Lighterclub Deutschland

A friend in Denmark has very kindly sent me a batch of lighter-related paper documents to scan and share. Bent began collecting lighters in 1969 and many of these documents are things he acquired by mail and written correspondence during the 1980s and 1990s (before the internet). I will share more, but this article immediately caught my attention. I believe this article was originally published in the English magazine "Tobacco" c.1979/1980. For me - the information presented from an English perspective about pre-WW2 lighters was especially interesting. Here is text extracted from the scan that may be easier to read:

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Ein Freund in Dänemark hat mir sehr freundlicherweise eine Reihe von leichteren Papierdokumenten gesendet, um zu scannen und zu teilen. Bent begann 1969, Feuerzeuge zu sammeln, und viele dieser Dokumente sind Dinge, die er in den 80er und 90er Jahren (vor dem Internet) per Post und schriftlicher Korrespondenz erworben hat. Ich werde mehr teilen, aber dieser Artikel hat mich sofort aufgehoben Ich glaube, dieser Artikel wurde ursprünglich in der englischen Zeitschrift "Tobacco" c.1979 / 1980 veröffentlicht. Für mich war die Information aus einer englischen Perspektive über vor-WW2-Feuerzeuge besonders interessant. Hier ist der Text aus dem Scan extrahiert, der leichter lesbar ist:

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SEVENTY YEARS OF LIGHTERS by Sonia Roberts

The prototype of the modern lighter put in an appearance earlier than is usually recognized. A wheel action petrol lighter invented by an Austrian, Findeisl, was being made and marketed by Richard Kohn in 1909. A semi-automatic version in a box case with a lid which opened at the touch of a button was also an Austrian invention - by an engineer Russbacker in 1911.

Lighters were made in Germany, some of which were exported to this country, before the first world war, but it was that war and a shortage of matches which brought the lighter
instant popularity. The usual form was what is today called a 'Fisherman's lighter', flint, steel wheel and tow, but no fuel - except the oxygen from blowing on the spark.

Maurice Davies - which became Mosda - was one of the first to produce them in this country. At the same time, James Adler of Oppenheimers was producing a miniature coal miner's lamp which served the dual purpose of a light shielded from view and a hand warmer, both popular features in the trenches. But it was a little too elaborate for ordinary use. After that war, the UK market was flooded with twopenny and threepenny (about Ip and 1 V2P at today's prices) continental lighters, which were excellent value for money.

Leading importers of the time were Oppenheimer, Orlik and Bernhardt. The battery lighter came in only a little later. A box with an electrical device by Beney was on the market in the early Twenties, but the batteries presented too many problems. The Oppenheimer's success was with the Thorens lighter from Switzerland which was popular for a number
of years, but UK manufacturers were catching up. Wise and Greenwood, Mosda, Bernhardt and Beney were the well known names of that era.

The early Twenties was the age of experiment - a period when Alfred Dunhill , looking for a suitable container for the mechanism of his latest pocket model, housed the 'works' in a converted Colman's mustard tin. Today that first makeshift lighter is such a collectors' piece rarity that even Dunhill's own archive has only a reproduction of the original.

When pocket lighters were still novelties some manufacturers had difficulty in believing that a lighter would have sufficient appeal in its own right to make sales unpact. So they combined lighters with watches- a dual purpose which remained popular between the wars - or for women smokers, issued powder compacts or perfume sprays to which lighters were attached.

The 1930s especially were the era of the opulent lighter. Lighters were considered especially smart presents to give a loved one and often expense was no object. For example, making up their Dorothy basket model to be gIven as an engagement gift in 1934, Dunhill set the design with 60 specially cut rubies set in gold and platinum and, as the recipient's name began with B, they added a yellow bee made from a sapphire.

Less well-to-do young ladies achieved the same look with lighters encrusted with diamante - often set in that favourite Art Deco motif, the sunburst. The two models opposite are
imports from America introduced by Ronson just before the outbreak of the second world war.

The first Ronson lighter was marketed in the USA in 1919, but for the first fully automatic Ronson, the Banjo (see picture left), the world had to wait until 1926.

The 'Ronson Delight' made in the USA was the first lighter to have a simple thumb lever action.

It was Ronson who helped to make the lighter popular as well as fashionable and their Banjo lighter paved the way for all the mass produced ranges.

They produced table lighters too which have become highly collectable pieces. Their top seller of 1937 was a compendium lighter and cigarette box shaped like a miniature cocktail bar and these days most often turns up in auctions of dolls house furniture.

Lighters such as this are being avidly collected in America, in Japan and all over Europe. Now London dealers are beginning to catch on to the craze. One of the most popular designs amongst 'antique' lighter enthusiasts is a Dunhill model from the 1950s made from carved perspex with the base simulating a miniature aquarium full of tropical fish.

When first introduced in the 50s it sold for £15 ISs with silver plated top and £17 17s in gold. Today in smart antique shops and 'flea markets' aquarium lighters fetch from £20 to
£75 each If stIll in working order.

Beney and Dunhill were the first to lift the lighter market out of the utility rut and make lighters a desirable fashion accessory to smoking which could cost as much as 12/6d (62-1/2p) or even 25 shillings (£1.25).

The trade might still have flagged if the Baldwin Government had not brought in the differential tax on lighters - 2-1/2p on home produced and a full 5p on imports - which in relation to the prices of those days was a significant tariff barrier.

By 1932 Mosda were selling the 'Ray' at the popular price of half a crown (12-1/2p), but Ronson's first 'Made in England' lighter had to await the end of another war. It was on the market in 1945. 'Dan' Liddiatt headed Ronson at that time and played a leading role in making the lighter an essential part of a smoker's equipment and putting the table
lighter into the home.

Butane made its bow in 1950 with the 'Flamminaire' imported by Civic and Bedford Metal with their CFI which were followed by British Butanic Lighter Co's 'Silver Match'
which appeared in 1952.

Ronson's Viking butane jet was the success of Coronation year, 1953. Still to come was the piezo crystal and back again to batteries, and now a renewal of interest in the traditional flint and steel has been reported.

So many types of lighter exist side by side, in a market which still has trading excitement to offer.