I have been lurking here for several years, so I hope this is worthy to post.

I was at Wal-Mart and I found one of these in the check-out isle:

http://www.bicworld.com/inter_en/lighters/cases/c2metal.asp
Pros: 1. Easily refillable with another mini-bic
2. For my larger car-kit/EDC it solves the problem of preventing a mini-bic getting the butane switch pushed on
3. handy lanyard hole
4. Cheap
Cons: 1. not ultra light-weight (heavier than the lighter itself)
2. not water-proof

Wish someone would re-engineer it to be lighter in weight and water-proof, then it would be very handy.

Walz

Hey Walz,
Welcome aboard, I guess the usual "welcoming committee" are either busy or sleeping so I will chime in.

I am a bit of a minimalist so a mini Bic in a pocket or PSK does fine for me but the new case is pretty cool especially if you can attach it to a key ring or lanyard.
In general Bics are waterproof. Just dry them out; I have found several Bics in various puddles (on cliffs or in the woods) while climbing and have always been able to salvage them. Just blow into the top and run the striker backwards on your pants a few times and wha-la it will work. I guess if the sparker was really corroded this may not work but if you still have the fuel plus a spark from elsewhere....you can still get fire.
Bill

Welcome to the fire Waltz! I was eyeballing one of those lighters this morning. I especially agree with your #2. I like the way it prevents the butane button from being pressed. Plus, the whole thing just looks COOL. Who says survival can't be classy?

Hmmm, I suppose making the metal skin out of magnesium would be a bad idea...

-Blast

"Patented Child Guard® mechanism"

Oh, poop! So much for ME using it!

Why do they have to go and ruin everything by making it (supposedly) childproof? I guess an old beer can opener wouldn't work?

Ground magnesium case, Blast. Scrape off some shavings, disable the childproof mechanism, and you're good to go...

Sue

The standard mini-Bic is my favorite field lighter because it is small, light, durable and, it gives a lot of lights. Far more than you can get in any match safe I know about. I don't smoke so reaching for a light in every day life is fairly rare. A lighter that disappears in a pocket is good.

Last I checked even the hidebound military had shifted from match safes and wooden matches to butane lighters as their first line. Some old timers still stuff a few waterproof matches and may back it up with a flint of some description but those seldom get used. The Butane lighters are pretty reliable.

Even if they get wet shake the water off and once dry they work again. In the field mini-Bics are so compact that I often have three with me. Usually one in my pocket without any special protection, a second in my pack in a tiny but tough zip-lock with some tinder in the pack and a third wrapped in wax impregnated tinder paper, sealed between two pieces of aluminum foil-tape and stuffed into in a small survival kit.

I figure if all three fail I'm having a very bad day. But preparedness is all about bad days so I have a few matches with tinder in foil, a Blastmatch and have, long ago, learned and practiced how to use bow or lens for making fire.

I have taken to using a small bungee, 20 to a pack for $3 and intended for pony tails, wrapped around the lever to keep it from being accidentally depressed. For normal street wear I have carried the same lighter for over a year and it still was good.

A friend has a method of making a silicone rubber sleeve that will slip over the lighter and keep it water-tight but he didn't tell me how he did it. I have a few ideas and might try to cobble something together. He showed me his and I was thinking I could add an attachment point so I could hang the lighter around my neck. The Mini-Bic sounds good for this because of its diminutive size. It would have to be water-tight because of the sweat and its corrosive action.

Walz -- thanks for the tip. Looks like a great way to key chain a mini.

Welcome,

Teacher

Welcome aboard Walz!

About a year ago I bought one of the C2 metal cases for a mini bic, and it has held up quite well.

It does prevent the bics button from being depressed accidentally.

The larger size, rubber grip, and lanyard hole all help in wet and cold weather conditions. Last winter, I was trying to get a fire going in the snow. I had to take off my gloves so my hands became cold fairly quickly. The C2 case gave me something substantial to wrap my hand around and the rubber grip kept the lighter firmly in my hand for the most part. The lighter did slip out of my grip once, but I had the C2 hanging around my neck on a lanyard and that kept the lighter from falling in the snow.

Unfortunately it's not waterproof, but a wet bic isn't the end of the world. Usually a few shakes, a blow or two in the guard, and a couple of spins of the striker will do to get it working again.

It is cheap. I think I bout it for around $3.99 (if I remember correctly) and of course reuseable. Once the lighter runs out of fluid, you just replace it with another mini bic.

Another minor complaint is that the button that releases the cap is a bit trickiy if your hands are cold and you've lost a little bit of feeling in your fingers. Still, it's not impossible to open.

The silver paint rubs and scratches off eventually, but that's really not a problem.

Mine still works perfectly after about a years use.