MATCHCAP™ XL

Matches are still the easiest fire source to hand to someone who has never started a fire, and a good waterproof match case makes them a serious survival tool rather than a kitchen-drawer item. The MATCHCAP XL is Exotac's no-compromise version of that case: a nearly indestructible machined aluminum capsule that keeps the matches, and just as importantly the striker, completely dry.

The core insight is that a wet striker is as useless as a wet match. Most match cases protect the matches and then leave you striking against a sodden box. The MATCHCAP XL integrates a replaceable red-phosphorus safety striker into the threaded area inside the cap, sealed by a concealed o-ring. It stays dry, and because it is on the outside of the inner capsule the stored matches never rub against it and degrade it. For strike-anywhere matches, there is a second striker: a water-resistant sandpaper pad on the base, which is the surface you reach for when everything around you is too wet.

The capsule is sealed with an o-ring to a depth of not less than 15 feet, closed with durable square threads, and machined in-house in the USA from high-grade 6061 aluminum, then anodized in Black, Gunmetal, Blaze Orange, or Olive Drab. It is large: it holds matches or other gear up to 2.9 inches long, which covers standard kitchen matches, NATO lifeboat matches, and the extended stormproof match. You can also use the space for tinder or other small survival tools.

The MATCHCAP XL pairs directly with Exotac's Stormproof Matches, and it belongs in a fire kit alongside a ferrocerium rod and a lighter as the third independent way to make fire. The 001122 refill kit restocks the strikers and o-rings, and the whole tool is covered by Exotac's lifetime warranty. It is the part of a fire kit most people overlook until the first time a matchbox striker turns to paste in the rain, and after that they never carry matches without one.