You will already know that I always carry a couple of Mini Bics for fire lighting. They are hard, if not impossible to beat at approximately 10 grams each. I recently added a 1.5 gram rubber Thimblette to prevent my burning my thumb especially when you need to hold the flame on for a protracted burn.
Much as I love them they do have drawbacks. They could explode for example though this is very unlikely and would probably require a welding splash or the like to cause it. They can fail (but anything can – one reason why I always carry more than one. You can probably think of others) and they are difficult to light after they become very wet eg by being submerged in a river, so that if you need to get a fire going quickly eg after you have just fallen through ice (or for some other reason you want an alternative lighter) I thought I would look into that ‘problem’. This is not an extensive survey, but just a few ideas.
Of course as everyone knows the ‘original’ ‘cigar’ (Yes, they came before ‘cigarettes’) lighters (everyone is familiar with Zippos) used a kind of kerosene (lighter fluid) and a flint to ignite it. Zippos still exist as I’m sure you know, but there are also various ultralight kerosene lighters available. I already posted about the Peanut Lighter, for example. At 14.3 grams I think it makes a reasonable competitor to the Mini Bic – and you can carry a little spare fuel too (eg in a straw, like this or a micro dropper bottle). This one is also waterproof as I’m sure you can see which is an advantage over the Mini Bic. You can buy one here from US$34.95 (Sept 2020)
A similar useful idea is the ‘Permanant Match’. There are heaps of these available as a Google search will prove.
Here is a description of them: ‘https://www.geartalk.net/2018/10/permanent-matches-for-backpacking.html: A “permanent match” is nothing more than a small container that holds a flammable fuel, a small wick, and a striker to ignite it. The advantage is that they burn stronger than a wood match and you can get more lights out of a single container than you could with a bundle of matches taking up the same amount of space. Also, in extremely wet conditions, you could spill out a little of the fuel to get stubborn tinder going.
The one I got is from Survival Life but you can find varying designs easily if you search eBay or Amazon (I saw one on eBay the other day for 99 cents with free shipping). It’s got an O-ring to prevent leaks and evaporation of the fuel and is 100% waterproof so you don’t even have to think about keeping it dry.
Using any readily available lighter fuel (Zippo, Ronsonal, etc.), it weighs in at just 0.6 oz (17g) and is very compact so it won’t take up much space in your emergency kit. You can shave another 0.1 oz. off if you remove the included keychain clip.
Fortunately, I’ve never been in a survival situation but if I were, I’d consider myself lucky to have this firestarter with me. The flame is robust, burns long, and the extended reach of the metal “match” makes it a little easier to light a fire than a Bic.
Another idea is the ‘plasma arc’ type electric (rechargeable) lighter which I can see a number of advantages of rechargeability for one thing. This one (45 grams) or this from Amazon might suit your needs. You can also purchase a plama inser to fit 9nside your old Zippo case eg here ($15)nor here (50 grams). I really liked this one because it also included a flashlight (but is currently out of stock).
This is the $15 Sparkr insert:
While on the topic of Zippos. you can also buy a butane insert for your old Zippo here.
See Also
How to Light A Fire In the Wet
