I know there times when some of you probably think I'm just "blowing smoke" when I say I have this lantern or that lantern... Chalk it up to old age, etc. Well here's few of my "holdings": On the left a Coleman 234, circa April 1937, Coleman 235, circa December 1935, and another Coleman 234, date is not clear because of heavy galvanizing on the bottom. Over the years I restored these when I had full use of my hands.
@george Thank you for sharing these, very special lanterns and a extremely high standard of craftsmanship.
@Alex Smith , Thank you, Alex, much appreciated. These are hard to come by even on this side of the pond. There is something about these models I can't resist. They are truly from a by gone age, in some respects. These are truly "dual fuel" (kerosene and gasoline) lanterns. The one 234, dated Apr. 1937, runs so quiet you can't tell it's even running, except when you check it to be sure! I searched for about five or six years before I found all the parts I needed to restore the 1937, model. It was a wreck! Time to march on!
@george Beautiful lanterns. I have only recently started looking at Colemans and would happily give my right arm for one of theses. Regards Jeremy
Your comment about them being truly dual fuel is a good one. It's common knowledge that when you see 'dual fuel' on a modern Coleman it's more of an invitation to wreck a perfectly good lantern with regular unleaded gas additives, whereas kero/naptha should be considered the real meaning. Thanks for showing us this bevvy of beauties - an impressive lineup if ever I saw one!
Many thanks to you all for the kind words. These are truly a few of my pride and joy lanterns! It took me a little over 15 years to gather these three, I started with the 235 and went from there. I was lucky to find them when I did. I didn't have to "mortgage the farm" to acquire these. The 234 with the unreadable date was recently acquired from a great guy in Canada, who let me have it at a very reasonable price! He was a pleasure to work with. He knew what he had but was still willing to be very fair with the lantern. Coleman was right on the mark with these. Nice looking, very well built, easy to light, and maintain. I'm very lucky. Oh yes, Jeremy, save your right arm, you'll need it when you find and restore one these!
Nice work. I located one of each this summer and a 242K, love the stickers on them. Really like the kero lanterns. Duane
I would love to find a Coleman 242K lantern. Just haven't been that lucky. Maybe it is the stickers on the 234 and 235 lanterns that set them apart from other lanterns. I replaced the stickers on my lanterns. They were shot to hell! This seems to be normal when it comes to these lanterns.
I like the original patina/history/wear, as long as I can make out some of the original sticker/decal. The ones I have, meet that requirement, had passed on some because I wanted to see the model #. Duane
George, I'm not a lantern collector nor a Coleman collector though I have a few of each. Even I can appreciate your trio of lamps as being special. Congratulations on a very fine set of lamps. I also enjoyed the glimpses into your life in regards to how you collected these lamps. I'm sorry your hands aren't what they used to be. We all take good health for granted. It is only those of us that suffer chronic afflictions that understand just how lucky we once were.
Thanks, Matty and the rest of all you great people! I'm slow when it comes to modern technology. I guess I march to the beat of a different drummer! It takes awhile for me to catch on, and photos had me stumped. In the end it was generally easy - I just made it hard! I'm going to post more photos so you have been for warned.lol
I’ve taken a real shine to Coleman lanterns (after vowing never to collect them) and have four very nice ones. Strangely, they aren’t that common in Aberdeenshire so it looks as if Tilley had a stranglehold here first.
Jean, you're probably right about the Tilley strangle hold! Coleman was and still is big on the gasoline lanterns but Tilley's the one on kerosene! By the way, kerosene has hit the $5.00 a gallon mark here!
Hey @george Your trio of Coleman lamps are truely exceptional. I can see, from your posted picture, that you have spent a lot of time in their restoration resulting in their awesome presentation. Well done. Cheers Pete P.S. If you need someone to look after them for you, I promise to hug them, kiss them and take them for walkies every day.
@george I'd look after them too, but suspect that @AussiePete (as well as loving, hugging and kissing them) has the tidier work shop and could give them a better home! His place looks a bit warmer than the UK and my drafty shed (Pete, no pun intended with the bush fires). Both of you with your lovely Coleman's have persuaded me to dip my toe in to the Coleman world - my new Coleman arrived today, a 639 dated Jan 73 (in NOS condition). Looking forwards to getting to grips with her:
@Alex Smith Congratulations, that’s a nice one indeed. If you’re going to light her, don’t forget to post it’s money shot. Cheers Pete
