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The Bic® Trick Fun fireworks from a dead lighter! Even after a lighter is out of butane, there's usually still a good portion of the orginal flint left. This trick will work with any lighter that uses a thumbwheel and flint to ignite it. First, carefully take apart the top of the lighter with needlenose pliers. Carefully because the flint is spring-loaded underneath the thumbwheel...it will fly out and disappear forever unless your hand is around the top of the lighter to catch it. The flint is a small black cylinder, about 3/32" in diameter. Then, remove the spring and stretch it out a couple inches. Wrap it a couple of times around the flint. This makes a safe, heat-dissipating handle for the flint so won't burn yourself with the trick. Find a safe place to perform the trick...outside on a concrete driveway preferably, as the sparks that will fly can burn holes in carpet or wood, and could start dry grass or leaves on fire. Wear safety glasses, gloves are not needed as long as you have quick fingers...wear them if you have doubts! Hold the spring and flint in one hand, and use another lighter or a match to in the other to heat the flint until it glows red. This should take about 15-20 seconds of heating. When it is glowing, remove the flame, and quickly FLICK the red-hot flint with the fingernail of your index finger, like you were flicking a paper football. You'll see a bright white flash, a loud crackling sound, and a shower of sparks that may travel 10-15 feet! If you ignored our instructions and did this inside, you'll also see the homeowner chasing you out of the house and hitting you over the head with a broom for burning holes in the carpet! Click either image to download a 3-second MPEG video (497K) of the fireworks! This trick also works with pre-packaged flints for Zippo® lighters...but it doesn't work quite as well for some reason. Probably because the Zippo® flints are covered with some sort of waterproof paint, and they are generally smaller than Bic® flints, even after the Bic® is out of butane. !!! - EXPERIMENT SAFETY INFORMATION - !!! -- Caution Required -- Like your mother always told you, "You could put an eye out with that!" Please wear safety goggles and use caution. Experiment in a safe, non-flammable area, and keep a bucket of water handy so you don't set anything on fire! We will gladly accept, review and consider your science experiment submissions for inclusion on this site, whether you are age 6 or age 100! Email us for details. Every experiment on these pages must be done with adult supervision only!!! If you are already an adult, we recommend getting a friend to help so you don't do anything childish and hurt yourself. We'll try to provide safety warnings, but cannot be held responsible for your own safety. Many of these experiments and many of the books we sell are from another era when safety was not a consideration, so PAY ATTENTION to the hazards of what you are doing! Wear safety goggles and gloves. Don't be stupid--YOU are supposed to be the adult here!

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THIS PAGE LAST UPDATED 1/23/02