Episode 65: Exploding Lighter
Air Date: November 1, 2006
A lighter can explode when placed under a welding tool.
confirmed
The heat generated from the welding tool was hot enough to cause the plastic lighter to melt and release its fuel which ignited, causing a small explosion.
A lighter can explode when put in a laundry dryer.
busted
A lighter was left in a running laundry dryer but suffered no significant damage and did not explode.
A lighter can explode when hit with a golf club.
plausible
Hitting a lighter with a golf club did not make the lighter explode, but when the MythBusters decided to hit the lighter while it was lit, it exploded rather violently.
A lighter can explode on a car dashboard.
busted
The lighter was put in a toaster oven to simulate the maximum temperature that the interior of a car can reach, around 180 degrees Fahrenheit. There was no reaction for several hours, and the lighter finally exploded when the MythBusters ramped the temperature up to over 350 degrees Fahrenheit, well above any temperature that can be expected in the interior of a car.
A single lighter in a person’s pocket could explode lethally.
busted
The MythBusters placed a lighter in a pair of jeans and put it under a welding tool. The sparks and heat from the tool managed to set the pants on fire, but failed to ignite the lighter. This myth was labeled busted because of the improbability of a lighter exploding in someone’s pocket.
Five hundred lighters packed inside a car can explode with lethal force.
plausible
The MythBusters placed five hundred lighters in a car and slowly heated it up. One by one, lighters began to rupture and release gas fumes. When the MythBusters finally triggered an igniter, the gas fumes exploded, blowing out all of the windows and setting the car on fire. The myth was deemed possible as long as there is a suitable ignition source.
An Old West gunslinger could drop a coin and fire his pistol five times before it hits the ground.
busted
Using replicas of actual Wild West pistols, Grant, Kari, and Tory attempted the stunt themselves. However, Grant and Kari were unable to clear the pistols from their holsters in time and Tory was only able to get off one shot. Grant then built a device which showed that the pistols were mechanically unable to fire that fast. The MythBusters finally turned to a professional gunslinger, but he could only fire three shots and he stated that firing five in that space of time would be "extremely difficult". With no results, the myth was busted.
An Old West gunslinger could shoot a hole through a silver dollar.
busted
The MythBusters used actual period silver dollars for the test. A professional gunslinger proved that hitting the coin was possible (with many tries) by piercing a lead coin. Both the Peacemaker and Navy revolver were only able to dent the silver dollar. While a .357 Magnum could easily pierce the coin, the myth was busted because the .357 was not introduced until the 1930′s – gunslingers didn’t have access to it.
An Old West gunslinger could save a man from being hanged by shooting the rope.
busted
Firing at a rope with the pistols, even at point blank range, failed to break the rope. The bullets were merely deflected off of the rope. A professional gunslinger armed with a more powerful Winchester repeating rifle managed to shoot and break the rope, but it required multiple tries in order to pull off. With the difficulty involved in shooting and breaking the rope, the myth was considered busted.
Newer: Episode 66: Concrete Glider
when i watched the lighter myth it looked like you used bic’s you should use a cheaper lighter
“when i watched the lighter myth it looked like you used bic’s you should use a cheaper lighter”
Why? Everybody uses Bics.
I’ve had a lighter explode from the heat in my car… while I was driving.
A Bic is a lot thicker, and they’re better made. More plastic will obviously make it more resistant to the heat.
I had a lighter explode in my car a few weeks back. The difference in the Mythbuster test and the conditions I experienced was that the lighter was only about 1/4 to 1/3 full of butane. It was a transparent green ‘Cricket’type lighter. The seat it was sitting on was dark blue fabric. The lighter had seen a lot of use.
I’d recommend trying this test over again with several different lighters, each with less and less butane in them. There has to be a liquid/gas threshold at a given temp that will break the lighter.
In my case, it literally shattered. I still find shards of green plastic in the car.
I agree, cheaper brands of lighter are more likely to rupture. It is also possible during manufacture some have miner defects that are still able to pass quality control but ultimatley will fail at a lower threshold. The lighter in the dryer should have been tested with a full load of clothing, as the clothes dry they act as extra insulation creating a hotter environment thereby greater pressure in the lighter. Static sparking between certain types of fabric in dryers would be the source of ignition. I think just about everyone has experienced static discharges while unloading dryers.
I’ve had a cheap lighter explode in the backseat of a car during a hot day. I wonder if the amount of fuel in the lighter makes a difference?
I had a cheap lighter explode lying on the lawn in the sun.
I’d lost it from my pocket while mowing. A few hours later, I heard what sounded like a .22 rifle shot right in front of the house. Living in a remote area, a shot isn’t uncommon, but not that close! I looked outside, but everything was still.
I went out to look around and found what was left of the lighter in pieces, scattered all over the lawn.
And… Please give poor Buster a break?
I just had a cheaper lighter explode inside my dash comparment. It actually created other items in the compartment to shoot through the car and end up in the back window. I wasn’t in the car but found a mess upon returning. It was over 90F. You’re not always right guys!
oops–YOU’RE busted!!! I got into my car last summer and found teeny little slivers of purple plastic, an itty-bitty spring, all sorts of little metal shards: my favorite Bic lighter, the purple one that had “gone missing”, had indeed exploded in the hot car. The explosion must have been mighty, because a year later I STILL find components, or pieces of them, in some crazy nook or cranny (of my car, not my english muffins). It’s a ’93 Saturn coupe, and I have no reason to make this up. It was SOOOOOOOOO cool.
well this operates off of the standard maximum car temperature and average structural integrety of the lighter. i have had water boil in my car with an outside temperature of 102 °F, obviously it will get much hotter in a car that is not silver, and with a hotter outside temperature. in general a lighter won’t blow up in a car in the bar area, which is where the test was taken, this is very similar to the variables in the death ray test and many others. the missing component that they should have tested is heating by light, that way clear lighters and dark lighters would get much hotter than the others, also figure some math to find out the change based on different factors, that way they can test for extremes, or at least tell the audience what variables might help create the result.
I had a lighter blow up in my truck and on an aluminum boat. The one in the truck was cheap but the one on the boat was a bic.
I had a lighter explode under the seat of a 1989 Ford Escort back in ’95 while I was riding in it. All the shards seemed to come from a cheap 99 cent ones that come in a 10 pack.
I stopped to get a quick bite to eat at a local diner and had left my cheap lighter on the dashboard of my truck. The lighter was exposed to full sun on a black background with the outside temp around 92. When I returned to my truck after eating, I grabbed my lighter in my right hand. The lighter was extremely hot and I comtemplated tossing it onto the floor board to cool off. Too late, the lighter exploded in my hand, covering my truck in small bloody shards of plastic. My hand suffered only minor injuries and is healing up nicely, still, I will never ever leave a ligher on the dashboard again.
Just came across this site after deciding to check up on current BIC lighter news. My family was in a 10+ year battle against this company for a wrongful-death case. They fought dirty &, ultimately, my folks settled out of court with them for a paltry sum (folks were getting old & very battle weary..plus..first attorney screwed up the case).
My brother died in 1984 from a malfunctioning BIC lighter. His words: his lighter “exploded”. At the time, it was determined that debris could get under the wheel of these lighters…resulting in a leak. This usually resulted in “afterburns” & “flare-ups”. In lighters, butane is a highly pressurized gas. When it leaks…it’s odorless…colorless…undetectable. Given the right conditions & sources of ignition (ie static electricity)it can ignite. I saw enough evidence that demonstrated that this company had paid out a LOT of money to a LOT of folks who had incurred physical and/or property damage….on condition they not talk about it.
Don’t take my word for it. In addition to being national news at the time, it was on 60 MINUTES & Canadian CBC MARKETPLACE. This link is the only one still available….watch the QUICKTIME video linked on the page for proof via demonstration by an expert.
http://www.cbc.ca/consumers/market/mp30/exploding_bics.html
my lighter exploded in my car. then again i live in zimbabwe and the area i live in has days when the temperature can reach 118deg F and has gone higher.
I was on a my balcony on a hot CHicago day during a good 90-105 degree summer week. A bic lighter had been sitting in my ashtray with two other lighters, my balcony has no sun protection and this was at about 6:00 at night. I did not have my contacts on and well the lighter exploded when i lit it, in fact it blew right out the side. Fluid that was still inside of it dripped on my hand and started to burn I poured water on my hand rinsing the fluid off and was slightly burnt when the other two lighters exploded. Fact is however that well I was an idiot for not thinking that could happen. Oh that and I smoke prove that idiot thing.
i was watching the silver dollar myth last night and it waslabelled busted. the one where you try and get 5 shots off before a silver dollar hits the ground. It wuld vary as it depends on the size of you. If you were 6 ft 9 inches ten you could probarbly get more shotsoff…Just an idea
My girlfriend’s lighter exploded in her car. It also was one of the cheap clear green ones. This was in the hot summer in GA. Luckily, there was nothing to ignite the fuel.
How do you make the color and/or highlight(s)?
Also, the Mythbusters can be Sneaky by promising something but not making it happen… AND, that’s not the Mythbusters way, when they want an explosion in a show, they GET it, right?
Sorry, i give credit to James Cooper for that post
Bob Munden has set numerous fast draw records. I believe he could shoot five times before the coin hit the ground. It only takes technique. The chump they had on the show Lightening Larry was able to fan the hammer 3 times before the coin hit. Bob can normally draw and thumb the hammer once, then when he fans he hits the hammer with the thumb and then with the pinki in one pass. All he has to do is fan twice and this myth is confirmed. FHM Magazine has a video of him getting off three shots with the thumb and fan method. It sounds like a machine gun but it’s a cowboy gun. Check out his site the guy is a stud.
just now, my car alarm went crazy. i went to check and saw no damage, and inside my car, the dashboard was open. i looked inside and a green lighter had exploded, with green shards of plastic scattered everywhere. i couldn’t believe it exploded so i came online and google searched it. it is possible. (it was a green cheap plastic lighter) now i rolled down the windows and waiting for the gases to get out and worried it might explode my car =/
Brisbane couple Edwina and Dan chose the glouiors Sunshine Coast hinterland spot of Maleny for their uber-romantic wedding. The classic theme for the wedding evolved from the colour and style of Edwina’s divine white gold dress (a perfect match for her complexion). The couple really embraced handmade , ordering most of their wedding accessories through online handmade marketplace Etsy, as well as making their own wedding stationery and bonboniere. The result was a wedding that was as fun as it was breathtaking. Enjoy!Couple: Edwina and DanDate: 18th September, 2009Location: Maleny Manor, Maleny, QueenslandPhotography: Jonas Peterson; for more beautiful photos from Edwina and Dan’s wedding, see Jonas’ blog.
Augie, the issue wasn’t how often he was able to fan the hammer, it was the fact that the gun just wasn’t capable of firing fast enough. He fanned the hammer 3 times, but only got 2 shots out of it, because the mechanism failed. It’s possible that someone could fan it more quickly, but the gun simply wouldn’t be able to fire beyond a certain rate (the revolving mechanism on those old guns wasn’t as good as today’s weapons). Bob Munden doesn’t use old-fashioned replica guns, he uses modern revolvers that can handle the speed. He also customizes his weapons, so they aren’t the same as factory models. Also, in response to the comment about being especially tall… I don’t think Harvey Logan was taller than the average man, so it doesn’t change the circumstances of the myth. Logan was most likely NOT able to do what he claimed.
The old west gunslinger which you refered to in the myth about dropping the coin and shooting 5 times was a member of Butch Cassidy’s Wild Bunch. The wild bunch was active in the late 1890′s and early 1900′s. Semi automatic (self loading) pistols were being made in Europe at that time, the Bergmann No. 3 (1896) and the Mauser Model 1896 are two examples. These types were probably virtually unknown in the West, however, if a buckeroo could get one it would be a great way to win bets with other cowpokes. I would be interested to see the results if you used a period semi auto pistol in the tests.
It’s a little off topic I suppose but does any one know the make/model/year of the white car they blew up the 500 lighters in?
“He also customizes his weapons, so they aren’t the same as factory models.”
And we all know that back in the good old days they ONLY used guns in their “factory” state. They NEVER customized them.
Give me a break. That’s like saying people only drive factory cars and never customize them.
Five minutes ago while working on computer I was almost blown out of my chair when the butane lighter in my jean pocket spontaneously expolded. POP just like a loud baloon. Scared the crap out of me as I didn’t know what the heck it was until I felt the cold butane on my skin. Can’t figure out why as there was nothing to trigger it. I guess it did me no harm other than the 5 years it took of my life. Immediately typed in “rxploding butane lighters and found this blog. Any ideas on why it may have exploded?
Sorry for typos in previous comment but was still shaking from the experience, Forgot to mention that lighter was cheap plastic brand name “neon” and was almost full.
Are you sure it expoloded and it didn’t just break under the weight of you sitting on it, or tight jeans creating pressure which would break it – and not actually spontaniously explode? When the lighter plastic breaks it does pop but doesnt actually explode/ignite.
I had one explode on me. I left it on top of my cigarette pack on the passenger side seat. It was winter time and no sun was shining directly on it. I left for about two minutes, only to return and find a big hole burnt in my seat and fragments of the lighter all over the car. It was not a bic, it was some other brand, But this Can and did happen. I use zippo’s now
I once had a lighter shoot a flame-ball out the top because i dropped it and the metal piece fell off. When i tried to light it i got a fireball n my face.
in the lighter myth when a light would not explode in the car. i have something like that my brother told me he heard that a guy was siting on a chouch and had a cigaret that was lit and i touched his lighter and the lighter exploded is that like the car or is that a completle diffrent myth.
I have had a cheap cricket type lighter explode in my car as well. I wasn’t in the car when it happened, but there were little bits of plastic everywhere when I returned to the car on a hot summer day.
I agree with Eric, what is that car and what a shame to wreck it. Looks like a mazda coupe of some sort, a little like a R100
Actually i think it is 1967 Toyota corona coupe or toyota corona RT50/51
It was the next day after the broadcast of the exploding lighting, that my wife ask me if she should move the lighter off the dash before we go to work. I said it was not important because mythbusters said it will not explode unless in excessive tempature. When we came home from work, I opened the door of the truck and lighter pieces was everywhere and the dash and the front window was cracked.
I had a lighter blow up in my dryer 2 days ago. I was up stairs in my house and heard a boom form the basement, went to the basement door and the smoke detector was going off. The lighter had blown up and the door of my dryer had been blown open by the explosion and my clothes were on fire!!
I was peacefully drinking my morning coffee and BOOM>> my butane ligther blew up. In my house and not in the sun. Sounded like a gun shot and I can’t even find any of the parts anywhere. Wow !!
““He also customizes his weapons, so they aren’t the same as factory models.”
And we all know that back in the good old days they ONLY used guns in their “factory” state. They NEVER customized them.
Give me a break. That’s like saying people only drive factory cars and never customize them.”
You forgot something called metalurgy. The metal parts back then weren’t as good as the ones now. I wouldn’t be surprised if something would break at the speeds Munden could make them work. Heck, I remember reading about how in shootouts with indians the cowboys would have to hold the hammer back with their thumb then simply let go (bypassing the trigger) to fire because the firing mechanism had broken! That was under normal use.
this is nice to know but i think that u should have used a cheaper lighter to
Hi!
It happened me twice: a lighter left in the car in the summer sun exploded…well…I didn’t personally see it, but in both cases I found my lighter in pieces getting back to my car…I guess it depends on the ligher model.
The lighter can ‘explode’ if hit with a golf club hard enough. The rapid decompression of the gas will make an explosion of sorts and a loud bang. Same for a really fat person sitting on a lighter in their pocket. If they crack the plastic the effect will be the same. I should think that they would get a nasty sting in the process.
it just seems like the old western gunslingers could pull their guns out alot faster than anyone today. they never had safeties on either
With the final gunslinger myth (hangmans noose), would shooting the rope higher up make a difference? Looking at the slow motion replays there seems to be a lot of movement in the rope (due to its length and the weight on the bottom), would shooting the rope at the top (where it drops from the wood it is wrapped around) cause less movement and prevent excessive deflection?
I sort of imagine it would be easier to shoot through a tense rope than a slacker one.
I work in an aluminum smelter in kitimat, BC and Bic style lighters are banned from the plant because of injuries and actual fatalities that have happened at other smelters. Consider having a Bic lighter in your pocket while breaking the crust on molten aluminum which is up to 900 Celsius.
In the car, I think the amount of fuel has a lot to do with this. I had a lighter explode in my car; it was a clear cheaper one. I think the gas that was in it expanded enough to cause it to blow. If this was revisited with a cheaper clear lighter with 1/4 of fuel, I think it would blow in a hot car….
While sitting in an Air Conditioned building in Arizona today I had one of those Clear Ace Type Lighters that a convenience store is giving away when you buy 2 packs of smokes explode in my Polo Shirt Pocket. It was between 1/2 and 3/4 full. Nothing hot in the area I work in… I sit at a desk talking to customers about computer issues.
This is the second time in just a few months that a lighter has exploded while sitting in the center console of my car.
Both times I was out of the car, returned to find bits and pieces all over the car.
Scary. It was not a hot day. This is truly frightening. Has anyone heard of a car burning up because of this?
Any recourse over something like this?
It’s downright dangerous.
I have had a lighter explode in the dryer. There was no flames or anything, but the pressure inside the lighter was enough to cause it to explode. It was loud enough to wake everyone up in the house.
A blue lighter was sitting on my cars dashboard.It was a hot day..!When i got off work and got into the car I noticed plastic fragments on the dashboard and the floor of my car..{ It did EXPLODE in the heat }For me It was { CONFIRMED }!
I just had a cheapo MK chinese lighter explode yesterday while sitting by the pool. I live in No. Massachusetts but it was a hot and muggy day. In the 90′s and the lighter was in the front zip pocket of a Koozie beverage container. The zip pocket was half open. Only in the sun for one hour and the lighter was about 1/8th full (liquid). It exploded in 6 perfect pieces.
I can attest! A lighter will explode on a dashboard. When I was in high school and absolutely should not be smoking I returned to my car after school and found what looked like a be be bullet notch in my windshield. The hole was made from within and below it on the dash was all the little parts that once made up the lighter that was sitting there. I will never forget because it was the first damamge I made to my very first car and it was really hard to lie to my folks and claim it was a rock. Atlanta GA, Early summer & hot as hell my lighter exploded and with enough force to damage the windshield. Reading this makes me no longer trust their findings… WRONG!
hey i was just walking from working smoking and i decided to try one of ur myths the lighter its somethign for u to retry if u take a cheap see thru lighter and take the silver cap on the top off …. p.s make sure its a really hot day drop the lighter from a high altitude maybe like 7-8 meteres and the lighter will explode and flames will come instantly i tried it and i thought it was pretty cooolio
I didn’t read all comments and I don’t know what type of person writes here but I know a lighter can explode if it’s not full of liquid… maybe if it has half or less than a half of its content, it can explode. This is called BLEVE (boiling liquid expanding vapour explosion) – the liquid goes to vapour form and then it explodes by expansion when it is confined.
I found this site today after searching “exploding lighters.” We just had a lighter explode (the second time in 3 years) after being left on a table under a covered patio. Neither were Bic lighters – they were the longer ones used to light a gas grill. There was no warning on these about sunlight exposure. (Bic now has that warning.)
It doesn’t seem to take a lot of sunlight either. It was 10:30am, so it had been in the morning sun, the outside temp in the low 80′s.
When the first one exploded, we thought it was just defective. Now, we won’t buy another one. The larger piece of the lighter landed 18 – 20 feet away and the explosion was pretty loud!
I was doing laundry the other day. and I heard a bang sound I searched but could not find what it was. when I took the clothes from the dryer there it was in peices my husbands red (cheap) lighter it had exploded.
you’re too easy to call things busted sometimes. I’ve had several gas lighters explode, different times and not always on a hot day. The toaster test is invalid as the infrared wavelength is too long and passes right through. Plastics and possibly butane absorb higher frequencies and therefore would react more quickly given the right conditions. I would test with 500nm and higher.
I just had a co-workers lighter explode in her hand. She was just holding it and not doing anything. It popped one side of the lighter out leaving the plastic in 3 pieces. If she had been lighting her cigarette at the time, it would have been a real nasty result. I have never ever heard of a lighter exploding like this before. The only thing I could potentially think of was that there was a problem with the lighters plastic case and that a rapid expansion of the liquid inside took place. She said that was no heat feeling when it popped in her hand.
Have had a lighter blow up on the dash board of my car. Have also dropped a lighter and had it pop (exploded). Both were cheap lighters and din’t cause much damage – but i think this myth needs to be retested. THE other thing is -buy zippo’s they are safer!!!!
What kind of car was it they used? Was it a Datsun of some kind? Very important.
MK! I wonder what MK stands for. You know, I was just kicking back in my recliner after a hard days work. I said something to jokingly annoy my wife who was behind me. She responded by saying she was going to hit me in the head if I didn’t stop. Right after she said that, I heard a hugh pop! It was like a closed bag being smashed, right behind my head! Okay, I might have crapped just a little bit, but not as much as my wife. She’d just picked it off of a table to go out back and light one up. That’s all it took, and then BOOM. It blew apart into three pieces in her hand! I heard her say, “Oh my god!“ The thing not only made her hand numb, but left some black and blue marks. The house was 74 degrees. The lighter was full. I told her it was her father telling her not to smoke,,, spirits can do that, you know. Yes they can! Don’t argue with me, I’m writing this! She’s okay, I think. Our daughter says we should start a lawsuit. So I went to the internet for my answers and found this great spot, the only one. I missed the first show the Myth Busters did on lighters, but I’d tune in, if they did a follow up segment on lighters, except this time on Chinese products. We Americans love buying cheap stuff, at least all the ones I know, but when does cheap cross the line of too cheap? We’re being cheaped to death here! Maybe when the lawsuits begin to roll in, the line can at least be drawn. Enough rambling,,, I feel better now. I’m going to Walmart.
I had a lighter explode in my pocket this afternoon while walking around campus. It was a mild day so i dont think the heat had anything to do with it. Plus it didnt really hurt, it just felt like getting shot with a paintball gun without much force. The sound on the other hand sounded like a small cal. rifle and the cold produced by the pressurized gas made for an interesting afternoon…
My cheap clear lighter just exploded. It was sitting on the kitchen counter no where near any heat source. It just spontaneously exploded. I was thankful that I was nearby because it fell on to the dining room carpet and burned it a bit. I am afraid to think what might have happened if it were in my purse upstairs and I wouldn’t have known it had happened until it was to late. I managed to put out the flames quickly because the carpet has flame-retardent.
A show on the history channel just proved that it is possible to save someone’s life by shooting them down from the hangman’s noose!!!
The name of the show is Extreme Marksmen.
just had a lighter explode inside my house
was a hot 40 degrees celcius today but it dropped down to 30 hours before the thing blew.
scary stuff
i watched a lighter explode just buy throwing it hard at the sidewalk,,,,it wouldnt light and he threw it hard,,,,pop like a firecracker
Sorry, Mythbusters, but I too have had my dryer catch fire due to a lighter. Try it with a cheap lighter and some clothes next time!
i left a lighter in my car perhaps overnight. when i came back i found that it had exploded.
the body of the lighter had a hole in it, and there were fragments of it all about the inside of the car.
Just back from a smoke break. Man, were we startled! Smoking pal fumbled lighter and dropped it – KABOOM! 3-4 feet, no extra force-just the weight of the lighter and gravity, around 65 degrees farenheit. It was a pinkish purplish clear lighter that a convenience store had given her. It happened at 12:00 p.m.
Hey Jean You know I always Like to have A Person On Any Team Project That Can Make Things A Laughing Matter. You Know Things Happen And seietmmos The Best Thing Is When That Team Member Comes InAnd Makes Light Of The Circumstance It IS Like A Blast Of Cool Air On A HOt Blazing Day
I work at a bank and I just had customer come in with a really, really nasty burn on his forearm.
I asked what is what from and he said his bic lighter exploded when he flicked it. It was an old lighter and he said the inside looked “frosty”. You can’t see any “normal” skin on the top of his wrist. Nasyt; and scary.
Just had one of these lighters explode in my car. I was away from my car for about 30 minutes. The number on the lighter I had is:45L09. The explosion was srong enough to destroy my ash tray.
It was not a particularly hot day but it was sunny…. This happened in Melbourne, Florida.
My sister and I were just sitting in an air-conditioned living room (72F) and one of those give-away plastic lighters from China (Ace brand) exploded and flew across the room. It was lying on an end-table, no candles or other open flame near it, and CRACK!, it went flying. Neither of us noticed the fuel-level prior to the explosion.
today after i was cleaning my car out i left the windows down and went inside. a few hours later at around 230 pm my car alarm went off. i ran outside and looked in the car and nothing was stolen. then i saw sitting on top of my moon roof that was opened was a pen. a pen i specificly remembered putting in my cup holder while i was cleaning it. then i looked back inside and noticed several large pices of neon green plastic scaterd about my seats and in the back was a pack of gum with the pices scatered around the back. my lighter that was placed in the cup holder in the direct sund exploded! this is with the car windows DOWN!!! it was a cheep lighter and it was almost brand new so very full. this is in san jose ca (warmer than SF) but its only 75 degrees outside today. this should get revisited!!! it created a big enough explosion to launch a pen 3 or 4 feet onto the top of the moon roof and yet it didn’t break the glass cup sitting next to it in the holder!
The same thing that BH said happened to me June 01 2009. An ACE brand cigarette lighter ( made in China ) was sitting on a counter top in my living room when an explosion was heard. Saw the lighter blown apart and the plastic pieces were scattered all about the room.
Savy ’49ers of the “Old West” prefered the Colt Walker and Dragoon models because these guns were the “.357 Magnums” of that era. For the record, a .45 Colt holds 37-40 grains of black powder while a Walker holds 60 grains. So the myth of shooting through a silver dollar is NOT BUSTED at this point.
I had a Cricket lighter explode in my hand while lighting a cigarette and a shard of plastic pierced my neck! My husband had a cricket lighter explode in his front pants pocket! You need to do this one over again with a Cricket!
I have had ligters crack and release the gas when left in the truck but I have not had one explode.
I have had two lighters explode in my F150. One was in the glove compartment and the other was in my overhead sunglass holder. It blew the sunglass holder of the hinges and left plastic scattered over the front seats. Both were the lighters with the Ed Hardy design. Ofcourse, it was in 95-102 degree heat.
I just had a cheap lighter (from a Costco pack) explode in my car today. It was also a clear green plastic lighter as many of them seem to be in these comments; about one-third full. It was in the center cup holder and not in direct sun when it exploded; maximum outside temp was about 85 degrees. It launched a heavier bic lighter onto the passenger seat floor and threw a quarter about a foot. Other than that, I see no damage – just millions of green plastic shards. So glad I wasn’t in the car at the time!
The exploding lighter myth may be busted, but I recently had a small bic lighter in my car. Admittedly, I didn’t see it explode, but there were pieces of it throughout my car, and the basket it was placed in was in multiple pieces when I came back to my hot car after about 5 hours.
we just had a disposable lighter almost start a fire in our house. My husband used it, put it down and a few mins later we heard a big ‘whooosh’ and the papers it was sitting on were on fire. It didnt explode cause it was still in one piece but the top was completely melted.
anyone know what could cause this?! i’m freaked out and hurried to look it up and found this.
just found exploded lighter in my car – clear red, cheapo MK type. if i remember right it was half full and was laying flat on the passenger seat, had driver and passenger windows cracked about .5 inches. lesson learned – will try and remember to never leave lighter in car again. will keep pieces as reminder.
here is a clue : after reading all of the posts the evidence leans towards bics being very safe after being on the market for over 30 years . the exploding lighters seem to be cheap crap 99cent store types … sort of like the good old exploding ford pinto ….the conclusion being dont buy cheap crap when your safety is involved !!!!
somthing fun to try- get a cheap lighter, opening the valve untill gas starts coming out without you holding the button and lighting the gas coming out. if you leave it on the ground the plastic will melt and the butane rush out and explode. rihno and sundance brands work well.
*the first shot off a few metres and the second one had a loud fireball
I saw this chain as I was going to look for contact information to complain about my Ed Hardy lighter. Two have exploded in my car. The bottom popped off one and the second one split almost in half with the decal completely tearing off the lighter. Didn’t burst into shards but two chunks instead. Both happened to be the dark pink one they make. My car said it was 94 degrees out and I have just parked for 1 hour. The lighters were in my cupholder that was in direct sunlight.
We seem to have several interpretations of the word “explode” that I am not currently aware of.
When I was a Ladde – Apprenticed as a maker of Boils, when disposable butane cigarette lighters first started to come onto the scene, we were warned by the Master of making Boils, that the cigarette lighters could EXPLODE with the same force as a stick of dynamite.
This is crap of the first magnitude.
A detonation or “propera” explosion requires a fuel source and an oxidiser or nitrator in near strichiometric proportions.
While there is enough butane to create a decent and lethal explosion, there is NO oxidiser or nitrator mixed in the required proportions, within the case, in such a volume and composition so as to actually be a “sensitive” high explosive; that could detonate and blow half your chest out, one arm off, and less 1/3 of a head.
Having a lighter go “pop” under welding spatter is nothing more than the internal pressure of the boiling point of butane – increased under heat, blow through a melted weak point in the case.
It’s a venting and ignition – not a detonation.
As far as lighters exploding inside a hot car etc., “bursting” is NOT exploding.
I really with that the people that run Mythbusters and also post in the forums would actually cease from smudging terms and meanings…
10 grams of liquid or probably solid butane and 10 grams of liquid oxygen sealed inside a very sturdy container at near absolute zero and slowly warmed up – now that is a detonation; that will kill you if stuck in your top pocket.
October 25th 2009, I had been fishing all day in the Pacific Ocean at sea level from 5:00 AM to 3:00 PM. The weather was extremely foggy in the AM and beautiful the rest of the day. At around 3:00 PM, we landed our boat. While securing our boat (with both hands) to the trailer in the water, an explosion was heard. It was my lighter that was in my front T-shirt pocket!! I thought I had been shot! It shot out of my pocket, past my chin and into the water. Just saying that it can and did happen. Not sure why. So dangerous!!
You people really need to stop abusing your lighters (dryers?, siting on them?, etc.) and/or buying cheap crap. The only lighters that have popped on me are ones that I intentionally damaged. I have lived in Phoenix (where temps get in the 110′s) for over 15 years and there are 2-4 Bics floating around my car at any one time.
A basement holds 60 computers at what tempature will it cause electrical damage to computers?
In fact the integrity of the container(lighter) has little to do with the results. One of your comments came close to the conclusion. As you increase heat, you increase pressure. Butane in it’s liquid state at 30 degrees F. has zero pressure, so a full lighter (container) at 30 deg. F. has 0 vapor pressure(PSI). The pressure will rise exponentially, as the the temp is increased. do a search on 2 items which explain the quite well. BLEVE(boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion)& COE, coefficient of expansion. BTW, in on of the experiments, did you see the lighter 1st explode, then the escaping gas explodes. i believe the guys had done a BLEVE test in an earlier show.
i know i’m late here but we just saw this particular show ……..however, why would you use a modern bic lighter when all the bic lighter explosion deaths and disfigurements occurred 15 to 20 years ago with the old style lighters with the adjustable flame…..they were certainly NOT as heavy duty as the modern design…..don’t you guys ever watch PBS? ……..also, it doesn’t surprise us that your kids couldn’t repeat Harry Longabaughs feat with the fast draw dollar drop what with their limited and questionable gun skills…made us laugh by the way…….secondly, why would you invite, what was his name, “lightning larry” when you could have asked someone the caliber of Bob Munden, maybe like Thell Reed? it appeared that larry missed the fanning rotation anyway….clearly, using a clunker like the 1851 navy was purposeless as it was never designed as a race gun, mechanical abuse isn’t going to change that by the way…… and mechanical failure should be expected when compared to a peacemaker…….lastly, apparently no one bothered to take into consideration Longabaughs shooting style as well as throwing his experience out the window and the fact that he customized his guns as did everyone else at the time ……..you need to do more research and use your common sense a bit more……..the elements you seem to ignore would fill a library.
Hey guys. I really love your show.
I was watching this episode today and have to disagree with your outcome with the exploding Bic in the windshield. This happened to a girlfriend of mine in a Ford Courier Truck. But it happened over 25 years ago and I’m sure that Bic has redesigned the lighter over that time. When that lighter did blow it cracked the windshield. We had a heck of a time figuring out why the windshield was cracked but found pieces of the lighter all over the cab so we figured out what happened.
Thanks for all your hard work to inform and entertain us.
What type of car did they use to put the 500 lighters in?
Well last night i just had a lighter explode in the dryer and catch fire. There was a loud boom it had actually blown the dryer door open and a comforter i was drying was on fire. The lighter was melted to the back of the dryer. Luckily I caught it in time and the only thing lost was a blanket and not the whole house. Just wanted to share so people pay closer attention. It Make not be likely to happen but it obviously can.
you know the lighters that you can make into crack lighters? Is it possible to make them so flammable by turning them up that they explood?
The car was a Toyota Corona (1965 or 66/67). I drove a 1966 model all through high school. Great little car – good suspension, bulletproof transmission. Too bad they decided to destroy it.
You wern’t usin the rit ahcent to destroy dem dere coins. Nor using the right fingr to shoot them pistol quick enough… if you know wut i mean, u best get a practicin boys. ;)