Well I finally got my hands on a 2/300 and I was about to clean it up when I noticed it says ‘War Time Finish’ on the vent. Anyone seen this before? Maybe some odd reaction from an old sticker?? Note it isn’t marked for military issue on the collar. Also note the long filler screw - thoughts on if it’s original? Cheers, Adrian
Interesting stuff. I’ve not seen this before and when examining my 2/300 I can’t find any like stamping on the hood. Is there any difference to the finish of your “war time finish” lantern to that of the usual found from this era? As to the air relief screw, possibly a replacement do you think? Cheers Pete
@Buckaroo I’ve not seen that stamp. I have seen odd pressure release screws on Austramax. Cheers Tony
I've never seen that stamp before either. Now we need to see more examples. The lamp looks like what I would call the second variation of the 2/300 except for the filler cap and the collar. The positioning of the Austramax logo points to the last variation of the 2/300, as does the filler cap, but I have no certain proof that the position didn't change all the time. I am guessing that the pressure relief screw is from something else. The knurling doesn't look like what Austramax used at the time and certainly not what they normally used on that particular filler cap.
Hmmm… a quick Google on ‘war time finish’ and it looks like BSA (Birmingham Small Arms) used this language on their bicycles to highlight how the product used material substitutions due to war-time shortages - e.g wooden foot pedals. Purely speculation but perhaps the pressure relief screw is an example of this? We will likely never know!
That is a great bit of history Looking forward to seeing the fettle! Just an aside ; Britool spanners were stamped ‘war finish’ .. there was no finish just bare metal
War time produced Webley 380/200 revolvers were clearly stamped on the frame "War Finish" as they didn't want anyone to think that ugly black paint (Suncorite) was their normal commercial finish. Must have been common practice for companies concerned about the cosmetic value of their product.
@Buckaroo If you have a look at this post there is an early illustration showing a long bleed screw like yours. Pre 53 Austramax " Norman "
