A lighter is the easy way to start a campfire, until it runs out of gas, gets wet or breaks in the bottom of a bag. That’s when you want a second way to make a flame.
The RKR Outdoor Ferro Rod Flint Fire Starter Kit is ours. We keep it as a backup in case our lighter runs out or doesn’t survive the trip. It’s a good all-in-one kit, and I paid $29 for it.
What You’re Getting
A fire starter kit in a sliding metal tin. Inside are a 10 cm ferro rod, a multi-tool striker on a paracord lanyard, and a hemp tinder wick that runs through a metal bellow. It comes in black or red.
What we like
- A good all-in-one kit
- Backup when the lighter runs out
- Sparks at 3,000 °C, in any weather
- Rod lasts 15,000+ strikes
- Tinder wick with bellow included
- Sliding metal tin fits in a pocket
What we don’t
- Takes more effort than a lighter
- The tinder wick gets used up
- $29 is more than a plain ferro rod
Quick Specs
| Spec | Details |
|---|---|
| Brand | RKR Outdoor |
| Colour options | BlackRed |
| Weight | About 143 gFull kit in the tin |
| Ferro rod | 10 cm long1/2 inch thickMagnesium alloy |
| Spark temperature | 3,000 °C |
| Rod life | 15,000+ strikes |
| Tinder | Hemp wick with metal bellow |
| Striker | Multi-tool: bottle openerTinder scraperRulerSpine scraperHex wrenchMap scale |
| Lanyard | Paracord |
| Case | Sliding metal tin |
An all-in-one kit
What I like about this kit is that it’s complete. A ferro rod on its own only gives you sparks; you still need something for the sparks to land on. Here the rod, the striker and the tinder are packed together, so when you open the tin you have everything you need to get a fire going.
That’s also why it works so well as a backup. It sits in the car or the pack and asks for nothing: no gas, no batteries, nothing to dry out. If the lighter runs out or doesn’t survive, the tin is there.
Ferro rod and striker
The rod is 10 cm long and half an inch thick, made of a magnesium alloy. Scrape the striker down it and it throws a shower of sparks at 3,000 °C, at any altitude and in any weather. It’s rated for 15,000+ strikes, so as a backup it will outlast a lot of lighters.
The striker is a small multi-tool. Besides the edge for the rod, it has a bottle opener, a concave tinder scraper, a ruler, a sharp spine scraper, a hex wrench and a map scale. It hangs with the rod on a paracord lanyard, so the two stay together.
Tinder wick and bellow
The tinder is a hemp wick that runs through a short metal tube. You pull a bit of wick out, fluff up the end and aim the sparks at it. The wick is waterproof, and the tube doubles as a bellow: once you have an ember, you blow through it to feed the fire with air, without putting your face in the smoke.
The wick does get shorter every time you use it, so it won’t last forever the way the rod does. For a backup kit that isn’t a big worry, but it’s something to know.
Tin, size and weight
Everything packs into a black sliding metal tin, which keeps the parts together and stops the rod and striker rattling around in a bag. It’s small enough for a pocket, a glovebox or the lid of a pack. On my scale, the full kit in the tin weighs about 143 g.
We’ve also reviewed the larger RKR Outdoor ferro rod fire starter, which has a hardwood handle and a long paracord lanyard but no tin or tinder. This kit is the more compact of the two, and the more complete.
Conclusion: RKR Outdoor Ferro Rod Flint Fire Starter KitConclusion
The RKR Outdoor Ferro Rod Flint Fire Starter Kit is a good all-in-one kit: rod, striker and tinder wick with bellow in one small tin. We keep it as a backup for the lighter, and that’s the job it suits best. It takes more effort than a lighter, the wick gets used up, and at $29 it costs more than a plain rod. As a backup that’s always ready, it’s a very good buy.
A good all-in-one fire starter kit in a pocket-size tin, with a ferro rod, striker and tinder wick with bellow.
It takes more effort than a lighter, and the wick gets used up over time. A very good backup for hikers and emergency kits.
- Hikers
- Emergency kits
- Campers
Yes. I paid $29, which is more than a plain ferro rod, but you get the striker, the tinder wick with bellow and the tin with it, and a backup like this lasts for years.
