Vintage Cigarette Lighters

Lighters

KEM

Detroit MI

Bowers Sure Fire Slide Sleeve Lighter by KEM

c. mid-1940s Clearly marked as produced by KEM, Detroit MI - this is a highly unusual lighter as it has the Bowers trademark shield on the lighter and the lighter itself is an exact duplicat of this model of Bowers lighters - with the exception of the KEM production marks.

Another View

KEM Tube Lighter

Probably one of KEM's earlier lighters, it is a lovely, simple brass tube.
DVL-0BB

Another View

KEM Bottle Lighter

Another View   Another View   Another View   Store Display   Store Display

KEM Bowling Pin Lighter

c. 1940s through early 1950s Ironically, the KEM lighter is not as well made as the off-brand lighters of the same type. The KEM lighter works are set in the plastic and nearly impossible to remove while the off-brand has a brass sleeve making it relatively easy to remove the mechanism.

   Store Display

KEM Bullet Table Lighter

c. late 1940s Very large bullet lighter - see additional images for dimensions - this is extremely thick, heavy brass with a heavy steel cap and makes a beautiful lighter. This seems to be a 20mm round from WW2 era possibly from an Oerlikon 20mm cannon.
ADL-0AF

Another View   Another View

KEM 'Wind' Lighter

1950s. This lighter has an unusual mechanism for flinting. The flint slips in horizontally below the striker wheel - which slides up to allow changing flint. It seems as though something must be missing on the lighter, though, because the striker wheel easily slides up and away from the flint - allowing the flint to fall out; undoubtedly just poor design and nothing really missing. This lighter was made in two versions: one had a standard wick and the other a "cup" shaped opening in the cotton material for producing the flame. The models with a wick are generally unmarked as to Manufacturer; the models with the cup shaped fire chamber are generally marked as KEM. Wick style lighters are designed primarily for lighter fluid (or gasoline) while cup styles are generally for alcohol (methanol) as the fuel. Cup styles are typically filled from the top with the alcohol just soaking in while wick styles are filled from the bottom where the padding is.

Another View    Another View     Store Display

Klip-Lite

Japan

Klip-Lite Tie Bar Lighter

This novelty lighter is for use as a tie bar and the lighter pulls out from it to light a cigarette. Advertisement for Gibson Gin.
BPM-0AC

Another View   Another View   Another View   

Knapp

USA

Knapp Lift Arm Lighter

c. 1927. This unusual unmarked, single bar liftarm lighter features a fuel screw with flint screwdriver tip. This is a very early USA made example of the screwdriver tip fuel screw. This model pre-dates the Knapp bakelite double bar liftarm of 1928 which is more common. Knapp was an important manufacturer of liftarm lighters as well as cigarette cases, boxes, razors, and aluminum lighters. -Larry Tolkin
KbK-0DA

Another View    Patent

Knapp Champion Lift Arm Lighter

Bakelite body. c. 1928
KOK-0AA

Another View

Knapp Aluminum Block Lighter

c. mid 1940s

Kobayashi Mfg. Co

Japan

Kobayashi Japanese Motif Lighter

c. mid-1950s
AHL-0A0

Another View

Kollisch

Germany

Kollisch 'Tip' Lighter

c. 1930

Another View   Another View   Another View

Korex

Burlingame, CA

Korex Electro-Match Table Lighter

c. 1970s. A common misperception is that this is a 1950s-1960s lighter. However, the trademark/tradename registration was filed in March of 1970 so it wasn't made much before that - if at all before that. Numerous design patents for various models are found from 1972 (filed 1970) and onward. The earliest one I found is shown below (Patent) but not every model had a design patent, apparently; none was found for this specific model.

A really fun and interesting lighter to use! Korex made quite an assortment of models - table models only; the one shown is cut crystal - and very heavy. The lighter uses 3 AA size batteries to produce a spark when the wand is pulled from the lighter base. Lighter fluid is poured into a reservoir in the base and soaks into the wick of the want. Whe the wand is pulled out a spark is generated which, in turn, lights the fluid on the wand's wick. See instructions here: http://www.toledo-bend.us/VCL/showpage.asp?name=Electro-Match%20Instructions&item=Electro-Match
KKL-0C0

Another View    Patent pg 1    Patent pg 2

Kresiler

Kresiler Butane Lighter

Kreisler Long-Flint Lighter

c. 1965
ANL-00C

Another View   Another View   Patent 1    Patent 2 - 1   Patent 2 - 2

Kron

Japan

Kron Imperial Lighter

Store Display