Which match safe should I get?

GatorFarmer

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An old U.S. made Everdry, the competition for Marbles, runs out $35 on Ebay, various old Marbles 25-30, old BSA ones -whoever made them?- 25 ish...but Chinese clones of the old Marbles design are only about $6.00...I need something to carry matches in my pocket for lighting my pipe sufficient to keep them from getting damp.

I was thinking of getting an old Everdry, figuring it might last forever, but seems a lot of money to spend.
 
Every dollar you spend on something other than Chinese goods is value. Those old match safes have a history also a well worn brass one is better that a new shiny one to me.
 
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You can get an OD Green one on Ebay for about $5.25. It has a rubber gasket to seal the screw-on lid and a striker on the bottom. I have had one of these for about 30 years and it still works great.
 
For a long time I had a Boy Scout match safe, all metal, nickel plated, with a screw-on lid. It had a knurled scratching ring on the tube. No idea what happened to it, but I imagine there are many of them just like it listed on eBay.
 
For a long time I had a Boy Scout match safe, all metal, nickel plated, with a screw-on lid. It had a knurled scratching ring on the tube. No idea what happened to it, but I imagine there are many of them just like it listed on eBay.

Still have mine... A wee bit rusty in spots, but works fine.
 
I've got a Marbles that was carried in WW1 by a neighbor, given to me when I was a kid, too much history for me to carry but you can find vintage Marbles on the auction sites.
 
The hard part is finding decent strike anywhere matches these days.
The red ones with white tips are ****, I think the old Ohio Blue Tips have been banned by government do-gooders. I haven't seen them in years.
 
You can get an OD Green one on Ebay for about $5.25. It has a rubber gasket to seal the screw-on lid and a striker on the bottom. I have had one of these for about 30 years and it still works great.

Best one I ever had, probably forty years ago, was one of those. A little bulkier than the Marbles style, but gave great service.

I have no idea what happened to it.
 
The old plastic USGI match case and its many foreign copies do an excellent job of keeping matches dry. However, the screw cap is usually not retained on most variants. Thus for a pipe smoker, the cap becomes one more thing to fumble with or lose. Though for survival out in the woods or similar they are first rate. Most Walmarts have them, with matches, for a dollar or two.
 
When I can't find strike anywhere matches, I buy the "wind proof" camping matches and put the striker inside the safe. 3 to 5 years ago "Life Boat" matches were the rage at the backpacker stores. 30 for $5 to $6 in a saltwater proof plastic bottle with the striker in the lid. They burnt hotter and longer than the older style windproof but were 2 to3 times the price each. The Ohio Blue Tip strike anywhere became available again 4 years ago around here and are sold in the 2" version in a box of 250, and 3 boxes together. I always store the boxes in ziplock bags, I have some from the 1980's that still work! My favorite Ace hardware store had single boxes, and the smoke shops had them when every one else refused to sell them! Ivan
 
The plastic G.I. match bottle works good and is a lot lighter than the one's made of brass.

To make a good striker for your wooden matches, cut out a piece of sandpaper and glue it to the inside lid.
 

Those look interesting, though apparently health problems of the owner have cut production.

In Victorian times, when it was more common to carry matches, a great variety of match safes were made, often called Vesta cases after an English brand synonymous with matches at the time. Many were Sterling silver, engraved etc. The Marbles design goes back to a 1900 patent.

I think my grandfather had an Everdry, though he did not use it. Back then one could get paper matches that were like the ones in MREs and the old C rations. They were treated to resist the damp and hadna laqueured cover.

I took a book out of a 1970ish jungle survival kit I had circa 2007 and they still worked.

Unfortunately, the wood matches I find now are not great quality, the paper ones worse.

Most match safes today depart from the old Vesta cases in terms of purpose. The old cases were for smokers and general convenience with the purpose of keeping the matches dry somewhat secondary, thus most were water resistant more than water proof.

Today the match safes are geared towards outdoor survival. Many are great at keep matches hermetically sealed. I once left a case in the shower for months to test it, and the matches remained dry. But these become less than convenient for someone who wants to use them regularly for smoking.
 
I have a silver Vesta-style case, nicely engraved.

I find I have to trim most wooden matches to fit the case, and the striker is not quite rough enough to ignite the modern match head mix.
 
I've wondered what ever....

I've wondered what ever happened to my 1960s BSA match safe. Fill that baby up with strike-anywhere matches and you were ready for any holocaust. It would still come in handy if I had it. I suppose baby gas lighters are tough, cheap and reliable nowadays. Just make sure to test it.
 
Butane Bic type lighters burn a bit hot for wood pipes, you need a soft flame lighter. A Zippo, regular or pipe configured, works. I used to have a German butane pipe lighter with adjustable flame. The electric ignition kept dying. I used to dial it up all the way to burn spiders off the wall.

I ordered a Marbles copy sold under the Coghlans name. Apparently these are discontinued.Quality seems decent for a Chinese made item. They even did not skip the rubber gasket on the top.
 
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