Zippo Hand Warmers

[Ex Member - Sidney Bounty]

I have used original recommended fuels and naphtha in all my fueled hand warmers and it works just fine we can get it here by the gallon so no fuel shortage here I do find the Zippo does not get very hot and only seems to keep a pocket semi warm more disappointing than anything the older vintage ones run much hotter and to me work better at keeping me warm the basically the Zippo was a disapointment even the reusable chemical ones are hotter their only drawback is they last a couple hours tops but that still can make a difference of keeping your fingers or toes from frostbite... but if its all you can find go for the Zippo still better than nothing....

 

[satosato]

I never understood them. Is it possible to set your sleeping bag alight with one?

I have used mine in the bottom of my sleeping bag a few times, so far so good as long as you make sure the lid is close properly and it is in the case provided.

 

[Bogman10]

use mine in the hunting blind this year and while ice fishing. I am going on a 2 night trip to Carson lake to try for some trout through the ice. Will try it out in the sleeping bag then.

 

[Stuart69]

I used mine over Christmas at Loch Lomond for the first time and I'm well impressed. I've fitted a longer cord to the wee bag so I can hang it around my neck and it was keeping me lovely and toasty for almost 24 hours on a fill ( I might have put too much fuel in ). I had it at my feet in the bag at night and it was great. Brilliant piece of kit, me likes a lot

 

[ged]

... I do find the Zippo does not get very hot and only seems to keep a pocket semi warm more disappointing than anything the older vintage ones run much hotter ...

Do you know if the Zippo you're using is the earlier one or the later one?

Are you saying that the older Zippo model runs hotter, or that other makes (older makes) run hotter?

I'm asking because it was my understanding that the older model Zippo brand hand warmers burn quite a bit less fuel for a twelve hour fill than the newer model -- 12ml for the older model compared with 20ml for the newer model. So I would expect the older model to run cooler. I've never seen one of the older Zippo models, so I can't do a side by side test. So this is all just a theory at the moment, which I'm not very happy about because things like that have a habit of escaping and getting out of control.

I think the trick with these things is to put as much insulation between them and the outside world as you possibly can. Then they'll get nice and hot. Stuart's idea of hanging it around your neck sounds ideal if your blood circulation in the extremities is good because it will keep your whole body warm. If your problem keeping your hands warm is because of poor circulation then you might not find it very effective nor very convenient to have the device hanging around your neck. You'll want to have easy access to it, which probably means putting it in an outside pocket. In that case you might need to put some insulation in the outside of the pocket to keep the heater hotter. You'll want the pocket to close well too.

 

[Melonfish]

I do like the idea of having one in a pouch around your neck sort of thing, heat up your whole body. getting one however... now there's the issue.