Fire starting material

What do most people use for emergency fire starter material? I have modified the cotton ball method a little bit. Go to a beauty shop and they have cotton in long strands. Smart that full of Vaseline and you can wrap around sticks seems to work pretty good.

I used to carry a couple of the wife's tampons, and one of the magnesium strikers. They are in a waterproof container and are easly cut into a size you need for starting a fire. Small and compact for your emergency pack. I also had 1 or 2 of the 5 minute railroad flares for a real emergency. (river trips of 4 to 6 days)
 
Who here has actually tried to use a Vaseline mixture? I did with both dryer lint and cotton balls, and it did NOT work. Are there different types of Vaseline and maybe I got the wrong stuff? So far, and based on my experience with it thus far I'm labeling it's usefulness as a fire starter to be an urban legend.

If you do try that Fritos trick, and the "Cool Ranch" chips worked extremely well for me, be sure that you don't ever want to eat them again. What drips out of the burning chip is pretty gross. Looks like hot fat, but doesn't burn. I'm pretty sure I don't need that in my body!

For now I carry a small propane torch and bottle in my off-road vehicles. I've found with those that full throttle singes the wood and make it harder to get a fire started. However, a soft flame does a fast job of getting a fire going.


I recently read about how fire-fighters are now starting back-fires from a helicopter. Involves essentially a ping-pong ball with some potasium permanganate in it that gets injected with ethylene glycol (automotive coolant) by a machine that then drops them out of the chopper.

I was taught to "fluff" the cotton ball when you need to use it. I've never had it not work but I always fluff them up so I can't say another way wont work. A hand full of cotton balls will pack down super small too. I learned that trick from an old SERE instructor and that's all he has ever carried. Good enough for me.
 
Next time you grill get 100% cotton cloth like an old pair of jeans that are worn out or do not fit you anymore because of your weight loss or gain. Cut it up in pieces put it in a tin can something similar to shoe polish put a hole on the top the size of a nail and just drop it in the ashes. The cloth will char and this takes a spark easily and you can start your fire.
 
Potasium permangenate and glycerine. Cheap and works every time. A small pile of Potasium Permanganate (can be found at Lowes or Home Depot in the pool supply section) and a couple drops of glycerine and within a few seconds, chemical reaction and instant fire!
That sounds like you are making dynamite.
 
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