Ronson Lighters

Louis Aronson first started his art metal works in 1886. It wasn't until 1923 that he created his first lighter and got it patented. In 1926, Aronson released his Banjo lighter with automatic operation. It became a huge success for the Ronson company. Ronson lighter are well known for its eccentric and stylish design.

The Ronson Company originated in the 1890’s in Newark, New Jersey as the “Art Metal Works Company”. Originally, the company manufactured a variety of decorative products such as trophies, statues, bookends, lamps, incense burners, and other home related objects. The items were for the most part inspired by Asian and European influences.

The Art Metal Works Company first started to manufacture lighters during the period in which the “flint” increased in popularity. The first lighters included both pocket and table versions, and were called the striker lighters, which were named after the system used to run them (a piece of flint would strike a steel bar covered with naphtha soaked in asbestos). The technicalities of the system was intriguing – when the steel bar made contact with the flint, the resulting spark would ignite the asbestos that was covered in lighter fluid and create a flame. Thereafter, a new and more efficient lighter was manufactured called the Banjo. The Banjo was founded by the owner of The Arts Metals Works Company Louis V. Aronson and was an automatic lighter that facilitated the chore of lighting cigarettes and cigars with an easier system. The Banjo lighter was able to ignite and create a flame in one slick movement. Known as the “press it lights, release its out” system, it became a staple in the lighter manufacturing industry. The Ronson Company used this new lighting system to its advantage and incorporated it into a number of decorative items such as lamps and statues, which transformed into decorative table lighters.

The Touch Tip Lighter was one of Ronson’s most successful lighter systems. This system incorporated a removable rod that ignited when it made contact with the lighting device. This simple, yet elegant design allowed consumers to navigate the removable rod to the item they wanted to be lit, thus proving to be a user-friendly system. The Touch Tip system was utilized for a large number of purposes. The Ronson Touch Tip lighter even starred in the film “The Maltese Falcon”, one of Hollywood’s many famous works of cinema. Out of all of its models, the Ronson Bartender Touch Tip is by far the most popular among the Touch Tip product line. Additionally, the Touch Tip line was accentuated with other extra designs such as ashtrays, clocks, and cigarette boxes.

In the mid 1930’s, The Ronson Company put the pencil lighter onto the market in a variety of different models. As one of the most popular Ronson product lines, some of the most unique and popular lighters are included – specifically, those that had the cigarette case and lighter combo were the most eye catching with their enameled deco designs. In the 1950’s, as the new butane lighter system gained popularity, Ronson took advantage of it and manufactured its own set of butane-run lighters, called the Ronson Varaflame Lighters.