This brings back memories of my childhood in the late '70s. My brothers and I always had hand warmers, having grown up in Michigan, and we used them when ice fishing or sledding down a hill. We also had some that used solid charcoal-based fuel sticks as well and opened like a clam shell. The inside lining was all fiberglass and you would just put the burning fuel stick inside and close the lid, allowing it to burn/smolder very slowly. Can't imagine giving such things to a 10 year old kid today, but that was common back then.
Thank you Clive for introducing me to these devices. I picked up a few after you released this video and they have been doing good service, makes working on cold damp machines in the winter months more tolerable. Again thank you.
I rode my Harley for many years in the winter when it was snow free. I always had these things with me. My tip: sew a lanyard to the bag so you can wear the oven under the jacket. The heat comes best on the chest, back and between the shoulder blades or in the boots. Is the winter grim use two stoves. So that it does not get too hot I put a cardboard in the pocket, so I can choose between a warm and a hot side. For fuel I use Aspen 2 stroke gasoline, it doesn't smell and is dirt cheap. I prefer the Peackocks but the cheap China ones work fine but only use the ones with the glass wool pad. Greetings from Germany.
OMG. I’ve had a Bernzomatic butane soldering iron for YEARS and really never knew how it works, why it works, and how to use it properly. This video just made everything make sense now.
Used them for years, when I was collecting my Maple Sap, I always started them by putting a few drops of fuel on the catalytic part and lighting it, and letting it burn out. That also heats the lower part, as you stated. They work great !
It goes south, you throw it out of your pocket, the fuel burns off and it's all over. You pick it up, dust it off and fill it when you get home. Your battery swells and explodes, you're on fire, you breathe in noxious fumes and pass out. You're now a burn victim with bad lungs.
Oh my - stop giving people ideas! 😳 Although I am fairly certain that somewhere someone has already tried that. I mean...this is the internet, right? I used to think that nobody would be stupid enough to eat laundry detergent. But then I didn’t anymore.
Ah, memories from the late 1940's to early 1960's. I grew up in the Northwoods of Wisconsin (USA)....read that as miserably cold winters. My father and I were avid hunters and we always had a JON-E hand warmer in our pockets as we hunted. Many times one in each pocket. Tnx for the memories Clive.
77300d In 1987, the cold, ice and snow no longer was fun. Moved to just north of San Diego. Near Lawrence Welk Village if you have heard of that. No hunting to speak of, but I did my share and loved it. Love of firearms is now satisfied at local gun ranges.
I've got a Zippo model of one of these. It works just alright; there is a bit of a trick to getting it to heat up warmly and provide a little warmth while you're doing outdoor stuff. However you don't want nearly numb fingers touching 100F+ metal, that would probably cause burns. For $12 and about a dime worth of fuel to provide about 6 hours of a hand warmer, its not a terrible thing for those finding themselves outside in the cold often.
Sizukun1 100°F is practically body temperature (98.6°F), I don't think you are going to get many burns at that temperature. Add another 30-40°F and you might start to get burns, but only with prolonged exposure and good thermal transfer (which the fabric pouch should prevent).
98.6F is body temp at your core. If your fingers are really cold and you dip them into 100F water, it'll feel like you're getting burned. If you're bordering on frostbite, and you put them into 100F water they will be burned and damaged. The zippo models do get up over 120F, I've never measured them accurately though.
If they get to hot you close up the hole on the bag. Less oxygen for less heat. You really need to run them in the correct bag as its made to let in the right amount of air.
Sizukun Feeling like a burn is not the same as a burn, as someone who has lived in the Arctic and has experienced frostbite I can tell you that your perceptions are incorrect
I had one of these more than 50 years ago (age 13-15), when pulling a wooden barrow around South London streets in the winter - delivering paraffin and Coalite. (Very Dickensian). Slipped it into a glove, swapping from one glove to another as the neglected hand got cold. I seem to remember filling it with a rubbery 'capsule' of lighter fuel.
I'm a biker and have owned on for over 4 years so it lives with me in a inside pocket or if I go camping in my sleepingbag . My fuel can is like a tiny watering can . P.s if you put it in your sleeping bag don't fart it can end badly , I'm on my second tent now . 😋
I would not like the idea of having something more or less burning in my sleeping bag. But still better than the idea of a friend to use some of the small "tea candles" in the tent, on an external CD-drive (plastic) from his laptop as a convenient base to avoid throwing them over. He fell asleep, the candles overheated and ignited the plastic enclosure on which they were standing and he could barely escape the fire and smoke of burning plastic and synthetic fibers. There idea of another friend was much safer: He had bought a 2,5kW generator and used it the first time for camping on a festival, for a fridge box and for some music in the evening. During the night he used a nice 2kW electric heater - " the generator is running anyway". On the next day he was quite astonished about the fuel consumption. :-) Conservation of energy from it's negative side.
I was doing the D of E award scheme and we were camping a friend had reproofed his canvas tent the day before , he hadn't got a camping stove so they loaned him a pump up brass Primus stove . So he was sitting cross legged under the peak of his tent out of the drizzle pumping for all he was worth ( we did tell him to stop at about 10 pumps ) so when he couldn't pump any more he set light to the methylated spirit heater ring sat for a bit till it had burnt out then refilled it . By this time it was good and hot then he opened the valve to full . There was a wooosh and all the burner leapt of and into his lap , at this point the flame appeared like a light saber it pierced the top of his tent and while he was trying to deal with the burner . There was a wooosh again and his tent disappeared in a flash of steam ,smoke and flame around him , his face was a picture of bewilderment as he now realized he was sitting in the open . Us being good friends made him sleep in what was left . Such a sham we didn't have smart phones in the 70s .
@Andy Ward That reminds me of my uncle who managed to burn a hole in the canopy over the cooking area on Boy Scout camp outs no fewer than 3 times using one of those stoves. Generally the canopy was set about 7ft tall over a picnic bench, so generally there were no problems, but if you were especially absent minded it was possible to create rather tall flames with the stoves.
I know I am late to the party. My Grandma had one of these. She and many others used it for lawn bowls. Many had one for each pocket. She could work it out; she never blew up. Informative video, I sort of knew how they worked but no ones ever explained it to me. Take care.
I have two of these. They're excellent. You can't use normal petrol, lighter fluid is naphtha rather than petrol and is considerably lighter (shorter chain hydrocarbons) and cleaner burning, the short chain hydrocarbons also mean it readily converts to vapour. Easiest way to get them started is to soak the converter in a few drops of naphtha and then light it, that draws the vapour up.
The catalytic process is pretty simple, it's just combustion, but the platinum decreases the temperature required for it to occur, leading to combustion without a flame.
@@spacemonkey9257 Are the poptarts in your shoes whilst you sleep (and if so where are the shoes being kept?), or are you sleeping whilst wearing your shoes but with a box of poptarts next to you?
Just a little terminology correction for the US viewers- we would refer to this as lighter fluid (naptha), not gasoline- gasoline is considerably more "energetic" when lit on fire and would probably not end well if used in one of these.
Yea actually in the UK we also call it lighter fluid for the most part. However, it is just gasoline that has been distilled further for a cleaner, more refined burn without all the smoke that normal gasoline produces.
Actually U.S. automobile gasoline a.k.a. petrol is nearly the same. Gasoline has higher octane and a lot more impurities and a varying amount of volatiles (more in winter gas for colder climes). Coleman fuel for lanterns and stoves doesn't work very well in these (perhaps because it is too "thick" (longer chain hydrocarbons, less volatile) but gasoline is a mix of long and short chains so mostly works.) Because gasoline has so many impurities it will clog (ruin) the catalyst fairly quickly and produce more fumes while doing it, so don't use it.
Friend of mine had a charcoal pocket warmer - worked wonders for wintertime patrols (military). And they are a lot better than battery powered (even if you look at the environmental impact and danger of use)
Yes I am utterly sick of the moronic belief that anything electric (especially vehicles) is 'Green' MOST electric vehicles will never make up for the destruction wrought during their manufacture (especially the materials used in the batteries) let alone the tendency to totally ignore the generation of electricity to run them?
The original Jon-e version required you put 1 drop fluid on the fiberglass tube. You were to then light it and wait until the flame burned out and there was a steady glow. They worked well and actually had a little swinging door with about a 3/8" diameter hole so you could light a cigarette on the element. Be careful not to over fill, because you can get a nasty chemical burn if it leaks and your clothes become wet with naptha.
i've had a zippo warmer for 15 years and it's always served me well on many camping trips and cold days alike, i haven't had to replace the catalyst since i got it. it still gets too hot to touch if i leave it out of the felt bag. my favorite way to use it was filling it up to the 4 hour line, cinching up the felt bag fully (this will make it run about half as hot and twice as long, ive had it run 20 hours in the felt bag and then in a parka pocket before) and tossing it into the bottom of the sleeping bag before going to sleep. nice toasty feet. i think it has way more platinum on it than the knockoffs, since the fibers are a dull grey instead of white.
I just put mine in a zipper bag and store it all in the pouch. If it's been running in the pouch it's cool enough that there's no danger of melting the bag. If it's hot you can just leave it in the pouch when you put it in the bag. The reaction will stop in a few minutes and you can relight it later. If it sits for weeks or months you'll have to refill it. (You could also remove the catalytic part for a minute until it cools)
I've had one of these for a while now after seeing your video I bought one, all I can say is WOW they are fantastic, I ride a bike and motorcycle I just hang the heater around my neck let it rest on my chest just below my ribs and between two jackets and it keeps my chest nice and warm, No daught the price will go up as more people like them.
I found a "Jon-E" brand one at a sale, turned out to be roughly 65 years old, orig purple bag ect... works ALOT better than lipo ones or equivalent :) Always a great video :)
I learned my lesson on these a very long time ago when one leaked on my leg and caused a severe chemical burn. Ruined my vacation in the mountains. I now use the warmers that are rechargeable when heated in boiling water. No fuss, no muss.
Admiral Preparedness You got a chemical burn from the gas you used to power it? WTF were you using? Obviously not kerosene, fuel oil, or diesel. And not naptha like the video says. Man, I am really curious about what were you using as fuel. That's crazy!
Hydrocarbons act as a solvent for oils. This is good for cleaning - removing grease stains, but bad for skin. So prolonged skin exposure easily leads to dry skin and cracks in the skin on prolonged exposure. So normally not a chemical burn like from an acid or lye but still an injury.
bigclivedotcom The op said it leaked on his skin. The only way these hand warmers or Zippo cigarette lighters leak is if they are over filled. I know people put them odd places, but they are hand warmers for inside mitts and gloves. To be fair I have put these inside my coat and in pockets, especialy a lighter, but never had one leak. I have had one of those chemical goo ones leak though. So I guess you choose your poison and see what is best for you.
I would assume some kind of dermatitis; heavy irritation but you're right, it wasn't necessarily a chemical burn. Still like a nasty sunburn with not an immediate way to alleviate the more than annoying irritation.
I am some what of a (pocket) hand warmer guru. I learned about them when my father brought one home from the war in the 50s. All hand (naptha) warmers are based on the Peacock (original) and are either modifications on the original design (UST, Zippo, etc.) or are updates on the original (the new Peacock) or improvements (Boston) on the early designs. Strangely enough, no new hand warmers of fuel type have been invented that are not direct copies, or modified from the original designs since they first came out. What I'm saying is, the hand warmer you buy today is the exact same principal as one from 30 or more years ago (Jon-E for instance). I do not dabble in instant hand warmers, or electric hand warmers, because they are all crapola, if anyone has questions.
My Chinese ones doesn't, but there might be large variations between batches if quality control isn't very strict. Since there isn't any actual flame involved (the platinum catalyse the reaction so it takes place at a much lower temperature), and the heat source (catalyst) is in the "cap" you remove when you refill the bottle, it should be perfectly safe to refill them when hot... in theory at least. :D
I had the genuine peacock ones. Used for years but always following instructions. Easy to light when following instructions. Which was to hold the lighter under the centre of the catalyst until a few of the fibres glowed. ( usually 15 to 20 seconds) upon removing the flame the glow would stop but the thing was heating. then slip the lid on then drop into the bag. 8 to 10 hours of warm but not too hot hands.
I have one I inherited from my Father, when he passed in 99. I believe it was a gift to him, from my maternal Grandfather. It is called Jimmy Hand Warmer and it is a model 502 made in Hong Kong.
I had one of those that started differently: The catalyst was a metal fibre sponge, and a "starting wick" was fed from the inside to the outside of the catalyst. You had to lite that wick up which burned just like a gasoline lighter, and it would extinguish by itself when the catalyst reaction started up. The company was called "peacock".
I love these things for cold weather, especially while hunting or at high school football games. I need some of the old ones that were made with more platinum. Time to raid estate sales or the grandparents drawers.
I just pop it in a zip-lock bag, press the air out and seal it. It cools off quick when its air supply isn't replenished, and the remaining fuel can't really evaporate. It's probably better to pop off the catalyst first and let it cool though. My understanding is that they can become fouled by incomplete combustion. On the other hand, holding a lighter to it the next time you use it may be enough to burn the crud off.
I've had one of those 60 years ago. to ignite: wet the wick with naphtha, the just ignite the wet wick. when the flame goes out, add the top shield, and wrap the bag around it and pocket it. Works well. typically only one lighting each use or fill. Good Video. Oh, an afterthought. Gasoline has lead and other automotive additives. Naphtha (lighter fluid) (or what they call WHITE GAS (used for camping stoves and gas lanterns like Coleman brand mantle lanterns)) burns clean (Non-hazardous)
Thank's for the memory Clive! My brother used one of these when hunting in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan back in the late 1970's. He used lighter fluid, which gave off an odor so I never used one, but I can remember him filling it and waiting for it to warm up as we headed out into the cold to hunt whitetail deer. It looked exactly the same right down to the red flannel bag!
I typically squirt a drop of fuel on the top and light that in order to get it started. Works very well. Although the models I own have a platinum mesh for the catalyst.
James Stewart that's how I use the Zippo version. I wonder if it gunks up the cap bit though because i struggle to keep it going once I've used it a dozen or so times.
The original Jon-E instructions had you place a few drops of fuel on the wick, light it, then let it burn for 1 minute before blowing out the flame. That always worked for me.
I absolutely love the ones I got from Zippo .. have used them for everything from watching winter sports, hunting, camping and kayaking. I've used mine for about 7 years without a single issue.. absolutely love them.
My other half has one of these. I always thought it was so sketchy to have a burning piece of kit in your pocket, but it works really well! It just kinda makes ya smell smokey if you use it often, at least from my experience. Thanks for the video!
These are absolutely superb. I own the Zippo one. I always light it at home before a big walk, it can be a pain to light when out on the hills. It will stay hot for 8 hrs or so. Never had any issues with it, doesn’t even smell much.
That my friend, sorted my problems out, I have exactly the same warmer, I was putting the new catalyst pads in wrongly, I also fixed my other one. Thank you.
I used to often use one of these while riding a motorcycle. I'd slip it into my internal breast pocket of my jacket on cold days. It really did the trick. However, if any air started to flow up through the bottom of my jacket, the increased air flow would cause it to go into turbo mode and start burning my chest.
Hey Clive, thanks for the video! I bought one of these before a snowmobiling trip last year after watching this vid and they are wonderful. I dont have to plug it in, and refueling takes seconds! Only downside is the rather strong smell of naptha, but even that sure beats frostbite! Note: Zippo offers a 6 and 12hr version of these. I bought a 12hr
I have several of these that are the actual Zippo brand. I use normal camping fuel in them (white gas) no noticeable difference vs the Zippo fuel. Also you don't always know you have overfilled them right away. Once they start up and start to get warm if over filled the fuel starts boiling out and it will do one of two things a) burst into flames. b) put out the catalytic reaction.
'White gas' is not a thing in the UK. Is it alcohol? Most hiking stoves here are alcohol or LPG. Solid-fuel cookers are less common, paraffin (kerosene) even more so, I think the last paraffin stove I saw was in the cook-tent at a Scout Camp years ago.
Dick Holman "White gas" IS a thing in the UK, you just may not call it white gas. It's just a word to describe petroleum distillates. Like Naptha, diesel, fuel/heating oil, kerosene, lighter fluid, etc.
Coleman fuel is really not the best option for these units. And, an overfilled one just goes out.... there is not enough oxigen to support a flame (well, maybe for a second or 2)
@Andrew Delashaw No, we don't call anything white gas, it's not a thing here, which is why I asked you what it's proper name is. We do have white spirits, but that's for thinning oil-based paints & cleaning brushes, etc. which was often labelled sold as turps or turpentine substitute.
The stuff I use is made by Crown. The MSDS for it shows 90-100% "Light Aliphatic Naphtha" and 0-5% "Toluene" The reason I use it is its $7.50 a gallon vs $51 a gallon for the 4oz Zippo bottles and that's if you get them on sale. I have a Zippo container and just refill it from the gallon of camp fuel. I don't think that little bit (if any) of Toluene hurts anything.
I had one of these when I was a kid, back in the 60s, when no one cared about carrying burning lighter fluid in your pocket. LOL. It actually worked great and nothing bad ever happened
I have 2, and my trick is to heat the bottom (where the fuel is) for a few seconds before trying to light it. It gets some of the fuel warm enough to vaporize a bit
If those pesky vehicle listings are swamping your results or Ebay (or really any big search engine) try using some removal dashes. "catalytic converter -vehicle -car -automotive".
Instance Gaming those "removal dashes" haven't helped me with Google for *at least* six or seven years. The algorithm is too smart for its own good. >:[
Loren Husky What? I've heard of Duck Duck Goose, but not DuckDuckGo. Thank you for that. Sometimes I try Bing because Google is so stupid. I don't find Bing to be much better. DuckDuckGo. Sounds like a plan. Thank you.
If it's not working for you, then you need to adjust your terms until you get the result you want. There are also other types of terms you could use. The ops terms are not really sufficient to get rid of all the vehicle stuff or narrow down our options enough, after all they were just examples. "pocket warmer catalytic converter -amazon -ebay -instructables" on duckduckgo seems promising, 2 US patents easily found and no vehicle stuff, although the rest is probably of little use, mostly forums and shops, the patents should be useful if anyone actually wants the info. Google with the above search terms has one patent on the first page(the one relating to this product), the rest doesn't seem useful. The other patent is about a lighter combined with a catalytic hand warmer.
I had one when I was a kid in the 70s. It was a Jon-e warmer. It would actually have a faint flame that would burn inside a rockwool filament tube that was shrouded by that kind of silky mesh that white gas lantern mantles are made of. It would get quite hot and you could light a cigarette with it. Mine was fairly large -- about the size of a hip flask. They were okay -- lasted about 6-8 hours or so. Good for skiing or if you were outside hiking around or cutting firewood or winter camping in the snow. Great for snowball fights. One tended to smell like lighter fluid, though. In the days before the dry chemical hand warmers became cheap it was the easiest way to warm your hands up.
I had one as a kid and forty years later ,the best maker of that type of thing is Jone,they still make them win I was about 14 and lived in alaska I bought one at the base px.mine would run all day in my pocket
First thought "DO NOT PUT PETROL IN THET THING!" Second thought "Zippo uses carbon fiber composite I believe" Third thought "why do you keep saying gasoline?"
3) I believe what Americans call "gasoline" is called "petrol" over there in the UK and they say "gasoline" for pretty much any other petroleum distillate that's not diesel lol
absolutely love these things! have a couple i use when doing ironwork in the north during winter. the ones i have run for about 9-10 hrs at full blast and keep putting out a weaker heat for 2-4 hrs afterwards. granted i may have poked a few holes in the baggie.. the pockets in my stay puff suit are fairly restrictive on oxy in the first place. hot tip if ya drop em in to bottom of your bolt bag your fasteners will thread easier in truely cold weather ...steel shrinkage in anything below zero makes bolts and nuts go together like crap.
I've suffered my entire life from cold hands, I'd like to try one of these, however in my younger days, I had way over filled my Zippo lighter, it burnt my skin on my leg from being in my pants all day. The first few years was a purple stain on my leg nowa days it's just a skidmark Brown stain on my leg(birthmark like). Moral of the story less fuel more refuel more better.
There's an old school version of this as well that uses little sticks of what amounts to charcoal. Work just as well, and you don't need to worry about refilling them with liquid fuel. Just dump the ash when it's done and pop in a new stick.
Thank you BigClive! I found one of these among my fathers items after he passed and I was clearing out his house. I had no idea what it was. It looked like a giant Zippo with no sparker, but I just couldn't figure out what it was. You solved my mystery.
The Peacock hand warmers, which is what this is masquerading as, are much better than the Zippo version. They are also better built, with the body made from plated copper rather than steel.
@@well_as_an_expert_id_say Well, considering Peacock _make_ the Zippo hand warmers for them, I would agree, he is wrong. They are the exact same build quality, and exactly as good as each other.
I've owned the zippo brand warmers. They're decent I had a hard time lighting it tho after 10 uses and it went out on me a few times and was hard to relight after that.
Indeed Clive! These wee heaters have been around for many years. As a lad, I delivered the morning paper in the early 70s, in frosty Colorado. My hands would go numb in the winter pre-dawn chill, riding a bicycle fitted with balloon tires for the snow and ice. I had one of these heaters in my jacket pocket, for my "throwing hand" and it worked brilliantly. It's important to use napthta or "Zippo fuel" in these. Gasoline is too volatile.
Good thingy - used a lot in winters when i worked in survey. Only good experience. Use that thingy everywhere (where needed) - in boots, gloves, coat, sleeping bag and as I remember even in any possible position (up side down too). Later even over filed slightly. Had no problems what so ever. when i saw it in the shops they where advertised as a new invention, but as i found out, it`s here a long time now.
Had one of these in our house growing up. Never knew how to operate it. So, thanks. As for the search, i found some success with the boolean '-auto' at the end.
I had one of these years ago. 1. Don't carry it in an inside jacket pocket. The fumes will give you a chemical burn. 2. To light it a couple of drops of fuel on the element speeds things up immensely.
it's mostly Naptha / white gas. certification.zippo.com/Documents/Safety%20Data%20Sheet/English/Zippo%20Lighter%20Fluid%20-%20(GHS-2015).pdf (hopefully link will not get completely nuked)
Generally, the only way you should get a skin issue is if the unit is over filled (this also tends to cause the unit to go out), so it's generally obvious...to solve it...open the cap, use the edge of the cap to flip the element off, then turn the bottom housing over, and give it a gentle shake or 2, to remove any excess naptha, then reassemble and relight it.
I took one of these camping 30 years ago or so. It was cold that night so I lit it and sat back around the fire to relax. Fell asleep with the warmer sitting on my belly. Woke up with this perfectly square slight burn on my stomach. Not bad, but it was irritating for the rest of the hike... One of those "Today I learned" moments.
I have two big ones that run on propane or butane to heat caravans or even rooms in houses. They are thermally more efficient than combustion and, importantly, don't produce the water condensation that propane/butane combustion does. You ignite a pilot flame first until the catalytic wadding glows then turn the flame off for clean dry direct radiant heat. I remember the first time I saw one was in a portahut while I was working for London council, literally counting traffic by the side of a road one winter. I was quite amazed and very glad of the clean dry abundant heat. Seems like a lot of fuels will work if the device is designed for them. But best to be careful and if you must experiment do it safely with an assumption "This might blow up any moment, how do I test it safely?". Not saying don't do it, just saying live to tell us about it and stay pretty.
Make a video on the Ampy Move. It is apparently a terrible powerbank that is supposed to charge via bodymovment, UnboxTherapy did a video on it recently where they demonstrated just how horribly fraudulous it actually is
My dad struggles with white finger so I bought him a Zippo hand warmer to help with the circulation. In the winter he lives by it, bloody fantastic once you get the hang of them and lasts pretty much all day.
They work by using the high purity of the sodium acetate to stay in a liquid state at room temperature when they would normally be solid. The pressure wave of clicking the disk causes a very small amount of the liquid to change to the solid state and that crystal then acts as a nucleus for a chain reaction of crystallisation that spreads out from that point. When a liquid changes to a solid it liberates heat and when resetting it in hot water it absorbs the heat to convert back to liquid (melt)
Eventually, some of the water molecules in the solution escape through the covering. This results in a solution that is so saturated with sodium acetate that it won't stay in the liquid state.
I believe it’s also an oversaturated solution from the beginning, so it doesn’t take that much of a water loss for it to enter that semi-crystallized state.
I used mine on Saturday night. Lit it at 11pm, and it was still hot at 6 in the morning. I have a Zippo, and they perform much the same. Great wee units.
You can weed out search items on Google by using the minus key then what you don't want in the results.. (i.e) Videos -youtube Will show you "videos" but nothing from youtube.
I have my grandfather's Jon-E handwarmer from the late 40's and a Zippo handwarmer as well. They seem counterintuitive, what with lighter fluid and open flames to light it and then sticking in a hip pocket. However, my grandfather used his for close to 40 years on the coldest winter days and was always warm. I've used them both here in Canada at outdoor sporting events and other than the lighter fluid smell, always been happy to have them. Great things! I expect the Chinese version is equally effective, although maybe not so resilient.
Cool, thanx for confirming this for me! I was really confused that he could get gasoline in such a 'lighter fuel' can, commonly at the store, on a fairly rural island...
I wish they'd make something like this that runs on butane so it can be turned off when no longer needed, rather than just having to let it run out of fuel. Not to mention that I detest the smell of lighter fluid, and a can of butane is far less likely to leak. There are propane catalytic heaters, so I don't see how there'd be a big problem scaling the idea down to pocket-warmer size.
I've never, ever had mine leak. Also, smell of lighter fluid? What brand are you buying? Mine hardly smells at all. Just fill it near an open window or door or something. These things are unbelievably reliable (even the cheapo Chinese made ones) and they work extremely well in cold climates (such as here in Canada)...
Aurelius R All of the lighter fluids smell, rather strong too. When I smoked, I always bought the Ronsonol & Zippo brands, and they smelled. I don't know how you can't smell that. After/during filling, and even the flames smells rather strong. Now that I have been cig free, I use the lighter fluid I have left to remove stickers/adhesives, and I can always smell it strongly. Maybe you're just not relative to that certain smell. Even though it is strong, I don't find it to be a bad smell.
M. K. - I disagree. The volume the liquid fuel goes into is largely filled with wadding, and only so much liquid will fit. Even if the walls of the fuel compartment had to be thicker to deal with butane under pressure, I think there would still be room for more fuel, but let's say the fuel volumes are equal. Liquid butane has an energy value of 27.7 MJ/litre; gasoline/petrol is 34.2 and diesel is 38.6 - I couldn't find a value for lighter fluid specifically, but as it's less volatile than gasoline but more so than diesel, I'm figuring it to be roughly in between - so assuming equal fuel volumes, run time on butane would still be about 75% that of with liquid lighter fluid - not, by my standards, "way shorter". And as I said in my original comment - butane would offer the advantage of easily shutting off the fuel supply, enabling one to conserve the fuel when it wasn't needed rather than having to just let the thing run. (Say one has been using it outside while doing chores but then goes inside for lunch, as an example.) As that translates to about 9 hours (versus 12 for a full tank on the lighter fluid version) - I'd still be very happy to make that trade-off. Andrew Delashaw - People vary and I do find the smell of liquid lighter fluid quite unpleasant, either merely evaporating or burning. (I don't like the smell of gasoline or diesel fuel either.) I have lots of friends who smoke cigars who would react in horror if one suggested using a liquid-fueled lighter on a fine cigar - one either uses clean-burning butane or something with a pleasant, compatible aroma like a cedar spill.
I've used these for years, I just squirt the naptha from the can direct into the "tank", it's a lot safer than some squidy filler. Fill it up then let it sit for a few min, then heat the filament. Worked great when I used to work on the railroad in winter, never had a issue with them. You can run high % alcohol 90+ but it messes up the filaments sometimes.
It just doesn't seem right that a combustible fluid powered device with no fancy metering or safety shutdown gear is actually safer than a simple battery powered device... But there you have it.
Both are just chemical reactions and both have to be controlled. Battery is a chemical reaction producing electricity. Burning petroleum is a chemical reaction (oxidation etc) producing heat. Both lithium ion batteries and liquid fuel oxidation can be uncontrolled. At least in naptha fueled lighters and pocket warmers the liquid is fully absorbed to control/limit the rate it is available to the reaction.
I have a couple of these that go by the name of "Whitby warmers" same as a Zippo but with a different hole pattern. Take the top off and pop the cat off to turn them off. Run fine on lighter fuel, Coleman fuel or panel wipe (if you know someone in the car restoration business)
What the hell are you talking about? I think you have got the wrong person. Jerry Lewis sang this song, which is a classic, I never mentioned suicide. And you need help with your terrets.
@@timfondiggle2582 *are you another crack head with an ipad?* He mentioned nothing about suicide you stupid prick and never tell someone to kill themselves over anything! *its just as bad if not worse than joking about suicide!* you make me sick to the stomach *STUPID FUCKING HYPOCRITE!*
@@hdmalpas Didn't you know? All Tims are assholes. And could you please include the Lee when referring to the singer? Jerry Lewis the actor makes me cringe a bit
Best body heater ever build, you only need to know how to lit it properly, first preheat it direct on your body so the white petrol inside starts to evaporate. after that it will lit in a second
I've had one of these for over 50 years. Loved using them as a kid, let you stay outside all day! Mine went 8 hours when full. They used to sell belts that would hold one over each kidney and that really kept you warm. The bag keeps you from burning yourself, it gets really hot. Mine has metal mesh at the top, and does glow slightly.
I’ve use a Peacock pocket heater (the original from japan) for many years and it’s great! A bit more expensive than Zippo but works great and is from excellent quality! The best way to use this is just ignite and put it into the inner pocket of your jacket... it will warum you up quite nicely for several hours!
This brings back memories of my childhood in the late '70s. My brothers and I always had hand warmers, having grown up in Michigan, and we used them when ice fishing or sledding down a hill. We also had some that used solid charcoal-based fuel sticks as well and opened like a clam shell. The inside lining was all fiberglass and you would just put the burning fuel stick inside and close the lid, allowing it to burn/smolder very slowly. Can't imagine giving such things to a 10 year old kid today, but that was common back then.
I just gave my 10 year old his first solid fuel hand warmer!
You should fire up the IR camera for the next one!
Agree, would have been interesting to see it in IR.
Flir please!
Most agreed!!!
Yep.
IR cameras hate shiny silver surfaces.
Thank you Clive for introducing me to these devices. I picked up a few after you released this video and they have been doing good service, makes working on cold damp machines in the winter months more tolerable.
Again thank you.
I rode my Harley for many years in the winter when it was snow free. I always had these things with me. My tip: sew a lanyard to the bag so you can wear the oven under the jacket. The heat comes best on the chest, back and between the shoulder blades or in the boots. Is the winter grim use two stoves.
So that it does not get too hot I put a cardboard in the pocket, so I can choose between a warm and a hot side.
For fuel I use Aspen 2 stroke gasoline, it doesn't smell and is dirt cheap.
I prefer the Peackocks but the cheap China ones work fine but only use the ones with the glass wool pad.
Greetings from Germany.
"Pocket Full OF Petrol" that's gonna be the name of some kids garage band now.
"Ladies and Gentlemen .... GIVE IT UP for..... POCKET... FULL..... OFFFFF...... PEEETTTTTTTRRRROOOOOOLLLLLLLLL"
OMG. I’ve had a Bernzomatic butane soldering iron for YEARS and really never knew how it works, why it works, and how to use it properly. This video just made everything make sense now.
Used them for years, when I was collecting my Maple Sap, I always started them by putting a few drops of fuel on the catalytic part and lighting it, and letting it burn out. That also heats the lower part, as you stated. They work great !
I'd rather have a pocket full of petrol than an overheating Lion cell.
Dead Freight West yeah true that bro lions are terrifying animals
Yeah. I have one of these that i found so iread up on how to use/fix. Thing nearly blew up my hands before scalding then
They're perfectly safe as long as the lion stays in the cell.
Nothing worst than a hot lion, imagine scraping that out of the wrapper, all chocolatey and gooey
It goes south, you throw it out of your pocket, the fuel burns off and it's all over. You pick it up, dust it off and fill it when you get home.
Your battery swells and explodes, you're on fire, you breathe in noxious fumes and pass out. You're now a burn victim with bad lungs.
Gasoline vaping ... the perfect companion to a Tide Pod meal.
Hey I like eating tide pods it gives me the wisdom to know why kids love the taste of cinnamon toast crunch
Oh my - stop giving people ideas! 😳
Although I am fairly certain that somewhere someone has already tried that. I mean...this is the internet, right?
I used to think that nobody would be stupid enough to eat laundry detergent. But then I didn’t anymore.
I ate a Rose once lol it was a dare.... and I was sick for 2 days....
No problem
If tide pods are good enough for my clothes, its good enough for my insides
Ah, memories from the late 1940's to early 1960's. I grew up in the Northwoods of Wisconsin (USA)....read that as miserably cold winters. My father and I were avid hunters and we always had a JON-E hand warmer in our pockets as we hunted. Many times one in each pocket. Tnx for the memories Clive.
I used a JON-E one in the late 80's while working outside. Worked great and never had any issues.
SZretired I had forgotten they called them these heh
Ah, a fellow cheesehead. Same here. One in each pocket while deer hunting. :-)
77300d In 1987, the cold, ice and snow no longer was fun. Moved to just north of San Diego. Near Lawrence Welk Village if you have heard of that. No hunting to speak of, but I did my share and loved it. Love of firearms is now satisfied at local gun ranges.
Dave Micolichek Best hunting was actually done in southern Wisconsin where the deer were corn fed! 👍
I've got a Zippo model of one of these. It works just alright; there is a bit of a trick to getting it to heat up warmly and provide a little warmth while you're doing outdoor stuff. However you don't want nearly numb fingers touching 100F+ metal, that would probably cause burns. For $12 and about a dime worth of fuel to provide about 6 hours of a hand warmer, its not a terrible thing for those finding themselves outside in the cold often.
Sizukun1 100°F is practically body temperature (98.6°F), I don't think you are going to get many burns at that temperature. Add another 30-40°F and you might start to get burns, but only with prolonged exposure and good thermal transfer (which the fabric pouch should prevent).
98.6F is body temp at your core. If your fingers are really cold and you dip them into 100F water, it'll feel like you're getting burned. If you're bordering on frostbite, and you put them into 100F water they will be burned and damaged. The zippo models do get up over 120F, I've never measured them accurately though.
If they get to hot you close up the hole on the bag.
Less oxygen for less heat.
You really need to run them in the correct bag as its made to let in the right amount of air.
Sizukun Feeling like a burn is not the same as a burn, as someone who has lived in the Arctic and has experienced frostbite I can tell you that your perceptions are incorrect
I had one of these more than 50 years ago (age 13-15), when pulling a wooden barrow around South London streets in the winter - delivering paraffin and Coalite. (Very Dickensian). Slipped it into a glove, swapping from one glove to another as the neglected hand got cold. I seem to remember filling it with a rubbery 'capsule' of lighter fuel.
I'm a biker and have owned on for over 4 years so it lives with me in a inside pocket or if I go camping in my sleepingbag . My fuel can is like a tiny watering can . P.s if you put it in your sleeping bag don't fart it can end badly , I'm on my second tent now . 😋
I would not like the idea of having something more or less burning in my sleeping bag. But still better than the idea of a friend to use some of the small "tea candles" in the tent, on an external CD-drive (plastic) from his laptop as a convenient base to avoid throwing them over. He fell asleep, the candles overheated and ignited the plastic enclosure on which they were standing and he could barely escape the fire and smoke of burning plastic and synthetic fibers.
There idea of another friend was much safer: He had bought a 2,5kW generator and used it the first time for camping on a festival, for a fridge box and for some music in the evening. During the night he used a nice 2kW electric heater - " the generator is running anyway". On the next day he was quite astonished about the fuel consumption. :-) Conservation of energy from it's negative side.
I was doing the D of E award scheme and we were camping a friend had reproofed his canvas tent the day before , he hadn't got a camping stove so they loaned him a pump up brass Primus stove . So he was sitting cross legged under the peak of his tent out of the drizzle pumping for all he was worth ( we did tell him to stop at about 10 pumps ) so when he couldn't pump any more he set light to the methylated spirit heater ring sat for a bit till it had burnt out then refilled it . By this time it was good and hot then he opened the valve to full . There was a wooosh and all the burner leapt of and into his lap , at this point the flame appeared like a light saber it pierced the top of his tent and while he was trying to deal with the burner . There was a wooosh again and his tent disappeared in a flash of steam ,smoke and flame around him , his face was a picture of bewilderment as he now realized he was sitting in the open . Us being good friends made him sleep in what was left . Such a sham we didn't have smart phones in the 70s .
@Andy Ward That reminds me of my uncle who managed to burn a hole in the canopy over the cooking area on Boy Scout camp outs no fewer than 3 times using one of those stoves. Generally the canopy was set about 7ft tall over a picnic bench, so generally there were no problems, but if you were especially absent minded it was possible to create rather tall flames with the stoves.
Ye this flame was about 10 feet high it was absolutely amazing to see and also one of the funniest thing I've seen.
I believe you. Some farts are very flammable.
I know I am late to the party. My Grandma had one of these. She and many others used it for lawn bowls. Many had one for each pocket. She could work it out; she never blew up.
Informative video, I sort of knew how they worked but no ones ever explained it to me.
Take care.
"It's because I'm Big Clive and that's what we do"...
I love this guy!
I have two of these. They're excellent.
You can't use normal petrol, lighter fluid is naphtha rather than petrol and is considerably lighter (shorter chain hydrocarbons) and cleaner burning, the short chain hydrocarbons also mean it readily converts to vapour.
Easiest way to get them started is to soak the converter in a few drops of naphtha and then light it, that draws the vapour up.
Thank you Clive, I’m in the motor trade (electronics and diagnostics) and “cataclysmic converter “ is now firmly in my vocabulary!
The catalytic process is pretty simple, it's just combustion, but the platinum decreases the temperature required for it to occur, leading to combustion without a flame.
Combustion is somewhat simple, the way platinum allows this at a low temperature is a little trickier and not as well understood.
I sleep with a box of poptarts in my shoes
@@spacemonkey9257 Are the poptarts in your shoes whilst you sleep (and if so where are the shoes being kept?), or are you sleeping whilst wearing your shoes but with a box of poptarts next to you?
@@ferrumignis yes
@@spacemonkey9257 Thanks for clearing that up, I've not been able to sleep for worrying.
Just a little terminology correction for the US viewers- we would refer to this as lighter fluid (naptha), not gasoline- gasoline is considerably more "energetic" when lit on fire and would probably not end well if used in one of these.
I'm going to adjust the title and description to gasoline distillate and mention it being naptha.
Actually, make that petroleum distillate.
Yea actually in the UK we also call it lighter fluid for the most part. However, it is just gasoline that has been distilled further for a cleaner, more refined burn without all the smoke that normal gasoline produces.
Actually U.S. automobile gasoline a.k.a. petrol is nearly the same. Gasoline has higher octane and a lot more impurities and a varying amount of volatiles (more in winter gas for colder climes). Coleman fuel for lanterns and stoves doesn't work very well in these (perhaps because it is too "thick" (longer chain hydrocarbons, less volatile) but gasoline is a mix of long and short chains so mostly works.) Because gasoline has so many impurities it will clog (ruin) the catalyst fairly quickly and produce more fumes while doing it, so don't use it.
chinese warmer ran okay on 97 octane petrol
Once in a while, I find myself happy that I subscribed to someone. You're a pleasure to listen to, with the way you impart knowledge.
Cheers Clive.
Friend of mine had a charcoal pocket warmer - worked wonders for wintertime patrols (military).
And they are a lot better than battery powered (even if you look at the environmental impact and danger of use)
Yes I am utterly sick of the moronic belief that anything electric (especially vehicles) is 'Green' MOST electric vehicles will never make up for the destruction wrought during their manufacture (especially the materials used in the batteries) let alone the tendency to totally ignore the generation of electricity to run them?
The original Jon-e version required you put 1 drop fluid on the fiberglass tube. You were to then light it and wait until the flame burned out and there was a steady glow. They worked well and actually had a little swinging door with about a 3/8" diameter hole so you could light a cigarette on the element.
Be careful not to over fill, because you can get a nasty chemical burn if it leaks and your clothes become wet with naptha.
i've had a zippo warmer for 15 years and it's always served me well on many camping trips and cold days alike, i haven't had to replace the catalyst since i got it. it still gets too hot to touch if i leave it out of the felt bag. my favorite way to use it was filling it up to the 4 hour line, cinching up the felt bag fully (this will make it run about half as hot and twice as long, ive had it run 20 hours in the felt bag and then in a parka pocket before) and tossing it into the bottom of the sleeping bag before going to sleep. nice toasty feet.
i think it has way more platinum on it than the knockoffs, since the fibers are a dull grey instead of white.
Can you stop the process,or put it out ? If in a tent and didn't need it going, or do you let it run out of fuel ? Cheers..
THEDRAGONBOOSTER8 you can pop the top off or put it in an airtight bag but its a little risky. best to let it run down instead
Thank you..
I just put mine in a zipper bag and store it all in the pouch. If it's been running in the pouch it's cool enough that there's no danger of melting the bag. If it's hot you can just leave it in the pouch when you put it in the bag. The reaction will stop in a few minutes and you can relight it later. If it sits for weeks or months you'll have to refill it. (You could also remove the catalytic part for a minute until it cools)
Thanks for your help..
I've had one of these for a while now after seeing your video I bought one, all I can say is WOW they are fantastic, I ride a bike and motorcycle I just hang the heater around my neck let it rest on my chest just below my ribs and between two jackets and it keeps my chest nice and warm,
No daught the price will go up as more people like them.
I found a "Jon-E" brand one at a sale, turned out to be roughly 65 years old, orig purple bag ect... works ALOT better than lipo ones or equivalent :) Always a great video :)
The old ones work better because the heating element used asbestos which the modern ones lack due to it be a carcinogen.
I've had two Zippos since 1965, and they still work just fine!
I learned my lesson on these a very long time ago when one leaked on my leg and caused a severe chemical burn. Ruined my vacation in the mountains. I now use the warmers that are rechargeable when heated in boiling water. No fuss, no muss.
Admiral Preparedness You got a chemical burn from the gas you used to power it? WTF were you using? Obviously not kerosene, fuel oil, or diesel. And not naptha like the video says. Man, I am really curious about what were you using as fuel. That's crazy!
You have to keep them away from close skin contact for prolonged periods as the fumes can cause skin issues.
Hydrocarbons act as a solvent for oils. This is good for cleaning - removing grease stains, but bad for skin. So prolonged skin exposure easily leads to dry skin and cracks in the skin on prolonged exposure. So normally not a chemical burn like from an acid or lye but still an injury.
bigclivedotcom The op said it leaked on his skin. The only way these hand warmers or Zippo cigarette lighters leak is if they are over filled. I know people put them odd places, but they are hand warmers for inside mitts and gloves. To be fair I have put these inside my coat and in pockets, especialy a lighter, but never had one leak. I have had one of those chemical goo ones leak though. So I guess you choose your poison and see what is best for you.
I would assume some kind of dermatitis; heavy irritation but you're right, it wasn't necessarily a chemical burn. Still like a nasty sunburn with not an immediate way to alleviate the more than annoying irritation.
I am some what of a (pocket) hand warmer guru. I learned about them when my father brought one home from the war in the 50s. All hand (naptha) warmers are based on the Peacock (original) and are either modifications on the original design (UST, Zippo, etc.) or are updates on the original (the new Peacock) or improvements (Boston) on the early designs.
Strangely enough, no new hand warmers of fuel type have been invented that are not direct copies, or modified from the original designs since they first came out. What I'm saying is, the hand warmer you buy today is the exact same principal as one from 30 or more years ago (Jon-E for instance).
I do not dabble in instant hand warmers, or electric hand warmers, because they are all crapola, if anyone has questions.
"You can do it if you're careful." But, of course, if you were careful you wouldn't do it.
heating element goes off when it has no fuel vapor, but that thing is hot af
chinese ones goes up to 70C afaik
My Chinese ones doesn't, but there might be large variations between batches if quality control isn't very strict.
Since there isn't any actual flame involved (the platinum catalyse the reaction so it takes place at a much lower temperature), and the heat source (catalyst) is in the "cap" you remove when you refill the bottle, it should be perfectly safe to refill them when hot... in theory at least. :D
Yes. That makes sense.
WHAT IF I WAS VERY CAREFUL ...
These are so cool. Interesting to discover old technology in a new time. It's like a nice off grid baby-fireplace.
When I lived in the north of the US I used one of those every day all winter long. I probably would not still have 10 fingers if I had not.
Used one of those on a Regular basis for years and years. They ROCK. No Batteries Required. One Fuel up and I could get a day or more use.
*NAPHTHA IS **_NOT GASOLINE_** >>>NEVER USE GASOLINE IN THESE HEATERS
You'd get warm
doc said brian was hurt but i like the smel and it keeps me warm
@@saltysoysauce954 You'd get warm IN A HURRY!
CAN I USE NITROMETHANE???
@@dibblydooda7604 Sure, go ahead. Just be sure to get a friend to catch it all on camera.
I had the genuine peacock ones. Used for years but always following instructions. Easy to light when following instructions. Which was to hold the lighter under the centre of the catalyst until a few of the fibres glowed. ( usually 15 to 20 seconds) upon removing the flame the glow would stop but the thing was heating. then slip the lid on then drop into the bag. 8 to 10 hours of warm but not too hot hands.
Seriously neat piece of kit, always glad to see new content from you :)
I have one I inherited from my Father, when he passed in 99. I believe it was a gift to him, from my maternal Grandfather. It is called Jimmy Hand Warmer and it is a model 502 made in Hong Kong.
I had one of those that started differently: The catalyst was a metal fibre sponge, and a "starting wick" was fed from the inside to the outside of the catalyst. You had to lite that wick up which burned just like a gasoline lighter, and it would extinguish by itself when the catalyst reaction started up. The company was called "peacock".
I love these things for cold weather, especially while hunting or at high school football games. I need some of the old ones that were made with more platinum. Time to raid estate sales or the grandparents drawers.
For the first time, I actually own something you showcase in one of your videos. Granted it's the zippo variety but close enough!
bdot02 what's your thoughts on it ? Im kinda put off by the whole having to leave it for 12 hours to burn thing ? Is it an issue atall in normal use
JAMP0T1 you don't have to fill it up to max either. You can always just put in a little bit of fuel.
Too bad it doesn't come with 2 caps. One that properly seals it, and another that will catalyze.
I just pop it in a zip-lock bag, press the air out and seal it. It cools off quick when its air supply isn't replenished, and the remaining fuel can't really evaporate.
It's probably better to pop off the catalyst first and let it cool though. My understanding is that they can become fouled by incomplete combustion. On the other hand, holding a lighter to it the next time you use it may be enough to burn the crud off.
@@techobsessed1 interesting!
I've had one of those 60 years ago. to ignite: wet the wick with naphtha, the just ignite the wet wick. when the flame goes out, add the top shield, and wrap the bag around it and pocket it. Works well. typically only one lighting each use or fill. Good Video. Oh, an afterthought. Gasoline has lead and other automotive additives. Naphtha (lighter fluid) (or what they call WHITE GAS (used for camping stoves and gas lanterns like Coleman brand mantle lanterns)) burns clean (Non-hazardous)
Magic search words are Jon-E hand warmer
SZretired and peacock pocket warmer
Two ebay sellers right here
Thank's for the memory Clive! My brother used one of these when hunting in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan back in the late 1970's. He used lighter fluid, which gave off an odor so I never used one, but I can remember him filling it and waiting for it to warm up as we headed out into the cold to hunt whitetail deer. It looked exactly the same right down to the red flannel bag!
I typically squirt a drop of fuel on the top and light that in order to get it started. Works very well. Although the models I own have a platinum mesh for the catalyst.
I tried that and it works.
James Stewart that's how I use the Zippo version. I wonder if it gunks up the cap bit though because i struggle to keep it going once I've used it a dozen or so times.
GetTheCheeseToSickbay it can gunk it up slightly, but it will burn off after a while.
The original Jon-E instructions had you place a few drops of fuel on the wick, light it, then let it burn for 1 minute before blowing out the flame. That always worked for me.
I absolutely love the ones I got from Zippo .. have used them for everything from watching winter sports, hunting, camping and kayaking. I've used mine for about 7 years without a single issue.. absolutely love them.
My other half has one of these. I always thought it was so sketchy to have a burning piece of kit in your pocket, but it works really well! It just kinda makes ya smell smokey if you use it often, at least from my experience. Thanks for the video!
Hello tail furse
Hey hey there Marcel! Good to see ya!
These are absolutely superb. I own the Zippo one. I always light it at home before a big walk, it can be a pain to light when out on the hills. It will stay hot for 8 hrs or so. Never had any issues with it, doesn’t even smell much.
The brand I have is Peacock, never had any issues and used it when hunting . Ignore the instructions and recommend fuel at your peril
That my friend, sorted my problems out, I have exactly the same warmer, I was putting the new catalyst pads in wrongly, I also fixed my other one. Thank you.
I used to often use one of these while riding a motorcycle. I'd slip it into my internal breast pocket of my jacket on cold days. It really did the trick. However, if any air started to flow up through the bottom of my jacket, the increased air flow would cause it to go into turbo mode and start burning my chest.
Oh wow haha
Hey Clive, thanks for the video!
I bought one of these before a snowmobiling trip last year after watching this vid and they are wonderful. I dont have to plug it in, and refueling takes seconds!
Only downside is the rather strong smell of naptha, but even that sure beats frostbite!
Note: Zippo offers a 6 and 12hr version of these. I bought a 12hr
I have several of these that are the actual Zippo brand. I use normal camping fuel in them (white gas) no noticeable difference vs the Zippo fuel. Also you don't always know you have overfilled them right away. Once they start up and start to get warm if over filled the fuel starts boiling out and it will do one of two things a) burst into flames. b) put out the catalytic reaction.
'White gas' is not a thing in the UK. Is it alcohol? Most hiking stoves here are alcohol or LPG. Solid-fuel cookers are less common, paraffin (kerosene) even more so, I think the last paraffin stove I saw was in the cook-tent at a Scout Camp years ago.
Dick Holman "White gas" IS a thing in the UK, you just may not call it white gas. It's just a word to describe petroleum distillates. Like Naptha, diesel, fuel/heating oil, kerosene, lighter fluid, etc.
Coleman fuel is really not the best option for these units.
And, an overfilled one just goes out.... there is not enough oxigen to support a flame (well, maybe for a second or 2)
@Andrew Delashaw
No, we don't call anything white gas, it's not a thing here, which is why I asked you what it's proper name is. We do have white spirits, but that's for thinning oil-based paints & cleaning brushes, etc. which was often labelled sold as turps or turpentine substitute.
The stuff I use is made by Crown. The MSDS for it shows 90-100% "Light Aliphatic Naphtha" and 0-5% "Toluene" The reason I use it is its $7.50 a gallon vs $51 a gallon for the 4oz Zippo bottles and that's if you get them on sale. I have a Zippo container and just refill it from the gallon of camp fuel. I don't think that little bit (if any) of Toluene hurts anything.
I had one of these when I was a kid, back in the 60s, when no one cared about carrying burning lighter fluid in your pocket. LOL. It actually worked great and nothing bad ever happened
"That would not really surprise my workbench too much." If your workbench could talk what would it say?
It would confess war crimes
"AUGHHHHHHH"
I have 2, and my trick is to heat the bottom (where the fuel is) for a few seconds before trying to light it. It gets some of the fuel warm enough to vaporize a bit
If those pesky vehicle listings are swamping your results or Ebay (or really any big search engine) try using some removal dashes. "catalytic converter -vehicle -car -automotive".
I copy/pasted that into google and was unsuccessful. Got a bunch of auto stuff.
Instance Gaming those "removal dashes" haven't helped me with Google for *at least* six or seven years. The algorithm is too smart for its own good. >:[
Stop using google and switch to duckduckgo.
Loren Husky What? I've heard of Duck Duck Goose, but not DuckDuckGo. Thank you for that. Sometimes I try Bing because Google is so stupid. I don't find Bing to be much better. DuckDuckGo. Sounds like a plan. Thank you.
If it's not working for you, then you need to adjust your terms until you get the result you want. There are also other types of terms you could use.
The ops terms are not really sufficient to get rid of all the vehicle stuff or narrow down our options enough, after all they were just examples.
"pocket warmer catalytic converter -amazon -ebay -instructables" on duckduckgo seems promising, 2 US patents easily found and no vehicle stuff, although the rest is probably of little use, mostly forums and shops, the patents should be useful if anyone actually wants the info.
Google with the above search terms has one patent on the first page(the one relating to this product), the rest doesn't seem useful.
The other patent is about a lighter combined with a catalytic hand warmer.
I had one when I was a kid in the 70s. It was a Jon-e warmer. It would actually have a faint flame that would burn inside a rockwool filament tube that was shrouded by that kind of silky mesh that white gas lantern mantles are made of. It would get quite hot and you could light a cigarette with it. Mine was fairly large -- about the size of a hip flask. They were okay -- lasted about 6-8 hours or so. Good for skiing or if you were outside hiking around or cutting firewood or winter camping in the snow. Great for snowball fights. One tended to smell like lighter fluid, though. In the days before the dry chemical hand warmers became cheap it was the easiest way to warm your hands up.
It might be possible to Put any (completely closed) foil-sealed food in your pocket with this to heat up a meal while you work.
I had one as a kid and forty years later ,the best maker of that type of thing is Jone,they still make them win I was about 14 and lived in alaska I bought one at the base px.mine would run all day in my pocket
First thought "DO NOT PUT PETROL IN THET THING!"
Second thought "Zippo uses carbon fiber composite I believe"
Third thought "why do you keep saying gasoline?"
3) I believe what Americans call "gasoline" is called "petrol" over there in the UK and they say "gasoline" for pretty much any other petroleum distillate that's not diesel lol
th-cam.com/video/QhuMh97C0yc/w-d-xo.html
absolutely love these things! have a couple i use when doing ironwork in the north during winter. the ones i have run for about 9-10 hrs at full blast and keep putting out a weaker heat for 2-4 hrs afterwards. granted i may have poked a few holes in the baggie.. the pockets in my stay puff suit are fairly restrictive on oxy in the first place. hot tip if ya drop em in to bottom of your bolt bag your fasteners will thread easier in truely cold weather ...steel shrinkage in anything below zero makes bolts and nuts go together like crap.
I've suffered my entire life from cold hands, I'd like to try one of these, however in my younger days, I had way over filled my Zippo lighter, it burnt my skin on my leg from being in my pants all day. The first few years was a purple stain on my leg nowa days it's just a skidmark Brown stain on my leg(birthmark like). Moral of the story less fuel more refuel more better.
get the safe ones you pre boil and set off when your cold, no flames!
The problem with these have is you get a very short burst of high heat, and then they get cold quickly.
and they can only handle so many cycles
Raymond Mucklow ... The same chemical burn happened to my brother years ago when he always carried his Zippo in the same pants pocket.
There's an old school version of this as well that uses little sticks of what amounts to charcoal. Work just as well, and you don't need to worry about refilling them with liquid fuel. Just dump the ash when it's done and pop in a new stick.
This is so much better than those super-cooled wax hand warmers that last for all of ten seconds.
Catalyst is a substance that helps a reaction to occur. Here the reaction is oxidation of the fuel vapour.
Indeed you give the correct answer its Catalytic oxidation
In English the word is “catalyst”. “Catalisator” isn’t a word in English.
Antonio Tejada Thanks, I forgot. Edited.
Thank you BigClive! I found one of these among my fathers items after he passed and I was clearing out his house. I had no idea what it was. It looked like a giant Zippo with no sparker, but I just couldn't figure out what it was. You solved my mystery.
The authentic Zippo one is much easier to get going.
The Peacock hand warmers, which is what this is masquerading as, are much better than the Zippo version. They are also better built, with the body made from plated copper rather than steel.
@@tomhsia4354 wrong
@@well_as_an_expert_id_say Well, considering Peacock _make_ the Zippo hand warmers for them, I would agree, he is wrong. They are the exact same build quality, and exactly as good as each other.
I've owned the zippo brand warmers. They're decent I had a hard time lighting it tho after 10 uses and it went out on me a few times and was hard to relight after that.
@@tomhsia4354 peacock is nice I have several got from DX I get the suspicion that these are used alot in Korea
Indeed Clive! These wee heaters have been around for many years. As a lad, I delivered the morning paper in the early 70s, in frosty Colorado.
My hands would go numb in the winter pre-dawn chill, riding a bicycle fitted with balloon tires for the snow and ice. I had one of these heaters in my jacket pocket, for my "throwing hand" and it worked brilliantly.
It's important to use napthta or "Zippo fuel" in these. Gasoline is too volatile.
Good thingy - used a lot in winters when i worked in survey. Only good experience. Use that thingy everywhere (where needed) - in boots, gloves, coat, sleeping bag and as I remember even in any possible position (up side down too). Later even over filed slightly. Had no problems what so ever. when i saw it in the shops they where advertised as a new invention, but as i found out, it`s here a long time now.
From personal experience NEVER use ordinary unleaded petrol in any lighter and I assume pocket warmer. The smell is terrible.
Had one of these in our house growing up. Never knew how to operate it. So, thanks. As for the search, i found some success with the boolean '-auto' at the end.
I had one of these years ago.
1. Don't carry it in an inside jacket pocket. The fumes will give you a chemical burn.
2. To light it a couple of drops of fuel on the element speeds things up immensely.
Real men shoot 308
I don't know what kind of fuel is used nowadays. But in the 50s and 60s I used one with no problems. ..
Willy Bee I used Zippo brand lighter fluid. What's in it? I don't know.
it's mostly Naptha / white gas. certification.zippo.com/Documents/Safety%20Data%20Sheet/English/Zippo%20Lighter%20Fluid%20-%20(GHS-2015).pdf (hopefully link will not get completely nuked)
Generally, the only way you should get a skin issue is if the unit is over filled (this also tends to cause the unit to go out), so it's generally obvious...to solve it...open the cap, use the edge of the cap to flip the element off, then turn the bottom housing over, and give it a gentle shake or 2, to remove any excess naptha, then reassemble and relight it.
you ant get a chem burn from white gas! dont know what you are talking about saying it happened to you
I took one of these camping 30 years ago or so. It was cold that night so I lit it and sat back around the fire to relax. Fell asleep with the warmer sitting on my belly. Woke up with this perfectly square slight burn on my stomach. Not bad, but it was irritating for the rest of the hike...
One of those "Today I learned" moments.
I was going to taunt the agitated and scream "FIRST!" - then I realised I am one of the intelligent people *who knows how Patreon videos work*
I have two big ones that run on propane or butane to heat caravans or even rooms in houses.
They are thermally more efficient than combustion and, importantly, don't produce the water condensation that propane/butane combustion does.
You ignite a pilot flame first until the catalytic wadding glows then turn the flame off for clean dry direct radiant heat.
I remember the first time I saw one was in a portahut while I was working for London council, literally counting traffic by the side of a road one winter. I was quite amazed and very glad of the clean dry abundant heat.
Seems like a lot of fuels will work if the device is designed for them. But best to be careful and if you must experiment do it safely with an assumption "This might blow up any moment, how do I test it safely?". Not saying don't do it, just saying live to tell us about it and stay pretty.
Make a video on the Ampy Move. It is apparently a terrible powerbank that is supposed to charge via bodymovment, UnboxTherapy did a video on it recently where they demonstrated just how horribly fraudulous it actually is
Would it be feasible to combine this with a peltier element to make a gasoline powered power bank?
mikewolf78 That would be cool!
There's actually much more efficient way to turn fuel into electricity - fuel cell. Peltier design would be little to no efficient.
yes, inefficient but doable. there are ones that make power from a candle
As a kid in the 90s I remember really wanting to buy a solid fuel hand warmer.
As a kid in the late 70s or early 80s, I did. They kinda sucked compared to something like this.
My dad struggles with white finger so I bought him a Zippo hand warmer to help with the circulation. In the winter he lives by it, bloody fantastic once you get the hang of them and lasts pretty much all day.
You should do a video where you take a sodium acetate hand warmer to bits! :) Or rather just explain how they work as they are transparent!
They work by using the high purity of the sodium acetate to stay in a liquid state at room temperature when they would normally be solid. The pressure wave of clicking the disk causes a very small amount of the liquid to change to the solid state and that crystal then acts as a nucleus for a chain reaction of crystallisation that spreads out from that point. When a liquid changes to a solid it liberates heat and when resetting it in hot water it absorbs the heat to convert back to liquid (melt)
Eventually, some of the water molecules in the solution escape through the covering. This results in a solution that is so saturated with sodium acetate that it won't stay in the liquid state.
I believe it’s also an oversaturated solution from the beginning, so it doesn’t take that much of a water loss for it to enter that semi-crystallized state.
Winfire hand warmer may be the magic key words to throw some more light on it, had a Winfire one for years and it's been good
I love my Zippo pocket heaters. They are awesome, especially on those really cold mornings.
I so need one of those! What a great idea to keeping your hands warm in a cold lab environment. Just bought one. :)
Tghe name brand Jon-E are the best and easiest lighting, No other handwarmer design matches these. Not even the solid fuel ones.
The Jon-E company went out of business. If you need a new one, look at the Japanese Peacock brand. I believe they make the Zippo brand ones too.
I used mine on Saturday night. Lit it at 11pm, and it was still hot at 6 in the morning. I have a Zippo, and they perform much the same. Great wee units.
You can weed out search items on Google by using the minus key then what you don't want in the results..
(i.e) Videos -youtube
Will show you "videos" but nothing from youtube.
So platinum catalytic converter-car -vehicle
I have my grandfather's Jon-E handwarmer from the late 40's and a Zippo handwarmer as well. They seem counterintuitive, what with lighter fluid and open flames to light it and then sticking in a hip pocket. However, my grandfather used his for close to 40 years on the coldest winter days and was always warm. I've used them both here in Canada at outdoor sporting events and other than the lighter fluid smell, always been happy to have them. Great things! I expect the Chinese version is equally effective, although maybe not so resilient.
Is that really gasoline that you use in the UK as a lighter fluid?
I would have thought it would be paraffin or 'kerosene'.
I imagine it's naptha, not petrol/gasoline. Gasoline would be highly risky.
Yeah, naptha for sure, kerosene has a lower flash point so would be hard, if not impossible to start it up.
ChayD; Wouldn't a lower flash point mean it's easier to start up? Since it is more volatile and combustible at lower temperatures.
MRLT
Yes, it's naphtha.
Swan and Ronson are popular brands in the UK.
We usually just call it "lighter fluid".
Cool, thanx for confirming this for me! I was really confused that he could get gasoline in such a 'lighter fuel' can, commonly at the store, on a fairly rural island...
I have the Zippo type and it also has trouble warming. You've enthused me to try it again. Great show Clive.
I wish they'd make something like this that runs on butane so it can be turned off when no longer needed, rather than just having to let it run out of fuel. Not to mention that I detest the smell of lighter fluid, and a can of butane is far less likely to leak. There are propane catalytic heaters, so I don't see how there'd be a big problem scaling the idea down to pocket-warmer size.
I've never, ever had mine leak. Also, smell of lighter fluid? What brand are you buying? Mine hardly smells at all. Just fill it near an open window or door or something. These things are unbelievably reliable (even the cheapo Chinese made ones) and they work extremely well in cold climates (such as here in Canada)...
Aurelius R All of the lighter fluids smell, rather strong too. When I smoked, I always bought the Ronsonol & Zippo brands, and they smelled. I don't know how you can't smell that. After/during filling, and even the flames smells rather strong. Now that I have been cig free, I use the lighter fluid I have left to remove stickers/adhesives, and I can always smell it strongly. Maybe you're just not relative to that certain smell. Even though it is strong, I don't find it to be a bad smell.
Furr Bear the problem, is that the run time would be way shorter.
M. K. - I disagree. The volume the liquid fuel goes into is largely filled with wadding, and only so much liquid will fit. Even if the walls of the fuel compartment had to be thicker to deal with butane under pressure, I think there would still be room for more fuel, but let's say the fuel volumes are equal. Liquid butane has an energy value of 27.7 MJ/litre; gasoline/petrol is 34.2 and diesel is 38.6 - I couldn't find a value for lighter fluid specifically, but as it's less volatile than gasoline but more so than diesel, I'm figuring it to be roughly in between - so assuming equal fuel volumes, run time on butane would still be about 75% that of with liquid lighter fluid - not, by my standards, "way shorter". And as I said in my original comment - butane would offer the advantage of easily shutting off the fuel supply, enabling one to conserve the fuel when it wasn't needed rather than having to just let the thing run. (Say one has been using it outside while doing chores but then goes inside for lunch, as an example.)
As that translates to about 9 hours (versus 12 for a full tank on the lighter fluid version) - I'd still be very happy to make that trade-off.
Andrew Delashaw - People vary and I do find the smell of liquid lighter fluid quite unpleasant, either merely evaporating or burning. (I don't like the smell of gasoline or diesel fuel either.) I have lots of friends who smoke cigars who would react in horror if one suggested using a liquid-fueled lighter on a fine cigar - one either uses clean-burning butane or something with a pleasant, compatible aroma like a cedar spill.
if you seal it in a ziplock bag it will go out.
I've used these for years, I just squirt the naptha from the can direct into the "tank", it's a lot safer than some squidy filler. Fill it up then let it sit for a few min, then heat the filament. Worked great when I used to work on the railroad in winter, never had a issue with them. You can run high % alcohol 90+ but it messes up the filaments sometimes.
It just doesn't seem right that a combustible fluid powered device with no fancy metering or safety shutdown gear is actually safer than a simple battery powered device... But there you have it.
Amen, now ain't that the truth Guitarstitch??
Both are just chemical reactions and both have to be controlled. Battery is a chemical reaction producing electricity. Burning petroleum is a chemical reaction (oxidation etc) producing heat. Both lithium ion batteries and liquid fuel oxidation can be uncontrolled. At least in naptha fueled lighters and pocket warmers the liquid is fully absorbed to control/limit the rate it is available to the reaction.
You'd really have to define 'safe' lol.. you should watch his video on the 150 year old torch.
guitarstitch
We drink combustible liquids, and there is no safety in that.😲😲😲😆
Actually, although it seems otherwise, these heaters are QUITE safe, if used correctly.
I have a couple of these that go by the name of "Whitby warmers" same as a Zippo but with a different hole pattern.
Take the top off and pop the cat off to turn them off. Run fine on lighter fuel, Coleman fuel or panel wipe (if you know someone in the car restoration business)
2:10
sojererms is not a word you are not real
"soldering iron"
I had one of these knock-off jobs that was huge! It was the size of a fairly large booze flask. Talk about putting out some heat!! 😨 🔥
Jerry Lewis sang a song, so don't put in your trouser pocket other wise you could end up singing "great balls of fire" LOL
What the hell are you talking about? I think you have got the wrong person. Jerry Lewis sang this song, which is a classic, I never mentioned suicide. And you need help with your terrets.
@@timfondiggle2582 *are you another crack head with an ipad?* He mentioned nothing about suicide you stupid prick and never tell someone to kill themselves over anything! *its just as bad if not worse than joking about suicide!* you make me sick to the stomach *STUPID FUCKING HYPOCRITE!*
@@hdmalpas Didn't you know? All Tims are assholes. And could you please include the Lee when referring to the singer? Jerry Lewis the actor makes me cringe a bit
Best body heater ever build, you only need to know how to lit it properly, first preheat it direct on your body so the white petrol inside starts to evaporate. after that it will lit in a second
Acctually that is the best advise of all
@@qwertz70329 Thanx but i'm a long time user of it
I've had one of these for over 50 years. Loved using them as a kid, let you stay outside all day! Mine went 8 hours when full. They used to sell belts that would hold one over each kidney and that really kept you warm. The bag keeps you from burning yourself, it gets really hot. Mine has metal mesh at the top, and does glow slightly.
These Peacock brand will burn 20 hours or longer and are better than the current Zippo brand or charcoal burners
I used to use these as a kid hunting back in the day. Never had one leak or catch on fire. Worked great chasing deer on cold fall mornings.
I’ve use a Peacock pocket heater (the original from japan) for many years and it’s great!
A bit more expensive than Zippo but works great and is from excellent quality!
The best way to use this is just ignite and put it into the inner pocket of your jacket... it will warum you up quite nicely for several hours!
Love the idea that you have to warm the hand warmer with your hands to get it going!
Ive been using these for hunting for about 40 years. They work well. I got mine from my grandpa.