Last month, oldman/Marty announced the new Aurora Magnesium Firestarter, here on this forum:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=542048
To be blunt, I had my doubts about this product. As Carl (Warrigal) so aptly put it (on a different forum), "I don't see what would make that any better than a Swedish fire match." Ferrocerium mischmetal alloy is already highly flammable, burning at a very high temperature. So what's the advantage of putting magnesium in there?
Despite my doubts, Marty seems worthy of trust and respect, and I was curious, so I bought one. It came in the mail a few days ago, and I've been playing around with it enough to now give a preliminary review... so here it is:
First, and most important: Does it do what is claimed? I.e., "With this new magnesium fire starter, when you throw the sparks just like you would with a plain flint bar, the magnesium sparks stay lit for several seconds and makes it even easier to start a fire... The magnesium and flint chunks throw out just like flint, but stay smoldering like little chunks of fire...." [Tom Sciacca, President of CampingSurvival.com]
Despite my initial skepticism, I have say: Yes. This product does work as claimed. You only need to use it once to see that this is not the same as other firesteels; the sparks are tending to burn differently... lasting longer and burning hotter.
How does it do this? I am not in a position to give a definitive in-depth analysis, but I can say with some confidence that larger pieces of material come off when you scrape this rod than when you scrape a regular ferrocerium rod. (Presumably, this means the rod will wear down after fewer uses, though it should still last many hundreds of strikes... plenty, if reserved for emergency use.) The material seems to be softer, making larger pieces scrape off more easily. It makes sense that larger, thicker pieces = burning more fuel, which means burning hotter and longer.
I wish I could end the review there, simply saying "This product works. It's not hype." That's true, but there is also more to be said, on a less positive note.
The material doesn't seem to ignite as easily as regular ferrocerium. It is possible to give it a good hard scrape with the sweet spot/angle of the striker edge, removing curlicue shavings 1/3 inch long, without any ignition. Repeatedly.
This stuff seems more sensitive to perfect technique than normal ferrocerium, in order to achieve ignition.
Then there is the form factor. Much like a Blastmach, you are not just buying a bare rod, you are also buying housing around the rod: a full system.
With the Aurora, I don't like the form factor at all. Granted, part of this is my personal taste; however, another part is real issues with the Aurora.
To my view, I don't like that it is much larger and much heavier than necessary. The actual rod is considerably shorter and considerably narrower diameter than a Swedish Firesteel, but the form factor makes it noticeably bulkier, and slightly heavier. For me, I don't want the frills; I want the rod and nothing but the rod. To me, the ideal form factor would be like the rod that Exploration products sells: A big, fat ferro rod with a hole drilled through it, and nothing else. The Exploration Products 4" flint may be big and heavy (actually, about the same size and weight as the Aurora), but that's because you get a huge amount of ferrocerium; and it also makes it easy to grip. Contrast that with the new Aurora, where all the size and weight does not equate to an especially large amount of usable material, and does not make it easier to grip.
OK, that's just my own taste. Some people might like, even prefer, that it comes in an indestructible, waterproof housing, with a built in striker... even at the expense of added bulk and weight.
I do wish there was some option for those who feel the housing is extraneous, for our needs, to get just the rod. Unfortunately, not. I hope there is a workable way to remove the rod from the steel housing. I haven't yet tried, but my impression is that this is going to be difficult.
So, you are stuck getting the heavy and bulky waterproof housing with the built in striker. That would be easier to accept, if these were not so problematic.
The end of the housing has a groove milled into it, with the striker built in, to make holding it at the proper angle for striking automatic. A great idea. The problem is: The angle is wrong, and it doesn't work well at all. At least on mine.
The case has a rubber (?) O ring, to make the case seal waterproof. Unfortunately, this rubber O ring is quite loose, and comes off very easily. It slides out of place whenever I open the case, and comes off whenever I am not attentive to prevent it from doing so. Thus, it is quite likely to quickly get lost, presumably rendering the housing less than reliably waterproof. Furthermore, directly in front of the O ring is screw threading which can tear up the O ring as it constantly slides on and off, over the threads.
These screw threads are sharp. They are located exactly in the (otherwise) best place to grip the device during use. This is very ergonomically poor, forcing you to either tightly grip sharp threading, or hold the device awkwardly. When I grip this device in the most natural way, it hurts, and occasionally cuts my fingers and thumb. And the screw threads are not only sharp, they're also poorly and crudely finished. A little steel sliver broke off and lodged like a splinter in my finger.
The housing, overall, makes this firestarter into basically a knurled steel cylinder, what could best be described as a kubotan, when the device is closed. Some might like this. However, I am a little bit concerned that this will not be allowed in some areas, such as airports, concert halls, and courthouses (making it less likely to be carried), and will be viewed by overenthusiastic officers and D.A.s as an illegal weapon, in some areas.
The lanyard hole is too small diameter for paracord. Not a big deal, but unfortunate.
Overall, I would say that this technology is promising and has a lot of potential, but this product is not yet quite mature enough for market.
So, will I carry it? I don't know. Right now, my inclination is that I'd be better off sticking with the ferro rod I've already been carrying and using.
I look forward to seeing the further product developments, with this firestarter. I hope I can be happier with a future version.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=542048
To be blunt, I had my doubts about this product. As Carl (Warrigal) so aptly put it (on a different forum), "I don't see what would make that any better than a Swedish fire match." Ferrocerium mischmetal alloy is already highly flammable, burning at a very high temperature. So what's the advantage of putting magnesium in there?
Despite my doubts, Marty seems worthy of trust and respect, and I was curious, so I bought one. It came in the mail a few days ago, and I've been playing around with it enough to now give a preliminary review... so here it is:
First, and most important: Does it do what is claimed? I.e., "With this new magnesium fire starter, when you throw the sparks just like you would with a plain flint bar, the magnesium sparks stay lit for several seconds and makes it even easier to start a fire... The magnesium and flint chunks throw out just like flint, but stay smoldering like little chunks of fire...." [Tom Sciacca, President of CampingSurvival.com]
Despite my initial skepticism, I have say: Yes. This product does work as claimed. You only need to use it once to see that this is not the same as other firesteels; the sparks are tending to burn differently... lasting longer and burning hotter.
How does it do this? I am not in a position to give a definitive in-depth analysis, but I can say with some confidence that larger pieces of material come off when you scrape this rod than when you scrape a regular ferrocerium rod. (Presumably, this means the rod will wear down after fewer uses, though it should still last many hundreds of strikes... plenty, if reserved for emergency use.) The material seems to be softer, making larger pieces scrape off more easily. It makes sense that larger, thicker pieces = burning more fuel, which means burning hotter and longer.
I wish I could end the review there, simply saying "This product works. It's not hype." That's true, but there is also more to be said, on a less positive note.
The material doesn't seem to ignite as easily as regular ferrocerium. It is possible to give it a good hard scrape with the sweet spot/angle of the striker edge, removing curlicue shavings 1/3 inch long, without any ignition. Repeatedly.
This stuff seems more sensitive to perfect technique than normal ferrocerium, in order to achieve ignition.
Then there is the form factor. Much like a Blastmach, you are not just buying a bare rod, you are also buying housing around the rod: a full system.
With the Aurora, I don't like the form factor at all. Granted, part of this is my personal taste; however, another part is real issues with the Aurora.
To my view, I don't like that it is much larger and much heavier than necessary. The actual rod is considerably shorter and considerably narrower diameter than a Swedish Firesteel, but the form factor makes it noticeably bulkier, and slightly heavier. For me, I don't want the frills; I want the rod and nothing but the rod. To me, the ideal form factor would be like the rod that Exploration products sells: A big, fat ferro rod with a hole drilled through it, and nothing else. The Exploration Products 4" flint may be big and heavy (actually, about the same size and weight as the Aurora), but that's because you get a huge amount of ferrocerium; and it also makes it easy to grip. Contrast that with the new Aurora, where all the size and weight does not equate to an especially large amount of usable material, and does not make it easier to grip.
OK, that's just my own taste. Some people might like, even prefer, that it comes in an indestructible, waterproof housing, with a built in striker... even at the expense of added bulk and weight.
I do wish there was some option for those who feel the housing is extraneous, for our needs, to get just the rod. Unfortunately, not. I hope there is a workable way to remove the rod from the steel housing. I haven't yet tried, but my impression is that this is going to be difficult.
So, you are stuck getting the heavy and bulky waterproof housing with the built in striker. That would be easier to accept, if these were not so problematic.
The end of the housing has a groove milled into it, with the striker built in, to make holding it at the proper angle for striking automatic. A great idea. The problem is: The angle is wrong, and it doesn't work well at all. At least on mine.
The case has a rubber (?) O ring, to make the case seal waterproof. Unfortunately, this rubber O ring is quite loose, and comes off very easily. It slides out of place whenever I open the case, and comes off whenever I am not attentive to prevent it from doing so. Thus, it is quite likely to quickly get lost, presumably rendering the housing less than reliably waterproof. Furthermore, directly in front of the O ring is screw threading which can tear up the O ring as it constantly slides on and off, over the threads.
These screw threads are sharp. They are located exactly in the (otherwise) best place to grip the device during use. This is very ergonomically poor, forcing you to either tightly grip sharp threading, or hold the device awkwardly. When I grip this device in the most natural way, it hurts, and occasionally cuts my fingers and thumb. And the screw threads are not only sharp, they're also poorly and crudely finished. A little steel sliver broke off and lodged like a splinter in my finger.
The housing, overall, makes this firestarter into basically a knurled steel cylinder, what could best be described as a kubotan, when the device is closed. Some might like this. However, I am a little bit concerned that this will not be allowed in some areas, such as airports, concert halls, and courthouses (making it less likely to be carried), and will be viewed by overenthusiastic officers and D.A.s as an illegal weapon, in some areas.
The lanyard hole is too small diameter for paracord. Not a big deal, but unfortunate.
Overall, I would say that this technology is promising and has a lot of potential, but this product is not yet quite mature enough for market.
So, will I carry it? I don't know. Right now, my inclination is that I'd be better off sticking with the ferro rod I've already been carrying and using.
I look forward to seeing the further product developments, with this firestarter. I hope I can be happier with a future version.
