Use
When using natural flint and steel, many hard, non-porous rocks that can take a sharp edge, such as chert, jasper, obsidian, or some petrified woods can be used.
The sharp edge of the flint is used to strike the fire steel at an acute angle. With practice, small pieces of steel are shaved off the fire steel. The friction of shaving the steel off the fire steel and the passage through air as they fall heats the pieces to a molten state. The resulting "sparks," captured in water, are tear-drop shaped.
"Charcloth" (charred cotton) is usually used as tinder with natural flint and steel because it more readily catches the low-temperature sparks, which can then can be blown into flame.
With modern ferrocerium fire strikers (AKA "metal match," "fire steel," "man-made flint," "fire striker"), small shavings are torn off the rod with any hard, sharp edge -- a supplied metal scraper, a piece of hacksaw blade, a piece of glass, or, commonly, the back of a knife ground to a sharp angle. These shavings ignite at very high temperatures (3000 C) and are much more effective than sparks from natural flint and steel. They can ignite paper, leaves, or dried grass with less effort than natural flint and steel.
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