I bought this from the original owner who bought it new for his first house in the Highlands that didn't have mains electricity. It came with the a box and some extras. This is my first 'Mark 2' 246b with the middle cage ring removed. Next is the Aladdin wickie.
Great pick-ups. I enjoy playing with the aladdin and the household like the light. The mantles are fearsomely expensive tho.. Funny how the box picture still shows the middle ring.
I was chuffed with the Aladdin, it was incandescing nicely... for about 5 minutes and then black spots started to appear and get bigger. I turned it off in the end as I simply don't know how to control an Aladdin. It seems more like voodoo that science to me! The 246b works well I put a small amount of fuel in it and left it to run and it didn't pulse or dim once until it ran out a couple of hours later!
@ColinG 1. Make sure the wick on your Aladdin is very well trimmed with no loose fibres poking up. 2. Aladdins become more efficient as they heat up, so the trick is to get them burning with just a blue flame all around the wick, and as they heat up, check that they aren’t producing yellow flame, smoke or black spots, and if so, turn the wick down to get the even blue flame. It takes a few minutes to reach optimal operating temperature. Cheers Tony
Colin you have a couple of very nice acquisitions. I have 3 Aladdin lamps and none of them work very well and no matter what I do I can never get them trimmed properly so they sit on a shelf. Cheers, Norman
I too have had the rather disconcerting black spots/buildup of carbon on the mantle. I found that they will burn off slowly once you have the thing running correctly. As Tony says a well trimmed wick is paramount. You can buy wick trimmers for this - modern plastic ones or occasionally older metal ones appear (I have not tried one). The manual from aladdin USA: http://aladdinlamps.info/PriceLists/23A_Instruction_Manual.pdf What they don't tell you until the glossary is that you need to remove the flame spreader in order to use the trimmer. They do recommend trimming every time you re-fill the fuel. I have been using bartoline 'indoor' lamp oil as it has no odour. Chris
Looking at the sooted chimney I would say: to high of a flame it is. Remove the flamespreader, cut the wick, if nescesary, straight/flat with the airtube and char the top, then use the wickcleaner to shape the wick top. Any spike of flame will char the mantle.
I don't use anything but a safe edge razor blade. Adjust the wick so the lowest point is level with the flat outer ring. Shave it like your face until it is flat and even all the way round. Turn it up a bit more and shave again if it's the first time in a long while. Make sure there are no straggler particles or strands coming out sideways. I have a wick trimmer but the above is so quick and easy it never comes out of the bits box. The lamps are in use on most winter nights for combined light+heat. When first lighting and before fitting the chimney it is obvious if the wick is even. Once the flame has travelled round the wick and formed a complete circle adjust the wick so you have blue flame with just a hint of yellow tips. It will bob up and down a bit with the passing air currents. If the yellow tips are biased in just a few spots rather than being even all the way around, repeat the wick trimming procedure. Otherwise it will make soot spots when going and producing any decent light.
Yes - I will try that trick - thanks. The plastic wick trimmer I have is a new purchase and although it works I have some doubts about it's longevity. I did buy a bag of 100 razors before they banned online sales of them here. So much safer now
My wick trimmer is an older one and it's made of brass. I'll find a picture at some point. It's fine except those safe Razor blades from the local hardware shop have been so useful for much else. They will shave an Aladdin wick - I have one reserved for that. They will pare off the burnt on stuff from your glass cooker hob top or the oven door - I have another one for that. They will scrape off the layer of "very well burnt on sheet" from your frying pan or wok - I have some specially bent ones for that. And you sharpen them again if they become blunt. Bargain of the century.
There are some very good u tube vids on the setting up and using of Aladdin mantle lamps, it's best not to run them on maximum and it is recommended not to leave them unattended. Regards ian
I've been fiddling with the wick and the control but it's obviously an art/skill I don't have! I'll keep trying but it might spend it's life as a shelf queen. I don't have any new mantles and new ones cost crazy money!