Xikar Stratosphere II High Altitude Lighter, Single Jet Flame, Windproof, Ergonomic Design, Durable and Dependable, Blue

I have seen a lot of poor reviews for this lighter. My unit worked well our of the box and it has continued to work well for 3 years. I have owned or been gifted a lot of lighters and some very pricey ones (eg Colibri) have not held up well at all. Very few of my many refillable lighters last more than a year or two. For a while I resorted to cheap disposable non-refillable ones. However, this one has been good. I suspect the problem might be initial quality control, as the complaints have been for a new unit, and not that they failed after using a while. This has been a good purchase for me.

This lighter is horrible, took forever to get it to light after its first refill then it worked fine up until the next time to refill it. That's when it wouldn't light again. It's to big of a pain to get it to light after every refill, and paying this much for a lighter that was suppose to be reliable and light in lots of extreme conditions was a bad joke. It is hard enough getting it to light under normal conditions let alone in the extreme. Stay far away and look else where if your looking for a survival lighter that will work whenever you need it. Gas station Bic lighters are more reliable than this cheap junk

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I have been trying to purchase a reliable wind resistant lighter; turns out it much harder than it sounds. This is not the first model I have purchased, however, it the first to actually light up AND be able to stay lit thru a puff of air at arms length! (while that may hardly seem like a "windproof" test, this is the only one to have passed so far, the other would go out just by saying the phrase "puffer fish"). a few things that while they mention in the manual deserve noticing: -It lights quick and easy... -your thumb IS very close to a very hot flame...in the breeze you had better make sure your thumb is upwind! -the device heats up, FAST, if you need more than 5 seconds of flame, look elsewhere -the flip top lid is plastic and the open spring is a little weak, you must also press the lever to CLOSE the lighter (seems odd that it does not snap closed) -eats fuel at a pretty good clip so that is why 4 stars (mostly the closeness of your thumb and how hot the device gets, those are design issues). That said, its a lighter and it actually LIGHTS!!! other manufacturers take note, if a device does not perform its primary task, anything else really does not matter...

My only gripe which turned out to be a better thing is that the image is wrong. I received the newest xikar lighter. I currently have the old style as pictured, but in green. I bought 3 as groomsmen gifts. I was kind of annoyed at first when I opened the box, but was happy when I clicked the lid open, no more little latch, but more like a zippo style lid. Filled up with xikar butane (which on my original they used ronsonol butane and it didnt work at all) and all three lighters lit up great. One of them seems to need adjustment because it actually puts out too much butane and the torch wants to burn out. Easy to adjust. I have been using the old version for 2 years now and loved it so much, that I am actually buying a 4th of the black new models right now. As far as wind and all that goes, it is what it is, there might be better, but I dont have issues with mine. I try to light whatever out of the wind anyways. Great for cigars, great for lighting up a fire starter for my chiminea, 4th of july punks, everyone always wants to borrow my lighter.

Having read and heard about Xikar torches, I was excited about buying this lighter. I received the lighter, it feels solid and filled it with butane (yes, high quality). It would not light, I could not detect a spark at all. I drained it again because I did not drain it when I received it - didn't think it needed that. Nonetheless, I drained and filled it to the same results. I increased the flame height to see if that would work. I finally was able to get a torch by moving the dial all the way. However, lighting it produced a torch followed by a flamethrower, followed by turning off. I lowered the dial, but back to not lighting. Highly disappointed with the experience I returned it. I give it a two because it is built solid and looks great. But sadly, it failed in its primary function.

This lighter worked great... for about 3 lights. That's when the fuel pressure started fluctuating wildly. I had to constantly adjust the dial just to get it to light, and once it was lit it would still fluctuate until it would either drop low enough to go out or get too high and blow itself out. It was annoying but I could deal. Then the next day the coil stopped working and now it won't light at all. This all happened within a day of receiving this piece of garbage. It may not be windproof but a bic will at least work when you need it! And you'll save yourself a good amount of money

Bought this to use with my employment, ski patrol in the Colorado Rockies, between 10,000 and 12,000 feet in elevation, lots of wind, lots of snow. The element lit with great success, unfortunately I couldn't find the right butane flow to ignite anywhere above 9,300 feet and outside of my kitchen. I would put a reliable ceiling on about 6,000 feet. Used bernzomatic butane. Contacted xikar, they sent a warranty exchange within days. Second model, same results. Looks like I will keep working with the $.99 bics I find under chairlifts, keep this lighter set aside for Moab. Pros: Great customer service, very easy to work with Works 60% of the time in my kitchen at 9,300 feet. Works very well in the desert at 5000 feet. Window shows what butane level is Cons: Didn't meet my altitude needs Plastic casing seems less than sturdy Broke off lid, repair is holding up okay. Trigger/igniter very close to flame. Would be likely to contact work gloves and cause burning. Overall: Probably a great lighter for Denver elevations but not reccomended for higher altitude use.

Article utilisé 5 ou 6 fois pour dégustation de cigare. A arrêté de fonctionner du jour au lendemain. Plus aucune flamme malgré une charge pleine. Très déçu surtout à ce prix! Garantie terminée depuis quelques jours...

I thought I would purchase a somewhat expensive light in the hopes that it would last. Less than a year and it's dead.

it worked well in the beginning, after the refill it was totally not working.