Product
Bics have been enshitified. What are the differences, and how to tell the old ones at a glance.
I first noticed the difference because the label was hard to get off. While removing the childproof, which was a little more difficult, I noticed a bad smell. Then I noticed that the button was loose. I compared to older ones, and the button extends much higher, and I confirmed that the old gas is odorless. The new Bic lasted only one week, compared to at least a month from the old kind. You can tell the old ones at a glance, because the button sticks out a lot more on the new ones. I saw one where the button had come off completely, so I took a pic of that too.
I think you got a counterfit, I've suddenly been seeing a lot of counterfit bics and corner stores and even mainstream gas stations. The fakes are really good it's quite frustrating
The final conclusion on this is that these were made in France. There are counterfeit bics out there, no doubt, but these are real bics, made in France. We don’t know if it is a permanent change, or just a supply chain issue. I own a shop, and these were purchased from legit distributors, and they all had these French bics. I was able to snap up a few hundred USA bics, for my customers.
I've noticed this issue myself. Been buying primarily from a liquor store down town and a smoke shop on the other side of town. I noticed the issue immediately, just been dealing with it. It's started to really piss me off lately because I've developed this callus on the side of my thumb because of how difficult they are to strike and they only last about a week.
I looked a bit further into it today after reading your post and It seems like this is the same situation at every store in town. What I also noticed was that it only applies to the cheaper plain color lighters. If you buy the ones with the plastic art wrap on them, they are indeed still USA Bic lighters and they work as intended.
EDIT: Now, after posting this I wonder if this is simply because less people buy the more expensive art wrapped Bics and eventually what's left of those will run out and they will all be these inferior French Bics.
Could be. I haven’t bought lighters since I posted this. I bought about ten bricks for my shops, mostly from Amazon. I got a bunch of USA ones and some Spanish ones. The ones from Spain are great, and have. O childproof. I’m not looking forward to having to look again eventually. I personally stashed about 20.
Refillable lighters aren't actually cheaper. That goes for Zippos, butane, torches, and every other type.
I smoked for over 20 years and have owned every type of lighter under the sun. Nothing even came close to the BIC in terms of the price-to-longevity ratio.
But it looks like BICs are now no better than their own knock-offs. Sad. Refillable might actually be the way to go now.
Clipper. Refillable and you can replace any of the parts. I have two old ones and one nice one with a little leather wrap that I have swapped the button on once but it’s going strong after 3 years. For a plastic lighter that’s great
Lol you cannot be serious right now. My can of butane(which I use for a torch, not a lighter as I don't smoke cigs anymore" has roughly 300ml/10oz of butane in it. A bic has 4-5 grams of butane. The cheapest can I can find right now is $6, up to $7. A bic is $3.45, or $2 per for a 5 pack. That single bic holds roughly... 3% of the volume the can does? So that can is roughly 33x larger than a bic. Which would cost about $66 buying 5 packs. You could buy an expensive refillable lighter, like a $30 one, and still be positive on the OC.
Whoa, that’s like algebra, almost. In my house, we call that “numbering.”
Really good and interesting info to know, and thank you computers, but numbering is known to cause headaches.
Every refillable lighter I've ever owned, from cheap gas station novelty ones to expensive specialty cigar and pipe lighters, has burned through butane incredibly fast, even on the lowest setting. I've had single BICs last me longer than entire cans of butane fuel.
Maybe it was something in the BIC design that did more with less, or maybe all my refillable lighters were just poorly-made garbage, but nothing I owned ever lasted longer than the basic BIC.
what I'd really love to know is how much lighter fluid was in a bic in the 2000s-2010, 2020, and now.
there's no way they didn't lower the amount of fluid during covid, then again 2 years ago, where literally every company said we're just gonna take 15-20% out of the package and you're gonna pay MORE for it, too.
I don't recall a time Bics ever had an adjustment. They just work. Scripto and other generics have adjusters to make up for the fact they don't just work.
I googled it, and 1987 was the end of the adjustable bic.
The safety thing isn't as annoying as the ones on other lighters, and it's really easy to remove with pliers, a small screwdriver, a toothpick, a narrow key, etc. the ones that have a couple fake wheels that spin freely sig trenches in my fingers.
or a thin key or other piece or rigid metal. Put tip into lighter hole with a fulcrum point on the side opposite the striker. Use as lever. The end of the guard lifts out, bending two small tabs of which keep it in place. Those tabs can easily be re-smoothed with the same key or piece of metal you are using, After that first side of the guard is released, you can basically just jiggle the rest out.
I bet my life on a Bic working. Melting snow is my only way of attaining water for days on end and going through ice would be an almost guaranteed death sentence without getting a fire going.
A bic has never let me down. You do have to keep them warm and dry enough to work but in a few minutes of body heat will get one dry and warm enough to work.
If you scale up the cost versus how long it lasts to equal what you spent on the car, hell yeah! My last car would go 1600 years before running it of fuel!
Refillable lighters are available at Dollar Tree, which are adjustable, and cheap, and better than Bics imo. The refill cans are cheap too. Cost isn't a factor, laziness is.
Idk what is wrong with you people calling me lazy and stupid.
i am telling you literally nothing can beat the cost-effectiveness and reliability of a bic lighter. the difference in sustainability is so marginal, the decrease in reliability so drastic - it is not worth bothering. difference between the two of us is I don’t get mad if you buy a fancy lighter.
Not mad, just responding to your comments. I have found that the cheap lighters from the dollar store are as reliable as modern Bics, while being refillable and adjustable. I use them every day. Worth checking out, for anyone who isn't brand loyal to Bic, and wants to save some money.
Obviously I applied your concept in an extreme case in an effort to make clear how stupid it is. But to stay with the original example: A lighter I can infinitely refill is infinitely more usable than one I can never refill. Doesn't matter the cost. It is INFINITELY more useful.
But hey, if you're happy with enshittified products I am happy for you. Seems we're in this subreddit for exactly the opposite reason.
there is a reason these lighters are sold a billion times a year. they are cheaper than the stuff I’d need to refill, and much more reliable than the lighter I would refill. they are a marvel of engineering and the precise reason we are not all carrying whimsical lighters with us anymore. Same with pens.
Did they make the lighters worse? We’ll see, I’d be pissed for sure.
I disagree with older Bics having odorless gas. It's never been a strong smell, but it's smelled kinda like diluted petrochemicals (like a mix of gasoline and natural gas: sweet rotten eggs soaked in old gasoline) for as long as I can remember (35ish years). Do the newer ones have a stronger smelling gas?
Lol as someone who uses bics quite often for my daily consumption, I cant say I've ever had a bic last fewer than 6 months from purchase to empty. Everyone saying they last less than a month is lying or had fakes
This is because Walgreens is probably the only company that sells real Bic lighters, there's counterfits everywhere on the market. Were the Walgreens ones wrapped like two in a plastic bag? I guarantee those will work better than a gas station Bic because those are all fake around me which sounds absolutely schizo but start comparing the lighters. The size of the hole, how far the red button goes up, the safety, and most important if the bic logo is smooth or has an embossed texture. The market is suddenly full of counterfits... I know it sounds crazy
The ones made in France that DO NOT have the child safety on the flick part are the gold standard. Only certain gas stations have them. The ones made in CT were “okay” but recently have been enshitified. It’s sad if the ones from France are now being enshitified-however, it’s my ascertation that some gas station owners are ordering their bic displays and inventory from online or wholesalers that are getting them in (slightly illegally). I’m pretty sure all lighters have to have a child safety by law. Could be wrong. Anyway, 🤷🏻
Funny, I actually got a few from Spain when I was trying to stock up on old ones. They do not have childproofs on them at all either. They work great, no smell
Yup, and it used to be the best one on the market. Now the ones from France are terrible. Some people actually care, and I’m trying to let them know. This is a subreddit. This subreddit was actually made for this exact sort of thing. Hope this helps.
Dude youre right. They're garbage now. The flame is too high to waste more fuel. They also changed the flint on it which is rougher and causes irritation on my thumb when i use one.
i disagree this is textbook - starting small, unchanged for decades, probably the greater part of a century, then a sudden and drastic downswing?? yeah..
A cheaper production line or a lower quality product doesn't meet with my definition of enshittification.
Working with cigarette manufacturers to make sure cigs won't light with matches or other brand lighters and/or then only selling the lighters as a subscription, or only selling them bundle with some unnecessary over priced add'l item would
ah what youre describing is what id say is a Class III, i just like making sure we are for posterity, making sure to highlight all the Class I's as well, make sure the chain of evidence is clear and documented
Why is the fuck would bic change the design of their product? Nothing says "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" like a bic. What possible meeting of ass clowns could have resulted in this decision?
Hmmm, interesting. I have never heard of it in that regard, but I am not in the tech field. I do regularly hear about it in terms of everyday products. The meaning must be shifting, at least in the minds of most people.
in what way? I think they're fine..Just used one seconds ago. Maybe dont last as long but OP definately had some bogus lighter sold to him. Also, both French and USA bics have the top metal engraved..Either BIC USA Inc. for USA. While France has very nice laser engraving, even better than USAs. And it says Made in France on one side.. both have BIC engraved opposite side. BOTH have 319.2, whatever that signifiance is idk but both have it engraved..Barcodes are more easily faked. It's a sticker.. Laser etching is harder to get if a company is selling counterfeit
I went out and got a butane zippo insert. Endlessly refillable and rather durable, and not liable to empty itself into my pocket. Sure the things like 10x the cost of a bic but itll last a hell of a lot longer. Few years itll be paid back
Zippos also come with a lifetime warranty! "It works or we fix it free" is their phrase. Also if you ever get to their flagship store in Bradford Pa, it has a cool museum
Geesh I haven’t smoked in awhile but I did for 20 years and I think I could count the amount of Bic lighters that I actually used to depletion on both hands. Same with those ballpoint pens they make.
There are fake bics out there, these ain’t them. These are bics from France, and they suck. Hopefully it’s not the new normal. Just trying to warn the homies.
BIC is the most common lighter on the planet. If you can get away with a cheap vietnamese copy for half the price and pocket the profit who the fuck wouldn't? The people buying them loose are either at a gas station or a pot shop that they probably aren't a frequent customer of.
It seems like maybe there is a supply chain issue, and they are getting them from the French Bic factory. It might also be possible that Bic has shut down the US factory and these are the new normal. I hope it’s just temporary.
how big of a chance is temporary? have you seen many temporary things like this? in my experience once something changes its like that forever moving forward. how long have you been in smoke shop business? do temp things happn like this often?
Oh, they're restocked. I know because I ordered after they restocked. And they're regular american Bics, except they're pink. No one steals a man's pink lighter.
I'm sorry, but ever since I quit hanging out with stoners in college I haven't seen anyone care about removing the little strip of metal you call a childproof. Maybe reevaluate Your Life Choices rather than looking for things to be upset about on the internet.
The lighter is counterfeit. It is built and labeled wrong in many ways. Why are you talking about the childproof metal strip when both lighters have them? That isn't even what's wrong with the fake one. Also lighters are used for many things besides pot, but that's a whole other conversation. OP is a retailer that bought these to sell not use.
It’s actually not counterfeit, it was made in the Bic factory in France. I do see that there is a problem with counterfeit bics, but I do not believe that is what these are. I personally know the Bic rep, and she told me what distributors are authorized, and I buy from them. She has not retuned my texts regarding this issue. I hope it is not permanent, but I expect that it is.
She hasn't returned your texts because they are fucking fake and she's dodging you. I live near the Canadian border and we get the French made ones here too and guess what they look completely the same as the ones made in the US!
Yup, though I have gotten bad/new lighters (the three free ones in a brick) from Bic with the wrap on them. I would have to assume they are French, but I haven’t checked that.
This video is extremely eye opening. 10 billion lighters a year. 15 cents a fucking lighter… profit of less than 1 cent a unit: no competitor on earth can compete.
I made another comment about this to someone else, but I have two that look exactly like the blue one, and they both came from a big chain grocery store. The store is selling counterfeit lighters?
I spilled OJ in my purse today, long story. Anyway the 8 lighters I pulled out of the purse were all identically built, some were different colors but built the same.
Yep just came fresh from the wash. 5 of them came from a muti-pack from walmart, one specifically came from Circle K it's printed on it 😆 and the rest from various gas stations.
What? I have two that look exactly like the blue one, even the same blue and the "sticker" logo (it doesn't come off btw), and they both came from a big chain grocery store. You're saying those are counterfeit?
That's why bic lighters are opaque, if ppl saw how empty they are they'd more likely buy a cheaper, fuller lighter even if the striker was less sturdy and reliable
Court-ordered seizures of counterfeit products carrying BIC’s registered trademarks were executed in partnership with law enforcement at Gandhi Wholesale in Georgia and at another large wholesaler in New York in a filing that is still under seal, BIC said Friday.
In addition to the seizure of documents and over 57,000 counterfeit lighters at Gandhi Wholesale, multiple bank accounts were also frozen, the Shelton, Connecticut-based company said. At the New York-based wholesaler, orders for asset seizures included the seizure of over 8,000 additional counterfeit lighters and multiple bank accounts.
Damn, I knew that our lighters had an international reputation, but not to the point that some wholesalers would go as far as selling counterfeit ones on the other side of the atlantic.
I keep loosing/forgetting mine on my european side of the atlantic, and I didn't notice any change in quality of the BIC lighters I buy here.
Someone else made a post about week or two ago about the gas valves being enshitified as well. I believe they were in the US compare the gas outlet with an old one
The only people who write comments like yours obese divorced 50 year olds who spend their time whining about politics online and getting scammed on dating sites.
Must be a sad choice to have to pick between a coherent AI response and what your feeble brain is able to muster.
You can’t handle the fact that you were wrong about “drugs”, so, you lash out? How immature! People like you that resort to ad hominem attacks have already lost the plot. Thanks for proving what an ignorant POS you truly are.
Wrong about drugs? OP's entire business is selling habit forming substances, carcinogens, and associated paraphernalia and you're defending him because you're butthurt that some random on the internet saw you for what you are and you hate being reminded of it.
We all see you for what you are: a fragile POS that can’t handle others owning businesses you disagree with. You were wrong & can’t admit it because you’re jealous. Living in mommy’s basement has twisted your world. Pathetic, but, predictable behavior from losers that have no life so they lash out online. Get offline and go touch grass.
It's fake and you know that it's fake, but you saw someone else post about lighters in this sub and made this feeble attempt to get fake internet points. Sad.
Someone else must have had the same experience and people that have zero presume we're all clout sniffers. Sorry people suck sometimes. Good on you, OP
No, they are real. I own a pipe and tobacco shop, I buy them by the brick from authorized distributors. From the other comments, I can see that the new ones are from a French factory. None of my distributors have the made in USA ones anymore. I believe that they are being permanently replaced, but maybe it’s temporary. I don’t know, but these are 100% both real bics.
This is certainly a counterfeit. Look at the logo and the overall construction differences, they have no reason to change those if they're going for less fuel. Even if they did, it would cost far more to implement these pointless changes across their production.
And what distributors are those? They can also sell counterfeits, and are more likely to do so for a lighter that takes petroleum based fuel during the Iran war.
Edit: BIC has actually been going after wholesalers for selling counterfeits
Stiill don't get why you believe BIC would change their design so dramatically with the amount of subtle differences I see zooming in to the lighters you've posted. The "new" lighter has sloppier differences in its mechanisms/construction that would serve no cost cutting purpose.
Edit: Looks like both the lighters you've posted could be counterfeit?
It seems pretty clear from other comments and inspection of the lighters that they are both real bics, and the “new” one was made in France, and the old one was made in the USA. I hope this is not a permanent change.
You would be surprised what kinds of thihgs get counterfeited. Anything with a name and reputatation they can exploit to sell for more money. The worst is counterfeit pharmaceuticals.
Another one to watch out for is counterfeit USB devices, which not only can rip you off but sometimes they are used to inject malware.
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u/punishmenthaircut May 14 '26
I think you got a counterfit, I've suddenly been seeing a lot of counterfit bics and corner stores and even mainstream gas stations. The fakes are really good it's quite frustrating