Hi All I have recently completed the fettle of a Tilley X246 2 Model and the following is its record. I was very lucky to get this lamp for it was in relative good condition. The major issues were the enamelled steel cap or hood was a foreign implant, the brass hood itself was concertinaed having at some time been impacted or had a heavy object put on top, and the wire cage was painted in an after market gloss black. As with any fettle a full strip down was undertaken. The pork pie brass font was found to be in excellent condition with very few minor blemishes. As stated previously the steel wire cage was painted in a gloss black however over the years surface rust had slightly pitted some of the steel. The pump and cock were stripped and new seals installed. I was able to reuse the 606 generator, I just did the heat – quench – tap routine a few times. In the following photo the steel wire cage and hand bail have been cleaned and brought back to bare metal. The brass burner hood has been successfully straightened using a small ball peen hammer and a solid cast steel anvil. The one thing I have been doing is after cleaning the burner parts and at assembly I smear a small amount of high temperature anti seize compound onto the threads. This ant seize stuff is meant for boilers etc. This, I hope, will help disassembly for persons way into the future when the lamp is once again fettled. The following photo shows all the brass work polished, the burner cleaned and installed into the cap, a proper deep dish 171 type glass installed along with the cleaned generator and overhauled fuel cock. All new seals and gaskets have been installed. The cleaned steel wire cage was first spray painted (spray can) with zinc rich undercoat, lightly sanded and a gloss gold spray paint (spray can) applied in a number of light coats giving an acceptable finish. In answer to my earlier question on this forum I received good advice on the paint to use from Tony and Stuart, thanks again guys. The next 2 photos show the finished assembled lamp. The orange enamelled cap is from a Korean eBay supplier, it has the correct profile. Here we have the lamp’s first light – Darkness will never be the same again …….. The fettling of this X246 2nd Model was a very enjoyable exercise. The lamp operates very well and I’m very please with its performance. She’s a keeper! One of the serendipitous benefits is that I learn more and more on each fettle, this fettle was no exception. Cheers Peter
