For some reason fine wire wool is very flammable and being what it is, is not affected by water as lint is...I suspect that it also burns at a higher temp than lint too...
You can ignite steel wool just be putting it across the terminals of a standard 9V battery...just tease it out a little and you will see the sparks flow through it when you connect to the terminals. You can also light it with a spark or flame in the usual manner...What I've never tried is with a magnify glass???
If you use a magnesium/flint fire set, a few shavings of magnesium onto your tender also makes it burn a lot hotter, but these firesets are very prone to corrosion, so seal them up well...
