Flint or wheel: what is worn?
In a classic Clipper the wheel, a small spring and the flint sit together in a narrow black tube that pulls out of the top of the lighter. Clipper calls it the flint system. It is a separate part from the gas tank. That is why, according to the brand, you can keep using a Clipper: you refill the gas, replace the flint and, when needed, the spark wheel. Why Clipper built its lighter this way is explained in why a Clipper flint is replaceable.
Which part you need depends on what happens when you turn the wheel:
- No spark at all, the wheel turns normally: the flint is used up. A new flint fixes it.
- A weak spark, even with a new flint: the ridges on the wheel are worn. You need a new flint system.
- The tube is lost or bent: replace the whole system as well.
- A spark but no flame: the flint is fine. Look at the gas instead, in our guide to refilling a Clipper lighter.
If in doubt, start with a flint. It is the smallest part, and most of the time it is enough.
Loose flints or the full system: the difference
Two spare parts have similar names but do different jobs:
| Clipper Universal Flints | Clipper Flints System | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Loose flints on a card | A complete part: wheel, tube and flint |
| On the card | 9 flints | 3 systems |
| When | The flint is used up | The wheel is worn or the tube is lost |
| Fits | Clipper Large and Micro, according to Clipper | Clipper Classic Large and Pocket |
| Job | Unscrew the tube, swap the flint | Pull out the old system, push in the new one |
Clipper Universal Flints are the flints themselves. Clipper sells them on a card of nine and says they fit the Large and the Micro, so one card lasts a good while.
The Clipper Flints System is the complete tube with the wheel on top, ready to slide into the lighter. Nothing to unscrew. The pack shows how it should sit in the lighter. If you have lost the tube, this is the part you need.
Which Clipper do you have?
The classic Clipper comes in a few sizes. The code is sometimes printed on the pack:
- CP11, Large: the familiar big Clipper, about 7.4 cm tall and 1.6 cm wide.
- CP12, Pocket: shorter, same width.
- CP21, Medium, and CP22, Micro: slimmer, about 1.4 cm wide.
Clipper's own range lists the flint system in two versions, CP1 and CP2, following the numbering of those models. The system in our shop is the one for the Classic Large and Pocket. For a Clipper Micro, change the flint with the loose flints, which Clipper says also fit the Micro.
A Clipper Jet has no flint. Clipper sells it as the Electronic Jet Flame: it lights electronically, with a click. Flints and flint systems are only for the models with a wheel.
Not sure about the size?
If the code has worn off, hold a ruler next to the lighter. About 1.6 cm wide means a Large or a Pocket, which take both the loose flints and the flint system from our shop. About 1.4 cm wide means a slimmer model such as the Micro. Use the loose flints then and keep the wheel you have. Another way: pull out the tube and take it to the shop to compare.
What you need
- A new flint, or a new flint system if the wheel is worn.
- A sheet of paper or a towel to work over.
- A coin, if the cap is stuck.
- A few minutes.
How to replace the flint
You need no tools. Do work over a sheet of paper or a towel, though: the spring jumps out easily and a flint that drops on the floor is very hard to find.
- Pull the tube with the wheel straight up and out of the lighter.
- Turn the tube upside down, with the small screw cap at the top.
- Unscrew the cap. If it is stiff, use the top edge of the lighter or a coin to turn it.
- Pull out the cap. The spring comes with it: put it aside.
- Tap the tube, open end down, so what is left of the old flint falls out.
- Drop a new flint into the tube.
- Put the spring and the cap back and screw the cap tight.
- Push the tube all the way back into the lighter and spin the wheel a few times.
How to replace the whole flint system
- Pull the old tube with its wheel out of the lighter.
- Take a new system off the card.
- Push it into the same place, in the position drawn on the pack, until it sits firmly.
- Spin the wheel to check for a spark.
Keep the old system: if its wheel is still good, it can serve as a spare for another Clipper of the same size.
Still no flame after the swap?
If your Clipper now sparks well but still will not light, the gas is empty or there is air in the tank. The fix is in our guide to refilling and bleeding a Clipper. For other problems, from a weak flame to a hissing sound, see Clipper lighter not working, symptom by symptom.
Flints, flint systems and gas are under accessories, the lighters themselves under Clipper lighters.
