fireSLEEVE™ mini

The fireSLEEVE mini takes the same problem the full-size fireSLEEVE solves and applies it to the smaller BIC Mini lighter, for people who want the lightest, most pocketable version of a ruggedized disposable lighter. A bare mini lighter shares every weakness of a full-size one: it dies when wet, it can empty itself in a pack, and it is small enough to disappear. The fireSLEEVE mini is a fortress built around it.

The body is molded from a flexible TPE, similar to silicone, and its flexibility is what makes the seal work: it acts as a gasket around the circumference of the lighter, keeping moisture out, while the high-grip exterior holds the lighter in your hand when everything is wet. Capped, the assembly floats and is waterproof to not less than three feet, so a lighter that goes overboard comes back usable. The cap is super-tough glass-filled nylon and protects the gas button from being pressed accidentally in your pack; it stores on the base of the body while the lighter is in use.

The molded gas-lock strap holds the button down for hands-free burning until you release it with your thumb, which is what you want when feeding a flame into a stove or a fire lay. Two lashing points let you tie it into a kit or a lanyard.

The included lighter is a standard BIC Mini, available worldwide and fully replaceable: pull the spent one, slide a new one in, add a dab of silicone grease if it is tight. A no-lighter version is also sold for people who already have mini lighters. The fireSLEEVE mini is made in the USA, covered by U.S. Patent No. 10,222,063 and Exotac's lifetime warranty, and offered in Black and Orange. It is the lightest way to give a disposable lighter the durability of a machined tool, and the ideal deep-backup fire source for an ultralight kit.