What is a Firesteel?  

From the Iron Age, the use of flint and steels was a common method of fire lighting, but more recently the firesteel has become synonymous with the world of fire lighting, especially in bushcraft.

Firesteels are metal rods composed of ferrocerium, an alloy of iron and mischmetal (itself an alloy primarily of cerium that will generate sparks when struck). Iron is added to improve strength which allows pressure to be applied with a ‘steel’ to product a shower of hot sparks to ignite a tinder. These small sparks are in fact tiny shards of the firesteel which burn with an exceptional heat, but only for a very brief time, but enough to create a fire.

Firesteels are easy to use, and even work when wet, unlike modern lighters. They also last for a long time, up to 10.000 strikes. You simple need a piece of steel, and old hacksaw blade or the back of knife to get them sparking!