This is an updated review guide on the best ferro rod. Our first review roundup was over four years ago and we will continue to update as new products are released and as new firestarters are introduced.

Ferrocerium rods let you start fires easily in a wide range of conditions. Ferro rods have been around for a while and have grown into a wilderness survival staple. They can generate thousands of sparks, making them superior to lighters and matches over a long period.

We’ve done hundreds of hours of research and testing on ferro rods, searching for the best ones for value, longevity, budget, and portability. If you want to be able to start a fire in any situation, one of our ferro rod recommendations will do the job.

Contents (Jump to a Section)

The Best Ferro Rod

Bayite 4″ Ferro Rod

Simple, Consistent, and Durable

A thick, basic rod that creates superheated sparks consistently. Includes a lanyard and striker.

$13* from Amazon

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

Bayite has been pumping out some solid fire starters, and this modest one takes the top spot in our roundup. This Bayite Ferro Rod consists of a 4″ ferrocerium rod at 3/8″ diameter on a paracord lanyard with a multipurpose striker. That packs a lot of fire strikes into a small package. This makes it an excellent choice for bug out bags and other mobile survival kits.

Ferro Rod Upgrade

Überleben Kräftig 8″ Ferro Rod

Thick, Long, and Durable

Long enough to throw tons of sparks and wide enough to be durable in your kit.

$32* from Amazon

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

Überleben has been changing the game when it comes to firestarters, providing consistently higher quality products. Don’t let their scandinavian-sounding name fool you- they are based here in the USA (Idaho). It is the ferro rod’s ferro rod. At 3/4″ thick, you would be hard-pressed to get to the end of the spark life with this one. Its massive size and width make it harder to misplace- which is pretty darn important. If you are looking for the biggest and best, Überleben has you covered.

Budget Ferro Rod

Schrade 4 Inch Ferro Rod

Small, Cheap, and Effective

The practical alternative for budget-conscience wilderness survival.

$8* from Amazon

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

The adage usually goes that ‘you get what you pay for.’ Well that happens to be exactly the case with the Schrade Ferro Rod– just minus the negative connotation. You’re paying for a ferro rod and you’re getting exactly that: a trusty ferro rod. It sparks well and does not pretend to be more than it is.

Portable Ferro Rod

Bayite Toggle Hole Ferro Rod

Tiny, Lightweight, and Versatile

Amazing little ferro rods that can be threaded onto any kit or added to any loadout.

$10* from Amazon

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

Bayite Toggle Hole Ferro Rods are an awesome way to upgrade any equipment, pack, or clothing with drawstrings. These things thread onto anything with a string, or you could make a lanyard for them with paracord yourself. They let you take the power of hot ferro sparks wherever you want. You can even thread them on the laces of your boots. Let your imagination run wild with them and let every kit have a ferro rod!

Everything We Recommend

Bayite 6″ Ferro Rod

A thick, basic rod that creates superheated sparks consistently. Includes a lanyard and striker.

Where to Buy

$13* at Amazon

*at time of reviewing

Überleben Kräftig 8″ Ferro Rod

Long enough to throw tons of sparks and wide enough to be durable in your kit.

Where to Buy

$32* at Amazon

*at time of reviewing

Schrade 4″ Ferro Rod

The practical alternative for budget-conscience wilderness survival.

Where to Buy

$10* at Amazon

*at time of reviewing

Bayite Toggle Hole Ferro Rod

Amazing little ferro rods that can be threaded onto any kit or added to any loadout.

Where to Buy

$10* at Amazon

*at time of reviewing

What, Exactly, is a Ferrocerium Rod?

Ferrocerium is a synthetic alloy invented by a German scientist in 1903. A ferrocerium (abbreviated: ferro) rod is this synthetic alloy simply formed in a tube shape with one main purpose: to make sparks.

And really hot sparks at that. Striking a ferro rod with a dense material produces sparks up to 6000 degrees Fahrenheit.

The heat of the sparks is one element that sets ferro rods apart from traditional flint-and-steel. Ferro rods are also much easier to pull sparks off of. You can strike it with many dense materials including:

• Steel (the spine of a fixed blade knife is most common)
• Flint
• Glass

Ferrocerium rods give us an elegantly simple solution for creating fire in tough environments.

Militaries around the world have used ferro rods in survival kits, and you will find a ferro rod in almost any prepper or survivalists kits as one of their fire solutions.

The alloy, ferrocerium, can be tough to pronounce and spell if you are not familiar with it. You may hear some of these used by accident in place of ‘ferro rod’:

• ferrell rod
• feral rod
• pharoah rod

Carl Auer von Welsbach, the inventor of ferrocerium, was German and named it accordingly.

How to Use a Ferro Rod

A ferro rod is a far cry from a multitool, so it is pretty straightforward to use. It has one purpose. If you are getting the ferro rod out, you are looking to start a fire. If you need a refresher on fire starting in general, we have you covered with our fire starting guide.

Ferro rods produce very hot sparks, so use common sense safety and supervise children.

The simplified steps include:

1. Gather and group your tinder
2. Hold the ferro rod with the far end under or against the pile of tinder
3. Drag your striker down the length of the rod while holding it at a 45 degree angle
4. Bright, hot sparks will rain down from the rod into the tinder
5. Check the tinder pile for smoke, if there is no smoke, repeat steps 2-4
6. With smoke curling up from the tinder, blow gently to stoke the ember
7. Once the tinder ignites into flame, place into a campfire and give it a fuel load

Don’t get down if you have some trouble: persistence and practice is key.

It is also good to know that most ferro rods come with a black protective coating on the rod that must be scraped off to expose the alloy underneath.

Who Needs a Ferro Rod?

Ferro rods have a place in many different types of survival and emergency kits.

Some kits that usually include a ferro rod:

• disaster survival kit
• bug out bag
• get home bag
• everyday carry

This last bullet point has some exciting options, as we pointed out earlier with our portable pick.

Wearable Ferro Rods

EDC (Everyday Carry) is one of the easiest ways to stay prepared for any situation. Many times people have packs and bags with tons of functionality and versatile gear- only to get separated from them in an emergency.

With an EDC strategy, you can avoid this pitfall.

Ferro rods are typically lightweight and small to begin with, but when it comes to wearable items and being on the go, every ounce matters. This is where the wearable ferro rods really shine.

Our portable suggestion, the bayite drilled ferro rods are perfect on zipper pulls and laced through shoelaces… but are just one of a few options we examined. We also checked out:

Fire Laces

Swap these bad boys out for your regular shoe or boot laces and you will always have four ferro rods with you. They are TSA compliant for the travelers out there, and very discrete. Having some fire laces in place of regular laces can provide some extra functionality with virtually no added weight.

As a bonus, the laces on the fire laces are made from 550 paracord, which adds even more functionality over much weaker standard laces.

Ferro Rod Necklace

Misplacing a ferro rod, or any fire starter for that matter could be your demise in a survival situation. In survival contest shows such as Alone or Naked and Afraid, there are constant examples of contestants having to tap out after losing their fire starter.

A ferro rod necklace could have prevented many of these situations. It is simply a ferro rod and striker with a longer cord attached. Usually, ferro rods have a keychain-sized cord attached, just to keep the rod and striker together during storage. Stretching this cord out to a lanyard size lets you wear it around your neck. With a place to store it, you are much less likely to misplace the rod by setting it off to the side.

Ferro Rod Holder

Another strong option is simply a holder for the ferro rod. Laced through a belt, a ferro rod holder can give you a place to reliable keep the important survival tool.

Most options have the ferro rod holder paired up with a knife sheath since a knife spine and ferro rods work so well together.

The Best Ferro Rod Scraper

Scrapers that are included with a ferro rod kit can do the job. As we discussed before, though, there are plenty of scrapers that could do the job: including glass. We’re not interested in just getting it done, we are more interested in always getting it done and providing extra versatility. That is why we look for:

• Functionality
• Durability
• Versatility

Not just for ferro rod scrapers and strikers, but all of the gear we review and put in our own kits.

Most people use one of four things to scrape and strike their ferro rods:

1. Knife Spine
2. Ferro Rod Scraper
3. Hacksaw Blade
4. Knife Sharpener

Sometimes, a knife spine will not work or will be more difficult to use based on the blade material and spine shape. Carbide steel blades with a sharp 90-degree spine work much better than a composite blade with a rounded spine. If you have a fixed-blade knife setup that is very durable, you could save some weight by using your knife instead of a dedicated scraper.

Ferro rod scrapers usually work very well but provide limited versatility otherwise. If you are using a scraper, try to be sure that it can be used for other applications, like a backup cutting tool or even as a reflector.

Hacksaw blades work great and are about as versatile as you can get with these strikers. These work especially well with ferro rods stored in kits and bags rather than EDC. Hacksaw blades are a necessary inclusion in most of these kits and striking a ferro rod with one is just one more way they provide versatility.

If you carry a carbide knife sharpener anyways, you may not need a ferro rod scraper. Sharpeners are known to give off a good shower of sparks if you strike one against a ferro rod.

The Best Tinder For a Ferro Rod

Even though a good ferro rod will light just about anything flammable with it’s superheated sparks, tinder still should be a consideration. Luckily, you don’t have to be too picky.

Dry grass and moss always work well to form a bird’s nest, but keeping some tinder with you is a no-brainer. Sometimes we don’t have the luxury to go picking around the woods or foraging for strips of paper to get a fire started.

Fuel tabs are small and keep a flame lit long and hot. They are definitely our preference, and when combined with a ferro rod, give you a really reliable fire-starting method. The best fuel tabs for ferro rods are:

1. Wetfire
2. TinderQuik
3. Esbit

Like we said, though… a ferro rod will light just about any tinder; these just happen to be the best for portability, reliability, and storage.

DIY Ferro Rod Handles

If you are good with your hands and looking to take on an easy project, a DIY Ferro Rod is a great way to add some personality to your survival gear. To make a custom handle you will just need a few materials:

• Ferro rod
• Drill bit the same diameter as the ferro rod
• Drillable handle material (wood, plastic, bone, etc)
• Super glue
• Drill

The steps:

1. Tape your drill bit to the length you would like to recess the rod into the handle material. Shoot for 1/3 of the total rod length (at least a half inch) to prevent any rod wobble.
2. Drill out the center of the handle material to depth. Using a vice can help.
3. Drop some glue into the new hole and smear just a little onto the ferro rod where it will be recessed.
4. Jam the ferro rod into the handle hole and let the glue dry.
5. Once the handle and rod are dry, give the rod a tug to be sure it is secure.
6. Let the sparks fly.

Modifying survival equipment is one great way to get hands-on and familiar with it. Do not just stick your gear in a bag or kit and forget about it. Practice with it. Take it apart and put it back together. Familiarize yourself with your gear and it will pay off in the end.

Sources and References

All of our experience and the testing we do to determine the best ferro rod is useless without listing our research sources and references. We leaned on these for the book knowledge that we paired with our hands-on testing and practical military and prepping experience:

Langley, A. & Needham, A. (2021). A Spark of Inspiration: Experimentally Testing Manganese Dioxide as a Fire Lighting Aide. EXARC Journal. Volume 2021. Issue 1. (Source).

Pitarch Martí, A. (2019). Provenance, modification, and use of manganese-rich rocks at Le Moustier (Dordogne, France). PLoS ONE. Volume 14. Issue 7. (Source).

The Final Word

Ferrocerium has been around for over 110 years at this point, and survivalists and preppers are thankful to Carl, the German inventor for taking the time to discover it. A ferro rod has been a mainstay of survival kits since its usefulness has been demonstrated repeatedly throughout history.

Take care of your ferro rod and it will take care of you, providing tens of thousands of sparks to easily start fires in any condition. Pack one confidently, knowing you have the power to stay warm whenever you need to.

If you are looking for more info for fire starting, our readers find these articles useful:

• The Best Magnifying Glass Fire Starter for Survival and Prepping
• The Best Bushcraft Knife for Survival
• How to Start a Campfire: A Basic Survival Skill

We presented quite a lot of information, but as always: if you have any more questions let us know and we would be happy to help. Our research and testing settled on the Bayite 6″ ferro rod as the best option given its functionality, durability, versatility, and value. We also gave a shout-out to a few others as potential upgrade, budget, or portable options. Your specific situation may call for a different solution.

Keep exploring, stay prepared, and be safe.

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The post The Best Ferro Rod for Survival Fire Starting appeared first on TruePrepper.

By: Rusty Collins
Title: The Best Ferro Rod for Survival Fire Starting
Sourced From: www.trueprepper.com/best-ferro-rod/
Published Date: Thu, 08 Dec 2022 13:37:45 +0000

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