@Nicholas Aslanides Here is the link where I bought mine from in February 2019. Wire dia 0.1-2.2mm 304 Stainless steel Spring wire DIY Accessories Select size I selected the 0.15mm wire as the closest to 0.006" Hope this helps. Cheers Pete
I enjoyed reading this thread and found a lot of interesting info. a Handi pressure lamp is one that I have long wished to obtain
@bonza The Handi lantern is a good runner and when service/restored will give years of service. I hope you find one soon. Cheers Pete
@AussiePete @ROBBO55 Hullo fellers. I'm curious to know how the cleaning spindle in the Handi is sealed. Just in case I need to address any future problem there. Are there O rings on the spindle, or should I pack the long nut with Graphite ? Also, any details on how to make the crimping tool, please ? What is the function of that piece of copper over the angle iron in the vice ? Thank you.
Hi @Paul Aslanides The copper sheet is just a shield to prevent the small file marring the top of the steel die blocks as I file the edges of the pricker. The die blocks are made from 1/2” steel angle iron. The blocks have 2 lugs, rounded 3/16” screws threaded and installed into one half and a corresponding holes in the other half, that precisely locate both half of the dies together when crimping. The blocks were then clamped together and 2 holes, channels one 2mm the other 1.5mm, were drilled between the clamped faces. The drill bits have brass sleeves so that my pedestal drill’s chuck can tighten and grip them. The 2mm channel is basically a holder and doesn’t distort a 1/16” brass tube. This holds the brass tube whilst I thread it. The inner channel hole, 1.5mm, is the crimping hole. The vice is tightened up when the threaded brass tube, with the pricker wire installed, is inserted to the required depth. After the first crimp the brass tube is rotated 90 degrees and crimped again. the freshly crimped pricker is then put back into the holding 2mm hole A copper keeper or shield is placed over the pricker and the sides are tapered with a very fine file. The result is a very nice pricker. Note .... the actual prick wire is knotted first before it’s installed into the brass tube to be crimped. Hope this helps Cheers Pete
Hi @Paul Aslanides Ooooooops .......... the holes stated as the holding 2.0mm and the crimping 1.5mm are incorrect. The following is correct: holding 1.5mm and the crimping 1.0mm It was early in the morning and I hadn't my coffee at the time ........
Paul, If I remember correctly the seal is a compressed fibre material (Asbestos?). If I remove the spindle I usually replace the seal with graphite.
ROBBO55 Thank you. Found this recently. Asbestos Cord. Haven't used this stuff since 1971 when I had a leaking fuel tap on the Indian Scout. PTFE tape is much safer. I'll try a cutting of one strand as a wick, in the spirit cup on a lantern.
I have inherited an old Handi Kero-Pet pressure light. I dismantled for cleaning and looking at the generator it looks different to the generator shown on parts list for Kerosene. Anyone know how to tell if generator has been changed from Kero to Shellite.
@Barry Purkins I believe there is a stamp Number or letter on the jet or gen, If you have pulled the vaporiser apart. Shellite has a fine brass mesh as the flow restrict or, kero has a curly spring like restrict or, I hope this helps
Outwardly there should not be any difference between the kero or shellite generators. As Darryl has said, there is a difference in the packing and the jet is different. The shellite jet has an O stamped on the top. Here you can see a shellite and a kero jet side by side. A bit out of focus, but you can see the O. I have seen one example of a Handi with a different generator. It was more the size of an Austramax generator. I don't know any more details about it.
Thanks for this thread...excellent stuff. I've started refurbishing my Handi, and I'm interested in finishes. My tank/container was painted - over factory plating I think, (good paint, took a bit to get it off!) There's some plating on the controls and bezels - which looks like Cadmium. The other steel parts look as if they would have been painted. (Would they?) I wonder what they would have used. Paint technology has come a long way since the lamp was made. I have a really good 2K SS (2-pack Single Stage - means it doesn't need any primer - can apply it straight onto the steel) that has rust preventing properties, and is hard when cured properly. I assume the top cap would have been stove enamelled originally, but what about the other steel parts? On one hand I'm tempted to just clean the steel parts and leave them as is. What do 'we' do with the pressed steel parts finish? What are hi-temp rattle-cans like?
I have seen painted tanks before, but they are not common. What you usually find is nickel plated. Actually, most of the brass parts were nickel plated. The cage base was also originally nickel plated and the collar was either tin plated or galvanized. I'm not sure which. You can get some really good metal spray paints that look good. I use an aluminium paint and like the finish. The hood is enameled and there is no substitute for that. You either live with what you have or try to find a better replacement. Yours doesn't look too bad so if it was me I'd leave it as is.
Yes plating is the way to go I'm sure. The paint on my tank has been a past owner 'deprovement'! (My lamp has led a long and difficult life I fear), but it's coming up ok so far. I wonder what nickel plating costs, (if you can still get it done), chrome plating is horrendously expensive. And really, I don't think I want newish-looking parts on it. The hood is the easy part as 2K paint looks just like traditional stove enamelling, and I can do that easily.
So far, no one has good experience with any paints that can handle the temperatures of the hood. There have been lots of attempts and no successfully reported results. There was a reason they used enamel originally
That's a great outcome, Pete. The fettle as always, so well presented and documented. @Julian Whittaker The 2K paints are vastly superior(toughness, chemical and solvent resistance, etc) to most paints you'd find in rattle cans. However, even the high heat-resistant versions of those won't come close to match the heat-tolerance of vitreous enamels as far as the hood is concerned. No matter how advanced these coatings have been developed thus far, they are still organic-based. That means to say, the base binders would chemically decompose and further oxidize when subjected to higher temperatures (250° to 300°C range is about the upper limit of the most heat-resistant organic substances). On a typical lantern hood, the temperatures attained are way higher than that. They might still survive for a limited time on the hood since they might contain heat-resistant fillers such as aluminium oxides or other ceramic powders. However, their toughness and protective properties would have then degraded far below their original specifications after, a few heating cycles. They are, nevertheless, still good for the lantern frames and other parts such as the fount. Chrome-plating should not be that expensive. It is so extensively done almost everywhere now. Perhaps they have to include the additional costs that come with more stringent OSHA regulations these days.(chrome-plating involves the use of hazardous hexavalent, chromic acid). I'd say nickel is rather, a more expensive metal than chromium.
I believe from watching car restoration programs that when chrome plating parts they are first nickel plated and the chrome is the final layer. I have considered getting a lamp re-plated but not found a local plater yet.
A quality job would be Copper first, polish then Nickel plate, and then Chrome plate. I suspect that's why Nickel plating is deemed acceptable for most lanterns and simlar. You can do it yourself with kits from classic car restoration supply places.
Interesting that chrome plate is porous so would rust easily. That's one of the reasons nickel is used under it, I was under the impression that copper is used in the middle because it can be plated thicker to allow for heavier polishing underneath the chrome. -Called 'triple-plating'. The DIY plating kits are ok, but it's all in the prep of the parts, -wet 'n dry and lots of polishing on the mop. I've used it, it's a lot of work unless you have plenty of parts, - maybe better as a 'club' activity.
Pete what an amazing detailed post, hat off to you mate. It was an enjoyable read…… out of interest, do you get better results using vinegar or citric acid, AKA…like from Woolworths or Coles, and what ratio mixture works best for you. Cheers Kiwi