Anyone know how to make a Zippo have green flame?
- Thread starter Kylash
- Start date
well this is interesting:
http://mythic-fire.com/fuels.php
"Ronsonol brand fuel for Zippo lighters: These are all chemically the same (plus or minus a few trace additives that donÂ’t seem to affect the burn any). TheyÂ’re all fast fuels, and have characteristics that are nearly the same as white gas. Kerosene and lamp oil have the kind of long duration you want in a fuel, but theyÂ’re a screaming hassle to light. White gas lights up beautifully, but then itÂ’s all gone, just when youÂ’re really hitting the top of your stride. 50-50 mixtures of kerosene and white gas, or of lamp oil and white gas, are quite popular in firedancing circles. (If we were listing them in the popularity-order ranking above, instead of giving them their own section here, theyÂ’d come out somewhere between kerosene and white gas. Quite popular stuff.) Some folks also like to do 2-to-1 mixtures, or varying other proportions (leaning in either direction)."
so, sounds like i could mix lighter fluid for an easy spark and the lamp oil for color, hopefully the color would still come through?
http://mythic-fire.com/fuels.php
"Ronsonol brand fuel for Zippo lighters: These are all chemically the same (plus or minus a few trace additives that donÂ’t seem to affect the burn any). TheyÂ’re all fast fuels, and have characteristics that are nearly the same as white gas. Kerosene and lamp oil have the kind of long duration you want in a fuel, but theyÂ’re a screaming hassle to light. White gas lights up beautifully, but then itÂ’s all gone, just when youÂ’re really hitting the top of your stride. 50-50 mixtures of kerosene and white gas, or of lamp oil and white gas, are quite popular in firedancing circles. (If we were listing them in the popularity-order ranking above, instead of giving them their own section here, theyÂ’d come out somewhere between kerosene and white gas. Quite popular stuff.) Some folks also like to do 2-to-1 mixtures, or varying other proportions (leaning in either direction)."
so, sounds like i could mix lighter fluid for an easy spark and the lamp oil for color, hopefully the color would still come through?
Gigatron
Sr Member
ok, since we've all decided that copper burns green, here's an idea. Go to radio shack and buy a spool of 18 or 22 gauge wire. It's all copper under the plastic sheath. Get a new zippo wick. Strip the plastic off the copper and intertwine it (the copper) with the new wick and run it through the zippo as normal. The wick should still absorb and hold the lighter fluid and the copper strands should burn green.
But before you go through all that work, take some of the stripped wire and hold it in an open flame and see if it burns green or not. If it doesn't, it doesn't pay to do all that work.
-Fred
But before you go through all that work, take some of the stripped wire and hold it in an open flame and see if it burns green or not. If it doesn't, it doesn't pay to do all that work.
-Fred
OK, for some reason I was unable to get to the RPF from home last night.
I couldn't get a clear enough picture up-close, but suspended over the "emitter" is a thin wire, with a blob of something in the middle that looks very "copperish". (see diagram):
When the lighter first ignites, the flame is normal (orange-ish?), once the blob heats up (it's quick, maybe .5 seconds) the flame turns green. I took a photo with the flash, & one without flash (or lights):
Kylash, I'm PM'ing you a link for the lighter. It's pretty cheaply-priced, so if it didn't work out you wouldn't be out much money...
Hope this helps...
I couldn't get a clear enough picture up-close, but suspended over the "emitter" is a thin wire, with a blob of something in the middle that looks very "copperish". (see diagram):
When the lighter first ignites, the flame is normal (orange-ish?), once the blob heats up (it's quick, maybe .5 seconds) the flame turns green. I took a photo with the flash, & one without flash (or lights):
Kylash, I'm PM'ing you a link for the lighter. It's pretty cheaply-priced, so if it didn't work out you wouldn't be out much money...
Hope this helps...
No, it's butane. But they do sell butane Zippo inserts, which might be able to be modified using the wire/blob dealio from a lighter like mine.
Don't know how much trouble that would be though... *shrugs*
Don't know how much trouble that would be though... *shrugs*
yeah ive seen those inserts, the style of the emitter and button is different than a normal zippo, theres a pic of one above that is more accurate. So hmm...im wondering if the little dot makes it green, not the fuel, always thought it was special butane colored stuff...interesting
Rabittooth
Well-Known Member
<div class='quotetop'>(Kylash327 @ Nov 15 2006, 01:46 PM) [snapback]1358247[/snapback]</div>
I'm gonna say that this lamp oil will probably work just fine in your zippo as far as the burn. The question is whether the flint roller will ignite it. I've only ever lit oil lamps with an open flame. Maybe someone who has a zippo in their house as well as an oil lamp can do the experiment for you and run the striker of an empty zippo near an oil lamp and see if it ignites.
If it does, I see no reason why the oil lamp fuel that burns green won't work perfectly in your zippo.
-Rabittooth
I'm gonna say that this lamp oil will probably work just fine in your zippo as far as the burn. The question is whether the flint roller will ignite it. I've only ever lit oil lamps with an open flame. Maybe someone who has a zippo in their house as well as an oil lamp can do the experiment for you and run the striker of an empty zippo near an oil lamp and see if it ignites.
If it does, I see no reason why the oil lamp fuel that burns green won't work perfectly in your zippo.
-Rabittooth
Did you, ever, got this working? I, recently, got one of these prop lighters, too.
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