How to Refill a BIC Lighter 

its not about saving money. its about keeping that favorite lighter alive

Back in May, I had a friend who committed suicide and I kept his little bic lighter that he always used. I can tell the fluid is going to run out soon, so thanks for this. I want to use it for a while.

11 years later and this is still an S tier tutorial

Dude... I am very impressed 😁. The smoothness of the video, no click bait. No over explaining. This is great got yourself a new sub and a shared/liked.

I've done this but to seal it I use a brass thumb tack. not only is the surfaceflat, the needle diameter is slightly wider than a push pin creating a superior seal.

When you buy a disposable lighter, you always lose it. When you find a disposable lighter, it always runs out. This video is a nice solution for the latter. If you use a flathead metal thumbtack, you wouldn’t need to use the cutters or have a wart on the bottom. Thanks for a great technique !

I had the pleasure of working at Bic in Toronto for a few years. Lmao. The factory is in the middle of one of their largest markets there - Jane and Finch! All joking aside, they were a great company to work for. At least at that location. I like the fact I am not only saving my favorite lighter, but it's one of the only ways to recycle them!

I haven’t looked at other comments yet so apologies if this is redundant but having installed many types of refill valves in Bic lighters and dealt with leaks at the valve, I just can’t believe that the shank of a pushpin somehow seals the hole that the sharp pin point makes. I don’t believe it would stand up to multiple in and outs necessary to refill it more than once. My success has resulted from the right size drill bit hole for the threading of an air soft type valve or a valve taken from a lighter that is encased in plastic, removed and sized to fit snugly into a hole drilled in the Bic. One last tip: I place the hole for any valve off center to avoid drilling into the interior wall that is inside the Bic. I have had no issues with the air soft type valve as long as I sand flat the bottom of the Bic to eliminate leak channels. I do appreciate your efforts. Thank you for the video.

I will lose it before i need to fill it

THANK YOU SO MUCH! You have no idea how many tutorial videos are so bad at explaining things and expect me to know how to do similar things. If I knew that I wouldn't be watching a tutorial. You are straight to the point, clear and concise.

"It's on the hardware aisle in Home Depot"

When the world bans lighters this guy will be laughing, good one sir.

Stoners love you. That includes me.

alternatively, i broke a rubber band and wrapped it around the tip of the butane can, you can judge how thick to wrap it by looking at the indent on the bottom of the bic

People literally make a living doing this in Cuba, since times are so tough. It's cool to see how people from different upbringings and circumstances think similarly to solve problems.

this is honestly a great video and well spoken laid out and perfectly yet simply edited narrated and subtitled. thanks for the how to bro

instructions weren't clear enough, accidentally created ebola cure..

well looks like I'm gonna refill my 1980's camel lighter that just recently quit.

I'm glad you posted this because there are too many of these things in landfills and in the ocean and every place else I think it's great if people can do this and it only took you just a couple minutes!

The tension I felt when you rushed to get the pin in was palpable. Subbed.

and after going through all of this the flint runs out....

Yes, as long as the hole doesn't get too widened from repeated plugging. When the lighter is completely empty, pull the pushpin out with some pliers.

Way easier than what I have been doing. Thank you for your time posting this because I found a bunch of butane and had no use.

Not exactly what I was looking for to solve my issue, but I found this very well done and entertaining. Great job.

Cool. BTW, I'm always amused to see how many people just derail in negative insults and just plain ignorant comments. Every time. If a dude wants to make a vid on refilling Bics, why not? We all ended up watching it and 99% of us ended up here by watching numerous other vids about tons of subjects. If you don't like a vid, go to the next one and chill. I would likely not refill my Bics but I learned about that BB they use as a stopper. That's enough for me. You all have a great day now and try to be a bit more mellow, life is short.

NICE! I have messed around with various ways to attach my lighter to a key-chain for years and years (I too am a fan of the mini-Bic). I can't believe I never thought of boring out the metal and using a split ring. Good job!

as a crackhead i couldn’t tell you how much money i’ve saved by modding my bic this way. you can also use a flat push pin that way you won’t have the rest of it hanging out the bottom especially if you open your beer bottles with the old lighter trick. the advanced drunkards out there know what i’m talking about. keep up the good work buddy.

There are two ways you can do this without rubber things. (I've been refilling bic lighters since a few years before this video was posted) First, you can just commando it put the nozzle on the hole, and press down, this way makes butane spray everywhere including on yourself, so be careful not to give your self frost bite or someshit, but it also fills it faster. The second is by cutting a quarter off of a pencil eraser (obviously measurements vary) and either putting a hole down the middle or cutting it in half and duct taping it down, and insert it onto the nozzle, place firmly on the torch and slowly add the butane. doing it the first way, it doesn't matter how fast you push it down, it will still spray, so I usually do it hard and fast. I can already see the "that's what she said comments"

A great alternative to landfill. Thanks for posting!

You can try to cool down butane and the lighter, before the procedure. It will minimise the spray after filling.

Just on a recycling point of view, this is pretty awesome. I’ll definitely try it out. Thanks Sam ...🤗

11 years later, & you stil helping out. Thank you big dawg

For all you haters, it's just a fun little project to try, give him a break. If you push the pin in enough, it won't pop out, I've never had that issue, I've filled tons of bic lighters. In the long run do you save a lot of money, uhm to be honest if you consider you're time and effort...not too much, but like I said it's just a fun little project. Not hating on this, but I will say thumbtacks on the bottom of bic lighters does kinda scream "t-w-e-a-k-e-r" lol 😜

Great overview man. Clear, concise, and simple. 5min ago my Bic ran out, and I said, "I bet there's someone who has figured out how to refill this DamN thing. Thanks for the review and helpful tip. Keep it UP!

Hold the lighter in a vise of some sort, and do it outside, away from any sources of heat or flame, and have an extinguisher available, wear natural, flame resistant clothing and googles/face protection. Set everything up before you start, run dry runs until you can go from step to step without the instructions. Gas fueled fires mover very fast, any light fabric is a likely fire if it's nearby. Take care to work safely and you will be safe.

Sir, this video is timeless. Its 2am, need a toke and i was trying to do exactly this. Thank you!

I have a suggestion since the butane needs heat to evaporate so after punching the hole put the lighter in the freezer until it gets cold then wrap it in a piece of fabric then continue, this way you don't have to rush to take off the tank and insert the pin inside the hole because liquid Butane can not evaporate in a cold environment so you keep more fuel inside of lighter and it is going to have more life.

Wouldn't a flat thumb tack work better?

Here's a tip. Ditch the Bic, use a clipper. Refillable Replaceable flint Removable spark wheel (use w Char cloth) Etc.

I realize it's easier to just buy a new lighter but I become attached to my favorite lighters and ones that I design myself, so refilling will be a great way for me to keep enjoying them. Thanks for the vid!

Why lose the factory seal? You can fill one by the valve at the top. Take the metal guard off and wedge the valve open. Butane nozzle fits right over it. When filled, remove the piece you wedged the valve open with and it's just as safe as new.

Totally worked for me. I ran out of fluid today and had no lighter. This video totally saved the day!

Just a tip ,when filling the lighter with butane it should only take about 10 seconds to fill that later butane in the can is under extreme pressure so when you push down on the nozzle releasing it it empties into whatever container you're trying to fill super quick so 30 seconds is a bit of overkill but by all means do what you wish I'm just letting you know 10 seconds is plenty of time I've watched torch style lighters fill up in a matter of three seconds and there container space that holds the butane was three times the amount of a BIC lighter so it happens really quick even 10 seconds is overkill

I'm glad I'm not the only one who uses concrete as quick and free sandpaper/file

This seems pretty dangerous. I'm not talking about the process of refilling it; if done right, the danger from that can be managed. I'm more talking about the danger of the pin being pulled out. I can imagine that happening and posing a frost burn or fire hazard, especially if you don't clip the pin. Clipping the pin makes it a lot harder to accidentally pull out, and therefore safer, though you'd ideally want to glue it on as well.

Useful as this is, I would much rather just buy a new one than walk around with a pin stuck in the bottom of my lighter, lol.

A rapturous discovery have I made tonight; and in advance you have my greatest reverence and undying love for this breakthrough. I cannot begin to quantify how much this has improved my quality of living and more importantly allowed me to smoke more cigarettes- and more efficiently. Butane gas has always been around me, and most I know have always used it. Yet for me, it only just clicked. I am trying to register the odd feelings of pioneering wonder and mild embarrassment jostling in the balance: just an obvious fact of life that shouldn't be taken as a revelation whatsover. And yet here I am. In clipper owner limbo. Note: stay away from huffing it kids, use it for intended usage only. Stay safe. Rah

My buddies always swipe my lighters long before they run out, or it gets cracked from shooting beer caps at them. But was just looking at the bottom an instantly knew how to get the butane in, IE the bb for the seal, didn’t think about the grommets. Especially 3 I would have over complicated it and try to fabricate a reducer to fit in the hole. So here’s to you, mr bic lighter refiller inventor. Real men of genius.

because Bic lighters are super expensive...

Bic should not be allowed to pollute the planet with their non refillable lighters! Thx for that cool tutorial!

improvement idea, * if you have a rotary tool (Dremel,Proxxon,Noname copies) you can reduce the height of that needle pin even further with the pink grinding stone tool. * Alternative is there are pink grinding stones for hand drills too (>2-5$) * another idea: an angle grinder does the same job but needs steady hands (be careful). btw lol for all the people who are ignorant why this video might be helpful (resons i found for doing this mod: 1. Stores are Closed (Weekend,Night,Holidays) 2. Store to far away. 3. you need the lighter right now 4. rare limited edition lighter 5. you just want to do some hacking for the fun/ gain some knowledge

Something to consider, if you are into it. A few decades ago, in a Joke Shop in Paris, I bought a Bic lighter that squirted water when you depressed the gas valve. It used a standard disposable syringe without the metal needle to force water into the empty Bic, thus compressing the air in the Bic to propell the water. A talented person like yourself should be able to figure out how that Paris joke shop tweeked the lighter. A warning though.... Back in the States, I was sitting at the bar in a rowdy bar when the guy sitting next to me asked for a light. After I squirted a blast of water in his face, he laughed and poured his pint of beer over my head. 😂

I'm sorry but these lighters are called disposable for a reason, just buy a Zippo if you want a refillable lighter, which also come with a lifetime guarantee. Plus the lighter fluid you use to refill a Zippo is way cheaper than butane.

It was a sad day when they stopped making them with the adjustable wheel. I used to fill those by taking apart the top, adjusting the wheel until it was held in by only a few threads which made it loose enough for the butane to go in easily. [there was a spring with a felt pad under the adjuster] The butane can tip would fit perfectly in the hole of the adjuster and make a seal. I used the white, yellow and blue ones for this because I could put a flashlight behind it and see the fill level. When you pull the can away only a tiny bit of gas would come out while you quickly adjusted it all the way shut. [You may lose only .000001% of the butane, really insignificant.] Put it back together and away you go. The flint they use eventually wears out and it is larger diameter than a standard Zippo lighter flint, but the Zippo would still work. After they stopped making them with the adjuster, I wasn't about to give up on them Now instead of the threaded adjuster system, they just went to an aluminum sleeve that is pressed into the plastic case that the valve then slides into. Take the lighter apart, break the plastic out around the front so you can get small electronic side cutters to grip the top of the aluminum sleeve. Being careful not to squeeze too hard as to collapse the sleeve you pull it out of the plastic. Now comes the tricky part. Motion and vibration is the enemy. The colder the outside temperature the better. You are now able to see into the bottom of the tank. Hold the lighter firmly with the opening pointing up on a hard flat surface, or in a vice as tight as possible without cracking the plastic. Put the butane can into the hole [obviously upside down] and fill the tank. Slowly release the gas pressure a little at a time until it is all gone so the butane can is able to be removed without the liquid fuel blasting out all at once. I wouldn't recommend it but you could look down the hole and be able to see the liquid fuel sitting there in open atmosphere. Carefully grab the aluminum sleeve and press it into the hole and then use the electronic side cutters close using the flat bottom press the sleeve all the way back in. Now you are safe, put the lighter back together and enjoy your fully refilled lighter replacing the flint with a Zippo one as needed. I refill the clear plastic one the way I used to do the adjustable Bic lighters but the problem with those is after a few refills the plastic is so thin that it gets weak and brittle that they arbitrarily crack and if you leave in in the car on a hot day it cracks with all the fuel leaking out. One other thing is to not fill it more that 80% to allow for expansion, otherwise any lighter would crack and leak out.

I have been refilling bics since the 1990's. I would heat up a close hanger, poke it through the bottom, not in the center though. Cram a refill thing from an old butain lighter in the hole and seal it with supper glue. Had one bic for two years until the flint wore out on me. But today I just replaced a flint in one so it's on! 😆

I just keep the whole thumbtack right in there for when I need to take it out and refill again

They just cost, they're only, just a get a new one? You know what guys and gals, it's not about the money. It's about convenience. For me anyway. Yea, I could buy a new one, after I get in my truck, drive 10 minutes to the store, 10 minutes back home, and burn a couple bucks in gas and about 25 minutes of my time, just for a buck 50 lighter. Or I can do this, not have to leave the house, and be done in a couple minutes. I have all the supplies sitting here on my desk. So....Sam Maghsoodloo, Thank you for the info. Great Vid!!!

Ima refill lucie thanks.... God knows how many bowls she has sparked for me

This worked awesome!!! ..I just fabbed up 3 empty lighters full!!!

I have a mini bic lighter in light blue, it’s my first working lighter and I really like it. I found it while walking to the park with my dad and sisters, and started to fidget with it while I walked. So, think I’ll keep it for the memory.

this is dangerous that tac wont stay under pressure long, you're gonna have it close to your face while lighting it and the pin will pop letting all the butane out, incinerating your face or your hand or what have you....

To the people worried about the pressure pushing the pin out... a little math for ya. Butane pressure isn't as high as propane. It depends on temperature. It only starts to pressurize above about 30° F. and @ 110° F it gets up to around 50psi. Now a push pin has a diameter of .045". so it has a cross sectional area of .00159 inches. now multiply that by 50psi. and you get .0795lbs. of actual pressure exerted on the pin trying to eject it out. that is 1.272 oz. or 36 grams. so, not much force. about the weight of 5 nickles. And keep in mind that is at 110° F, it would be lower at lower temps. Also if you took a dremel with a small grinder bit and ground the pin down flush (carefully as to not get it heated up) and pushed it just below the surface, it would likely never come out since the plastic would shrink down a tiny bit behind it. Btw, I just figured this out because I was curious myself and I thought someone else may have been, so I posted it. I use a zippo.

I bought the cutest Bic lighters a while ago and didn't have the heart to throw them out. Thank you for this!

I been doing this since I learned this from your video for months now. I use the same damn lighters over and over again it's insane.

Knowing me it'd blow up some how

Great video. I really wanted to know if I could safely refill my collection of Bic lighters, but as they aren't officially refillable I won't bother. But not gonna hate. This was a great video. Deffo get a like from me!

That was really cool. Man, the things people just know. And now I know! Wish I could have seen this years ago. I've sadly tossed many unforgettable lighters. Some of them were gifts. Thank you for this video.

Not hating, this was pretty creative if you came up with this process yourself, but I'd recommend just getting refillable lighters. They don't have to be expensive nice metal ones, Clipper lighters are plastic lighters like BiC but are made to be refillable and the flint can be replaced too. Also, for the tokers, some people take the removable flint/wheel/spring piece and use it for tamping and the like. But if this is what you need to do (I get the desire to keep a lost loved one's lighter or preserve one for sentimental reasons), just be safe and do it in a very well ventilated area/outside away from flames/sparks and make sure you get a nice seal because that gas is under pressure to keep it in a liquid form. Which is also why you can feel it slosh around when you shake it but when it leaks while refilling it turns to gas and rapidly freezes everything it touches in the process.

I succeed from the first attempt. I am from Greece. Thank you.

Awesome video, always wondered if this was possible! Only thing I might do different is use a thumb tack for the last step instead of cutting and filing the corkboard pin. Think it might be easier, look better, and still be reusable :)

Lol! I did this back in the 70s... They last about 2 days before you realize that Bic lighters are dirt cheap and it's a lot more practical to just get a new one...

I have a brown Bic lighter too. I didn't realize they were hard to find. I really like the color and so I was checking on how to refill. Thanks for the vid!

so many "thats what she said jokes" lol, good video very helpful thanks!

Ghetto AF. I like it.

Just use the metal from the tack and push it all the way in until it is flush and you wont have the bump. You can either leave a tiny bit up to be pulled later for refills or push it in when you need to fill again. Doing the latter will fill your lighters with pins but the upside is you can count fills when it totally fails.

Instructions unclear. Just done this and my whole hand temporarily set on fire

or just buy a refillable lighter like any sane person

Why do those clippers look like when you hold SHIFT to capitalize the first letter but forget you already had CAPSLOCK turned on?

This guy is my hero. Its nice to know cause i didnt know of the bb that sealed from inside. And i have accidently bhought the wrong gas thay i wanted to refill zippo with. Buuuuut this gas will work great for bic lighter. Thank you BIC COMPANY for making good quality lighters and pens .

I’m so glad you have a brown bic! That was my inspiration for refilling them!

I love this video cuz now my fav lighter has purpose

Thank you for making this video. I actually have another method that involves a little more work and it makes it so you can fill the Bic via a butane valve over and over without having to worry about covering holes but I don't want to divulge it here. Screw these douchebags bashing you for "trying to save a buck." That's just a bonus; every other decent person and I understand about saving lighters that we've used in the past that have some kind of meaning or that still have a lot of flint left. It's a waste not to try and re-use them.

Great video. I have a Coleman torch barbeque lighter, that works great in every way, far better than all others I've had. I'd like to keep it forever. But they made the thing unrefillable. Irritating. This solves that problem, thanks.

This is a great video. I am currently making creosote and syngas and am looking for a way to store it in the future. I was wondering if refilling a big disposable lighter was even possible. I will be trying it. Perhaps it will work with the syngas as well. Can't wait to find out. Cheers for the video!

If you have to go to home depot to buy materials, why not just buy a new pack of lighters?

What if you can't get a hold of those black grommets anywhere?

Concrete outside prison style

Damn, now that I seen this I’m about to use a lighter from 2013 lol

I did this but I used one of the tips that came with my butane that was small enough to fit in the divet and big enough to cover the little keyhole slot. Just have to keep it flat when filling. The thing with the thumbtack is working so far. Or if you use metal tacks it even works as a pipe tamp.

Sand it down to roughly a 1/16" protruding and then apply tape around the perimeter level with the 1/16" protruding pin. With Bic upside down fill with epoxy to "clean-up" the pin projection. You can take steps to protect the fill opening for future refills. Stretch that dollar out!

I've recently found that those half circle rubber balls also work on the butane nozzle. If you still aren't sure what im talking about they're the cheap arcade toys that pop up when you turn them inside out.

Sees all the things I need:I think I’ll just buy a new one

Better to do this outside and don't light the bic right after you refilled it, because there's probably excess butane roaming in the air that could ignite.

yeah a small bic has enough gas for 3000 cigarettes, but the flint still works after 152,643,432,219,681 strikes so this video is immensely helpful.

It's quite funny how many videos there are about this. It's just amazing how many people people will go through extra steps and truly pay more to make an inferior product work the way it was intended to. I have the hands down number one Bic hack of the century! Step one: grab your Bic and chunk it in the garbage. Step two: buy a Clipper. It's refillable from the start no modifications needed, and you can change out the flint. Done

+Sam Maghsoodloo You should include that putting a dab of glue around the base to seal it in is highly recommended. You do NOT want to leave this in your car and have that bad-boy spit out the tack!

Do this method: Pulls out of pocket Pin comes out Butane goes everywhere Small spark or fan running Room explodes in a boom Your dead Buy a new lighter: No boom Your Alive

Omg thank you for not filing it here. I have a major audio thing against the sound of filing.. much respect bro ❤

That's pretty cool. It looks like their larger lighters, like the ones you use to light a charcoal grill, have the same cartridge as the little ones. It's essentially just a little lighter in a big case. I'm almost wondering if I tried doing this with my empty big one if it would work