A bow wire sewing needle threader makes a good external pricker for Tilley guardsman and Bialaddin bowl fire vaporisers. Cheap as chips! 10 for under £2 delivered off eBay, Snip the loop off the end and you have two prickers in a holder.
@Tony Press From eHow.. A needle threader is a small sewing tool that often consists of a round metal piece to which a diamond-shaped wire is attached. Many needle threaders are made from thin metal, such as tin, and are stamped with the shape of the queen's head. This design dates to the Victorian era, though modern needle threader designs do exist. The diamond-shaped wire, the part of the tool that threads the needle, is typically very thin and flexible steel wire. History of Needle Threaders It is unclear when the first needle threaders came to be, but the design with the queen's head became popular during the Victorian era. Made from tin, Victorian era needle threaders were inexpensive to make and easy to use. A number of needle threading devices were patented in the United States in the early 1900s, including Herman Trzeciak's model patented in 1924 and Carl J. Schuster's design in 1945. The first automatic needle threader incorporated into a sewing machine was designed by Juki in 1978. Modern Needle Threaders Today, needle threaders are still available in the classic Victorian design, but there are also many new designs. You can find needle threaders with ergonomic handles that include miniature LED lights for increased visibility in addition to the standard coin-shaped handle now made from durable plastic. In addition to hand-held needle threaders, many modern sewing machines include a convenient needle threading device. The process of threading both sewing needles and machine needles has become quite easy thanks to modern technology.
@Twoberth Great example of lateral thinking, again. Not sure when I might need to prick one of those vapourisers externally, but the gauge of the wire puts it into butane stove/lantern jet territory, so maybe those. I wonder if Campingaz were equally inspired by a needle threader for their stove pricker design?
what a great and simple idea.... heading over to ebay right away. I seem to a constant wire pricker shortage and was just looking at the homemade version.
