You Don't Need To Be A Smoker To Have Custom Zippo Lighters

There's no law against collecting custom Zippo lighters. It does not also say that you have to be a smoker to have these quality items. Like beauty, Zippo lighters have an excuse for being. These are delightful things to collect and show off.

Select and collect

All collectors start from scratch. Their collections grew in time with their wallets and their travels. There will always be someone you know who has a collection of coins, stamps, perfume, and custom Zippo lighters.

Collecting Americana like custom Zippo lighters does not require you to be a smoker. You can have hundreds of them and trace its history through the progression of designs and features starting from 1932.

The first Zippo lighter was rectangular shaped with a hinged lid. This had a hood to protect the flame from the wind. Not much has changed since George Blaisdell designed the first Zippo lighter 75 years ago.

The saga of the Zippo lighter

The comical appearance of a well-dressed man struggling to light his cigarette with a bulky lighter gave Blaisdell an idea. A smoker himself, he needed something that would fit in the palm of his hand, not a contraption that required two hands to open and light a cigar.

Ever on the lookout for the opportunity to make money at the time of the Great Depression, Blaisdell got the sole rights from the Austrian manufacturer of the brass lighters. Instead of making a pile, he lost his first round because there were many defects in the Austrian product.

He hit on the idea of developing his own lighter. This was a smaller version that fit in the palm of the hand. He added a hinge to make it easier to open the lighter with just one hand. He designed the wind hood to encircle the wick, making the flame wind resistant; in spite of the new additions, his lighter still used the Austrian hood design.

The first redesigned Zippo came with a lifetime warranty. If you are collecting these, you have the lifetime guarantee for all items including custom Zippo lighters. The warranty and novelty of the lighter catapulted Blaisdell to fame and riches. His business also thrived on the sales of spare parts and services after the expiration of the warranty.

The new breed of Zippos

The new Zippos have taken on added features like key holders, money clips, tape measures, ball pens, and unbelievably- knives. Custom Zippo lighters for different preferences - a Christmas Zippo with a Santa Claus face, dartboard, smiley face, and the Wright Brothers to mention a few, are stunning collectible items.

You can also get these for gift items for friends who are starting their collections. For fun, you can also join collectors clubs in Japan, Italy, Germany, England, Switzerland, and here in the USA.

Check out online sites for custom Zippo lighters. There will be always something new for your collection. You can have your name and the date of your purchase inscribed to help you keep track of the year the model was marketed.

Indeed, you don't have to be a smoker to have custom Zippo lighters and accessories. Why not start a collection now?

The story about famous Zippo

It’s the king of lighters. No one can deny the allure of Zippo lighters. The distinctive design is instantly recognizable, even as the lighters sport individual and even customized finishes and cases. But where did Zippo lighters begin?
In 1932, George G. Blaisdell founded the Zippo company by manufacturing the famous lighters. He bought the rights to an Austrian lighter, which happened to be windproof. Blaisdell didn’t just want to make windproof lighters; he wanted his lighters to look good as well. And today, Zippo lighters are renowned for their looks.
In order to manufacture good looking lighters, the Austrian design needed to be modified. Blaisdell gave the Zippo its shape, as well as the flip-top cover. Lovers and collectors of Zippo lighters have perfected the art of opening the Zippo with a snazzy flick of the wrist. Some of them even can even light a Zippo while opening it, reducing the process to a single, graceful motion.
A name was needed for the lighters. Blaisdell called his lighter a ‘Zippo.’ If it sounds suspiciously similar to the word ‘zipper,’ there’s a reason. The zipper was a relatively new invention at the time, and undeniably cool.
Today there are collectors’ clubs all over the world. People meet to share their love of Zippo lighters and show off their collections. Rare lighters, as well as Zippo lighters customized for celebrities, are routinely auctioned off on the Internet. They are popular even with people who don’t smoke. Zippo lighters are so cool that they are a fashion statement.
From humble beginnings in Bradford, PA, Zippo lighters have grown into the world’s premier and preferred lighter. Millions of people own at least one, and thousands of people collect them. Just owning a Zippo lighter feels good. Windproof and classy. You can’t beat that.

When is my Zippo made??

Date coding on the bottom of every Zippo lighters case is the Zippo Manufacturing Company's way of identifying when a specific Zippo lighter was created, whereas it might be dots, dashes, dates or even how the word "Zippo" is written.
Date coding is a procedure that was adopted by the Zippo Manufacturing Company for quality control purposes. The date coding procedure was first started in the mid 50's when the date codes were stamped on the bottom of the Zippo lighter's case.
Although the original purpose for date coding was for quality control, the procedure became an invaluable tool for the Zippo lighter collector. The date code enables the collectors to determine the age of the Zippo lighter at a glance. This is fun and easy to do because every Zippo lighter since 1933 has some kind of identification on the bottom of the Zippo lighter case.
The Zippo lighters made in 1933 and up till the mid 1950's have "Zippo" stamped in block letters on the lighter case.
A new Zippo logo was developed in the 1940's but was not implemented until 1955. The new logo was a script version of the word "Zippo" and was phased in about that time along with the year coding by the use of dots (.). Over the years, the dating codes has been modified, several times over like for instance in 1966 till 1973 the code was denoted by a combination of vertical lines (), 1974 until 1982 with forward slashes (/), and 1982 until the middle of 1986 with backslashes (\).
Around the late 70's the logo was redesigned again, but not implemented into the bottom stamp until 1980. In July of 1986, lot codes were also being included on all Zippo lighters, showing the month and the year of production. The Zippo Manufacturing Company started featuring at the bottom of the lighter case, on the left side of the logo, the month code in the center, and the year stamped in Roman numerals (XVI).
At the turn of the new century, Zippo Manufacturing Company introduced a new and easier way to recognize the date codes. The letters A-L on the left side of the Zippo logo represents the month that the lighter was manufactured (A = January, B = February, etc.), the year is identified by the last two numbers on the right of the Zippo logo.
As always since 1933, thanks to Mr. George G. Blaisdell, founder of the Zippo Manufacturing Company, the Zippo lighter carries a 100% lifetime guarantee on any problem that might arise with any Zippo lighter.

changing wick

this is my first tutorial about maintenance. there will be more of them and this is first one. ok, so. one day, you open your zippo and you see that your wick is black and burned. so, what to do? of course, we need to pull the old part out and cut it. ok, you take something like tweezers and pull it - ups! no more flint! ok. what now? first - buy a brand new flint. you can find it in any shop that sells zippo lighters, flints or fluid (at least i can). so, buy it. it is cheap. now, go back home and take your zippo. pull it out from casing and remove that gold screw from bottom. watch out, that thing has a spring, it can jump out. after you remove the screw, take tweezers and pull out the sponge and all the cotton from it, even the cotton that is behind the flint tube. as you pull it out, assort it on your table so you can easily put it back. now take your wick and get it through small hole on top. pull it out to the top of chimney. now, bend it on side, then put one or two parts of cotton back in. then bend a wick to other side of zippo and bend it around the flint tube. now again, put one or two pieces of cotton back inside and bend wick on the other side. repeat that until you put all the wick in lighter. you should fold your wick in lighter so you get kind of Z shape.ok, put the rest of cotton inside, press it with something, put that sponge on top and return the screw (don't forget your flint). pour your zippo fluid in and put your lighter back into casing. congratulations, you changed your wick.now enjoy until you spend it again. Good luck!

Zippos in Vietnam War

During the Vietnam War, several items became the canvasses on which soldiers painted their feelings and sentiments. The Zippo Lighter was one of these items. According to Collectors, 200,000 Zippo Lighters were used by American GI's in Vietnam. The Zippo Lighter played a part in almost everyday activity of the soldier. The shinny top provided a handy mirror and the Zippo lighters flame warmed the stew at mealtimes. Also soldiers kept salt in the bottom cavities, called "canned bottoms", of their Zippo lighters to replenish lost body salt. Other legendary Zippo lighters, according to Life Magazine, were used to transmit signals or provide a shield against enemy bullets.
They were used in military operations, in which paratroopers would spray gasoline over the area to burn enemy compounds and dwellings. The soldiers would usually carry the lighters in their chest pockets or fasten them onto the camouflage band on their helmets. As substitutes for lighter fluid alcohol, diesel or even gasoline was used. Zippo lighters were used as Id's and canvasses. The PX's in Vietnam carried a large amount of them and this explains the reason why there were so many Zippo lighters in Vietnam. Zippo merchandise quickly found it's way onto the black market and soldiers were able to buy brand new Zippo lighters without having to go to the PX. Vietnamese craftsmen would engrave anything from pictures to phrases onto the Zippo lighter for the soldiers. Zippos lighters engraved "in-field" for Army GI's have the largest variety of personalized phrases and images. The most popular motif engraved onto a soldiers Zippo lighter was the map of Vietnam. Every soldier had his own personalized Zippo lighter, which accompanied him until the fall of Saigon and beyond.
Zippo Lighters used by American Soldiers during the Vietnam war have since become collector's items. Every Zippo lighter from the Vietnam war bears Silent witness, conveying a great sense of emotion of having been there on the battlefield. The soldiers who faced death and stood on the brink of hell, carrying their Zippo lighters who transformed these simple Zippo lighters into and integral part of their own bodies and souls. Vietnam has immortalized the Zippo lighter and has sense became a priceless collectors item.
The great majority of Vietnam Navy ship Zippos were factory engraved. To be considered a "Vietnam Zippo" the engraving should include specific reference to Vietnam. Military Zippos made during the Vietnam War years that do not refer to Vietnam are often referred to as "Vietnam Era Zippos".
The "Brown-Water" Navy combined Coastal and Riverine Operations to stop the enemy's re-supply of arms from Cambodia by sea and river. It involved destroyers, escorts and minesweepers along with Cost Guard cutters and low draft boats and PBR's patrolling the Mekong Delta. They averaged 85 firefights per month and almost one third of the sailors were killed or wounded. The Riverene Operations were Vietnamized in 1970.The main US Allies during the Vietnam War were South Vietnam, South Korea, Australia, Thailand, the Philippines, and New Zealand. The Allied soldiers enjoyed Zippos too.

For Military collectors the Vietnam War represents a varied and popular category of memorabilia as well as for the Zippo lighter fans. There are Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard Vietnam Zippo lighters, as well as Zippo lighters for the RVN, Australian and other services. "Brown-Water" Navy Zippo lighters are from a subset of the Vietnam War Navy Zippo category called " Riverine"or the so called "Brown-Water" Navy Zippo lighter.
There are several different types of engravings which are not mutually exclusive to the Vietnam era. Some Zippos are factory engraved: engraved "in Field" during the war: some were engraved by Veterans after the war as personal souvenirs: some Zippo lighters were engraved at a more recent times to be sold as "in-field" Vietnam Zippo lighters to unsuspecting collectors. There are also fakes that closely resemble genuine Zippo lighters that collectors should watch out for.

Let's make our Zippo...

There is something intangibly masculine about Zippo Lighters. That masculine feel is magnifies a dozen times when you see custom Zippo lighters. As the most famous lighter brand, it has created a culture and status all its own. Men in all parts of the world are clamoring for one. In this article, we try to uncover the mystery behind the craze that has started way back in the 1980s. Why do men love custom Zippo lighters?
1. They are considered a status symbol. Let's face it, Zippo lighters are actually status symbols. Why else do corporate gifts include these engraved with the company's logo? Why else do smokers anywhere in the world proudly flaunt and flip and flick these? Because it shows you are somebody.
2. No other lighter brand can compete with a Zippo Name one other lighter brand in the world that can go head to head with it. None. Nada. Zilch. It has established itself to be THE mainstream lighter brand of this generation.
3. With them, you can express yourself. A hard edged military guy? There are military lighters for you. A patriot? There are flag-patterned for you. A football fan, there are various football teams' logo designs for you. Wherever your interest lies, whatever your personality type, a custom Zippo lighter can speak for you. The great thing about custom Lighters is that you can freely express yourself, create your own designs or be your own person without losing a morsel of class and sophistication -- even if you are a leather donning, motorcycle wielding guy at that.
4. They make a statement. Flipping and flicking a playboy Zippo is a statement by itself. What does it say about you? You are one heck of a playboy fan. Military lighters show that you are one tough military cookie. Lugging around a Barbie lighter shows, well, just how much you love pink -- and how much you adore Barbie dolls for that matter. No worries, though. Custom Zippo Lighters do not dent your sophistication level, remember. You still are sophisticated, albeit, a Barbie type of guy.
5. They make great conversation pieces Since it is established the custom Zippo lighters (a) make a statement, and (b) is an outlet for you to express yourself. You don't have to ask how. Of course, when someone sees you flashing your interesting and unique lighter, most likely, they would be curious as to what your logo stands for. Nevertheless, the unique details of each custom Zippo lighter attract attention. That attention may entail new friends and new acquaintances. Not too shabby right?

Here are some pictures of custom lighters:

Military ones

Zippo lighters became popular in the United States Military, especially during the world wars. In World War II- when, as the Zippo Manufacturing Company's website states that, the Zippo Manufacturing Company "ceased production of lighters for the consumer markets and dedicated all the Zippo lighter production to the U.S. military". The Zippo Lighter was made of brass, but as this commodity was unobtainable due to the war effort, the Zippo Manufacturing Company turned to using steel during the war years. While the Zippo Manufacturing Company never had an official contract with the military, soldiers and armed forces personnel insisted that the PX stores carry this much sought-after lighter. Due to materials shortage during the war, Zippo Manufacturing Company had to use the more porous metal steel instead of the regular metal, brass. Since the lighter could not be finished with chrome or nickel, instead, it was covered with a special black crackle paint. A benefit of this finish is that it would not reflect the light, thereby avoiding the attention of enemy snipers. The paint, while baked on, tended to become brittle and chip off, giving the Zippo lighter a very rugged look.
The tradition from WWI of decorating lighters with coins and crude engravings, or what is referred to as "trench art" continued on with the Zippo lighter in World War II. Some of these decorated Zippo lighters were pre-war Zippos, including the 1940-41 brass Zippos with and without diagonal lines as well as earlier models. The vast majority of the lighters from 1936-1945 can be easily recognized by the rounded corners and absence of the post-1946 "canned" bottom. The bottoms are flat or protrude outwards in varying degrees even to the point that the Zippo will not stand upright on a flat surface.
During WWII the Zippo Manufacturing Company's president Mr. George G. Blaisdell shipped as many Zippo Lighters as possible to PX's and to the front line. The GI's favored the Zippo Lighters because they were inexpensive, reliable, and always worked when it was needed.
Although the Zippo Manufacturing Company have made many, many styles and finishes of the Zippo lighter since 1932, all branches of the military are recognized. Army , Navy, Air Force Marines are engraved in the different styles of the Zippo Lighter. But the recognized authentic WWII Zippo lighter is the steel cased with the black matte crackle finish.
As with all Zippo Lighters, vintage or brand new, you will always have the Zippo Lighter life-time warranty, "IT WORKS OR IT'S FIXED FREE".