Flint vs Ferrocerium Definition & History

www.patreon.com/FollowTheCompassNorth It's not that the name matters on a daily basis, it's that people genuinely are confused about the modern striker vs flint and steel due to the similarities and uses in modern products. I hope you all enjoy!

[@Fixxate]

Everyone going on about not using the blade to strike.... if your knife isn't made of crap ass steel, then it won't dull so bad. Just use the bottom of the blade if you're *really* concerned about dulling it.

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

That's right! Knife steel is to ferrocerium as carbide is to mild steel. We use carbide on mills all day long no problem.

[@jasonmcmaster4968]

Right. So, we aren’t talking about a $14.99 special you pick up at Bass Pro from a sales bin. All of my knives are high quality. The entire point that we are making is that if your knife has a 90 degree spine, it is made for that purpose so why not use it rather than do any unjust use to the blade? When you use the blade, no matter what the condition, it will dull. Bulls will do what bulls want to do. Ignore the hundreds of people who agree you shouldn’t use the blade and then pin the one comment that agrees with you. You can use the blade but you shouldn’t when you don’t have to. Go ahead and use the blade. I’ll use the spine as it’s designed to do. This is pathetic.

[@Fixxate]

@@jasonmcmaster4968 you don't have to call someone pathetic over something as small as this, that's mean

[@jasonmcmaster4968]

@@Fixxate please reread what I said and don’t twist my words. I said this is pathetic, not he is pathetic. This entire situation has blown completely out of proportion. He cannot take correction but not all men can. As you can see, neither can others under my initial post instructing how to use the knife properly, bashing him saying he’s completely useless as a teacher. I’ve stuck up for him quite a few times throughout these threads but I’m done. Again, this is pathetic.

[@royisdabest]

@@jasonmcmaster4968 you are right about using a knife for its intended purpose, but stop being so pissed over random people on the internet

[@anthonymorris8891]

"Iron rods like this do not spark", well clearly you're not trying hard enough...

[@wyattvanwageningen7378]

I agree u just have to hit it hard enough and fast enough

[@Imgonnakmsstg]

@@wyattvanwageningen7378 using the edge also just isn’t smart considering his spine is literally 90 degrees and is meant for this

[@KoshkiBlin04]

This comment made me laugh ngl

[@GeneralGravys]

@@Imgonnakmsstg the blade edge still works better.

[@SillyFroggyWoggy]

@@wyattvanwageningen7378 "and that's how you were born"

[@BackYardScience2000]

For those wondering, Ferrocerium is a synthetic pyrophoric alloy of "mischmetal" (cerium, lanthanum, neodymium, other trace lanthanides and some iron - about 95% lanthanides and 5% iron) and the sparks come from the pieces that fly off when scraped and they catch fire in air (meaning it's pyrophoric when in such small pieces) as they rapidly oxidize and the sparks can reach up to 5,000°f. Hence why it's so useful for making fires.

[@thundermill7109]

I’m sure it’s fine for non survival situations to use the blade to make these sparks but as a wilderness instructor that has been practicing for 16 years full time you should teach your students the proper way to do this. Using the back edge. It’s what it’s designed to do. Also using the blade dulls it (I don’t care if it’s very small and easy to resharpen. Zero dull is better than a tiny amount of dull.) but the more serious issue is that you are ruining the tempering on your blade due to the heat produced. No amount of sharpening will fix that. The best method cause no damage or tempering issues and as a wildlife instructor presumably getting paid for advice you should really be listening to your critics and teach the best information for survival situations.

[@Swingby-getHigh]

100%

[@Imgonnakmsstg]

If you take a look at some comments above he very clearly does not want to accept this fact and thinks using his edge is perfectly fine and the same considering he sharpens a lot. Bet he wouldn’t say the same with quality steel that isn’t easy to sharpen or in a survival situation where the longevity of the edge on your knife can mean life or death

[@soulcleric]

How much heat can he really be generating ? Doubt he is tempering the metal

[@N1ko0L]

As a knife enthusiasts i would like to say: it dull it at a spot, making a "hole" in sharpening, in the long run it will make it so fucked the edge will need to be remade entirely, thus remove YEARS of life the blade could have

[@metamorphicorder]

Yeah you wont remove a temper like that, the heat is generated nearly entirely by the chips beinf removed from the ferro rod and its generated nearly entirely within the chip. Thats the spark. Little pieces of ferro rod charged up by being chipped off the rod. The rod heats up too but the thermal mass of the rod is such that it dissipates quickly. The contact patch between the edge or spine of the knife is so small and the length of time that the knife is in motion across it, theres no possible way to transfer enough energy to the knife to distemper it. When it comes to temper and hardness, there are too things that really matter, tempeture and time. The temperatures you brought the metal to as evidenced by the color the metal is or other methods. But then its how long you hold it at temperature while letting it cool. If you have a steel that is file hard, meaning that a file under moderate pressure will skate off the metal and not cut into it, you would do what is called normalizing it. You would heat it up to a specific color depending on the specific steel and take it out and put it in kitty litter or vermiculite to allow it to cool slowly. It will then be much less hard when heated up to be worked later. You can usually tell if this has happened to steel because it will have changed on the surface with what is called heat anodization. A color change in while in the fire will cause some degree of color change when cool. In short if the metal isnt heated high enough for long enough to change color, its hardness didnt change.

[@stealthyink7262]

Never thought I'd ever be called "the unskilled" for using a regular lighter

[@AL-fl4jk]

We’ve been whispering it behind your back for years

[@Paulo-ty9lp]

Well you’re technically are un-skilled as the lighter makes it so that everybody without the right skill and knowledge can make a fire with no work.

[@yeetyfreety6938]

@@Paulo-ty9lp How do I light cigarettes then?

[@Paulo-ty9lp]

@@yeetyfreety6938 with a lighter

[@carterblasius]

I mean if I’m stranded I’d much rather have a lighter which is instant fire than have to try and huddle some dust to catch an ember

[@jasonmcmaster4968]

Never ever ever use the blade to strike! Always use the spine of the knife. All good survival knives like this one have a 90 degree spine for this purpose as opposed to a beveled spine.

[@Limbaugh_]

Yeah that made me cringe

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

This is the way I do it and I've been teaching wilderness survival full time for 16 years. The knife is harder than the ferrocerium and it causes no damage. It sharpens back very quickly.

[@jasonmcmaster4968]

Yes the blade will sharpen back quickly but using it to strike a ferro rod causes it to dull. In a true survival situation you may not have the means to sharpen the knife. Why cause undue stress and wear on the blade when you can use the spine of the knife? Take care of the blade, use every other part as a tool for things like this. Using the spine produces the exact same result with no need to repair the blade by sharpening. I really do like your videos but this is the one thing that I would urge you to change. Just because you’ve done it for 16 years doesn’t make it right. Take the advice or leave it but you can still learn something from someone else. Have a good day.

[@antifascistskater]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth why have to sharpen it when you could use the spine as effectively?

[@CGTamachi]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth If it needs to be sharpened back after, I'd argue that the edge is indeed being damaged, regardless of how long it takes to restore it. This just... doesn't make sense when there are better ways to do this, and kind seems like you're just being different for the sake of it. :/

[@ke6gwf]

Don't use the edge of your knife on the ferro rod, it damages the edge for no reason. Good knives generally have a square ground spine, and it works great for scraping these, even better than using the sharp edge. The blade may be harder than the ferro rod, but knives generally get dull because the super thin edge gets pushed sideways and folded over until it breaks off. This applies a lot of side force and actually damages the edge of the knife. You may be able to easily resharpen the knife while sitting in your mom's back yard, but that gets a lot more difficult when you are in the wilderness trying to start a fire to survive the night, and may not have a bench top sharpening kit handy. There is zero need to abuse the knife in ways that aren't needed. And just because you have done something wrong for 16 years doesn't mean that you shouldn't improve your techniques, and especially how you teach others.

[@tristangriswell2034]

If you go camping with someone and ask for the flint, referring to this, and they start lecturing you on the difference between ferrocerium and flint you are well within your legal rights to set them a-fucking-blaze.

[@1ofyouforme]

No but you can definitely tell they can start the fire themselves whilst you drink a beer

[@1ofyouforme]

@@Sparky-001 I was replying to what Tristan said, it has nothing to do with anything in the video.

[@drm.himself]

Ablaze with flint? Good luck with that.

[@SJKile]

I have always said, I learn something new on the short videos about once a week. But I learn something revolutionary about once every 6 months. Well this video is revolutionary. The information is spectacular.

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Thank you! Best comment I've read in a long time on here.

[@youtubesucks7667]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth only because it inflates your ego and doesn't dare go against your mighty word.

[@apexreactions4231]

Excellent short this kind of content is one of the pillars of what makes this feature fun to use.

[@telly115ify]

Absolutely love the knowledge and history is always been my favorite past time anykind but definitely survival and fire making techniques I'm glad to be corrected on some of the starters I have used thank you for the learning exp.

[@kentworch]

Thank you for this video. None of my friends ever believe me when I tell them that those little metal pieces in their lighters are not flint. I greatly appreciate the information to help demonstrate this fact.

[@ulfson279]

Hey buddy (again love the tatts 😉) No disrespect or anything but if you use the 90 Degree spine on the back of the knife instead of the edge of the blade then you won't destroy the edge that you worked really hard to get and keep... And you'll have the same result... I didn't want you to take it the wrong way or anything

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

This is polite but my knife edge is harder than the ferrocerium. IF it gets a tiny bit dull then it takes me less than two minutes to sharpen. I don't fear that work.

[@cjlane4465]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth why even bother? Just use the spine and call it a day.

[@AlexanderSLeBlanc]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth still unnecessary and pretty much anyone else does it the other way. Use the spine of the knife and save your edge.

[@weallwould7246]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth what I’m gathering from your comments is that your knives are consistently so incredibly dull that you can’t tell the difference after dragging the edge over metal.

[@lukecrue1]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth doesn't matter, it's just dumb to use the blade instead of the spine

[@marcoliver7914]

I didn't realise it was so old..thanks for the short but to the point video...very refreshing

[@ragingmoderate6791]

Ferrocerium, ferro rod. I'm guessing they're called ferro rods because they're made of ferrocerium and not because Ferrous means iron or made of iron.

[@user-by7hj4dj9s]

yeah and ferrous steel is not only iron.

[@hpoutdoors4248]

Thank you for showing the difference. I know so many people who say that ferrocerium rods are the same thing as flint and steel. Even though brands call ferrocerium rods flint and steel it doesn’t mean it is actually what it is. Also I do understand why you are using the blade. but it also uses more of the ferrocerium rod when you strike with the blade so if you used the back of the knife then it could last longer. I obviously know that the blade is stronger than the ferrocerium rod. But it is usually better to just use the back of the knife in most cases. Just a helpful tip especially to any new outdoorsmen.

[@cozbyv3]

"Don't worry about the mileage, I'll just buy more gas" type energy

[@hamsterclaw7511]

Gotta take you with us when we go camping… I spent 30 mins trying to get a spark USING A MATCH. 🔥 keep it up man your vids always make my day

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Thanks! Will do! Watch my bamboo fire saw video for tips on fire building.

[@VerbenaIDK]

i really need a ferrorod and a magnesium block to light shit up, i am done of having to go out to buy lighters every week

[@mellovated7919]

@@VerbenaIDK maybe buy yourself a zippo or clipper brand. They're refillable and can be collectable, little more reason to hold onto them

[@hetzer5926]

@@VerbenaIDK plus, hella satisfying to use. Only problem is that you can only shave the block down so much before it becomes unusable. Doesn’t take that long either.

[@VerbenaIDK]

@@mellovated7919 bic lighters also are, and are one of the most common around here are bic, but are a pain to refil, and zippo and clipper board are pobably expensive as shit around here. what i really wanna do is buy a butane torch and a oxyacet lighter, should last a long time

[@player18792]

This guy just played all of y’all. He used the blade of the knife knowing it’s the wrong thing to do in order to make everyone cringe and flood the comments in protest. Therefore boosting his engagement. Clever play

[@alexguigui1877]

Even if your knife is harder than the ferrocerium, the edge will suffer. The stress of scraping a metal with the same hardness than aluminium will make you blade more likely to chip If you want your knife to hold on, scrape the firesteel with the 90º spine

[@alexguigui1877]

@@Mankey32 i keep saying that to piss you off

[@Imgonnakmsstg]

@@Mankey32 well okay if we let him be him we will be us. Using the edge is dumb shit and if you willingly do this knowing the spine can achieve the same result without the negative consequences, you my friend are dumb as shit and probably shouldn’t have that knife

[@YukonJack]

@@Mankey32 instructing people incorrectly should be corrected. Are you incapable of receiving direction?

[@Swingby-getHigh]

The comment section on here is hilarious!! I can't believe you are that hard headed to just disagree with what MOST people are telling you about using the blade instead of the spine. Simply because of the way you reply to everyone makes feel bad for whoever uses your channel to get help with these activities. You can still learn too dude.

[@baadlyrics8705]

Why should he listen to random people in the comments if he doesnt want to? I mean, i get the point and yeah, it makes way more sense not using the blade.. But its his decision, and since hes not in a survival situation why shouldnt he do what he wants in his own videos?

[@Swingby-getHigh]

@@baadlyrics8705 I'm not saying he should do what people want him to. I'm just saying a wise man is a person who admits they know nothing not the other way around.

[@Oldass_Deadass_dumbass_channel]

Im suprised he hasnt shut the conments off yet lmao

[@Imgonnakmsstg]

@@baadlyrics8705 well, he’s a survival instructor. If you want to accept people’s money for what they assume is possible life saving techniques and whatnot, stuff like this is not acceptable especially since he doesn’t want to accept that fact himself.

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

I have many OTHER videos where I discuss the various ways of striking a ferro rod. Unlike the comment section, I acknowledge that the use of a striker is a personal choice and comes down to what works best for that person. Using the blade works best for me for a variety of reasons. I'm not going to switch to a method that isn't as versatile for me just because the comment section on a KZbin video is offended lol. It isn't about being "stubborn" or "refusing to learn" it is a practical choice for me.

[@SoreTv]

To everybody reading this... just use the spine of the blade. He will try to reply saying the blade is harder than the flint (for sake of simplicity) so it wont dull.... it will, no need for the extra stress on the blade. Edit: The blade will dull. "it'll sharpen back quickly" maybe, but the more you sharpen it the less knife you'll have. Sharpening a knife is just removing material, some ways take off more material than others but still. If you somehow manage to "slip" and cut yourself or somebody else is so unaware of their surrounds to not see you making a fire, then one of you deserve a darwin award. How much force are you putting into your strokes to slip? More than that, how do you cut yourself when you're pushing the blade away from you?

[@hetzer5926]

But it’s arguably not as safe to you or others around you. I’d rather dull my blade than have it point up. Sure it’s pointing away from me, but not everyone knows what a blood circle is. If your pointing the blade down and into the direction of the fire, your guaranteed not to hurt yourself or someone else. Mostly because if you slip the blade goes into the ground. If someone falls on you, you don’t go into the sharp bit of the blade. And if your dulling your blade that much by using the striker, your either putting too much pressure or your technique is off. Should only take one drag, so dulling will be minimal. And if your blade has a serrated section, that’s even better. You’ll get a better bite, a better spark, and the likelihood that you’ll make the blade too dull to use is extremely unlikely.

[@SoreTv]

@@hetzer5926 how would you slip and cut yourself? Also how spatially unaware does someone have to be to not see someone right in front of them and fall on them.

[@SomebodyYouKnew]

This

[@XenonLxx]

Even sheaths where you put your knife dull the blade slowly over time. And plastic/leather is nowhere near the toughness of metal. So yeah

[@hetzer5926]

@@SoreTv you’d be surprised

[@broxzera6299]

Why not use the spine of the blade instead of the edge?

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

This is the way I do it and I've been teaching wilderness survival full time for 16 years. The knife is harder than the ferrocerium and it causes no damage. It sharpens back very quickly.

[@broxzera6299]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth ahh ok i understand. Probably is the most effective way to get a strong spark too, as it shaves off the ferrocerium rather easily!

[@damianchristopher205]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth it does cause damage; name one thing you cut with your knife that is harder than the knife, yet you still sharpen your knife. Also doing something for a long time doesn’t make it right.

[@agentsparky1772]

@@broxzera6299 nope, its just as effective using the spine. This guy dulls his knife

[@ginj-ninj-4445]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth well you’ve been teaching it wrong then. Just because you’ve done something for a while doesn’t mean that you’re incapable of being wrong

[@Gen_Lee247]

I’ve been watching your content for quite some time! from making a slick Damascus steel blade, to all the tips and tricks that everyone should know. One of the most underrated content creator!

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

I really appreciate this. When I made that blade a month or two ago I had 2,000 subscribers and thanks to people like you who comment, like, and subscribe the algorithm has finally found me! I really appreciate your interaction and faith in the content. That goes for everyone reading this as well. Truly. Stay tuned. I have a hundreds of topics in the hopper! This is only the beginning!

[@projectjourneys9259]

Very informative for those that do not know, thank you for your content, but please don't use the edge of the blade to start Fire because you just gonna dull your knife 😭

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

I'm not going to take this advice. A dull blade means 2 minutes of work. I'm not so lazy as to fear that enough to sacrifice hot consistent sparks.

[@1298blaster]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth how will you sharpen it in a survival situation?

[@CelicaSNC]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth 2 minutes of work vs using the spine and ending up with 0 minutes of work and a ready blade.

[@jasonmcmaster4968]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth for the record, you sacrifice absolutely nothing other than your pride using this method. I can produce the exact same results 100% of the time using the spine of my knife. Does your method work? Yes. Does my method work? Yes. It is simply that the method I am trying to teach here is a more efficient way to strike the ferro rod. In a survival situation, being smart with your resources is what matters most. This has absolutely nothing to do with being lazy or not. You save time by not having to stop and sharpen a knife that you didn’t have to use in that manner, you protect your blade from needlessly cutting into something, and you protect your blade from the extremely high heat of the sparks. Point blank, you are wrong with this. If you’re going to teach survival you need to realize you can always learn more, no matter how long you’ve been doing this. As someone else said, being bullheaded will get you killed in a survival situation. Sure you can teach someone how to do something, but you can also learn for yourself more efficient ways of doing the exact same thing, thereby teaching others how to do it better as well. I’m trying to stick up for you with the people blasting you under my comment because you really do have good content but your reaction to me trying to teach a better method is what discredits you.

[@jasonmcmaster4968]

@@1298blaster you always want to have a knife sharpener with you but if something happens to that you could even use a flat rock to sharpen it, it will just take longer. It’s smarter to just go ahead and protect the blade, despite what some experts may teach.

[@thchazz834]

I really dig these videos

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

I'm glad! I was worried it'd come off as snobby when I was going for informational.

[@travissiegwart8276]

EXACTLY!

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

*nods head meme*

[@toolman334]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth I love ur content but please stop striking a fire steel with the edge of ur knife it brings me much pain

[@sheet-son]

No. Do your own research he is wrong

[@sablovestwice]

@@sheet-son what 💀💀 first result of google shows he’s right wdym do some research

[@toolman334]

@@sheet-son I'm wrong ????

[@Dkthearn]

Thank you for clearing that up

[@davbing8195]

That poor knife 🔪 😢.. thanks for the info, even the boyscouts didnt give us this much info while teaching fire skills

[@hetzer5926]

Bruh, BSA gives out those blocks like candy. Although it could have been my troop but we mastered fire starting. Like I can start a fire with an ice cube. It’s a great party trick.

[@synckar6380]

@@hetzer5926 Only a few leaders went out of their way to get theses things in my troop and we have next to none firemaking skills. Although it’s an open secret that the leaders (myself included) are horrible teachers in my troop.

[@joeybunsglazing9325]

A small container of hand sanitizer and a gas station lighter can be a life saver :)

[@sclass4867]

Don’t use the blade side of the knife use the back of it you’re just dulling your knife

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Slightly* dulling it. I'm not afraid to sharpen. Literally takes me a minute each night.

[@thundermill7109]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth its not just dulling it. It’s getting very hot at the edge and messing up the tempering of the knife. In situations where this is useful you’d be better off saving the integrity of your blade by using the back edge as that is what it is designed for. Especially in a long term survival situation you want the knife to last as long as possible and using the sharp edge means you lose blade quality even if you spend the extra time sharpening it. The best option is to use the back so that you have zero sharpening required for lighting fires and have your edge be properly tempered.

[@scottm.9382]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth no, S class is correct. You are wrong

[@getsomedudmc7389]

Love the knife have one of their other models has served me well. Really great blade and love the video good bit of info in a short time keep it up.

[@vmwindustries]

Epic video! So glad you made this video!

[@Troglodytarum]

You defending yourself in the comments but you know you are wrong. Learn from this and stop being stubborn. Your stubbornness could get someone killed because people trust you.

[@ferrumvatuber]

The coolest part is that the type of alloy it is, is called a “mischmetal” which is just cool to me, like mishmash of a bunch of different metals

[@chrisisntbad]

The dad i wish i had haha. Youre fucking awesome man. When shit goes upside down here, youre gonna be ready my friend!

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

That's the plan! I already feel ready so now I'm just trying to get others on board.

[@googleuser-rr9wr]

Things are upside down!!! NOW

[@schnoz2372]

This guy can’t even use a knife properly lol

[@justaguydoingsomestuff2446]

Honestly learned something new today. Thank you.

[@pathwinder14]

Nice to finally see someone with a decent explanation. However, Iron is pyrophoric, and will spark if scraped with something hard enough (7 or higher on the Mohs scale).

[@allineedis1mike81]

I dont think ferrocerium is an alloy. I think its considered a sintered metal matrix.

[@Raaa1111..]

I bought 2 rods on ebay for 3 bucks and i taped them around my shoe when im on my bike so when i brake with my feet it looks crazy cool

[@KnifeCrazzzzy]

Love the history inclusion!

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Thanks! I double checked the facts beforehand so I'm less of a fool on here.

[@csongorjandzso8194]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth ...Yeah, but you are a fool for not listening to the people in the comments, telling you the CORRECT way to strike a ferrocerium rod.

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Csomgor, unlike the people losing their minds in the comment section, I acknowledge that the type and method of striker is a personal choice based on what works best for that person. It is not incorrect to use a different method.

[@rubikfan1]

I used the old school flint to start fire. Very hard to do, but once you get it. It feels amazing. And planning is everything.

[@jerrypaulson3344]

God bless Carl Hour for this discovery. Now I have a cool fun fact to share with friends while I brag to them about how I’m a natural fire starter.

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Nice.

[@davebuilds7261]

Was looking for comments that’s say Carl didn’t discover it & he stole credit (just cause it’s common to see people do)

[@ericolsen67vw]

Finally someone on here taught me something

[@Zombieman-cv1vp]

Watching you strike the ferocium rod with your blade was cringe inducing especially seeing the charr on the blade proving you do it often.

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

I also sharpen my blade often so there's no issue. A knife is meant to be used. A stone is also meant to be used.

[@Zombieman-cv1vp]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth the problem is the heat coming off the rod is so high and because at the point of the blade is so much thinner it has poor heat transfer and ruins the temper on your blade causing long term weaknesses. My advice sharpen a 90 spine near the rear and use that as others have also mentioned. TY for replying. Keep up the good work, I like your other work but this needs fixing up. Have a wonderful day!

[@jasonmcmaster4968]

My point exactly

[@lukecrue1]

He doesn't like people calling it flint but loves cutting it with his knife

[@FuburLuck]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth You shouldn't be trying to teach people if you are unwilling to learn, yourself.

[@think3rofficial]

You totally just wrecked my cub scouts experience in 30 seconds

[@Zachary-]

Don't hurt your blade like this guy. You never know when you'll need one knife to last you a lifetime, take better care of your blade edge.

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

I do take care of my knife edge, I sharpen it every day around the fire to wind down. Using the knife edge dulls it, but does not damage it. Think carbide on a metal lathe, it eventually gets dull, but since it's carving softer metal it's fine.

[@charliebaker1427]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth my guy you shouldn't need to resharpen a knife every day, if you are dulling it that much in a day that you need to resharpen it every day then you are just eating away the blade needlessly,take better care of your knifes. Soft metal is still metal and its certainly doing a good job dulling your knife.

[@Oldass_Deadass_dumbass_channel]

@@charliebaker1427 and he teaches others to do this shit to. I hope his clientele is purely intercity college kids who will never have to use this information.

[@hetzer5926]

One part many don’t consider in this equation and why I use the blade not the spine. The blade is facing away from you. Means it’s safer for you and others. Even if you slip you won’t injure yourself or people around you. If the edge is up, your still unlikely to accidentally hurt yourself or someone else, but there a bigger chance. In a survival situation, I’d rather dull the blade than risk being cut in some stupid accident.

[@Imgonnakmsstg]

@@hetzer5926 and smart people would rather have that risk than to damage their main tool in the wilderness and such. Why? Because we aren’t so fucking dumb to slip and cut ourselves when pushing away from us

[@hetzer5926]

Those cheepo magnesium sticks are super satisfying to light a fire with. It’s been my go to since scouts, pretty sure I got a couple still lying around, but on cold morning during camp outs we’d teach the younger scouts how to light a fire using one of these. They’d always have problems and one time I had a kid just give up. Like, he’d been at it for ten minutes and said “nah I’m done, this is impossible.” I took my magnesium stick, got some shavings on it, lined my knife up on the striking end and said, “like this” then seconds later we had a roaring fire. And yes, I used the blade. The serrated part.

[@ICasinI]

This is the first time I've seen anything of yours, but the "uhm ackshually" with people calling them 'ferro rods' as shorthand as well as your adamance at using the blade for sharpening just builds an image of you as a man who is far too full of himself and refuses to consider the viewpoints of others.

[@mustafatrpan1616]

I'm so dumb I thought it was called a pharaoh rod

[@martinh640]

Trying to make a fire with flint and Stricker for the first time difficult but rewarding when you managed to make a good fire with it

[@RockyLikesPews]

And my friends are so amazed that I can start fire with "flint" but then I show them how to start fire with actual flint and char-cloth and they're not impressed

[@Poodleinacan]

Ferros are flashier.

[@Poodleinacan]

Ferroes are flashier.

[@fustercluck2460]

Flasher are ferroers

[@jeffsiegwart]

Thanks for the info.

[@tealahsiegwart2015]

This guy gets it.

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Thanks!

[@TurtleParadise]

Thank you for the informative Shorts

[@patrikzajpt6939]

I die inside a little everytime he scrapes the "firesteel" with the cutting edge of the knife. The heat treatment going to heaven.

[@patrikzajpt6939]

Btw i like calling it firesteel because there ain't no way I can spell what it's actually called.

[@FrancisR420]

It's called a ferrero rocher rod

[@Imgonnakmsstg]

@@patrikzajpt6939 it’s spelt ferro rod no one actually uses the full name

[@patrikzajpt6939]

@@FrancisR420 thank you for clarifying dear sir.

[@thomaslindroos1667]

You learn something every day

[@bigpeepee341]

Watching you ruin your blade is really sad you can’t be a knife enthusiast if you get that kinda coating on your blade it makes it almost impossible to use the spine to scrap the ferro rod without messing up the coating. Also having to sharpen your knife everyday shortens it’s lifespan just cause you do something a certain way doesn’t make it the best way and I would recommend not teaching people the worst way to do something even if it “works”. If you want real knowledge and a more fun experience watch Dutch bushcraft knives 🖤

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

A lot of assumptions and exaggerations in this comment. "Ruin" the blade? "Worst" way? Do you find yourself arguing a lot in life? I've sharpened knives for years and it's very rare that I notice a shortened life span due to over sharpening. Maybe you don't understand how soft the ferrocerium is? I'm not sure where your disconnect is but I've never noticed blade damage, only minor dulling. However, I'm never going to change your mind. It's a shame really. Can't fill a cup that is already full. ;)

[@CelicaSNC]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth minor dulling vs absolutely none. I'll strike using the back rather than causing unnecessary wear on a blade to make me resharpen it.

[@charliebaker1427]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth the pots calling the kettle black huh,its basic knowledge to use the spine of a knife if possible, doing it with the blade is just unnecessary ware on the edge

[@FrancisR420]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth who knows how much this guy argues in life but I know from reading these comments you tend to argue a lot with very very basic (1+1=2 style) information.

[@Imgonnakmsstg]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth speak for yourself. Doesn’t matter how soft the ferrocerium is. Hardness isn’t the issue, it’s the heat from the sparks and friction on such a thin area damaging the longevity of your steel’s heat treatment. Common sense if you ask 90% of your comment section. Yikes you really be scamming your clients with harmful information that is full of ignorance and negligence. “RuiN”, “WoRsE” yeah respond to facts with feelings like a child

[@tewhamcgee4945]

Never knew that bro thanks for clarifying man I like being corrected on these little things people have confused because of laziness and slangs

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Exactly!

[@johnbarron4843]

GROSSSSS don’t use the blade! 16 years plus off teaching survival skills incorrectly🤣

[@hetzer5926]

Would you rather risk cutting yourself? Because that’s how you can accidentally cut yourself. In an actual survival situation, don’t take the risk. The blade will last longer than it would take for help to arrive or you to expire.

[@MountainYucker]

Exactly, this is why I put a thin 1 inch fuller on the spine of my ka-bar. Even though just a sharp square spine will do the same the small Fuller seems to work better

[@marcus.3266]

"Metal Rod" "Flint" I'm gonna call this sparky

[@c0rnp0p80]

I just carry a regular lighter.

[@Wickedstickyflowers]

Glad we got that cleared up!

[@jeffsiegwart]

Interesting

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Thanks!

[@ammarkhan6883]

Thank you Eminem for the information

[@uteki5685]

When i was younger, my dad told me it was a ferro rod, but i interpreted it as a "pharaoh rod"

[@GeorgeWashington-oz7lw]

12 people are happy you made this video. Now they can show their friends and prove a point from 2 years ago.

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Who are they?

[@GeorgeWashington-oz7lw]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth why do they have to be "they". Come on..

[@gerryfegan3608]

For the unskilled... low-key jab at the rest of us 😄

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Lol!

[@austinpeake1331]

Very educational thank you!

[@alecseekins7916]

I cringed so much when you used the blade to strike 😅😅

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Don't worry my knife steel is harder than the ferrocerium. Do you also cringe at carbide carving steel on the mill?

[@alecseekins7916]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth no its only with the knife blades idk why. I get the heebie jeebies feeling. I think im alright with the other way because its not as loud and scratchy if that makes sense

[@charliebaker1427]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth your knife isn't carbide my guy,carbide several times harder then the hardest steel, you knife at best is low 50s in rockwell and plenty of shit can dull that

[@scottm.9382]

😅

[@tattered08]

Love this. Great info

[@charliebaker1427]

This guy is why we need to dislike button back,so people will know not to do this with their fire starter and knife

[@tobicipher9300]

Had no idea they were different, you got my sub

[@VerbenaIDK]

surprising magnesium doenst catch fire when you strike it to make powder, knowing magnesium being so goddamn reactive

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

If you used a lathe you can ignite it through scraping.

[@samouflage99]

I actually have the little magnesium that's epoxied to the little steel rod, it's in my kitchen somewhere I think...I ought to find that again, it's super handy!

[@noirloo3159]

Y'all explaining to this man not to use the knife edge to strike like he didn't just explain the differences of several metals and alloys xD im sure he knows what he's doing

[@fiocchi6233]

No he doesnt his extremely wrong

[@wenomechainasama6161]

He doesn’t

[@mowgli2071]

If you're practicing with your ferrocerium rod, get a second one and put it aside. Because the ferrocerium can very slowly oxidize just sitting there on the shelf. The coating on a brand new one is very important as it's there to stop oxidation

[@kevinroberts9580]

He's tries to sound like he knows what hes talking about but when he used the blade instead of the back the back spine of the knife he lost me right there

[@Imgonnakmsstg]

Literally same and then tries to argue with anyone pointing it out that he’s been teaching for 16 years as if you can’t be teaching something wrong for years. Can’t teach an old dog new tricks indeed

[@ianbruker5255]

I love this video so much.

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Thanks Ian!

[@5PercentTint]

#TEAM FLINT because 810 and Faygo. No juggalos, just Flintstones. Thanks for the information!

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

🤷‍♂️

[@5PercentTint]

@@FollowTheCompassNorth yeah really random Comment but I appreciate everything thing you share. Your videos have motivated me to embrace the skills I have. Knitting and sewing isn’t super manly but fuck it.. my mom was a home economics teacher and you kind of remind me of her as far as making versus buying…

[@cleaner99]

Thanks a lot for this great info. 😊🙏

[@bikewaynarrows9212]

Doing gods work by making sure we call fire starting materials by the right name. Amen.

[@noyagrimalkin6175]

You are the first person in my for you Page mentioning Dr. Carl Auer von Welsbach the Austrian inventor 👍

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

I know literally nothing about him.

[@ethanharrison336]

Super interesting to learn

[@JohnGodwin]

Awesome info!

[@thedavidfield1]

Ferro rod is literally short for ferrocerium. It doesn’t mean iron rod. But great education video for people who don’t know what it is or why it is. Thumbs up.

[@stytler06]

All Flint that exists can be used as a flint but not all flints are made of Flint. Definition of flint 1: a massive hard dark quartz that produces a spark when struck by steel 2: an implement of flint used in prehistoric cultures 3a: a piece of flint b: a material used for producing a spark especially : an alloy (as of iron and cerium) used in lighters 4: something resembling flint in hardness

[@fortnite.burger]

Great video, i don't know why people are hating

[@joshgarcia1899]

Key takeaway after reading these comments: "Blades have feelings too!" "Save the blades!"

[@CommissarPhantom]

Learned more from this short than the last 4 years of highschool

[@ericgonzalez934]

Interesting, thanks for the explanation

[@DeviantScvanger]

That intro is so badass

[@Preposter]

Did not know this! Thank you

[@oghomelesskid]

Wow, I learned something. Nice!

[@charliewatsonlake8618]

This is like the whole lead graphite situation. Also that "even the unskilled" hurt lol

[@FollowTheCompassNorth]

Exactly. And the unskilled comment is true for all modern technology. A firearm makes hunting easier than a bow. A bow easier than a sling. Etc

[@Fluffypotatoes4]

Thanks for clarifying this because I always get annoyed when I try to tell people that it's not flint and they always look at me like I'm mad

[@davebewshey1549]

Meshmetal is what the old timers called it when I was young and I'm in my mid fifties

[@tylersingleton9284]

An actual educational short 👍

[@firstcanonkill1767]

When I was little I found a funny looking rock in my grandparents garden. I took it inside to ask my grandad. “Grandad, why is this rock black on the inside?” And he said “that’s flint.” And I said “what’s flint?” He said, “you use it to start fires.” And I was a very curious child, so I asked my grandad how that works. We spent the rest of the day sitting in the dark hallway making little sparks. Damn I miss him. I loved that day.

[@manleeman5212]

Thanks for this yo

[@josephwollslair8366]

Took a few hours and chunks out of my knuckles after learning use flint and steel and getting my chard cotton ready at a boys camp. What a blessing fire is

[@CarlMarx]

We call them 'lighting on fire-steel' in my language

[@dnomyarnostaw]

When Welsbach mixed a combination of 70% cerium and 30% iron, he noticed the resulting alloy gave off sparks when scratched. When ferrocerium is struck by a hard and sharp object, such as a carbon steel blade, tiny shavings are oxidized and ignited by the friction of the striker and burn at 3,000°C/5,430°F. Chemistry students may remember that iron compounds use the prefix ferro due to iron's Latin name ferrum. Therefore, this new iron-cerium alloy was called ferrocerium. Some European countries still call the material Auermetall after the baron's first name.