Introduction: A Lighter Out of a 12.7mm Shell Casing
Hi, I am glad to introduce you to my work.
This compact object will allow you to start a fire in the depths of the wild and to light your way through the darkness. IMPORTANT! I've bought this shell casing at a flea market. I've never worked with live ammunition because it could cost me my life.
WARNING: UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD YOU USE A LIVE CARTRIDGE TO CREATE THIS PROJECT! FURTHERMORE, DON'T EXPOSE THE CARTRIDGE TO MECHANICAL IMPACT! USE ONLY SHELL CASINGS WITHOUT GUNPOWDER AND WITH A DISCHARGED PRIMER (AS IN PICTURE 2)!
If you're using a shell casing with an unpunctured primer pour WD-40 into the shell for at least 5-6 seconds, and then let it stand for 48 hours for the primer compound to dissolve. The final step will be washing it out with detergent and water, before beginning work.
Step 1: Stuff You Will Need
Tools i used:
- A soldering iron (i used one with a 65 wattage and with a thick tip)
- A grip
- A drilling machine
- A threading tool
- A hacksaw for metal
- Some drills for metal (2mm, 4mm and 10mm)
Materials you need:
- Supplies for the soldering: solder, colophony and soldering acid
- Sand paper
- A piece of wire (to tie the parts of the lighter together while soldering)
- A cheap lighter (we wiil need to take it apart to get the silicon, wheel and spring), you can also buy some additional Zippo silicons
- A valve for the faucet
- Bolt M4.0*8 (for tensioning the spring)
- An expended 12.7mm shell casing without gunpowder and with a discharged primer
- A stub of the leg of the table (to close the bottom part of the cartridge)
- Some cotton (to fill the cartridge)
- A piece of a rope (will serve as a wick)
- A small piece of steel cable (to push through wick inside of the cartridge)
- Hepoxilin (to fill the gaps)
- A steel tube (diameter: 13mm, lehgth: 22mm) + brass tube (length: 19mm) + suitable steel tube for the top hole
- Fuel for petrol lighters
- Ship's varnish (optional)
- To tie a case i used 6 pieces of paracord (5 metres each)
Step 2: Sanding, Soldering, Drilling and Filling
- Sand your expended shell casing
- I've decided to paint it with varnish to save the shine (not necessary)
- Disassemble the valve
- Secure the valve in the grip and cut off the top part
- Drill 2mm holes on the both sides of the left top part of the valve
- Drill 2mm hole for the spring and silicon
- Using the hacksaw cut off the opposite sides of the valve and assemble the wheel between two parts
- Seal drilled holes on the parts of the valve
- Drill 10mm hole on the bottom of the expended shell casing and make threaded connection
- Make threaded connection on the stub (it must fit the bottom hole of the cartridge)
- Drill 4mm hole in the steel tube and thread it
- Solder the valve to the surface of the expended shell casing, put the spring inside of the valve, tighten the spring with a bolt
- Put the metal tube inside of the top hole and fill the gaps with hepoxilin, attempt to put the wick inside (without filling your cartridge with cotton)
- Insert piece of brass into another steel tube, sand them together
- I made notches to prevent the plug from sliding and threaded it from the inside
- Get the pieces from the steel cable and tie them together, connect the steel wire to the wick
- Stick out the end of the steel cable and start filling your lighter with cotton
- Pull the cable out of the bottom hole
- Close the plug and fill up the lighter with fuel
Step 3: Tying a Case Out of Paracord
- We will need 6 pieces of paracord, one piece = 5 metres
- Find the centre of every rope and mark it with a needle
- The beginning is the same as for the Crown Sinnet Knot, the only difference is that we have 6 cords instead of 4
- When we form a knot, turn it over and make a loop
- Put the next cord inside of the loop and tighten it, keep repeating to form a loop and put a cord into it (follow the order of cords and everything will be just fine)
- When you reach the end of the main weaving, cut and solder the ends, leave 4 cords to make a belt mount
- Follow the sequence of illustrations to tie the mount
- Cut the ends and tuck them in