I figure someone here has a special interest in lighters right? There isn’t a lighter community on lemmy and I don’t want to make a reddit account. Its a butane lighter made by a company called either rider or riders but I cannot find any proof they existed because everytime I look up “rider” and “lighter” I only get motorcycle themed lighters. Time period is likely mid 20th century. Uses an electric coil instead of flint, no battery just converts the mechanical energy of the button press. Made of brass
Edit: in an attempt to fill the lighter I overtighted the valve screw and it is now screwed in too far and cant be removed. I don’t think it is on the threads anymore. If anyone has a method to get it back on those threads let me know
here’s one on ebay: https://www.ebay.ph/itm/362913900515
and another https://www.mercari.com/us/item/m24648551057
brief look didn’t turn up any solid info but patents on piezoelectric ignition in lighters go back to at least the 1960s so it could be pretty old.
since it’s a little butane jet not a regular flame it probably was literally just marketed to motorcyclists. I wonder if “riders” is even the brand
All I can find is a posting on Ebay and on Mercari for the same lighter. Ebay posting says they don’t know anything about it, and the Mercari posting just says it’s an antique brass lighter
Edit: the best lead I could find, and I say lead very loosely, is the Rider-Lewis Motor Vehicle Co… it could have been some lighter that came with the car or smth. There’s 0 evidence for this, not even a scrap, purely speculation.
Rider-Lewis Motor Vehicle Co
1911 is too early for a piezoelectric butane lighter
the little squiggly wire element seems like it might be pretty unique but no dice with patent drawings
Edit: found this vaguely similar marlboro “storm lighter” that had the same squiggly element: https://redlib.northboot.xyz/r/chemistry/comments/16f4tfu/what_metal_is_the_wire_in_my_storm_lighter_made_of/
Edit 2: it’s not this but I thought it was funny (cw: penis): https://www.aliexpress.com/i/2255800781615393.html