What Is the Best Butane Fuel for Cigar Lighters?
Cigar enthusiasts absolutely take the ritual of preparing and lighting a cigar seriously. There’s a fair amount of sparring about technique, or even what to use. Some purists would never light their cigars with anything but a wooden match and cedar spills. Others are less picky, preferring the convenience of butane lighters.
But even these are not all the same. Butane lighters exhibit a great deal of variance in operation. For example, there are both soft flame lighters and torch lighters. The latter category of lighters offers features such as flame height adjustment and number of jets.
Now, while there are strong opinions on what types of lighters are best and even how to use them, there isn’t as much disagreement about what type of fuel is the best butane fuel for cigar lighters.
But even here, there are some points to consider, believe it or not.
Wait a Minute, There’s a Difference?
Yes, there is a difference in the quality of butane lighter fuels for cigar lighters, but for the most part, this doesn’t have to do with their influence on the cigar itself, but on the lighter that burns it. However, we need to walk before we can run.
Butane is a manufactured compound, C4H10, which, in the presence of oxygen, burns into carbon dioxide and water vapor. This makes butane an excellent fuel for cigar lighters because it burns cleanly and will not impart any flavors into the cigar, at least under ideal circumstances.
While most (if not all) cigar smokers can’t taste the difference between different butanes, your lighter may be able to.
This is because, in order to isolate and purify butane, it must be refined. It is effectively impossible to source pure butane, so producers put their butane mixtures through refinement processes in an attempt to remove some of these impurities.
Some of the best butane fuels for cigar lighters are refined several times. Here at Rockys Cigars, for example, we sell butane fuels that have been refined three times, called triple refined butane fuel, that is more than 99% pure and largely free of impurities.
Filtering the impurities out of butane, to the point that the fuel is as pure as possible, will have an impact on how your lighter operates, which in turn can impact your overall smoking experience.
Why Purity - Not the Sticker - Constitutes the Best Butane Fuel for Cigar Lighters
It’s no surprise that there are a ton of butane producers out there, like Zippo Butane, Lotus Butane, Ronson Butane, Colibri Premium Butane, and countless others, all of which are vying for a slice of the consumer market and promising the best butane refill fuels for torch lighters.
Here’s the thing about butane, which is true of many other products as well. It is really not the brand of the butane canister that matters, but the ultra-refined product within that will make the difference.
You see, the impurities that remain in butane after filtering - which the manufacturers expressly attempt to remove - can result in clogged burner valves. These impurities can result in the accumulation of carbon soot within the butane torch itself, which can prevent fuel from flowing efficiently through the valves.
Unfortunately, these valves are difficult to clean, and no one wants to find that the potentially low quality of butane fuel has ruined their favorite lighter. Worse is the fact that some high-quality butane lighters come with a premium price tag. You wouldn’t run low-grade fuel through a sports car - don’t run less than premium butane fuel through a lighter.
In short, the quality of the best butane fuel for cigar lighters will help to ensure that they continue to work great and operate efficiently for long into the future, freeing you from concerns about clogged valves and carbon buildup that can result from inefficient combustion.
A Wide Selection of Brands
At Rockys Cigars, we don’t just sell cigar lighters, refillable with premium butane fuels themselves. We also sell some of the best butane fuels for cigar lighters as well as a wealth of cigar accessories and premium cigar brands.
Stop by for the butane, stay for the cigars. Our collection features highlights from RYJ, Arturo Fuente, Montecristo, Padron, Macanudo and countless others. There’s a great chance your personal favorite is within our collection - check it out to see.
Excellent Customer Service - Come Visit Us!
In the event you can’t find what you’re looking for in our online store, feel free to give us a call or come visit us in our location in Syracuse, New York. We’ve always put our best efforts toward providing excellent customer service, and whether that means pointing you in the right direction or offering you personalized recommendations, we’re here for it. Give us a shout at 888-216-5834 to let us know how we can help.