I do get mightily hacked off when a perfectly good product design is tinkered with by the manufacturers.
I was at our local market today and bought a few of my favourite 'Clipper' butane lighters: a couple in 'bushcraft orange' and two in hi-vis pale blue. Upon my return home, and on closer inspection, I was intensely annoyed to discover that the striker wheels on the Clipper have been changed from a milled circumference to a sort of faceted thing. It works (after a fashion), but nothing like as well or as smoothly as the milled thumb wheel. Why do they change these things? I can't understand it. Surely, it has nothing to do with manufacturing economics?
I would stoutly defend the Clipper as one of the finest fire-lighting devices that mankind has devised. It is cheap, effective, reliable and long-lasting. Frankly, should anyone venture into the wilderness without several Clippers about their person and appurtenances, I would deem them foolish.
I shall be contacting the Royal Geographical Society and the Spanish manufacturers of 'Clippers' with my objection to this ill-conceived change to their erstwhile excellent product. Sadly, despite my being this product's most loyal fan, I fear my protestations will fall on deaf ears.
Burnt Ash
I was at our local market today and bought a few of my favourite 'Clipper' butane lighters: a couple in 'bushcraft orange' and two in hi-vis pale blue. Upon my return home, and on closer inspection, I was intensely annoyed to discover that the striker wheels on the Clipper have been changed from a milled circumference to a sort of faceted thing. It works (after a fashion), but nothing like as well or as smoothly as the milled thumb wheel. Why do they change these things? I can't understand it. Surely, it has nothing to do with manufacturing economics?
I would stoutly defend the Clipper as one of the finest fire-lighting devices that mankind has devised. It is cheap, effective, reliable and long-lasting. Frankly, should anyone venture into the wilderness without several Clippers about their person and appurtenances, I would deem them foolish.
I shall be contacting the Royal Geographical Society and the Spanish manufacturers of 'Clippers' with my objection to this ill-conceived change to their erstwhile excellent product. Sadly, despite my being this product's most loyal fan, I fear my protestations will fall on deaf ears.
Burnt Ash