After fettling up numerous petromax type lamps and a handful Tillies as well, it was time to step up my fettling game and get something different. With the holiday to Crete cancelled I needed something to keep me busy. I found an old Bialaddin lamp type 305. The hood is looks to be in bad shape and the glass is missing but as fas as I can see the rest looks to be complete. Any usefull tips for the novice Bialaddin fettler?
They are pretty much the same as a Tilley except for the pump which is more like a Primus or Petromax type with an NRV at the bottom of the tube. ::Neil::
Bialaddins are well made and easy to fettle. The only problem you sometimes find is stress cracks in the tank, usually round the lower edge. I would have said that was the end of the story but recently I've had some success using thinned epoxy to line the inside where the cracks are but chances are yours will be fine. Do you intend to polish or paint?
Bialaddins are well made and easy to fettle. The only problem you sometimes find is stress cracks in the tank, usually round the lower edge. I would have said that was the end of the story but recently I've had some success using thinned epoxy to line the inside where the cracks are but chances are yours will be fine. Do you intend to polish or paint?
Thanks guys. @ColinG i believe the fount was painted green originally so maybe I'll try to find the correct shade of green. I don't know yet. But firstly I need to find some washers and a new globe...
Dag Emiel, when you are ready to paint the tank, I might be able to help out with the colouring. Today I checked a fuel cap and a collar for likeness with the old green, painted yesterday, and it seems I am getting there. But not quite. The cap shows deliberate wear because a pristine paint job stands out like a sore thumb on an 'experienced' lamp. Still need to experiment and work out the process of primer or no primer depending on how this paint sets etc. Just send me a Private Conversation when your lamp is ready for a green coat and we will see where we stand. Mike
The green paint Willis & Bates used isn't easy to replicate but you can get rattle cans made whatever colour you want if you have a same. I know I'm on shakey ground here, and I honestly love Bialaddins and Vapalux I really do, but the green they used is just about the most uninspiring shade! But that's what they chose sotnays what we need to copy if we want to restore them properly.
'sotnays'? Not sure I understand the sentence either, Colin. And I am fond of many shade of greens, most from England: on Morris Minor, Velocette, Willis & Bates and that fastest of colours, BRG. Not so much on the Bia 310 though. So we all have our preferences and likes, and all are valid.
I'm not surprised you didn't understand my post! My stupid phone decided to turn my beautifully crafted English into utter gibberish!!!! Here is my post again... in English (hopefully)... written on my laptop this time. The green paint Willis & Bates used isn't easy to replicate but you can get rattle cans made whatever colour you want if you have a sample. I know I'm on shakey ground here, and I honestly love Bialaddins and Vapalux I really do, but the green they used is just about the most uninspiring shade! But that's what they chose so that's what we need to copy if we want to restore them properly. There.... I've checked it a few times and I think it makes sense now - as much as possible anyway. British Racing Green has to be my favourite green, followed by the darker green that Coleman used. I also love the original deep red that Vapalux used. I had a discussion about the colours used by all the lantern manufacturers and it was suggested that colour wasn't really important back then and also that these were functional items so no-one cared and left it to the factory manager whereas these days there would probably have to be a focus group and design agency involved!!!
@Colin and you other lampies. I was just thinking, "whoops there he goes again" says you lot, but over the previous multi decades I would have thought that the original colour would fade somewhat. I'm only being the devil's advocate here, anyway the devil and I have an agreement, but could it be possible that we've been matching the modern replacement paints to faded original paints? Just a question from my feeble mind that conspires, with the blasted devil, to get me in trouble. Cheers Peter
Thank you Colin for that beautifully crafted English! The pragmatic approach to many products right after the war is understood. It might explain the maroon tank with a red top, which isn't the choicest of combinations, even if the red turns darker when hot. And yes, Pete, I am probabely trying to match a faded colour. Not an original colour of the W&B palette persé, but I do want to get one lamp look right. An excuse to get into, for me, new territory, learning a new skill like spraying. Mike
@AussiePete , you're absolutely right about the colour fading on lanterns and it's not just the W&B green either! I'm pretty sure the gold used on the Guardsman can't be matched today for the same reason. Makes me wonder if there's a factory formula somewhere that would allow us to recreate the original colours... although I still think that product aesthetics just weren't so much of a priority back then. @M.Meijer , we'll be waiting to see how your lantern looks when it's finished.
