Reverse Engineering

By Cais, Henry, Joell, and Shane

Introduction

Our item is a type of lighter called a butane torch. It contains

pressurized fuel which creates a flame when the lighter is
started. Its purpose is general fire starting. For example, it can
light cigarettes and heat things. We planned to improve the
flame by increasing its size and changing its color.
First Attempt
1st Attempt
Second Attempt
Methods

We removed the fuel release limiter to increase the size of the

flame by: first removing the metal cover for the flame, locating
the limiter gear and lever, and finally removing the limiter gear
and lever. We added several substances to change the color of
the flame.
Results

The size procedure succeeded, creating a much larger flame

(about 23cm or 6 in). However, it consumed fuel at a much
higher rate. It took about eight minutes to consume the entire
container. The color procedure failed. We added several
substances to the flame, but none of them worked.
Discussion

We think the size procedure succeeded because it was

relatively easy to follow without errors. We think the color
procedure failed because the color changing substances we
used were powders. We would need a metal to make a
permanent change. The solids we had didn’t work.
Improvements

We could have improved our procedure by having a working

starter, trying more materials to change flame color, and
investigating more about the lighter fluid.
Thanks for Watching