Thanks for the additional info guys. I'll look into some of your suggestions.
I was wondering if anyone still makes those old WW-I style 'trench' lighters anymore. From what I've read about them, they're supposed to be both durable and reliable.
There's a few up on eBay right now.
Thanks for the info, but I despise flea-bay... their predatory credit card practices and how they put the screws to small sellers. The last time I bought something there, they signed me up for one of their credit cards without my knowledge, made the payment with that card, and never sent me a statement until I owed them late fees. I wouldn't buy anything off their site if someone had a gun to my head.
I found one of the IMCO models on the 'woman warrior' site, for $10. I'm interested to see how it does.