Talk:Lighter

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Wicks[edit]

Are lighters with wicks still used? I haven't seen them outside of antique shops? Rmhermen 21:17, Oct 20, 2003 (UTC)

Second paragraph, line one. See also, "Zippo." —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.85.20.254 (talk • contribs) 23:22, 18 January 2005
Zippo lighters are still used often. Some use them for smoking because they prefer the taste, or just for nostalgia's sake. Others use them for generic purposes, or for tricks. They are, however, rarer than bics or newer variants. -- Idiot with a gun 22:02, 24 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Match lighters[edit]

Could someone add a bit about "match lighters"? Search ebay if you don't know what I mean. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.12.130.135 (talk • contribs) 11:55, 25 February 2005

Wow! Eleven years, and no one managed to add this? That's quite a fail for the Wikipedia community. :-(
So I added something. Citation needed. Maybe there's some more detail in the spanish article.
--BjKa (talk) 13:00, 20 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]
The German article has a detailed description --BjKa (talk) 13:01, 20 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]
German page:
Luntenfeuerzeug "Match Lighter" [alternate: "Fuse Lighter"]
To this day, we also know so-called fuse lighters. Their characteristic is a 5-20 mm thick cord-shaped fuse made of braided cotton. Once lit, it glows slowly and for hours. There is no flame. Such fuses were used to ignite muskets before the invention of the flintlock. First fuse lighters are known since the early 19th century. At that time, ignition is performed by means of a flint steel and flint stone [alternate: "fire steel and fire stone"] attached to the lighter.
With the patenting of the so-called cereisen (auermetal) [ferrocerium rod] in 1903, match lighters appeared, which produce sparks from a piece of cereisen [ferrocerium] according to the strike and tear principle. In 1906 at the earliest, the first match lighters with classic friction wheel ignition appeared. Since then, match lighters have had their typical shape: A short thicker metal tube for guiding the fuse (fuse tube), on which a second thinner metal tube (flint tube) is mounted in parallel at a small distance in different ways by means of a so-called intermediate bar, in which a cylindrical flint (cere iron) [ferrocerium] of standard size 5 × 2.5 mm is pressed by a helical spring underneath against the friction wheel fixed at the upper end. The flint tube is usually closed at the lower end by means of a screw with a slotted or rim-grooved head of different dimensions or a grub screw, thus locking the helical spring.
Models are also known in which a spring-loaded pin in the flint tube presses the cerstein [ferrocerium] against the friction wheel (as used by the U.S. company Bowers, Kalamazoo/Michigan). In such cases, the cerstein [ferrocerium] is inserted through an opening in the side of the flint tube. At the upper end of the fuse, a cap of various shapes, usually attached to a small chain, is hooked over a needle hook (with or without chain). If you pull on the lower, free end of the fuse, the cap closes the fuse tube, the entry of oxygen is prevented and the ember dies. The embers are sufficient to light cigarettes or pipe tobacco or to start a fire. (Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator [free version])
Diagram (in German):
Fascinating looking--maddeningly hard to find what they're usually called!
It took a lot of trial-and-error to turn up the common names for these: "rope lighter," "sailor's lighter," and "shepherd's lighter."192.198.57.207 (talk) 03:41, 14 August 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Requested move[edit]

  • Support — Pekinensis 30 June 2005 17:15 (UTC)
  • Oppose, the barges are pretty common too. Gdr 4 July 2005 20:43 (UTC)
  • Support violet/riga (t) 19:47, 11 July 2005 (UTC)[reply]

This article has been renamed after the result of a move request. violet/riga (t) 19:47, 11 July 2005 (UTC)[reply]

History[edit]

When was the lighter invented? --unsigned by 68.107.250.207, 19 June 2006

That was my thought precisely when I read this article!
Apparently the Zippo was invented in 1932 [1]. But lighters predate this - they were around in WW1 according to [2]. Or the 19th century according to this page [3] (but can you believe any page written in Comic Sans?). Richard W.M. Jones 18:57, 8 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
precisely my thoughts as well - can we get some concrete info on this?EunuchOmerta 02:47, 15 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
The German Wikipedia article has a section on the history of the lighter. Here's a partial translation:
The American firm Repeating Light Co. in Springfield received a patent in 1865 for the pocket lighter they developed. Modern pocket lighters have existed since the beginning of the 20th Century, when the Austrian Carl Auer von Welsbach invented the pyrophoric alloy in 1903. Ferrocerium is used to this day in disposable lighters. - GilliamJF 23:46, 30 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

also who invented the bic lighter? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.12.165.254 (talk) 17:33, 13 October 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Bic did. --BjKa (talk) 13:00, 20 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]


Colored Flames[edit]

How about adding a section on the various types of lighter flames. Isn't it a special metal in the head that burns with the flame changing the color to a green or red torch look? DMZ 20:26, 4 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Collectors of Zippos[edit]

I have noticed there are several sites able to show links to thier sites. However, I have been told Im not allowd to follow this practice. What is the requirement to have an external link from wikipedia? Thanks
webmaster of www.lighterpros.com
--unsigned by 65.89.233.107, 23 August 2006

See: Wikipedia:External_links. Wikipedia isn't a place for you to gain PageRank or sell lighters. Buy some Adwords adverts if you want to do that. Richard W.M. Jones 09:21, 23 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Refillable Butane Lighters[edit]

I've heard that there are some butane lighters that you can refill, however the lighter itself needs to be of a slightly (and more expensive) type, thus making them much less common.
~ender 2006-11-22 10:15:AM MST
--improperly signed by 68.110.171.226, 22 November 2006

how do lighters work?[edit]

The explanation given in the article is for push button piezoelectric lighters.I am looking for a picture or diagram showing all the parts of a piezoelectric lighter however the photograph is of a lighter with wheel, which would be a "flint" (actually cerium-iron alloy) lighter. --88.153.11.135 16:40, 23 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Legality[edit]

I think there should be a section about the history of lighter regulations. --unsigned by 75.31.100.15, 25 March 2007

I would specifically mention 'carriage of Lighters on commercial Aircraft' - the situation seems to be that a GAS lighter - eg the usual plastic disposable is allowed on your person / carry-on ; BUT 'blue flame' and 'cigar' lighters are not ; and also LIQUID-fueled lighters [such as Zippo] are NOT allowed [the specific wording in most Aviation regs is "unabsorbed liquid fuel" is not allowed] — Preceding unsigned comment added by 211.31.8.235 (talk) 01:41, 11 January 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Interesting, as the lighter fluid in a zippo is absorbed in cotton, while you can clearly see that the butane of a transparent gas lighter is an unabsorbed liquid.
(Actually I'd be quite surprised about any airline letting any lighter at all into the passenger cabin, and also I don't think they should, but what do I know...)
--BjKa (talk) 13:00, 20 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Add Content[edit]

Suggested content to add:

  • safety concerns (eg lighters shaped as toys, danger of whick lighters which don't go out when you let go of them, burning your eyebrows off when the lighter is set on 'high' and you are high so you think this is the correct setting for you...)
  • zippos -- were they really invented for military use? Evidently they were popular in Vietnam and used for burning houses (or is that a myth?), but it says they were invented in 1932, so maybe WWII?
  • disposal/environmental concerns: in most places it is illegal to throw them in the trash, but there is no other way to dispose of a broken lighter. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.86.56.101 (talk) 01:17, 11 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]


Butane lighters rarely use n-butane, but instead use mixtures of isobutane, n-butane, and propane. Butanesource.com for MSDS of many brands. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2600:100A:B124:5DD1:F11C:3A6A:7E9C:499C (talk) 09:16, 20 February 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Jet Lighters[edit]

Im looking for some info on jet lighters, as I picked one up from the shifty looking guys under the Eiffel Tower, and need to refill it now. What do they run on? When were they first used? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.240.229.247 (talk) 20:56, 18 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Good luck with your request. As seen for "Match Lighter" it's probably not going to happen within the decade. :-( --BjKa (talk) 13:00, 20 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Two chambers[edit]

But, to resolve a recent discussion with a friend - why do disposable butane lighters always have two chambers of fuel? Something to do with maximising pressure? The world wants to know! --Ndaisley (talk) 17:47, 6 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hmmm, hadn't really considered it before... It's generally a sort of baffle, open at the top and/or bottom, not a complete division of the tank. My guess is that it is more a structural feature rather than intended to change the fuel's behavior. Specifically the "bridge" between the sides reduces the area of unsupported tank wall, possibly making it stronger against crushing, bending, and/or bursting. This is only my guess and a proper source should be found before anything goes into the article. --Dfred (talk) 01:31, 8 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]
Yeah i would agree that it would have to be to give it greater structural integrity, those things are weak, if through them against the ground and they'll explode. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 204.210.142.134 (talk) 00:39, 2 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]
The Bic lighter patent at https://patents.google.com/patent/US3447882 calls it a stiffener: "To insure that the casing will properly support the valve and flint support, as well as the head mechanism, a stiffener is provided in the form of a rib within the casing." --Belbury (talk) 19:33, 30 October 2022 (UTC)[reply]

misphrased sentence?[edit]

"As matches, lighters, and other heat sources are the leading causes of fire deaths for children,[5] many jurisdictions, such as the EU,[6] have forbidden the marketing of novelty or non-child resistant lighters."
Really? heat sources are the leading causes of fire deaths in children? thank god for this info, i thought maybe cold or slightly warm things might be what's burning our children (no offense to whomever wrote it, im sure they are perfectly intelligent and meant something else)
--unsigned by 204.210.142.134, 2 June 2008

I agree, but there is the trusty old concave lens on a stick

--unsigned by 121.127.223.184, 25 August 2012

Hottest part[edit]

What is the hottest part of the flame in lighters, candles, bunson burners, etc.?? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.208.0.39 (talk • contribs) 04:46, 7 July 2008

the little circle of air at the base of the flame or the whit hot tip are roughly the samd the coolest part is the fat part in the middle —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.12.165.254 (talk) 17:35, 13 October 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Alternate theory regarding origins of lighters at concerts[edit]

The first time I ever saw this practice was during the Rolling Stones' Superbowl halftime show a few years back when LED penlights were passed out to the crowd instead of actual lighters. When I asked about it I was told that back when dinosaurs ruled the earth they did used to use real lighters, and that the reason they did so was an application of 'safety in numbers.' During a concert, all the police had to do was look out over the crowd for little flashes of light and bingo-- those were the people who were smoking pot during the concert. ;) It didn't take long before people realized that if everybody held up lighters during the concert, whether they were taking a magic carpet ride or not, then the people who were would blend in to the crowd and get away with it. The motivation was a mutual code of honor, you watch my back now, I'll watch your back later. Anyway, I found that to be a little more interesting, and a little more controversial than the examples on the page now, so I thought I'd mention it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.166.219.136 (talk) 18:56, 19 September 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Explosion proof[edit]

I was at my friends house and he took a bottle of something (something flammable used for his dad's grill) and sprayed it on the lighter and threw it and it blew up. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.215.87.36 (talk) 00:02, 1 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]

White lighter myth[edit]

I have added a sentence about how many people consider white colored lighters to be bad luck. Faethon Ghost (talk) 17:54, 10 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I doubt that the added sources are proper for Wikipedia, especially with the phrase: "It is documented that 4 members of the legendary 27 club..." What follows is hardly "documentation." I also believe that the next paragraph is unsourced, original research bunk. TuckerResearch (talk) 03:46, 27 October 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Could it be an idea to splice in the content from white lighter myth? That article is little more than a stub and is unlikely to grow any bigger. AkselA (talk) 17:31, 10 May 2016 (UTC)[reply]

WWI match flare history[edit]

There's a paragraph in the article about how the problems associated with match flares (giving away position) in the first world war lead to lighter development. The cited source is here: http://www.bugstores.com/history_of_lighters.htm Is there a better source? I admit my "I'm dubious" light started flashing when reading that (surely a soldier who is worried about being seen would not smoke); is there a better source available for this statement? Maybe something from a proper historian? Thanks, --TeaDrinker (talk) 21:19, 1 May 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I left the statement here pending discussion, but removed it from Fire since it is more tangential there. --TeaDrinker (talk) 21:23, 1 May 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Blaisdell didnt invent the Zippo[edit]

The article says Blaisdell invented the Zippo, that isnt entirely correct as it was a development of somebody elses design - paragraphs 2 and 3... http://www.zippo.com/corporateInfo/Zippo_Manufacturing_History.aspx?article=fb7471d5-7322-46f4-881f-08d8cfa64785 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.14.183.26 (talk) 12:26, 2 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

effects of gas inhalation[edit]

Are butane fumes, as inhaled from cigarette lighters when using them for that purpose, addictive?
What are the affects of inhaling them unlit straight from the lighter? Is this like "huffing gas"?
Electric lighters have been in production for some years now; in almost every car they are conspicuously absent from the house and office. With the improvements in technology, a safe pocket lighter is available and affordable. It may be time to start promoting and advertising electric with these issues advanced. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2001:5B0:2B79:5210:E42A:DA78:F931:398B (talk) 07:29, 13 October 2015 (UTC)[reply]

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shipping restrictions[edit]

some mention of shipping restrictions seems appropriate https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2006/01/23/06-464/hazardous-materials-requirements-for-lighters-and-lighter-refills — Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.51.147.76 (talk) 02:03, 16 February 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Zippo butane[edit]

The first mass produced Zippo butane lighters were manufactured from august 2007, with the name BLU. They had flint ignition. They can be mentioned as jet lighters, by their flame.

Gmac4247 (talk) 13:02, 14 June 2021 (UTC)[reply]

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Cigarette lighters with l.e.d. torch (flashlight)[edit]

I would like to know about these, can't find anything on google. Wondering when and why they were first manufactured and if the blue light they have is U.V., a great cheap source to obtain a U.V. torch if they are. Middle More Rider (talk) 17:04, 9 January 2022 (UTC)[reply]

Plasma lighters[edit]

Article does not explicitly mention plasma lighters, but seems to discuss them here under the name Electric arc lighter and links to the reference

https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/a31133313/how-plasma-lighters-work/

which refers to them as plasma lighters in the text too. See also

I'll add something on this (unless someone else gets to it first... feel free). The section probably needs quite a lot of expansion. A redirect from Plasma lighter would then not go astray. Andrewa (talk) 21:39, 19 August 2022 (UTC)[reply]

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