Bought my first pressure lamp

I bought this via facebook and it hasn't arrived yet, it's a Tilley and it looks to be whole and decent shape:




It lacks the torch but I saw another thread on this forum where someone had replaced it with a cup, which was a neat idea I thought. I have a lathe so I could probably turn myself a cup from aluminium.

More images





The plan is to clean it up a bit and put it to use as an emergency lamp, or just when I feel old fashioned. I live in rural Finland and power outages do happen a couple of times a year, so this could be a nice thing to have. Sure you could just get batteries and LEDs but I think this would be a lot more fun to start up, especially for the kids.

 

Hi @DennisCA and welcome. Yes you have a promising looking Tilley X246A there.
You will probably want to replace all of the seals. Our sponsor sells a nice kit with all the parts you will need : Tilley Washer Kit - The Fettlebox.
These are viton rubber which has a longer life than the original - useful if you do plan on relying on the lamp for emergencies..
There are lots of stories of restorations on this site, and people will help if you run into any issues.
Good luck in your fettle
Chris

 

You sure about that?

Actually, the very first version of the X246A did somewhat resemble that but they're very rare and I've only ever seen one in over 20 years of collecting:-

1961 (August) X246 'Guardsman' - or is it? | Classic Pressure Lamps & Heaters

 

Great lantern , it really makes a nice atmosphere and is great to look at lit .

 

Great lamp... not received it yet before you know it you’ll be waiting for a second, third .... !

 

Can't be an A with that tank. Has to be X246 from 1954 to 1957. Last of the stronger base plate fixing. ::Neil::

 

Welcome to CPL @DennisCA
It's a good lantern and should clean up nicely.

 

Welcome aboard!

 

Oops yes indeed it is a guardsman. Even nicer to have and to hold !
Look forward to pics of it up and running

 

I see maybe I lucked into sometihng nice or rare perhaps. We'll see when it gets here next week.

Viton is a material I've heard of before, for use in an a oxy acetylene torch. Will be getting a kit and some mantles.

 

Welcome!

Btw the original earlier enamel top looks to have had minimal use.. nice to see

 

@DennisCA

Hi and welcome along. The Guardsman is good lamp and once serviced will work well.

Stevie

 

That would be highly unlikely but having said that, the version of the X246 you've bought is a very good lantern and well worth owning. Once fettled it should give you many years of dependable performance...

 

I got it last night and everything on the lamp looks be in good shape, I was able to pump up some pressure, though I am not sure it feels right a bit wobbly, if you pumped fast enough it felt like you where building pressure but otherwise it was as if nothing happened. Not sure how it is supposed to feel.

I was able to unscrew the four "legs" that hold the upper part to the base with only finger force. Nothing seems to be stuck on this.

Is it ok to use autosol on the base to polish it up?

 

Did some searchiing and I wouldn't have been the first to have used autosol so it seems like it will work.

 

The little "pip" or Indicator should guide your pressure. The centre or core of it should move up to be level with the body of the indicator. Pump leather should be oiled and the seals checked or replaced. Not sure if your service kit arrived yet ?

What do I call this part?: Tilley

 

I haven't had time ot even look at the lamp. I was looking through the fettlebox site a while ago and I was hoping to buy mantles and other stuff since buying just a £4 kit seemed so piddly, but alas it doesn't seem to exist. So I kinda forgot about ordering after that.

I've been extremely pre-occupied with the construction of a building on my own which has taken all my time. I'll see about buying that kit now, then I gotta find a source for mantles.

 

I would get a couple as the postage is probably more than the kit and you will probably end up with another one at some point.. You can buy genuine mantles or generic ones. Genuine ones are pre-tied but the generic ones tend not to be.
Lots of sellers on Ebay. I use Julian Shaws generic ones they seem to last well. TILLEY LAMPS AND PRIMUS STOVES | eBay Stores
The "extra bright" are I suspect thorium, the others are not.
cheers
Chris

 

I agree with @Fireexit1 , very good shop Julian Shaws !!!

 

I ordered a kit and I looked up some mantles on ebay before reading here, turns out it was Julian Shaws though. So I should have it all here eventually.

 

Excellent - the light may be handy in your building project

 

Hi mate a very nice looking X246 you have there, they're very easy to get going and it sounds like you have got some great advice there enjoy it.

 

OK I got the washer kit (and the mantles) and I have used all the parts except one of the two o-rings. Not sure where that goes.

Lamp seems to work. Builds pressure OK, control valve works. Only thing that seems completely non functional is the pressure indicator. It does not do anything all. I also don't see a way to access it either. The inside of the fuel container seems to be sealed and brazed/soldered together.

 

Oh and a picture of the lamp as is currently

 

Most people use two orings on the control cock valve, I only ever use one and keep the other one as a spare.

 

It's not uncommon for the pressure indicator to be stuck. And your correct, it can't be accessed without removing the base plate.
A drop of oil can sometimes free it.

 

I've put a drop of oil in it, hope it loosens up.

Last night I turned a cup from aluminum, just winged the dimensions. Turned out to be a tight fit, should have counter sunk the bottom to let it sit further down. But I can get methylated spirits in there with a straw bottle and I can also get a match in so it might be good enough without a mk2 version. I suppose I just have to fit a mantle and fill it up now. Might soften up some edges though, make it fit more with the rest of the lamps style.

 

A neat meths trough.

 

I just tried to start it for the first time but it didn't run too well. The pressure handle gets pushed back out and then started leaking, and while the mantle did glow at first it eventually gave up and started making rythmic noises like "bwoph-bwoph". I don't think the pressure handle is supposed to come back out however....

 

That should be easy enough to fix. It's the NRV or non return valve at the bottom of the pump tube. There's a rubber 'pip' in a screwed chamber. Like the other rubber seals, the pip will get rock hard and stop working properly, letting the back pressure escape up the pump tube. If you bought a Tilley seal kit there should be a replacement in there.

Hope this helps.

Edit*

The bwoph pwoph sound is due to the pressure dropping so low the paraffin doesn't get pushed up the vaporiser. The same thing often happens when you turn it off by releasing the pressure.