05-31-18 revision: We've purchased Bayite ferro rods three times now and used them frequently over the past year. This product in particular we've bought twice, most recently just to have some spares should they stop producing this size, since I've got several knives with kydex loops I made just for these rods - I like to add a stick of firesteel to all my knife sheaths. We also have one of their larger 1/2 diameter rods, which rarely gets used, as we simply don't need anything that big, even though the larger size will put out even more sparks.Out of the 7 Bayite rods we've used now, all have sparked consistently, which is to say they've sparked great! The only negative reviews I've seen on these have clearly been from people who didn't even know how to use a ferro rod or were used to softer ferrocerium, which sparks a bit better than the hard stuff that Bayite uses. Of course the softer stuff also wears down faster and costs considerably more, which seems disproportional to the performance difference to me, but I must confess not having actually used the softer ferrocerium enough to develop any kind of attachment to it. That said, having started many fires with these rods over the past year, I haven't been compelled to pay 2 to 6 times the price (depending on manufacturer) just for one rod of the softer stuff, when every professional comparison video I've found by people who actually know how to use firesteel, also indicates the performance difference to be rather trivial, especially relative the price. Even my 13 year old nephew, who barely even knows what a Boyscout is, started a fire from wood he processed with a knife himself, the very first time, which was also the first time he'd ever even used firesteel. So, again, these things spark great!They don't include a striker though, which seems a fairly significant oversight. But any sharp edge will do. We prefer to use the spine of whatever knife we're carrying at the time, rather than keep up with a separate striker. I've included a few pictures to give a better idea in case attaching a ferro rod to a knife is as new to you as it was to me just a year ago. Before then, the last time I tried lighting a fire with anything short of a match was as a scout in the 80's, when I could barely get a cotton ball to catch fire using the flint kits they provided us. Boy, would I have liked to have one of these back then. The first pic shows my initial use of the rod, before I found the correct diameter of shock cord on amazon to make sure the rod couldn't fall out.Along with the three sticks of hard ferrocerium, Bayite includes three stainless steel keychains and a convenient tin. A lot of campers will relish the tin, as it makes a convenient container for tinder, should you get caught in the rain or for fishing supplies (hooks, line, weights) and other small emergency or preparedness items. The keychains are an innovative tweak I suppose. Those with arthritis in their hands might have a hard time compressing them enough to properly line the ends up for screwing/unscrewing the coupling. But otherwise they're very easy to use and seem very sturdy. Having bought two sets though, we only wish Bayite would offer the pre-drilled rods by themselves at a lower price or higher quantity too, as we're always adding new knives to our collection it seems.

These are handy size to slip into a jeans pocket. They strike well with plenty of sparks. I bought the bayite mini tool steel strikers to use with these, they work great. Highly recommend these.

They came in a nice tin. The steel cable (keychain part) is nice and it attaches to my knife's sheath nicely. Once you get past the outer coating on the rod it does the job.

I received this product sooner than expected and are exactly as advertised., 3 ferrocerium rods with stranded steel cables attached with theaded closures. The rods all throw good sparks and easily ignite all tinder tested (cottonballs/vaseline, tinder quick, fat wood, feather sticks, etc.) As a striker I used the spine of a knife and a carbide tipped pruner sharpener with equal success. Successfully starting a fire is all about preparation, technique and tools and weather (of course). These ferro rods from Bayite performed well, I would purchase them again as they are of good quality and value. Using a good striker on any ferro rod is the key to success. So is experience! These rods are of the harder variety so they produce a shower of short-lived sparks as compared to softer rods. Experiment with techniques and tinder. I deducted 1 star for hard composition of the rod but would add 1/2 star for pre-drilled holes. Thanks Bayite and Amazon!

I have purchased other ferro rods, but wanted some small enough to be on my key ring and left in coats that I would grab if I had to leave the house in a hurry as I always want to have a way to make a fire. I gave this product 5 stars for one simple reason. The rods seem to have a sufficient amount of magnesium in them that I don't have to struggle scraping the rod to get a good, lasting spark. After scraping the black protective coating from one side of the rod, I placed a metal jar lid in my sink and tore a small piece of cotton ball off the size of a dime to place in the lid. I did this twice to see how many scrapes on the side of the ferro rod it would take to ignite the piece of plain cotton ball. It only took two scrapes against the rod to get a lasting spark to ignite the cotton ball. I feel this is very important as some rods don't contain enough magnesium to produce a lasting spark. They may throw a lot of sparks, but most don't last long enough to easily ignite the material and usually take several tries. I was so pleased that the spark was easy to scrape off and lasted a long enough time to easily ignite the piece of cotton ball. I liked having the drilled hole for the piece of wire that could be used to attach the rod to a belt loop or key ring, etc. The wire is very well made and the connection from one side of the wire to the other is very strong as it screws together. It would take a lot of effort to get that wire unscrewed from itself if it was attached to itself and through any kind of other loop. The tin box the three rods were packed in was well made and certainly worthy of being kept for some other emergency preparedness purpose, such as a small fishing tackle box. All in all I am very happy with this purchase and have no reservations in recommending these rods to anyone. By the way, I am a retired grandmother of 11 grandchildren.

Perfect for the keychain.

as a back up. works great.

Good #1 - I purchased this on the recommendation of the David West channel on YouTube.Good #2 - These little rods throw PLENTY of spark.Good #3 - They are made with a small hole on one end so you can either use the included ring or use your keyring, for example.Now for the Bad - These rods are supposed to come as a set of three. These are packaged in a small tin with a foam insert that has cut outs for each rod. When I took mine out of the box the little piece of tape that held the tin closed had been peeled aside and one rod and its included ring were missing. I paid for three ferro rods not two.

These are exactly the sort of thing that you need in various multiple kits and packs that you have stashed for contingencies. These bayite firestarters are perfectly adequate, conveniently drilled, and really good value. I wouldn't include poor equipment in any of my kit, so these are very welcome. Already scraped off the black lacquer coating and tested the spark-throw....totally functional. Recommended.

Nice size compact ferro rods. I tried to drill holes in larger ones but kept failing so i bought these. I plan on making kits up with them.

Fine does the job. Smaller then it looks on pics

I love these. They are a good size, give good sparks and come in a lovely tin.

Great item for gifts to friends and used as zip pulls etc. Excellent service also, thanks.