Zippo Armour Windproof Lighter Review

Key Info

-Windproof.

-Burns Zippo lighter fluid – basically refined petrol.

-Available in hundreds of different designs.

-Simple mechanism – very reliable.

-Replaceable wick, flints.

-Refillable with Zippo Lighter Fluid. 

-Extra-thick (1.5 times regular thickness) walls.

Overview

The Zippo Armor Windproof Lighter is a tried and tested design, that hasn't changed in many years. It has a reservoir, filled with an absorbent stuffing material that the fluid soaks in to, with a wick interlaced throughout. On top, it has a flint wheel and flint, and a windproof chimney. When you strike the flint, the sparks ignite the fluid within the wick, and you've got your flame! When you shut the lid,it snuffs out the flame, and makes the characteristic 'Zippo Click' noise! It's a very very simple design, but that means that there isn't really anything to go wrong, so it will last for years! The 'Armour' part in the name means that the walls are 1.5 times the thickness of the 'Classic' lighters, so they will take a bit more punishment without denting.

General Info.

The Zippo lighter is, in many ways, better than gas-filled lighters. While gas lighters burn hotter and the fuel won't evaporate, they have too many parts to go wrong. The little valves at the bottom so often fail, rendering the lighter useless, as do the Piezo ignition systems. The Zippo lighter doesn't suffer from these problems. While it does have some downsides, such as all the fuel evaporating very quickly in the summer, it is, overall, much more reliable than any other lighter.

You can easily refill your Zippo by sliding it out of the casing, lifting the felt flap and squirting in some Zippo Fluid. In the winter, you'll need to refill every 3 weeks or so, in the summer, probably every week or so, as the fuel evaporates very quickly! While the Zippo lighter will burn other brands of fuel, Zippo fluid is the best to use, as it is very clean-burning and ensures the longevity of the wick.

Zippos also have replaceable Wicks and Flints, easily changed by sliding the lighter out of its casing and undoing the flint replacement screw. This will give access to replace the flint, as well as allowing the felt to be removed in order to replace the wick. The wick will last several years, and is very cheap. It's a bit fiddly to replace, but pretty easy. The flint will last about a month, and is very easy to replace, and extremely cheap. They come in packs of 6, in a little dispenser, and take about 1 or 2 minutes to replace.

   

Zippos make excellent outdoor lighters, as well as for every day use. This is due to several factors.....

-The Zippo Armour has extra-thick walls (1.5 times regular thickness), which means that it will be alright if you sit on it or something!

-Zippo lighters are windproof, which means that they'll stay lit in a strong breeze, although they will go out if it's blowing a gale! Windproofing is achieved by a chimney surrounding the wick, which prevents fluid vapour being whisked away in the breeze, keeping the flame alight. The flip-up lid also aids windproofing, by providing a shield against the wind.

-Although not advised by Zippo, due to the fact that the wick will burn away faster, so it'll need to be replaced (wicks cheaply available), Zippo lighters will run off most combustable fluids, such as petrol, methylated spirit, paraffin etc. This is very useful, because if you're miles from civilisation, there's a good chance you'll be able to find something that burns to refill your Zippo with, but you'd never find a bottle of pressurised butane to fill up your gas lighter!

-'High Polish Chrome' Zippos' sides are highly reflective, meaning that they can be used as a signal mirror.

-One good fill of fuel will burn for a very long time, so in an emergency, the Zippo could be used as a light source.

Quality

Zippos are of very good quality. They are made from nice, thick metal, and are robust although they will get scratched to pieces if left in a pocket with keys, but that's to be expected really! The lid snaps shut with a very satisfying 'click', and there are no gaps between the lid and the body of the lighter. The Zippo is something you'll buy once and probably never need to replace! (watch out for fakes though!)

Conclusion

The Zippo is an excellent lighter for outdoor or everyday use. Zippos are very reliable and last forever. If you're looking for a decent lighter, whatever it's going to be used for, the Zippo is the one to get! 

You'll find a huge range of Zippos on Amazon.com