Many people who are constructing the survival bracelets seen all over the place, are now making them with toggles made from firesteel, otherwise known as a ferrocerium rod. This adds another survival item to the bracelet, in addition to the cordage itself. A brilliant idea!
Based off of this idea, I decided to construct a separate model of the Paracord Survival Necklaces with a firesteel toggle. The toggle is one inch long & 5/16 in diameter. The firesteel toggle is fixed to the necklace, meaning that the paracord has been threaded through two holes drilled into the firesteel. This means that there is no need to remove the firesteel in order to use it, simply unclasp it from around your neck.
Many of the firesteels available today are packaged with a cheap steel striker. A knife with a sharp 90 degree angle on its spine will produce a better result of sparks. In fact, you don’t even need a knife, but any object which has a 90 degree angle. This includes items that can be found in nature, including a sharp stone or rock, a junk piece of steel, even a shard of glass. If you’re venturing out into the wilderness, there’s a good chance you’re already carrying a knife with you. A knife is arguably the single most important tool to have on your person when in the outdoors. In fact, if you’re carrying a firesteel, you’d better be carrying a knife also! A knife is essential in helping prepare tinder & kindling. A featherstick can be helpful in getting your fire going, especially if your tinder is damp. You need a knife to make a featherstick. In his teaching, Dave Canterbury of the Pathfinder School, LLC emphasizes the importance of the 5 C’s: a cutting tool, cover, combustion, a container & cordage. With the Paracord Survival Necklace With Firesteel, you have two of those items checked off.
~The Pilgrim.
Last week I went on a short 3-day backpacking trip with my wife in Mount Everett State Reservation in western MA. When friends asked us where we were going & we said Mount Everett, almost everyone said, “Mount Everest?” After a few times, it wasn’t funny, though each person that asked us thought it was a hoot. Anyway, Mount Everett is nothing quite like the tallest mountain in the world, but we did have fun.
