InstaFlam Field Testing Part I

A few weeks ago I received an email from Derek Trott who is the VP of Sales for a company called Ramagex based out of Quebec.  Derek had visited the Beyond the Fire website and felt that he had a product that was perfect for our School.

The product was called "Instaflam" which he described as an environmentally friendly fire starter that instantly lights when wet.  Well, for those who know us here at BTF you know that begs to be field tested.

Derek and Instaflam were up for the challenge and graciously sent us their product.  I advised Derek that BTF was not a School of Camping nor do we promote products that cannot stand up to rigorous testing in harsh conditions.  Derek didn't hesitate to welcome the challenge.

Simply put, the Instaflam product is composed of wood wool which is saturated with paraffin wax.  The company states that it will light even when wet and burn for approx. 10 minutes.

So, with snow on the ground, -10 degrees and a good northwest breeze I took the product out for Part I of the field testing.

Test 1: The One Match Test

In a survival situation you must ration every item you have because you never know how long you will be there or what challenged you will face.

Placing the Instaflam product one inch into the depth of the snow I used one regular waterproof match.  Instaflam immediately ignited within a split second of the flam touching the product.  I was impressed.

I then timed the burn time to challenge their 10 minute claim.  Well, 18 minutes and 22 seconds later the single Instaflam unit burned out.  I was very impressed.  This kind of burn time provides the user with plenty of flame and heat to get small tinders and branches igniting into a fire.

Test 2: Fully Submerged and Floating

Not just dipped and wet.  Fully submerged and floating.  This is survival folks - not camping !  If you follow the blog you know full well my thoughts and passion for cold water submersion preparation.  Any product I carry summer or winter must be tested in these conditions.

So with a camping pot filled with cold water I headed back out the snow where I placed the Instaflam product into the water.  I then proceeded to fully submerge the product under the water for 30 seconds.  With the Instaflam floating on the top I again utilized one waterproof match.  With several seconds the product ignited.  I was impressed !

The product stayed lit for 3 minutes and 12 seconds.  Keep in mind that this product was fully submerged and then floating in water.  There was not a dry shred on that product when the testing began.  I was blown away.

I then removed the product from the water and placed it into the snow and manipulated the product a bit at which time I was able to relight it.  Amazing.  It then had a running burn time of 9 minutes.

Part I Conclusion

When I received the product and conducted the research I was sold on its suitability for the camping adventurer.  However, I was not completely confident in its suitability for the hardcore back country employed personnel or search and rescue operators.

In doing Part I of the testing I was amazed at the products resiliency and ease of ignition.  This product has proven itself as more than a ma and pa camping product.  This is an outdoor adventurer product that suits minimalists, naturalists, environmentalist and anyone else who just wants a product that they can trust when a fire is necessary.

This product has already founds its way into my SAR gear as well as into my instructional pack.

Stay tuned for Part II of the field testing where we push the product to points not yet explored !!

Please visit www.instaflam.com to find out more and to locate your closest dealer.  Do not hit the bush this year without this product in your pack.

Circle of Survival

With years of experience as a Search and Rescue Operator as well as a Survival Instructor I have learned many constants that are known about wilderness emergencies and the responses that have led to successful survivors and their rescue.

Whether you read literature designed for Search and Rescue Professionals or books designed for outdoor enthusiasts you will undoubtedly find information related to successful outcomes from a variety of wilderness emergencies.  You will unfortunately also learn about wilderness emergencies where the individual succumbed to the elements.

When developing our syllubus' for our school I understood that the majority of students were adults and therefor learned more from field and dirt time than from watching videos posted on social media sites.  It was also clear through personal experience that adult learners were more successful when information was delivered through the use of visual aids rather than written documents.

Over the years I have instructed many courses where I have been tasked with presenting topics on the Enemies of Survival as well as the Survival Priorities.  However, Survival Priorities is a topic filled with "What ifs".  I often found myself responding to each question on a case by case basis.  The difficulty in these questions is that there are no correct answer nor is there a consistant numbering of those Survival Priorities.

Survival in a wilderness survival emergency is never a static situation.  This situations are dynamic and ever changing.  That ever changing nature makes your Survival Priorities ever changing and evolving.  

This winter has provided me with the opportunity and time to create a visual aid which I have called the Circle of Survival.  A circle is known as a shape that has no start and no end.  It is ever rotating. 

The inner most circle is your Situation or Wilderness Survival Emergency. 

The middle circle is an area of constant change.  You must Assess your situation.  Plan your appropriate course of action.  Then you must Act to fulfill your priorities in surviving your situation.

The outer most circle contains the options of survival priorities that you must deal with in order to successfully survive your survival emergency or situation.

It is no secret that many of victims have perished in wilderness survival emergencies because they acted without planning or failed to assess because they panicked.  An understanding of the Circle of Survival will provide you with the knowledge necessary to properly Assess your Situation, Plan an appropriate course of action and then Act to prioritize your survival needs.

The Beyond the Fire School of Survival  "Circle of Survival"

My Season is Almost Over

When I awoke this morning to the time of the clocks changed I sadly realized that wonderful winter season was slipping away. The sun was bright with a familiar touch of warmth that notifies us that Spring is just around the corner. 

So, with knife around neck, boots on feet and an hour to myself I wandered into the bush to enjoy the sounds and sights that signal the change in seasons. 

It was soon obvious that I wasn't the only one enjoying the warmth of the afternoon. Two snowshoe hare and morning fresh deer tracks accompanied by the sounds of the spring birds bouncing from tree to tree. 

Along the way I was lucky enough to find a stand of beautiful white birches that gifted me with a few chunks of true tinder fungus. A great find with a real nice spongy orangish core perfect for primitive fire making.  I also found a wonderful white pine filled with Old Man's Beard perfect for tinder material. 

In the end I was able to spend some time in the bush enjoying what's left of a winter that has brought much growth and experience for us here at Beyond the Fire School of Survival.  

The Wilderness Solutions Fire Piston

Recently I stumbled across a website for the company Wilderness Solutions located in New York.  The company specializes in Primitive Fire making tools, supplies and instruction.

30 minutes later I had read all of the material and watched several videos that were posted about the 2nd Generation Fire Piston.  The concept of the Fire Piston intrigued me and my thirst for new knowledge.  The thought of learning another way of creating fire that has been around for generations excited me and without hesitation I ordered one.

As with all ordered products the wait is always the worse part.  However, when the tidy brown box arrived I ripped into as if it were Christmas again ! Inside was the 2nd Generation Fire Piston and a ziplock baggy of rolled char cloth.

I won't dare say that I was skeptical but I wondered how many attempts it would take for me to create an ember using this method which I had never attempted.  With a quick read of the included instructions I headed down into the laundry room to give it a go.

I placed a rolled piece of char cloth into the recessed pit of the steel rod.  I gently placed the tip into the tube and with a swift palm I struck the handle jamming the rod into the tube and quickly removed it.  It was at that point that my jaw seemingly dropped as I gazed at the glowing ember on the char cloth.  I was sold.  Right then and there this primitive tool was to be a paracord neck carry for me !!

So today I decided to take a few pics of the process to allow you to see the Wilderness Solutions Fire Piston in action.

The Wilderness Solutions 2nd Gen Fire Piston
with small piece of char cloth

Birch Bark, Jute Twine and the Fire Piston.

The starting position !!

The glowing ember in the fire piston.

The coal transferred onto the Jute.

Fire is Life !!

This Fire Piston that was created by Jeff Wagner is an amazing tool and has proven itself to be dependable and simple to use.  From a pure survival standpoint I consider this to be one of the best fire making tools I own.  The successful use requires little to no fine motor skills which is essential if ever submerged in water during a winter survival emergency.

When you get a chance jump over to Jeff's website at www.wildersol.com and take a look at his amazing research and products.

Fire is Life !!

Prepare Today ... Survive Tomorrow

A Day to Play

Very rarely do I get to head into the wilderness without an agenda or a task required to be completed. However, today was a refreshingly different day with a focus on relaxation. 

This week our family inherited two kids from very close friends who were travelling abroad. 

Young Noah always asks me a thousand questions about survival and the cabin. So today was the day !

Noah, Justin and I headed out to the Beyond the Fire School of Survival location where we met up with Instructor John. Once there we wasted no time in grabbing our gear and headed out to teach the boys some skills and above all else - to have some fun. 

The two boys selected the site, shovelled away the snow and got busy collecting firewood for the days adventure. With a little help from John and myself the boys constructed their lean-to shelter and filled it with bedding materials in preparation for their lunchtime snack - Bannock. 

However, in order to cook Bannock we needed a fire. Cue Young Noah and his desire to learn the art of making a fire. Not just any fire making would do though. We decided that Noah would make the fire by nurturing a coal into a flame. 

Noah prepped his birds nest with birch bark, cattail and bundled Jute twine. Using a new fire piston I created a coal which we transferred into Noah's nest. That's when the magic happened. With coal in nest Noah gently blew into the nest until he created a flame. The look in his eyes was priceless. He could not believe he created fire !

Shortly after we stoked the fire the boys watched in disgust as I wrapped what seemed like a sloppy mess of something around their fire sticks. But in a very short time they were mesmerized as they watched the dough rising and creating an amazing survival food known as Bannock. 

At the end of the day both the boys had an amazing time out in the fresh air doing what we were all meant to do. For John and I it was a much needed retreat from the stressors of real life. 

Hudson's Bay Tobacco Fire Tin Kit

Over the past 3 weeks I have had the opportunity to spend a lot of time out in the bush. This time in the bush has provided me the training platform to put some new kit through the testing process. 

The latest item to be put through the riggers of testing was the Hudson's Bay Tobacco Fire Tin Kit.   I purchased the kit from the best outdoor equipment store that I know - The Canadian Outdoor Equipment Co. 

The kit drew my attention due to its primitive/voyageur fire starting principles. There are countless fire starting methods that exist from primitive to state of the art. However, I have very little experience with the flint and steel. Thus I was excited to get started. 

The Hudson's Bay Tobacco Fire Tin Kit :

The Fire Tin

The Tin opened up. Note the removable
 cap that exposes the fire lighting
magnifying glass.

The Tin with all the contents : Flint, Steel,
Char Cloth and Jute.



The lit char cloth with a glowing ember

 after a single strike of the flint

with the steel. 

This kit was well worth the investment and honestly after 3 weeks of use it will now be a staple in my pack during any outdoor excursion.  The flint is large enough to hold and has great edges that when struck with the steel produce solid sparks that easily catch the char cloth.

The tin itself is large enough to house the items supplied but will also allow for several other tinder items such as birch bark to be carried.  The tin is lightweight and robust allowing it to bang around in your pack with no worry of damage.

Similar to the fire kit I made and discussed a few posts ago, pre-made kits that you carry provide the confidence and materials necessary to make fire anywhere at anytime.

Fire is life !!

I highly recommend this Hudson's Bay Tobacco Fire Tin Kit from The Canadian Outdoor Equipment Company.  Visit their site by clicking on link in my favourites on the right side.

Stand Behind Them - Or Stand In Front !

What an amazing opportunity we had recently to spend two days in the bush with the 3RCR Snipers. A skilled group of amazing Canadian Soldiers who are at home operating in the wilderness.

Although the weather played havoc on us during the two days the experience was still great. These guys bring a very unique skill set and a knowledge of the bush that is second to none. 

After a fire starting lesson and an exercise briefing they grabbed their rubble and headed off into the bush to commence the task at hand. As an instructor I found it amazing to watch as these teammates worked seamlessly to get the job done. They were effective and efficient and required no guidance on group dynamics or leadership principles. 

Even more exciting for us was watching each of the 4 teams construct totally different shelters from one another. We instruct and motivate our students to construct the "A-Frame" shelter design but we never steer anyone away from taking the opportunity to perfect a design they're comfortable with. 

As mentioned the weather was terrible and required the lads to prepare for hypothermia type conditions. Warm days, cool nights and rain. Definitely unseasonal and very dangerous. Staying dry and sheltered became a serious priority. This was difficult due to a location that provided very little green resources. 

In the end the experience was great and we feel very fortunate to have been invited to spend the time with some great soldiers.

Team 1

Team 2

Team 3

Team 4

Team 1 enjoying their fire !

Team 4 plus a stow away !!

Instructor John brewing up some lunch !