Good afternoon ! Mantles arrived, one fitted... First time it's been alight in 42 years minimum ~ that I know of. To say that the mantle has a "saggy bottom" is putting it mildly ~ there are areas of orangey/brown around the lower sag. Had to put a copper wire tourniquet around the open ends of the meths preheat clip to get it to grip/stayup ~ even with a good meths soaking ~ the flame barely reached the mantle , used a sensible blowlamp flame to help with the preheat of the burner head. Any feedback on the above would be much appreciated. Glad to see it alight at last ! been burning outside now for 2 hours, no problems. Thank you. Chris
It doesn't look all that bad to me, I've certainly seen worse. "Good pressure will ensure a well shaped mantle." Are the areas of orangey/brown still there or have they disappeared ? As long as they haven't got bigger, there's nothing to worry about. You can help them on their way by playing the flame from your blowlamp on the affected area. Can you bend the wires on the meths torch to give them a bit more grip ? The ideal place for the preheater is just below the glass so that the glass stops the heat dissipating away from the vapouriser. If your meths torch is sliding down the vapouriser the flames won't reach the mantle (as you have observed) and some of the heat will dissipate and will be wasted. You may have to think about replacing it.
Looks good Perhaps a pic without the flash so we can bask in the 42 year glow? Preheating out of a draught will help?
If the meth preheat clip won't stay up by itself, put it on an angle about 45 degrees that's what I do, also I agree we need a photo with no flash. But it looks fantastic to me.
It is in good condition and a worthy project. If the pressure pip is working it tells us that you may be under pressure. As Henry says sometimes you can "clean" a mantle with a blowtorch but I would look to the pressure first. I try to take a photo at dusk when there is enough light to see the lamp, and its light, and then another after dark, so all can see how well it is burning. You might just have to invest in a newer clip pre-heater. Good show ! C
Looking good @69T100C I agree about a photo with no flash may allow us to see the mantle burn better. Enjoy your lamp. Pete
Your lamp looks great. The mantle doesn't look too bad. I 'fell out of love' with Tilley lamps 3 or 4 years ago. Late last year, I fettled a WL and was going to put it on ebay. After the fettle, the lamp looked so good I couldn't part with it and now, I never will part with it. I agree that at least one shot of a working lamp should not be done with flash. Flash can make a very sick lamp look like it is putting out light like it is going out of fashion.
Hi Guys, Many thanks for all your feedback(s), daylight thumbnail attached. Bearing in mind that I've been "sitting on it" for 42 years and the "what the Hell is that / it's not coming in the house" reception that it's had, i'll be selling it ~ UK only. To be fair, they have to live with my all consuming love of Triumph motorcycles from the 50's,60's and 70's !! on top of which, we are hoping to move house this year. Moving the house contents will be a piece of cake, moving the garage/workshop/2 lofts contents ~ will be a total nightmare … After further cleaning, I've found a faint P stamp (probably part of the date of manufacture stamp) on the base close to the "Made in England" stamp which probably helps date it to late the late '50's. Chris
Hi Tony, If you go to the Fettlers Forum Newbie question ~ Tilley font ? replies No. 17 + 20 All will be clear. Cheers, Chris
@69T100C I should have said at the start, nice lamp! My post was simply to point out that I’ve not seen “P” used in a Tilley date sequence. In my experience the letters X, A and O follow the date numbers (as in 168XO = January 1968, with the XO having no understandable meaning). Occasionally, a random letter appears on some tanks. So, if the “P” is not in a line with other stamped numbers, it could just be an obscure manufacturing artefact. Cheers Tony
