My S&W Is Back From The Factory....the ZIPPO factory!

Guys:

I'll start out by saying that I don't smoke, never have smoked, hate smoking. That doesn't keep me from appreciating a nice lighter.

Last year I was wandering the Tulsa Gun Show. I was nearly delirious from fatigue, or it could have been that processed food item passed off as a chili dog at the snack bar. Anyway, I walking along and I saw a familiar logo, one that always catches my eye.





It was a nice Zippo lighter with the logo we all love. I picked it up noticing that it appeared to be in fine shape. I opened it and discovered the problem. It was busted. The hinge had come loose from the lower body and would not reliably close. The seller knew that and offered it to me for $20, not a bargain for a busted lighter but not bad for one in otherwise good shape that I knew could be fixed.

One fun thing about Zippos is that they can be dated, something that appeals to the collector gene we all seem to possess. The date code on the bottom of this one showed it to be a 1984 example.



As is well known the Zippo Company stands behind its products, a rare policy in a world of disposable everything. It offers a lifetime warranty on its lighters. It will fix or replace any defective Zippo.

I decided to buy it. A few months later I got tired of seeing it sitting on my dresser as a daily reminder of something else that needed to be fixed. I finally got around to packaging it and sending it off to Zippo. As promised they fixed it properly and promptly. In less than a month I had a perfectly functioning Zippo back. They even gave me some spare flints. And, by the way, all at no charge. Zippo's policy impresses me.



Anyway, now that its working I am thinking that its only use to me might be on our upcoming annual campout. It might also get the chance to light the Weber gas BBQ grille out back since its own starter died. (No, Weber does not have a lifetime warranty on its products. It should.) And I'll probably take the Zippo to the S&WCA Symposium in June in Charlotte so it can be available to light any cigars that might require ignition. Hope to see some of you guys there.

Beautiful Zippo! Sincerely. bruce.

Only one guarantee zippo could do better is to guarantee I would never lose mine...."sadly I did" I carried my zippo every day since leaving viet nam it was engraved with the names of everyone from my unit that got killed during my time over there
The day I lost it was like losing my own life I almost cried...it was the only thing in my life that never failed me
Pappy

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Zippo's are the best and will fix or replace any lighter except for the finish.
Had one from every ship I was on. Sent many back, but someone stole them in the mail....
My latest

print screen windows xp

I added the MCPO insignia device.

BTW, got a small buck in Bradford PA in 1986....

ordnanceguy said:

Anyway, now that its working I am thinking that its only use to me might be on our upcoming annual campout. It might also get the chance to light the Weber gas BBQ grille out back since its own starter died. (No, Weber does not have a lifetime warranty on its products. It should.) And I'll probably take the Zippo to the S&WCA Symposium in June in Charlotte so it can be available to light any cigars that might require ignition. Hope to see some of you guys there.

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ordnanceguy: You need to discover the joys of fireworks. That would put that thing to work.

Andy

thank you OG/ chas.

A lighter and a guy named Flick. Perfect combo!

Bought this Zippo at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune N.C. in 1961

Where you see the brass metal once was red paint

I'm not a smoker!

Nice!
I recently converted a coupla Zippos to butane for lighting cigars.


One's a soft flame flint ignition insert and the other's a double torch:


Now I'm gonna havta haunt eBay looking for a S&W Zippo.

Love to see a plan come together. Good job on the follow through.

I'm currently grieving the loss of a Zippo 6 ft tape measure that I've carried since the mid 70s. I used it to measure some blinds I put up a couple weeks ago. Missed it within hours and have searched diligently but no love yet.

I was telling someone today that I want a Zippo with the S&W logo. Now I want one even more. Thanks.

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StakeOut said:

Bought this Zippo at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune N.C. in 1961. Where you see the brass metal once was red paint.
I'm not a smoker!

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Stakeout, that one is a beauty and has some great history with it! I hope it never leaves you.

snowman said:

ordnanceguy: You need to discover the joys of fireworks. That would put that thing to work. Andy

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Thanks for the tip, Andy. As it happens I spent much of my youth hunting for, trading for, thinking about, and igniting fireworks. I love fireworks, although being a little older and a little wiser now keeps me from reenacting some of the fireworks foolishness I managed to survive somehow. The S&W lighter may indeed get a workout on the 4th of July.

Nice six line there. I got rid of all my zippos back when I quit smoking about 25 years ago. Wish I had kept one or two.

Every good American should own a Zippo. Even if it doesn't have a USA subject



I had a friend who died a couple of years ago, a long time smoker who always used a brass Zippo. Like a lot of people who were never in the military, he was fascinated by the subject.

He used to collect used Zippo's from the Vietnam era way before it was a popular thing to do. He could tell you the history of the ship or military unit they came from. Now the online sites for them are pricey, and full of fakes. He kept them in a display case, I really would have liked to have bought it from his estate as a memento, but I knew that his brother and executor was the cheapest human being who ever walked the planet, and would have wanted more than I would have wanted to pay. Que sera.

I have one from my Memory Box that belonged to my younger Brother, now deceased. It has a etching of Jimmy Carter on it.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

phantomcycle said:

Only one guarantee zippo could do better is to guarantee I would never lose mine...."sadly I did" I carried my zippo every day since leaving viet nam it was engraved with the names of everyone from my unit that got killed during my time over there
The day I lost it was like losing my own life I almost cried...it was the only thing in my life that never failed me
Pappy

Sent from my SM-S975L using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

One of the units I served with in Vietnam provided each departing soldier with a Zippo engraved with unit crest, name, unit assignment, and dates of service. Very nice.

Left mine on the bar next to my beer while I went to the 'used beer department' for a couple of minutes, and when I returned it was gone. Why anyone else would want a lighter engraved with my name eludes me somehow, but that is how some people are.