# Correction to Why Matches Work **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [October 26, 2002, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correction-to-why-matches-work/134000 "2002-10-26T17:13:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sacha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Sacha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sacha)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2002, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correction-to-why-matches-work/134000/1 "2002-10-26T17:13:20Z")
Cecil, Of course you meant that “strike anywhere” wooden matches have everything you need to start a fire (red phosphorous on the match). But, the safer (and equally common) “strike on box” wooden matches work exactly the same way as normal paper matches (red phosphorous on the special striker). [http://www.diamondbrands.com/matches/index.html](http://www.diamondbrands.com/matches/index.html) Here’s a good idea for an experiment - do strike anywhere matches work better if you use strike on bok strikers? Is the flame more intense? Probably not… but worth testing. Cheers! ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2002, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correction-to-why-matches-work/134000/2 "2002-10-27T03:16:10Z")
**Sacha**. Welcome the SDMB. A link is appreciated when you post a reply to an article. It can be done like this [What makes tape stick and matches light?](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_117a.html) You don’t have to be that fancy, simply cut and paste the thread. Nice observation! I just assumed my wooden matches in the kitchen (for lighting my ancient oven) were of the “strike anywhere” variety. Ready to post a correction to you, I (fortunately) went into the kitchen and looked! Ulp! They were the safety kind. ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2002, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correction-to-why-matches-work/134000/3 "2002-10-27T16:35:37Z")
Strike-anywhere matches are illegal in some US states. ---
**Author:** ![Sacha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Sacha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sacha)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2002, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correction-to-why-matches-work/134000/4 "2002-10-27T17:04:46Z")
Hey samclem, sorry about not posting the link…and thanks for posting it for me! John: Really? In what US states is it illegal to have a strike-anywhere match? and why is it illegal? …A claim like that deserves some sort of proof or explanation… ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2002, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correction-to-why-matches-work/134000/5 "2002-10-28T03:41:29Z")
I don’t know if it’s true, but the simplest explanation for “why” is that they might be considered a fire hazard. There’s a reason the safety matches are called “safety”: They’re harder to light accidentally. Is this a good enough reason to ban the other kind? I dunno. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2002, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correction-to-why-matches-work/134000/6 "2002-10-28T04:51:44Z")
Strike anywhere matches are illegal in Australia, (as I am sure you were dying to know), for the reason stated by Chronos. ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2002, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correction-to-why-matches-work/134000/7 "2002-10-28T14:11:00Z")
Well, I don’t really feel like searching through the entire NJ code, but try buying them here. ---
**Author:** ![Sacha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Sacha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sacha)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2002, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correction-to-why-matches-work/134000/8 "2002-10-28T16:14:23Z")
Wow, I had no idea! I guess I have always taken strike anywhere matches for granted… It’s good to see that we live in a world where our elected officials spend their time regulating our match usage! 🙂 But seriously, I do understand - strike anywhere matches are FAR more dangerous than their strike on box bretheren. Heck, I understand that if you were to drop a box of “strike anywheres” just right, they might ignite - now that IS a safety risk! Thanks for setting me straight guys!