I was sent this poor neglected Vapalux 300 by a member to see if I could bring it back from the dead. Challenge accepted! This is as it was originally... and some close up photos... The first step was disassembly and stripping the paint followed by a long soak in Rust Destructor. Rust treatment alone wasn't going to shift all of the corrosion so between dunking sessions I used a brass rotary wire brush to get rid of every last trace - not something I'd do to brass but with steel you don't have a lot of choice unless you have an electrolysis set-up which I don't. This took some time! Next I used a spray filler/primer. This sealed the surface and showed where the worst of the pitting was. I determined that the frame didn't need as much work as the tank so it received a couple of initial coats ready be baked in the oven. I set it to 70c which seems to be the best trade off between speed of curing the paint and risking out-gassing of the solvent which can cause blistering and the dreaded crackle effect! Filling and rubbing down was next. This needed to be repeated a number of times until all the Pitting had been filled and rubbed down. Then it went back in the oven for a final long bake to cure everything thoroughly. The pump, filler cap, control valve and pre-heater cup were then stripped and polished ready for finalassembly. l then protected the surface of the paint with fuel resistant lacquer... Then it went back in the oven again for a final cure at 70c. Once that was complete I wanted to assemble everything to see how it looked. This isn't quite the end however. I need to coat the inside of the tank with thinned epoxy sealant as a precaution. Given the level of corrosion I can't be sure there aren't any holes. I genuinely don't think there are any but once it's sealed I'll be happy and it'll be ready for a test. When it's ready I'll add a money shot or two.
A before and after comparison. The paint looks red in daylight but it actually is brown. I used Rust-O-leum Chestnut as it has that slightly reddish appearance a little similar to the original. BTW when stripping the tank and frame I found some of the original colour which turned out to be the early Willis and Bates brown. PS. I usually try to leave the base of any lantern the original colour for future reference but there wasn't anything left so it got stripped, de-rusted and sprayed as well.
This is a great example why I'd never buy a refurbished lamp especially with a steel tank as you never know what's underneath ie.. filled/built up with primer ect ect, yes it might look good but how deep are the pits and how thin is the steel.
I'd have got it running first regardless of the condition, then dealt with any tank issues before sealing it inside and after that attended to the cosmetics. But it's horses for courses, naturally...
I might not have bought this myself TBH and I would have asked for more detailed photos but it wasn't my call. You're absolutely right David. If I'd thought about it logically I should have stopped after the rust was removed and done a pressure test at this point but I got carried away with the aesthetics! Whatever happens I can make it work.
As I type this I'm giving the inside of the tank one last de-rust treatment but having inspected the state inside the tank, it appears to be in surprisingly good condition. Although leaving fuel in steel tanks isn't recommended, I wondered if it had been left full or partially full, thus protecting the inner surface. There only seems to be surface flash rust as far as I can see. Anyhow, it'll all be gone tomorrow. Really? Are you keeping it as a shelf queen or have you been too busy collecting ultra-rare Tilleys?
Neglected? More like dog rough and then some! Looks like it was painted with a woolly sock, or is it harling? You’ve certainly put some hours into that one, well saved!
Thanks guys, as you suspected it took a while to bring it back from the grave but it'll be worth it in the end.
@ColinG Wow, what an excellent job you've done on the lantern's resurrection. I'd be tickled pink with this lantern if I was the recipient. Top job sir, top job! Cheers Pete
Well, it's finished! The last elements to be fettled were... sealing the tank with thinned epoxy, replacing all the seals including the NRV, the filler cap and air bleed seals and a new pump leather as the original disintegrated! I borrowed a hood and vaporiser from my grey steel 300 and fired the old girl up... she's been running without incident now for about an hour and I'm pretty pleased! This was a long fettle but a rewarding one in the end considering the state of it when I got it!
Well done mate. The recipient will be astounded by its transformation, or should I say resurrection. Before you started this lantern had one foot in the grave and the other foot on a banana skin ....... now it has many years of service to give. Cheers Pete
Thanks everyone! One thing I was surprised by was the excellent state inside the tank. There was a tiny bit of surface flash rust but no pitting or heavy corrosion. I sealed it anyway just in case but I found the excellent condition startling! I was wondering, if it was left full of kero would that have stopped the rust?
Thanks so very much Colin for restoring this lamp you showed me on ebay. I bought it from Terry,the tilleyman on ebay a few months ago. You have done a super job for me. I won't forget all your hard work. Can't wait to get it home and put it's original hood on it and a new,old stock vapouriser and a mantle and light it. My military green Vapalux 300 lamp needs to have the leather pump cup changed and the NRV inside pip replaced and should also be fully serviced then too. Thanks again, Fiona
