The RIGHT (and Wrong) Way to Light a Ronson Standard Lighter

This is a PSA for any lighter with a plunger that has little teeth connecting to gears on a snuffer. This includes the Ronson Standard, Princess, and their Japanese-made counterparts.

There’s a right way and a wrong way to light these—at least if you want to prolong the life of your lighter.

When lighting one, it’s important to press your thumb toward the snuffer as you compress the plunger. This helps ensure those gears engage properly and maintain solid contact.

If you keep lighting by pressing on the rear of the plunger, over time the plunger post will start to bend and pull away from the snuffer. As you can imagine, this will cause slippage, and eventually the lighter won’t ignite.

I have a hunch why Adonis-type models remain so popular—this problem is nearly impossible to cause with them.

If you’re a daily lighter user, it’s not your fault. It’s likely muscle memory from using disposable lighters or Zippos, where you sweep over the wheel in a downward and outward motion to ignite. But now that you know… it’s out for Zippo and in for Ronson.