A Lucky Week

Had a good week this week.
Yesterday I received a tilley table lamp, and it's different from my other two.


Needs a good clean and the fount was full of bright green mess which had a powerful stale smell to it.


Glass is marked 182.



Burner is well on its way to the happy hunting ground.


Pump has me puzzled, there doesn't seem to be a sealing surface on the top of the pump tube, could there be a bit missing?
Pump itself has a flat on it which seems to require a large washer but it would nip down onto the rounded edge of the pump tube.

 

A fine fettling project and the pump needs a standard Tilley clamp washer.

 

The pump’s correct as is, nothing missing. Same type as on my lantern.




Avoid the appalling squidgy washers sold by at least one online source that would distort and fail to make a seal in that application.

A viton washer’s best. I make my own from viton sheet but I daresay the Fettlebox would have something suitable.

 

Thanks for clearing that one up, I will try to Puch one from Viton.
Does anyone know if this lamp would have been painted gold or polished brass, I suspect the former as I can still see some gold on the bottom and a label, don't see any marks stamped on there.

 

Those pork pie table lamps date from 1946 to about 1950 and the link below shows an example with it's original paint job.

Tilley Table Lamp TL106 Pork pie

 

It may be difficult to replicate the black around the bottom of the tank and on top under the column. A recent purchase had obviously been scrubbed with a brillo pad to remove the ‘dirty’ area on top of the tank and left plenty of scratches.

 

Ah that's a tricky one, seems a strange way to paint it. Especially in the years after the war when utility was the way.
I may polish it and take stock, while I try to figure out a way to do that. I wonder if it met a similar fate with a Brillo pad or similar, and that's how it came to be bare metal, I need to take a much closer look at the rolled seam to see if there is any paint trapped in there.

 

If you want to paint the black highlights, first paint the gold, then place the tank on a spinning surface like a “lazy susan” or a record player turntable, and carefully apply the matt black with a rattle can. Less is best.

Edit: In my tank (original), the black highlight is only at the bottom and quite sparse.


Tony

 

I think I'll paint it gold then try to set up a rotating base and give it a quick blast of black.
Probably you only get one shot at it.

 

Love the Tilley lamps.
Have never seen one, here in the states.

 

Only one way to remedy that.

 

Very nice, an excellent find I would consider that a great week, that's for sure.