fireROD™ XL

The fireROD XL is the oversized brother of the fireROD, built by popular demand for people who use a ferrocerium rod hard and often. Everything about it is scaled up. The rod is a full half-inch in diameter, which throws a dramatically larger shower of sparks per strike and lasts for up to 20,000 strikes before the replaceable rod needs swapping. It is the tool for bushcraft carry on a knife sheath and for anyone who wants a fire starter that will outlive several cheaper ones.

As with the rest of the fireROD line, the rod is fully user-replaceable, so a worn rod is a $20 refill rather than a new tool. Strike it with the sharp spine of your knife, angled and with firm, quick pressure, to place the sparks exactly where your tinder is. The top cap unscrews to reveal internal storage sized for quickLIGHT tabs or your preferred tinder, kept dry by the sealed body.

What sets the XL apart from the standard fireROD is the included repair tape: roughly 12 inches of heavy-duty tape wound on the body. Use it to patch a hole, improvise a bandage or a gear wrap, or, since it is flammable, burn it to help take a spark to a flame. It turns a fire starter into a small field-repair kit.

The body is CNC-machined in-house in the USA from high-grade 6061 aluminum and anodized in Black, Gunmetal, Blaze Orange, or Olive Drab. At 3.8 ounces and 6 inches it is a deliberate piece of kit rather than an everyday-carry item, and it is covered by Exotac's lifetime warranty. Pair it with a Habilis-style knife and a tinderTIN or quickLIGHT for a fire kit that is hard to beat. Because the rod, the tape, and the tinder all live in one machined body, the fireROD XL is close to a self-contained fire-and-repair station for a serious pack, and it is finished to the same standard as every other Exotac tool.