Is it that there is less smoke but for longer?
Do you light them like a smoke match?
Can they be extinguished or do you need to let them burn down?
It will give a constant steady stream of a thin smoke trail for as long as you need it. You just light the wick and blow out the flame so it just glows red and produces the wisp of smoke. Once test is complete just put the lid back on & it self extinguishes. I would not go back to faffing about with 2-3 smoke matches and tube method after buying a smoke pen it is so convenient. Every engineer would benefit having one in there service kit. I got 3 spare wick's with mine and they last for months.