Ok guys, need some help from the brain trust here...

I have a Colibri Firebird lighter. I have used it for over a year and a half. I have always used Colibri Butane it.

Recently I have been having a problem with it.

Initially, the torch started to become weaker. It was firing up with less force. I assumed it was running out of butane. So I bled the tank, turned the flame down, and refilled it.

It worked great for one light. Now every time I fire it up, the flame will spark but not light. It does this several times before it finally holds the flame. Sometimes it taked like 20 tries to get a flame.

What is going on with my Colibri?

Try using an old tooth brush to clean up the burner and ignitor area. Too much soot blocking either one will make the spark jump less reliable, like letting the spark plugs in your engine get dirty. I do that every week or so with my Colibri Vortex, and it has been steady.

1) do what sungunner said.
2) stop using Colibri lighter fluid - it's garbage.

I agree with sungunner, I have a cheapie torch lighter that was doing the same thing as yours, spark but no light and it was just that there was ash and little pieces of tobbaco blocking the ignitors

If you wind up looking at other lighters try an Xtend from Dupont, it's the best I've had.

Shf,

Have you tried taking it into your local shop. MY experience has been that the tobacconists see enough troubled colibris on a regular basis that they have a few tricks to getting them working again.

These are the two manuevers I have seen performed with succes to my own termpermental colibris.

1) Take the body of the lighter off (unscrew at the base) and make sure the line running between the tank is firmly attached. Fill with triple refined butane, light, purge, blow out and refill.
2) With the base still removed...pull the fill valve out a touch and slide the little white washer up a tiny nudge -- this will open the govenor a bit. Fill with triple, light, purge, blow-out, refill.

Colibris can definitely be tempermental, and I think one day I'll spend a little extra on a new lighter...but its so hard to chuck one you already gotten used to having around.

I have never been satisfied with my Colibri torch.

Sometimes its fine.
Often it lights and goes out within a fraction of a second, repeatedly. I light it goes out, over and over again. All I hear is gas. POS.

I gave up on my Colibris. They have an excellent warranty program and all, but for a while, it seemed like I always had at least one in for repair. A bit too finicky for me....I just want something that works.

Now, I either just use freebie torches given away with boxes, or $10 cheapies I pick up here and there......or, PAPARICK turned me on to the Blazer Z-Plus torch inserts for Zippo lighters.

I've got a gazillion Zippos I've collected over the years, and this puppy works great. Just pop the Zippo guts out, and pop the Z-Plus in after you fill it with butane. They are piezoelectric fired like the Colibris, work well, and so far, have gone longer without problems than the Colibris.....plus, I just like the feel of a Zippo....I guess it's an Old-Man thing.

Can't beat them for $10 or so....

This message has been edited. Last edited by: rbihari,

...Okay, so based on the above mentioned opinions, I clearly shouldn't even consider wasting my money on this lighter. Right?

Do you have a can of compressed air, or even better, an air compressor with nozzle attachment?

You can try to clean out the nozzles with the air. It could just be clogged up with bits of cigar ash, dirt, etc.

quote:

Originally posted by Tel:
If you wind up looking at other lighters try an Xtend from Dupont, it's the best I've had.

My X-tend DuPont broke after 2 month of use.
I don't think I can justify spending $100.00 on it. Mine was a Birthday present.

1. The compressed air is a great idea to try.
2. Colibri fluid is trash.
3. Colibri lighters, in my experiences, are trash. Purchase a Xikar lighter. $20 for a dual torch.

What type of Butane is good to use?

I've used both Vector (KGM) and Colibri butane. Both seem to work well, so I imagine either of the two. Just don't use Ronsonol [spelling].

I'm having similar issues with a freebie lighter I got with my humidor. Its a dual torch lighter that was full of fluid when I got it. I put it in checked luggage when I flew to NYC and since then it hasnt worked. It will spark, and light for a fraction of a second, then it will go out and all I hear is gas. Its brand new, never used it to light a cigar with. I know its a cheapie, but does anyone have any idea what could be wrong, or should I just go through the steps listed here? I think the seal might be broken or something? (lighter noobie here)

Thanks.

I did all of the above suggestions and now the damn thing works great!

Thanks guys, that's why I post here.

Thanks for the great posts about fixing Colibris without sending them in. I have a triple torch enterprise model and can't live without it. It can torch up the biggest presidentes in seconds! I had the common problem of the torch going out directly after lighting it. I found if you remove the case and lift up the black plastic gaurd that stops you from opening the butane flow, then turn the entire stem a little, then push the plastic guard back down you can open the butane flow enough to fix this problem.

Hot damn! Thanks, everyone. I just got my Colibri to work for the first time since receiving the thing as a gift.

I cleaned my Colibri with a toothbursh last night...and it works like a charm....Thanks sungunner.

I'd also like to add that using 'Dust Off' or compressed air works great when cleaning the ignition valve.

I used to have the same problems as mentioned above by QM and Seahawkfan, not anymore.'Dust Off' does the trick every time.