On the list or survival priorities, fire is one of the big ones. Fire helps with the other three, those being food, water, and protection from the elements. You can cook, boil water, and stay warm with a fire. When it comes to lighting a fire you need to have rock-solid means of lighting that fire. In a survival situation a simple lighter works, but are prone to an elemental vulnerability which causes them to fail when wet and they are easily damaged. I like to keep three different kinds of tools for lighting fires in my bug out bag. This includes a high-quality lighter, a ferrous rod, and hurricane matches. My current hurricane match go-to is the Zippo Typhoon match kit.
An All in One System
Zippo is known for their high-quality lighters that range from pure workhorses to stylish accouterments. On the camping, hunting, and survival market they are known to be a total provider when it comes to fire. The Typhoon Match Kit is an extreme way to create and maintain a fire. The kit itself is made from 15 Typhoon matches, the Match kit, and 3 strike pads.
The Match kit container is a small plastic container that houses the matches and strike pad. It’s designed to float and be completely waterproof. The lid is oversized and a bright red for quick visibility. It also sports an attachment point to allow you to dummy cord the kit to your belt, backpack, and more.
On the opposite side is the placement of the strike pad. This is also covered by a rubberized cap to protect it from water.
How waterproof is this whole setup? Zippo says completely. I like to think I can trust but verify that claim. The easiest way seems to be to fill a Yeti cup up with water and dunk it in. So let’s do that.
The Matches
The Zippo Typhoon Match Kit seems to be pretty damn waterproof. It held up without any entry into match compartment or into the strike pad and sat in water for an hour before I pulled it. Not only is the Typhoon Match Kit waterproof, but so are the matches. I dropped a few of these matches directly into the water and submerged them completely.
The matches are designed to have wind and waterproof resistant coating to protect them from water exposure. The most exposure I could come up with is a quick dump in the water. After pulling them out it took only two strikes to ignite the first, and a single strike to ignite the second.
Once one of the matches from the Typhoon Match Kit is ignited it burns bright and hot. Seriously it’s like a torch and it seems to burn forever. Zippo claims 30 seconds, and I had matches burn for as long as 34 seconds. That’s a lot of time to get a fire going.
Lightning the entire thing is pretty simple with the Typhoon Match Kit. It’s easy to hold onto the container and the massive matches are easy to strike and get going. It doesn’t matter if your hands are tired, cold, wet, or gloved you can make it work with limited dexterity.
The Typhoon Match Kit
Anyone dedicated to the outdoors knows how valuable fire is and can be. The Typhoon Match Kit makes it easy to carry, ignite, and to make a fire whit matches in nearly any condition at any time. The kit is simple, affordable, and an excellent addition to any bug out bag or camping pack.
