Guest Author: J. M. Joly
Do you chew Copenhagen or know somebody who does ? Well, if either of those apply to you here’s a great survival trick I came up with. First, start with an empty can. (It has to be Copenhagen because the cans are made out of cardboard and not plastic. Plus the inner wax coating helps with what comes next.)
Fill your empty can with any good fire starting material. For the picture, I used lint, but cotton balls work great as well. (The picture of the finshed product was made with cotton balls.) Next, apply a light amount of pressure to get a lot in there. The can should be covered edge to edge and slightly over flowing with your material.
Next, melt wax of any kind, I used parafin from the store, but simple melting the ends of old candles will work just as well, and pour the melted wax over your material. (I wouldn’t melt the wax in a container you plan to cook in. An empty soup can works great.) Once you poured the wax over your material you can use a plastic spoon to push down on the wax coated material while it is still hot. This will ensure all of your fire starting material is evenly coated with the wax. Allow to cool comepletely.
The end result ? A small, round piece of cardboard roughly the size of a hockey puck you can use under multiple conditions ! It works great as a fire started with damp wood, you can use it as a personal warming fire in a small shelter, or if you have a Sterno can stove you can use these in place of the Sterno cans. They’ll burn for a while, long enough to heat up something on a Sterno can stove. They’re also womewhat wind resistant due to the wax coating every bit of your fire starting material. Plus, since you’re using the cardboard can from Copenhagen there are no harmful plastic fumes. Now, is it a candle ? Is it a fire starter ? Is it a burner for a Sterno stove ? Is it a personal warming device ? The answer to all these questions is yes. However, I reccomend you try it yourself and see what works best for you then call it what you want !
