Overview

My reverse engineer project is based on a Zippo lighter. It's main moving components are the lid of the case and the flint wheel. The lighter is composed of many different parts that work together to light the wick using the flint wheel and the flint. I did have to re-touch some parts because the dimensions I originally took were slightly off. This was definitely a learning curve but it allowed me to understand the assembly portion a lot more.

GitHub

Fully Assembled

I created the assembly of the lighter using two different assemblies; One for the inner body and another for the internal components that go inside.

Motion Study

This video demonstrates how the Zippo's lid opens up and down and how the flint wheel rotates around.

Exploded View

This animation displays how the Zippo lighter is assembled together.

Real life disassembly

I struggled having to disassemble some of the parts, I definitely had to seek the help from my spouse but it made me feel like a real engineer.

Most Proud

These are some of the models that I am extremely proud of. They tested my designing skills. I was able to learn a lot re-creating these. In doing so, I learned how to navigate different planes, creating "bent" parts but most importantly how to define and assemble these models. I learned new mates that I was not aware of and a new motion study feature that I thought was great in visualizing how the parts work together. I also learned about threading, springs, and knurling, which is something I had never even heard of before. It took me a lot of hours researching and practicing getting them right but at the end I enjoyed doing this project and learning throughout the whole process.

Models & Drawings

I have included some references to the models and drawings of what I re-created.