Just signed up for this fantastic forum today, seeking advice on the beautiful lamp I recently purchased. I have several questions that I hope the forum can help answer: Approximately when was the lamp built? Are the components original? (The glass and the lampshade don’t look quite right.) What material is it made of? (I’m assuming aluminum.) How should I go about cleaning it? (Any recommended video links?) I’m thrilled with my lamp and don’t necessarily want to restore it to a brand-new look. I appreciate the patina, but it seems like it hasn’t been well cared for over the years, so I’d like to at least remove some oxidation. Thanks in advance for any advice and information about this lamp. Best regards, Mads Roskilde, Denmark
Hi Mads! Indeed You will find and receive advice on this site. Welcome! Go here for a ”how to”, see reply from @Fireexit1 : Petromax 826 clean up/restoration guidance needed Regards from Sweden the home of Optimus
Hi Mads, Welcome to the forum. 3. mostly brass, some steel parts - any magnet will verify 4. recommended video links: youtube, King ColeMan channel and "Restoring and Rebuilding a 1950s Petromax Lantern" Restoring and Rebuilding a 1950s Petromax Lantern (youtube.com) Yours is simpler Optimus lantern not Petromax, but the link will help. At the beginning just try soap and soft brush and see if you like the result. Bath in mild citric acid solution will clean better, remove patina, but may remove nickel plating as well. Regarding questions no.1-2 - better then me most likely will explain soon. Check this out: 300 | Classic Pressure Lamps & Heaters Good luck and have fun regards, Piotrek
Well it looks to be all there - as you say the globe (glass) is a bit newer - not uncommon as they do get broken frequently. This thread shows differences between older and newer versions Optimus 300 and 300P compared I am not an expert on Optimus but I this model was made from the 30's to the 50's. But also as others have said parts can get mixed up and also factories changed parts for newer versions as they ran out of the older parts - so often there is no clear line to be drawn on dates. As Piotrek says - start with warm water and soap. Do you want to get it running ?
Thanks far all your input! i spend some hour today and a bunch of knuckle grease. I want to have it running surely! anything i need to be aware of? was planning to turn it on tonight when it gets dark. quite proud actually! :-)
Welcome to CPL @Mads Sønnichsen It's cleaned up nicely If the control knob is original to the lantern then it dates to the mid 1940's. Have a look at the comments here Optimus 300
Good luck Mads. I personally like to replace all the seals on any lantern I acquire. After putting new seals on I pump it up while empty and put it is a bucket of water to detect any leaks. As you say you are a Noob - and sorry if you know this already, remember it is kerosene not petrol, and spirit (alcohol) in the pre-heat cup. We look forward to seeing pictures of it running !
Thank you for the warm welcome. Yesterday evening, I managed to light the lamp. Everything seemed fine until the lamp’s mantle didn’t give off much light and soon turned black. This morning, when I checked the lamp, the mantle was still black and it crumbled when I touched it. I’m wondering what I did wrong. Could it be that I applied too much pressure and caused the mantle to catch fire? Is that possible? I’m planning to buy a new mantle. If anyone knows where to get these at a reasonable price in Denmark, I’d appreciate the tip. Hope everyone has a great weekend. Best, Mads
Hi Mads and welcome to the forum. As mentioned, you have an example of an Optimus 300 from around the middle of the 1940s. It looks to have cleaned up very well. Also as mentioned, I would recommend changing the filler cap seal, check the NRV and check the gap between the jet and mixing tube. Once a mantle is 'burnt in', they are not to be touched. They are basically ash at that point and only held together by the shape of the weaving. Usually they are quite durable to the shakes and moving of the lantern in use, but to touching. A black mantle usually means too much fuel. This could be from a worn jet, an incorrect gap or it can also happen when the pressure gets too low. Roskilde is not too far away from me, so if you need any hands on help send me a PM.
One of my favourite wee lamps but I’ve never tried to light mine. Nice job cleaning this one up @Mads Sønnichsen.
A new disaster strikes my lamp project. In an attempt to tighten the “ceramic muzzle”, I accidentally destroyed it. I found a webshop that seems to have one. The only thing is that it’s actually made for the Petromax KH500. Will it actually fit my Optimus 300? Here is the link: Petromax Spare Parts Set HK500 If you enthusiasts have a shop that definitely has the ceramic part, I would love to know. have a nice evening all
Hi Mads - Feel free to give me a call. Www.fogas.se is a good place - same with www.Petromax.de to order parts. (You are not the first one to break one of these ;-))
Thanks Harder Am I correct to assume this will fit my "optimus 300" ?? Tusentals gasolprodukter på nätet Thanks in advance for any help here. @Harder Sorensen : Ill call you later today (still at work) Have a great day /Mads
So today I met up with Nils Stephenson, who offered to give me a helping hand in giving my lamp a second life. Turned out that several of the seals were missing or needed replacing, and the muzzle was also decommissioned, but apart from that Nil’s managed to get up and running with mostly the original parts. Now the sun set and I got to try it in the dark, and also to test how long it will run without pumping. (So far more than 45 min… great succes). big thanks to you Nils! Thank you for helping me out and taking your time to introduce a noob to this wonderful, addictive rabbit hole of a hobby :-) next step for will be an Optimus 200 as I find interest in smaller lamps that are more suitable for outdoor/shelter tours. Also I need to investigate heaters!!!…any recommendations on there to start if I wanted to buy a heater is appreciated. attached are some pictures taken right now of my (now functioning) Optimus 300. thanks!!! Mads
Glad your happy with it. They are a good reliable lamp. You'll find that the lamp is a good heat source in itself. I have several heaters, but have usually just lit an extra lamp for the warmth.
