Vintage lighting

[LyntonP]

Hope this is ok to put on the vintage technology discussion.
I am sure that many of our more seasoned members will remember these items.
I had been looking for one of these pressurised paraffin lamps for a few years but they seemed to attract high prices on the usual auction sites.
Whilst away on holiday in The Isle of Man a few years ago I noticed one in a friends workshop. I asked if he wanted to sell it and he unhooked it from the back of the door and gave it to me. Naturally I was delighted but he then disappeared into another of his outbuildings and returned with two more!
‘Take them’ he said ‘I have others’
I rewarded him with a substantial amount of Guinness and he seemed very well pleased.
I managed to find some new mantles in a hardware shop on the island, (they are radio active by the way),and on returning home dismantled and cleaned the lamps one at a time.
Further spares were obtained via the internet, and I was fortunate that a company local to me sell paraffin which burns with very little odour. One lamp still had a tankful of Esso Blue!
A little research showed that two of the lamps were made by a company called Vapalux in the 1960’s and the third made by Tilley in the 1980’s.
The photos show their original condition, a comparison of the vapour head before and after cleaning, burning in a new mantle, and the lamps in their final condition.
I still use one on the shed as it gives very good light, and produces around a KW of heat, great for the winter.
Lamps such as these were used in the trenches in WW1. I remember lots of them used on market stalls, and we used them when we went camping of course.
There is another model that I would like to find which was a heater and had a large polished reflector. I have only ever seen one and that was in a museum.
I also still have a Primus stove but that’s another story.
Lynton

[ThePillenwerfer]

Very nice.

Like you, I've long fancied one but am not prepared to pay what they sell for given that I've no real use for it.

[dave walsh]

A really good job Lynton. I agree with you and Mr P about not laying out cash for something that isn't a real priority. On the other hand and ironically, your efforts make it clear why others are willing to spend quite a bit to get one

Dave

[G6Tanuki]

Nice!

I remember back in the early-70s going on a camp with the TA and they had similar pressure-lights, but theirs ran on petrol not paraffin, so there was no faffing-around with pre-heating the things using meths.

[We were in Scotland, at Cultybraggan, a site originally used during WWII as a PoW camp but later by the Army - and the lights horribly attracted millions of bloodsucking midges from the surroundings!]

[The Philpott]

I do like these things. A similar lamp was our background lighting for bonfire night in the '70's, i remember the hiss, the greenish-white light and the need to pump it every so often. I also recall being slightly scared of it! I think it was a petrol one. There was an attempt to resurrect it years later but after 3 mantles falling to bits in succession, we gave up.

Now then, where is it....

Dave

[AC/HL]

Originally Posted by LyntonP

Hope this is ok to put on the vintage technology discussion.

Paraffin lamps are definitely not a form of vintage electronics, sorry. There will be a more appropriate forum somewhere.