches.
thank you for all your hard work trying to keep us safe/alive lot of great ideas...love how you troubleshoot with us 👍👍
Ive used wax and kerosene. I got a 5 minute burn time. I added in some Vaseline and made it kinda gel like. That increased the burn time to 8min. Still remained waterproof too
Adding the fire starter is a great idea Dan. But I just pour a little mineral oil into a ziplock bag of cotton balls and throw it in my fire kit. Quick, easy, cheap, and it works great. Plus, the mineral oil comes in handy for protecting and lubricating anything that’s going to be around food, like my carbon steel knives and the lid to my Trangia burner.
Haven't been on in a while, love the new intro! I've been a huge fan of the petroleum jelly/cotton ball starter for quite some time, and also like to make them with triple antibiotic ointment. I am really looking forward to learning this new (to me) recipe.
Great! They also work well without the lighter fluid. My son and I showed how to make these in one of our videos a while back, too. We ended up just using some scented soy candle wax and melted it in a potpourri pot 👍
Great video. I've done the same with dryer lint and it works well if you can see it.
easier than I thought, thanks for sharing the knowledge dan
I been doing that for a long time and never seen anyone do a tutorial on this its great info i like the idea of coloring the wax thanks dan
Dan that is an awesome fire starter.I’ll be making a lot of them,thanks for the great idea.😊☮️
I've been using hand sanitizer! It's everywhere now a days. It's easy! I stack my fire small on bottom to big on top. Then just dump the sanitizer down the middle, and light it. Love the channel. Keepm coming. 🤠👍💯
Since the pandemic we've got it everywhere at work, but very few people are bothering to use it any more. I'm gradually stockpiling it for firelighter use!
Good idea! Used to be high priced, but now at my local Ollie’s, I often see a large bottle of hand sanitizer for a buck! These disks would pack nicely in my altoids fire kit!@@jonfisher9214
How long does it stay viable before it evaporates? Chapstick similar niche.
Thanks, Dan ... It doesn't get much simpler than that. 😊👍
I just made some a few weeks ago w/o the lighter fluid & they lit but adding fluid will be going into the next batch that’s a really great idea 💡. Thanks for sharing
I checked the out the cotton disc wax- fire starters. The burn time was reproducibly 4 1/2 minutes. Just like on Dan's video. A great addition to my fire kit.
Great video! Just made some of these today and they work excellent. I will add them to my survival kit. Many thanks!
I have never seen this way to make fire starters. Thank you.
These pads are great. Thanks. I personally always used Hexamine/Esbit tablets as fire starters (they burn for +-10 minutes) and cost a few cents per tablet. But I will definitely make these pads as well.
I like the cotton disk, I have been using cotton balls and the disks seem to be more space efficient.
When I was 11 in 1963 the Boy Scouts taught us how to make fire starters.Gulf wax, cardboard . We'd cut the cardboard into equal sized squares,tied them with string.Melt the Gulf wax ,dip the cardboard into the melted paraffin let it sit in the wax for just a second then pull them out.They always worked really well.Made enough to last for years .Still worked after ten years.Dont need the lighter fluid.
I forgot ,stack the pieces of cardboard four or five together,then tie them together and dip them.Cardboard boxes work the best because they are corrugated.They will truly last forever..
I’ve done this but used old broken pieces of crayon. Works well and gives you color. Good helpful video. Keep it up!
I like the addition of the light fluid. I use the same but without that and it works well. A mate suggested coating them in Vaseline (Petroleum Jelly) as that too is flammable but I have not tried that yet.
Cotton balls soaked in Petroleum jelly works amazing too, lights right up with a spark even after being submerged in water.
Went and made a batch of these. Just happen to be snowing outside when I called my bro-in-law to show him. Wind is blowing and snowing but this lit on first spark and burned down to nothing. Impressive to say the least.
Awesome, I made these and they work great! The addition of lighter fluid as a catalyst is a great idea. One step up from my vaseline coated cotton balls.
neat!
Best fire starter i've ever seen! thanks for showing. Greetings from Germany!
I have used this technique to make fire starters since the mid 90's but I like to use less lighter fluid than wax for a more stiff and slower to light version. I also embed a strike-anywhere match in the wax and make sure that it is also covered and protected by the wax. Then just pop off the wax from the tip of the match, strike it on a rock or your zipper and your off to the races. I use folded up paper towels rather than the cotton disks. I don't really need the super small fibers as I embed the match and also always have a bic, and can get still carefully shred them and get them to light with sparks if I needed to, I don't ever need to though with the match. Also you can source cheap wax by buying candles at thrift stores which is what I do when I do not have a almost burned out candle of my own that I can use the leftover wax from. And last but not least I use zippo lighter fluid/ronsonol lighter fluid, not charcoal grill starter fluid, though that is probably cheaper if you were to use a large amount of wax and needed a large amount of fluid but I make small batches and have the "good stuff" on hand.
Match idea is great. Thank you.
Never seen that idea before - waaaay cool - especially with that amazing 4 minute burn time - thanks for sharing !!
Great "how to" video Dan. Thanks for sharing.
This is great! I've been doing this with leftover candle ends and "lamp oil"/kerosene. I only add about 15-20% lamp oil.
Same here, but I use a bit more lamp oil than 20%.
Used this back in the Scouts. But I put the lighter fluid on first and then dipped them in wax. Same concept and worked outstandingly. |
... No Boy Scout program would condone using liquid fuel ....
@@rockytopwrangler2069 Maybe not now, considering how whooped they've become. But I was a Boy Scout back in the 70's. And Yes, we used both lighter fluid and petroleum jelly. We even started our own fires to melt the wax. . . OOOOOO Scary. lol
Awesome video! So I tried this but I did it a little bit differently in that I did 1 part wax and then 60/40 lighter fluid/petroleum jelly for the rest. Never made these before but my first tester burned over 5 mins. Thanks for the ideas! Love this channel.
I made some of these before seeing the video and they had no charcoal fluid in the wax. I was impressed so I'm making another batch with the fluid. Thanks for the info about adding the charcoal fluid!
I once made some fire starters from old scented candles (I believe it was Apple cinnamon and vanilla) . I was quite proud of myself until I doubted the wisdom of carrying food scented fire starters in bear country…😅
Unless you people are in griz country or have psycho killer black bears as soon as they find out you are a you and not a them they will run away. Why are people so afeared of black bears? Oh, city folks. Right.....
That's funny! Note to self; don't use bacon oil for the smell!
A nice pine scent would be pleasant though...
Cheers!
I'm guessing you "bear"-ly made it out alive ? ...badum-tsss....😃
@@richu4922 Umm, okay. Too much ammo. Making my head spin. Laters.
Bears would just love the sweety scent from your firestarter... 😂
Hey Dan instead of buying specific candle dye, could you simply use the left over wax from a colored candle that has come to the end of its wick? Or would a cheaper option ( I realize that Gulf Wax is not expensive just killing two birds with one stone) be to buy a dollar package of colored tapered or votive candles and melt them to the amount that you need? I love these DIY firestarters! Thanks for sharing! Love your channel!
I've been using the little tea candles for fire starting for years. Water proof and cheap.
This is a great idea and may try making a few
Awesome. I did that in my apartment but just with the lighter fluid and a very small pile of tiny wood shavings from a small dry tree stick and my ferro rod - it started pretty quickly.
Could use a small chunk of a crayon onto the mix to add color or, add/ use a colored candle to add color, preferably a bright colored one, so will be easily spotted in snow.
how about food-colouring would that work...??
@@bushcraftone7240 That was my first thought too, but I don’t think food coloring would work very well since it is water based. It won’t mix with the wax.
Alot of great questions and tips in these comments.
Short soak time vs long soak, different ratios of wax and fuel, optional waxes (not all candles are the same), adding other proven fuel types (petrolium jelly either melted or smeared, crayon coloring, questions of odour and storage, evaporation and long term storage, adding tinder or matches to pad...this could take years of dedicated experimentation might even need a notebook haha. Have fun and don't get careless and burn yourself or the house down. Have fun! I will be testing some things.
My dad and I made sawdust and dryer lint versions of this when I was a little kid, I still have some of them!
You're a good man, Dan smarting very skilled
Proper storage of these? In a metal tin? Shelf life?
ziplock - years
Wrapped in foil and then a ziplock bag.
On my AT thru hike I used those cotton pads with my wood burning stove. I could almost always get a fire started using 1/4 of one pad using paraffin wax only. Yours probably start easier with a ferro rod due to the lighter fluid but I had no problem with a Bic. Yours also seemed to initially flame up more. Thanks for sharing. I recently subbed btw. Outstanding channel.
I like your method of making firestarters. Very compact and transportable. Many can fit in a small and easily carried container. Nice idea. 😊
Hey Dan, have you tried very fine sifted wood ash from the fire pit mixed with Kerosene to make a paste ?... Works well too.
If your wife is like mine, then you have a metric crap ton of candles around. You can melt the wax out of leftover candles and mix 2:1 wax with Vaseline and they work great.
ABSOLUTELY AWESOME INFORMATION AND INSTRUCTION !
Neat idea. I’m fond of the old “Vaseline cotton ball” trick, though I use bag balm because it’s a bit better for other purposes than Vaseline in my opinion. Question: have you played around with the ingredients any? For example: beeswax instead of paraffin or zippo/ronsonol lighter fluid instead of charcoal lighter fluid (they’re not quite the same thing I think)
Yes!♡
Yep. I have a stainless key ring pill holder tube full of Vaseline and cotton balls. It’s never failed me. Works every time.
I have been doing this since I was a kid using zippo/ronsonol lighter fluid far less fluid than wax like 75% wax 25% zippo fluid and I use paper towels rather than cotton disks. I also embed a strike-anywhere match (or 2) in each of mine.
Good info. I’m from the Vaseline, cotton ball or lint mixture. They don’t seem to deteriorate. I’ve used the fiber egg cartons too. Always glad to learn something new. At 70, I keep learning.
I use lamp oil and left over candle wax; works great.
That's me at the beginning. My friends always ask "how did you start that fire so fast?".🙂
Very much appreciate this information. It will benefit me more times than you can imagine.
Thanks for sharing the knowledge. Great video!
I'd be interested in seeing a side-by-side comparison of one without the lighter fluid. I wonder if, over time, the lighter fluid would evaporate off, leaving you with one that's basically just the same as the one without it, or if there's some residue from it that stays put, long-term.
I don't think it's going to evaporate. It's mixed in with the wax and it's a petroleum product. It becomes a solid with the wax hardening.
I subbed the lighter fluid for lamp oil (hobby lobby) and have lasted 2 yrs now. Not as volatile but works.
@carolinafirewood do u use a ferro rod or a lighter to light them?
Who doesn't like fire - probably Smokey the Bear to start with. Back when i was in the scouts, the go to fire starter was a tuna can with a spiral of corrugated cardboard and dryer lint mix covered with paraffin. The wax didn't cover the cardboard totally, making it a wick to light.
@John Scheib Thanks for the trip down memory lane... i remember making those too but no recolection of how well it worked. Maybe its time to try it again. I'm thinking it was to be like a little stove burner or somthing...that was a long time ago haha!
@Shyam Lynn they'll definitely work for that. It's going to get a bit heavy to do multiples when out, but its a fairly solid bad weather one. If I had an empty shoe polish container that might be better if you mix in a couple of the makeup rounds as wicks, it should be a good tight seal to keep it dry.