Überleben Ferro Rods and Fire Starter Kits

What Überleben makes for campers and hunters

On this site, Überleben covers two product types: ferro rod fire starters and tinder. The rods are the bulk of the grid. The tinder side is a wick-and-sleeve kit and an all-in-one tin.

Überleben's own site sells more than that: twig stoves, pots, kuksa cups, utensils and apparel. This site doesn't list stoves, cups or clothing, so they're not in the grid.

The fire gear splits like this:

• Zünden: 3/8-inch rods with wood handles, original and PRO
• Hexå: flat-sided rods, original and PRO
• Kräftig: a long 1/2-inch rod with a hardwood handle
• Leicht: a mini rod you wear as a necklace
• Tindår: waxed hemp wicks in an aluminum sleeve
• FIREKIT: rod, striker, wick and kindling in one steel box

The grid filters by type and changes as listings come and go. So I'll write about the families and what separates them, not how many are listed this week. Most specs below come from Überleben's own product pages; where only the Amazon listing has a number, I say so.

How an Überleben ferro rod works

A ferro rod (short for ferrocerium) doesn't make a flame. It makes sparks. You scrape a steel striker down the rod, hot shavings fly off, and they land in tinder that catches. UCO's guide puts it plainly: the rod only throws sparks, so something else has to burn.

Überleben says its rods throw sparks at 5,500°F and work at any altitude, in any weather, even wet. It calls its ferrocerium blend Sånft-korr and says it's made in Austria. Its how-to adds that a rod can be fully submerged, dried off and used right away.

What decides strike count is thickness. The maker's FAQ bases its estimates on it: about 15,000 strikes for a 3/8-inch rod and about 20,000 for a 1/2-inch rod. Thicker rod, more strikes, more weight.

Lineup notes: the Überleben ferro rod families

Zünden: the wood-handled 3/8-inch rods

The Zünden is the maker's first rod, per its own "which ferro rod is best" article, and it pitches the family at hiking, camping and backpacking kits and at people who like traditional gear.

• Zünden (original): 3/8-inch rod, 4.5 inches long, 2.5 oz, 15,000+ strikes, handmade hardwood handle, multi-tool scraper and 550 paracord lanyard
• Zünden PRO: 3/8-inch (9.5 mm) rod, about 15,000 strikes, a wood-composite handle the maker calls Holztek, and the AmbiStriker

Here's what actually changes between them: the handle material and the striker. Same thickness, same strike estimate. The PRO also comes in several colors, which is how Renee picks fire gear. (It works. A bright handle is easier to find in the leaves.)

Hexå: the flat-sided rods

The Hexå is a six-sided rod, and the maker's point is the flat faces. It says flat sides give the striker more contact, about 8 mm per side on the original, and more contact means more sparks.

• Hexå (original): 1/2-inch (12.5 mm) rod, 20,000+ strikes, 4.2 oz, leather lanyard and a 6-function multi-tool scraper; the Amazon listing gives a 6-inch rod
• Hexå PRO: 14.5 mm thick, 6.5 inches long overall, 26,000+ strikes, 5.2 oz, AmbiStriker and lanyard

The PRO is the thickest rod Überleben lists and the highest strike estimate in the family. The maker also claims it throws nearly six times the sparks of a standard round rod; that's the maker's number, not mine. Its "which rod" article pitches the Hexå at campers who don't mind the extra weight and at bushcraft folks.

Kräftig: the long 1/2-inch rod

The Kräftig lists a 1/2-inch (12.7 mm) rod, 7 inches overall, 4.9 oz, 20,000 strikes, a handcrafted hardwood handle, a multi-tool striker and a paracord lanyard. The maker calls it "the original workhorse ferro rod."

Length is the point. A longer rod gives you a longer stroke, and the maker's own advice is that bigger fire starters are generally easier to use than small ones.

Leicht: the necklace rod

The Leicht is the small one: a hex-profile mini rod listed at 1.5 by 3/8 inch, up to 15,000 strikes, under 1 oz, sold as a fire starter necklace; its Amazon listing adds a striker and a paracord lanyard. The maker pitches it at ultralight backpackers, everyday carry and anyone who wants a backup fire starter.

It's the rod you actually have on you when the main kit is back in the truck, which is where the main kit usually is.

The plain hardwood-handle rod

The grid also carries a plain ferro rod with a hardwood handle whose listing gives a 2.9-inch rod about 0.3 inch thick. The grid shows its listing details; read the listing title for exactly what's in the box.

Rods from every maker, sorted by thickness and handle, are on the ferro rod page.

Lineup notes: Überleben tinder and kits

Tindår wick and bellow

The Tindår is a tinder wick, not a rod. The maker describes three paraffin-wax-infused hemp wicks, 13 inches each, with about an hour of total burn per wick, and an anodized aluminum sleeve that stays cool to the touch and doubles as a small bellows. Whole thing: 0.6 oz.

The maker's demo says to fluff the end of the wick, hold a ferro rod near it and strike down. Refills come as wick packs; you roll the tip and twist it into the sleeve. It's the flame you carry for when the woods are wet and the birch bark isn't.

FIREKIT

The FIREKIT is the all-in-one tin. The maker lists what's inside:

• Hexå Mini: a 3/8-inch ferro rod
• AmbiStriker: coated carbon steel
• Tipi kindling: dry birch, about a 3-minute burn
• Tindår wick and bellow
• EPDM rubber band, which the maker says burns a long time
• Steel slider box, 3.7 by 2.3 by 0.9 inches, 4 oz total

It's a whole fire in a box the size of a deck of cards. Fire starters and tinder from other makers are on the fire starters page and the fire starter sticks page.

How to choose within the Überleben lineup

Pick the thickness first

Thickness decides strike count, per the maker's own FAQ. A 3/8-inch rod (Zünden, Leicht, the FIREKIT's Hexå Mini) is lighter and lists about 15,000 strikes. A 1/2-inch rod (Hexå, Kräftig) lists about 20,000. The Hexå PRO goes thicker still. If the rod lives in a camp box and gets used every weekend, go thick. If it rides in a pocket or around your neck, go thin.

Then the shape

Round or flat. The Hexå's flat faces give the striker a flat track; the round rods (Zünden, Kräftig) are the classic shape. The maker's FAQ names size, weight and ease of use as the things to weigh.

Then the handle and striker

A wood handle (Zünden, Kräftig) gives you something to grip. The PRO models use the AmbiStriker, a coated carbon-steel scraper the maker says is ambidextrous. Left-handers at camp will care. Walt will say he's never needed an ambidextrous anything, and then borrow it.

Then decide if you need tinder in the box

A rod alone needs tinder you find or bring. The Tindår wick and the FIREKIT bring their own. If your fire kit is "a rod and good intentions," add the wick. On its own site, the maker also sells the Tipi birch kindling from the FIREKIT in 3-packs, and wick refills for the Tindår sleeve, so a kit you build around one rod can be restocked piece by piece instead of replaced whole.

Using a ferro rod the way the maker shows it

Prep the rod and the tinder

• Scrape the black coating off a new rod before first use; a few long strokes expose the silver
• Gather the driest tinder you can: dry grass, dry moss, birch bark, fine shavings
• Dry damp tinder in advance, on a dark tarp in the sun or in a pocket against your body

Strike

Überleben's how-to says to plant the rod firmly in the tinder, hold the scraper at about 45 degrees, and push the scraper down the full length of the rod. The other way works too: hold the scraper still and pull the rod back away from the tinder. Gerber's guide describes the pull method the same way, with your knuckles resting beside the tinder so the rod hovers over it.

One detail the maker calls out: stop just before you reach the tinder. Striking into the bundle knocks the ember out. Once the tinder catches, add dry grass, then twigs, then kindling, then bigger wood.

My one rule on ferro rods

My opinion on this page: a ferro rod is the backup that always works, not the only plan. The reason is in UCO's guide and the maker's own how-to: the rod only throws sparks, and sparks need dry tinder to become a fire. A rod plus a wick or a dry tinder bundle in a bag is a fire kit. A rod by itself is a very reliable way to make sparks next to wet leaves.

Fire safety

Check fire restrictions before you build any fire; the Smokey Bear program's advice is to ask the local public lands agency and skip the fire in dry or windy conditions. Put it out with water, stir the ashes, add more water, and feel for heat with the back of your hand. If it's too hot to touch, it's too hot to leave.

Überleben facts

Überleben lists its headquarters in Bonners Ferry, Idaho, in the state's north panhandle near the Canadian border. Its site explains the name as the German word for "to survive," or "to live well." The maker says its Sånft-korr ferrocerium is made in Austria.

On returns, the maker's refund policy says it backs everything with what it calls the Stoke Guarantee and will try to make it right if you're not satisfied; a full refund needs the product unused and in its original packaging.

Thickness, then shape, then handle. And scrape the coating off at the kitchen table, where your hands are warm and nobody's waiting on supper.