What Tinder Do You Use?

[Libertas7]

So I was wondering tinder you all use for your flint or ferrocerium rod? Do you just find stuff around where you are like dry grass (good luck in winter). Or do you carry some with you? If you do carry some around with you I'd be interested to know what you carry them in.
I recently got a new fire starter for my EDC. But it doesn't have an open flame so I need some ideas for tinder (either to find or carry). One thing that came to mind, and I can't believe I didn't think of the earlier, is that I could just use some of my hair. Obviously I'd only do that in SHTF and not camping.
So I guess the question isn't only what do you use but also what would you use?

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[Dungannon]

I carry several cotton balls soaked in candle wax. At a campsite I still gather and arrange everything I need ahead of time: duff, small piles of sticks and branches in increased size to feed into the flames.

My wife melts down a bunch of garage sale candles every fall and uses the wax to fill egg cartons stuffed with duff and cedar sawdust. Break off a couple of the 'eggs' when starting a fire in our fireplace at home, or when car camping with the grandkids. My backpack camping trips are a thing of past.

 

[oknow]

Cotton balls with some vasoline carried in a ziplock baggie or (for the older folks who would know what this is) film canister.

 

[The Heretic]

Dryer lint is decent tinder, but it burns too fast. What I do is wad it into a ball and put petroleum jelly on the outside. Then I can break it apart and the lint inside catches a spark easy while the kelly on the outside slows down the burn.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

I use "char cloth" in my tinder box for my Flint & Steel kit.
Old dried moss and fir needles can work as well

I make char cloth by taking a old 100% cotton tee shirt or patch material , cut it into strips . wrap in tin foil ... and place the package under the coals of my grill.

After my dinner is cooked ... so is my char cloth.
Andy

 

[Certaindeaf]

Moonshine.



















lol
I never really took to carrying starters like that but will cheat any way I can to get a fire going. With that said, I've always had a 6th sense on finding fire makings even in the wet (go figure, Oregonian). Probably couldn't name the goods but know it/the places when I find it.. zen thing just look around.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

I have at times sprinkled a little bit of black powder on the tinder to help it get started.

If you do this ... Be sure to plug your horn and move it away from the fire...
Before you strike a flint to steel or otherwise attempt to light the fire.
Unless you want a new nickname of Old Sparky...
Andy

 

[45alive]

I hear that Cedar bark finely separated makes a good fire starter

 

[Andy54Hawken]

I hear that Cedar bark finely separated makes a good fire starter

It does indeed work very well.
Andy

 

[Rocklock]

Here's my rendezvous kit. Ted Cash box with burning lense in the lid. Several pieces of char cloth (See Andy's post), flint, steel and some unwound sisal twine for tinder (this stuff is really fine and burns readily). If I really, really, really need to get a fire going I keep some cotton balls saturated with vaseline in a separate plastic container for some additional oomph on wet wood. Not traditional but they work.



Note: My best time for the firestart at rondy is 13seconds.

 

[Pops1911]

AndyinEverson I am with you using 100% charred cotton. Bought a new 1/2 pint paint can from HD and put a small finish nail hole in the lid and throw it in the camp fire stuffed with 2" squares of the cotton material. By bed time I take it off the fire and let it cool over night. Good to go then. Otherwise I buy the commercial fire starting Esbet tablets for back packing. 1300 degrees for 15 minutes will get things flaming. I have also used sage brush bark. The dern stuff will burn even when wet. Got my bow drill too. That's a nice thing to use with inner bark from a cottonwood. Got a gallon bag of that ready to go.

 

[Velzey]

I use pitch wood, it works great. In the springtime I kept my eyes open for pitch wood when cutting firewood. Always look for lightning strikes, oh boy that gets some pitch flowing and collect loose bark thats coated in pitch. If on firewood I cut out a section, split it up very small and let it dry good.
Hemlock, Douglas fir, all have good pitch. My grandpa showed me what he carried around in his back pack for 60 years. It was a small leather pouch that smelled of pine pitch. Inside was pretty old pitch wood. I think I was 8 and we were out elk hunting. It ended up snowing about 10 inches in just a few hours, so needless to say we needed a fire. He got that little leather bag out and I collected some dry twigs under a few big fir trees. All it took was one match and it ignited fast. Nice black sooty smoke from that pitch burning.
Sooo needless to say thats all I ever use. I collect a little every year just to make sure I have enough on hand.

 

[Libertas7]

I have at times sprinkled a little bit of black powder on the tinder to help it get started.

If you do this ... Be sure to plug your horn and move it away from the fire...
Before you strike a flint to steel or otherwise attempt to light the fire.
Unless you want a new nickname of Old Sparky...
Andy

My old EDC fire starter was a piece of magnesium with a ferrocerium rod glued on it. You scraped the mag with a knife and it made a fine powder that lit really easy.

How pliable is char cloth? Could you roll it up and stick it in a small cylinder about the size of a mini maglite?

 

[45alive]

Wire wool and a 9V battery get a hot tinder going. Not as cool as old school methods, but it works !

 

[Ura-Ki]

Muzzle loading cotton patches coated in tallow and magnesium dust from a good Swiss cut file wrapped in waxed paper work amazingly well. Char Cloth is always a good choice, and even better with a air piston lighter. I add a small Swiss Alpine lamp converted to use plumbers candles for a light source as well as a reliable wing and rain/snow protection whilst starting a fire in the rain of snow!

 

[Andy54Hawken]

How pliable is char cloth? Could you roll it up and stick it in a small cylinder about the size of a mini maglite?

I haven't found it to be pliable... it is charred after all.
The strips I tear it into before "cooking" them are about the size of a half dollar...
Andy

 

[thorborg]

Again I go with Andy, but I use charred cotton flannel as in my mind it produces a slightly fluffier surface to catch the sparks.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Cotton Flannel works good too... I've used this as shooting patches and char cloth.
Andy

 

[Certaindeaf]

Always remember, "bean night" makes for some hilarious but effective fire starting shenanigans.
Clear!

 

[AmerLat4]

My wife melts down a bunch of garage sale candles every fall and uses the wax to fill egg cartons stuffed with duff and cedar sawdust. Break off a couple of the 'eggs' when starting a fire in our fireplace at home, or when car camping with the grandkids. My backpack camping trips are a thing of past.

We've made those but in place of egg cartons we'd use the waxed Dixie cups.