How to Date a Dunhill Rollagas Lighter: Date Codes, Patents and Base Markings

A vintage Dunhill Rollagas rarely carries a plain year, but it gives away its age in several places: the words stamped on the base, a small date code, the hinge of the lid and a handful of design details that Dunhill changed over the decades. Read together, they usually place a lighter within a year or two, and often to the exact month.

This guide shows you where to look, how to read the date code from 1957 to 1994, what the patent number and “Made in Switzerland” mean, and which details tell an early Rollagas from a later one.

Quick guide: what your Rollagas tells you

Start with the two clues you can check in seconds, then use the chart further down to narrow it down.

Where to find the date code

Dunhill stamped a small date code on the burner plate, the flat plate around the gas jet that you see when you open the lid. On some later lighters the code sits on the base, next to the filler cap, and lighters from 1995 to 2004 carry it on the bottom. The letters are tiny and often worn by years of use and polishing, so a loupe and good light help.

1. Open the lid and look at the burner plate around the gas jet.
2. Turn the lighter over and look around the round filler cap on the base.
3. Write down exactly what you see: one letter and a number, or two letters. Then use the right chart below.

Dunhill Rollagas date code chart, 1957 to 1994

Dunhill introduced its date code in August 1957. Find the year on the left and the month across the top, and the cell where they meet shows the code. On a phone, swipe the chart sideways to see all twelve months.

August 1957 to September 1977: a letter and a number

In the first system the letter is the year and the number is the month, from 1 for January to 12 for December. So E5 was made in May 1959 and N11 in November 1966.

October 1977 to 1994: two letters

In October 1977 the month number gave way to a second letter. Now the first letter is the year and the second letter is the month: A for January to L for December. So HC was made in March 1978 and TK in November 1989.

A few years are untidy. Around changeovers Dunhill sometimes used two letters in the same year, and 1970 and 1971 in particular do not follow the months neatly. If your code matches one of these years, the hinge and base markings below help to confirm it.

The chart ends with 1994. Lighters made from 1995 to 2004 also carry a two letter date code, stamped on the bottom of the lighter together with the serial number.

How to read the base of your Rollagas

Turn the lighter over. On a genuine Rollagas the round filler valve sits in the middle of the base, with the small burner adjuster (it looks like a keyhole) in one corner. Around them Dunhill stamped its name, the country of manufacture and, for many years, a patent number. The wording changed over time:

What does US RE24163 mean?

It is a United States patent number. RE stands for reissue: patent 2,710,506 for the gas filling valve, invented by Conrad Zellweger of La Nationale in Geneva, was reissued as Re. 24,163 on 5 June 1956. It covers the valve you fill the lighter through, not the look of the Rollagas. Dunhill stamped it on all Rollagas bases from 1968 to 1981, so it places a lighter in that period, but on its own it does not give you the exact year.

Made in Switzerland, England or elsewhere

Dunhill did not make the Rollagas mechanism itself. The classic Rollagas was built for Dunhill by La Nationale in Geneva, so almost every original Rollagas reads “Made in Switzerland” or, later, “Swiss made”.

• Made in Switzerland or Swiss made: the standard Rollagas, from the 1950s to the end of the original model.
• Made in England: the Dunhill 70 (Series 70), a wider relative of the Rollagas from the late 1960s, with “Dunhill 70” on the side. It was the first Dunhill lighter with a concealed hinge.
• No country, a strange spelling or a missing patent number where one should be: look closer. Our guide on how to spot a fake Dunhill Rollagas shows the details that give copies away.

Design changes that date a Rollagas

No date code, or a worn one? The design itself narrows it down.

The whole story behind these changes, from the launch in 1956 to the new generation, is in the history of the Dunhill Rollagas.

When the clues do not agree

• Replaced parts. A Rollagas that went back to Dunhill for service may have a newer flame wheel or other parts. Date it by the body, the hinge and the code, not by one small part.
• Swapped boxes and papers. A box or guarantee card can belong to another lighter. Check that a serial number on the papers matches the base.
• Worn codes. Polishing and decades of use can erase the date code. Then the hinge, base wording and finish give you the period.
• Overlapping periods. Dunhill used up existing parts, so stamps and details overlap by a few years. Treat the years in the tables as a guide, not a hard border.

Does the year make a Rollagas more valuable?

Age helps, but it is not everything. Collectors look for early barrel hinge lighters, rare finishes, solid gold or silver, and lighters in their original box with papers. Condition and whether the lighter works properly count at least as much as the year. Once you know its age, keep it working with our Dunhill Rollagas maintenance guide, or browse the serviced Dunhill Rollagas lighters in our shop, each dated and checked in our workshop.

The date code chart builds on An Unofficial Guide to the Dunhill Rollagas (2021) by Michael Thompson, who kindly allows his research to be shared. Dating other lighters works in a similar way: see how to date a Zippo lighter.