We're about to show you 3 essential fire starters (as recommended by Survival Sherpa) and why you should invest in these. You may or may not have heard of these 3 fire starting techniques. All of them are important to learn!

Bic Lighter – Open Flame
Since a road flare isn’t practical for EDC, I carry a mini Bic. The resemblance of road flares to dynamite puts people on edge, especially law enforcement officers. I do have them in my vehicle kits though.

The times you really need fire is usually when fire is hardest come by. I’ll take an open flame over sparks, solar, and especially fire by friction every day of the week and twice on Sundays! As mentioned previously, you must put in deliberate practice to hone your fire craft skills by actually Doing the Stuff or these fire tools just look cool in pocket dumps on Instagram.

The lighters I carry in my bushcraft haversack and hiking backpack are more tricked out than my plain ole’ EDC Bic. Here’s a few ideas I’ve picked up for adding redundant lighters which may be of interest.

Advantages

A mini Bic will give you approximately 1,450 open flames.
A wet Bic can be back in service within a minute or so.
So easy to light a five-year-old can use one.
Designed to be used with only one hand.

Disadvantages

It’s difficult to monitor the fuel level unless the housing is clear.
They are consumable… eventually.
Extreme cold limits a Bic. Keep it warm inside a shirt pocket under your overcoat.

Ferrocerium Rod (Firesteel)
In the bushcraft/survivalist/prepper community, ferro rods have the hyped reputation of being a fail-safe fire maker. The device is simple and won’t malfunction, they say. Scrap the metal off the rod, and, poof, you have a fire, even in the rain. Sounds good but don’t buy the marketing hype!

Of these three ferro rod techniques – push, pull, and thumb lever – the latter is my favorite on softer firesteels. It offers more accurate placement of sparks. The drawback is that the thumb lever requires more fine motor skills and coordination which go bye-bye in an adrenaline spiked emergency scenario. That’s why I carry a Bic!

Advantages

Scraped with a sharp rock, broken glass, or any object sharp enough to remove metal particles, 1,500º F to 3,000º F sparks spontaneously combust as they meet air.
Sparks even in wet conditions.
The average outdoors person will never use up a ferro rod.
Can ignite many tinder sources.
For more info on ferro rods, click here. My EDC rod is way smaller than the one in the link.
Disadvantages

They are consumable… eventually.
They’re difficult to use if you’ve never practiced with this tool.
Intermediate skill level needed.

Fresnel Lens
A quality fresnel lens is useful for starting fires, examining plants and insects, splinter and tick removal, and reading navigational maps. I carry a 4 power lens in my wallet. It takes up about as much space as a credit card. I ordered a 3-pack from Amazon for under $7.

A few tips I’ve learned may help here. Not all tinder material will combust. You’ll get smoke and char but may never have an actual flame. In the short video below, within a second you’ll see smoke on crushed pine straw. Once a large area was smoldering, I had to blow the embers into a flame.

Advantages

Beginner skill level. Ever drive ants crazy with one as a kid?
Can ignite different tinder materials
Lightweight
Saves other ignition sources on sunny days.
Never wears out. Always protect your lens from scratches and breakage.
Disadvantages

Dependent on sunshine.
May only create an ember which can be coaxed into flame.

Which is your favorite fire starter device and why? It's nice knowing that you can choose from a variety of fire starters when you're bugging out. It's a good idea to add a few fire starter supplies to your bug out bag so that you'll have a few options when you need them post-collapse.

Also, don't forget to practice! Practice makes perfect.

Source: Survival Sherpa