Well, truth be told, the red ones had been given to me many years ago by another member of the forum, but I don't remember exactly who it was. I think I remember, but I don't want to make a mistake by giving the wrong name. However, I have made some that are very much like the red ones that OFM mentioned and they do work very well.
With the new esee ferro rod/mag rod coming i have a confession. I never use magnesium. Ive used it once or twice before but with cedar bark or jute twine ive just not needed it. Anyone use it alot to tell me what im missing?
99% of the time, no, you won't need it. But that one time, when you're cold and wet, or just managed to go "f*ck me!" While standing on a muddy river bank...and its stable. You can carry around the block/rod for years with no deterioration. I carry one of the Doans blocks, the ferro was worn off years ago, replaced with a Swiss fire steel. It's just...."insurance" if I ever decide to go swimming, in January, again.
Thanks. It's one of our favorites. Pahranagat Lake. It's a National Wildlife Refuge about 1 hour from Las Vegas. We like to camp there year round. The funny thing about it, is that most of the people I work with have never heard of it.