Another method is to make a device out of an aspirin bottle using a large paper clip and filling the bottle with water. Two prongs sticking out are placed into a wall socket and the water allows the paperclip to heat up enough to light paper or cigarretts or even cotten. Note if you are having problems with tripped circuit breakers, this indicates that there is one of these devices in you pod or housing unit.

I have been working for my department of corrections for 18 years and have seen plenty of this. The ashes are made by burning anything with a petroleum base, plastic (Checker and chess pieces), shoe polish or even hair gel. It is generally done by burning slowly with something (usually a paper bag) over the top to catch the ashes. How they are lighting the product, indicates that there are lighters or home made devices in you facility. A cord with two pieces of metal that will act as a filament when the cord is plugged into the electrical outlet will do the trick. Another possibility is a “battery pack” with two pieces of wire, one at each end, touched together, will make heat for a brief period but long enough to burn paper. Start looking for any of these items.

Also they will use lead from pencils to lay across the prongs of a plug from any electrical appliance. the lead gets hot and then paper of any sort (TP mostly) is lit and then used to ignite other papers. I have even seen them melt anti-perspirant into a soap dish, then take a pair of finger nail clippers pop the rivet out that hold them together, make a wick out of tp put it in the hole where the rivet was ignite it. This makes a fragrant candle of sorts to mask the smoke from the smoldering papers to the ash. This is usually performed at night when there is less action around their cells.

One way our inmates light things is using stingers and stretched out cotton from a cotton swab. We cotton swabs “jailhouse matches”.

Our inmates seem to be able to gete lighters with no problems. Matches are sold on the commissary. Thanks for the information on the razor blade lighters, will start keeping my eyes just a little more open in the future.

When our institution stopped selling lighters and matches in commissary, we started finding the inmates had started using “AA” batteries and razor blades from their disposable razors to light their cigarrettes, wicks, etc. You just take the two batteries flip them opposite directions like you would putting them in your TV remote, and then put the razor blades at both ends making contact. They heat up quickly and get hot enough to create ash by burning paper. They also are disassembled easily to look like everyday normal things an inmate would be allowed to possess, except for the scorch marks on the razor blades, which they usually flushed when they were done with.

I’ve been working at the local county jail for about 7 months now, and have seen the tats that are made in there using ash and V05 shampoo. To get the ash they burn something underneath there bunks or inside the small locker and take the soot/ash that has accumulated on the top. What do they use to burn what they are burning? And what are they burning? Is it the pencil’s lead? I don’t think it’s a stinger because they use that to get things warm, but is it warm enough to catch things on fire given they still have to take the fire and place it near there bunks. I’ve been told they use a lighter or matches but I really don’t think they have these items, our shake downs never turn up lighters or matches. The inmates are under direct supervision, but I do understand some officers are lazy and may not catch things like this.