Hi fellas,
I'm building a US infantryman during the Vietnam conflict & I want to show him holding the world famous Zippo lighter lighting up a cigarette for a buddy.
Any recommendations on how to make one? I guess the main body held in the hand would be pretty easy but how should I build the hollow lid?
Thanks in advance guys.
Joe.

Joe

Really would depend on the scale of the figure. How about gently pressing the tin foil of different thickness into paper or card with a jewellers screwdriver to see what result you get.

Then use a sharp nife to cut the pressed piece to the right profile.

Nige

Hi Nige,
Yeah, sorry mate. I should have mentioned the scale in my first post. The figures are in 1/35th scale.
As to your idea. I'll give it a go but it might be a bit tricky in 1/35th. Well, it probably will be for me!! LOL
Thanks anyway Nige, for the tip.
Joe.

In 1/35 scale, a zippo lighter is tiny. I think the best bet would be to do the open top as a solid piece as well and just paint the open, inside portion black to represent the hollow inside part.

If you're dead set on making the top hollow, you can burnish heavy duty foil over a properly sized master. It's somewhat malleable (spun aluminum oil tanks start out as a disk) so you can do it with a minimum of wrinkling if you work it enough. Anneal it first.
The real trick is the flame. As you assemble the figure, drill through his leg, torso, and arm. Make the holes as large as you can get away with. The hole exiting the hand should be just large enough for fiber optic. I did it for a figure holding a cigarette once, but painted the fiber optic off white, so it was the actual cigarette. I'd say you could probably mold the lighter body AROUND the fiber optic with apoxy, (a blob will work-file it to shape after it sets) rather than trying to drill a lighter and bend the fiber though it.

If you go through all this work, you could improve my cigarette by making the flighter flame flicker. Use a flicker circuit. Obviously, all wiring is in the base.

Ask some ants kindly if they will construct a perfectly scaled hollowed out lid.

When i made one in 1/35th, i just got some plastic card, cut out a tiny, TINY, rectangle, then cut the top off said rectangle, and glued it back on at an angle to appear flipped up.
Also got a little teardrop shape of plastic (were starting to talk microscopic..) And painted it orange/yellow to represent the flame.
Works well enough, and looks as good as your gonna get a for a zippo at 1/35th.