Hi all, apologies for the long ‘press silence’. Work and life have taken over during the last few weeks. Following the Primus 981 death wish and the Coleman 427 nightmare, here’s another nice wreck I’m just starting to tackle today. I think it’s a Veritas superb in brass (no nickel plating). I got it from a local salvage dealer a while back, along with a couple of Tilleys. Photos below. Please note the abundant collection of dead spiders, rust and dust inside it. Total dereliction?... I got a ‘154’ set of seals from the Fettle Box. Hopefully it’s the right set. Apart from taking everything apart gently, where would you start?!...
I was wondered where you had got to Alex. Well this looks like a challenge but from where I am looking it would appear a very viable resuscitation candidate. I guess it is going to come down to how much metal there still is on the bottom plate ! We all look forward to it's progress.. good luck Chris
I think I’d start with a long ponder and a stiff drink! As mentioned above, I guess it’s down to the level of corrosion. When I was a lad working in garages, we had a bucket of diesel for soaking corroded together objects in... Good luck with your fettle!
Awww thanks guys. So progress already. I got it apart to find a pound of dust and rust, but guess what! It pressurises and old paraffin squirts out of the vapouriser! Maybe it’s not as bad as it looks. The steel (?) plate at the bottom of the cage is rusty but all solid. The lamp came with some residual manky fuel in it, so the bottom of the tank ( steel?) doesn’t leak. I’ve now drained it out and rinsed it with fresh kerosene. The glass cleaned up ok with hot soapy water. Can anyone tell me what the little ‘tube screw’ at the opposite side of the stop cock does? Is it just fir depressurising? It unscrews freely but doesn’t come off the valve....
Hi there it is your pricker lever, it’s missing a tubular piece held on with a screw, if you find your lantern in the gallery you can see what it should look like, Looks to be a a cool fettle project,
Hi ,it looks to be all there, a fair bit of work should clean it up and if your interested base camp have a service kit listed for this model Regards ian.
Alex, I recently bought some lamps in much the same state but I’ll guarantee your fettle will result in a very desirable lamp whereas mine.........
Now it’s come apart it appears to be in solid condition. These types of fettles are so satisfying....
I'd be worried about the burner screen lying on the globe support plate. If it's already fallen out of its own accord it's probably not going to remain in place when you run the lantern. Maybe you could return it to shape and it might spring back into place and stay there. Otherwise I've no idea where you might get a replacement but you could possibly cut another one from some stainless mesh of the same gauge. Fingers crossed with it. One little tip, see that small screw holding the top of the support rod onto the burner? - don't try to remove it unless you absolutely have to. If you need any spare parts, I've four of these little buggers which are fit only for breaking...
Ok thanks guys, We’ll see what we can do with it. David- yes, the burner mesh screen had come loose and was lying on the base of the cage among the dirt. I’ll try and do what you suggest. I also found a metal ring next to it- presumably the retaining ring as its the same diameter? I’ll go and look up the ‘Superb’ in the gallery to learn a bit more about it and why it is has a reputation for being a temperamental bastard of a lamp!
Yes, I'd forgotten about the retaining ring - I must have been thinking about another lantern (Austramax, perhaps?). Well, the Veritas Superb had a reputation for being temperamental but now conventional wisdom seems to be they're the best thing since sliced bread - and even I've had one running successfully (the other five in my collection, not so much...).
I came by one in much the same state but minus the globe unfortunately. The pricker lever is meant to have a small piece of what I think is cork tube. It slips over the brass tube and is swaged over at the end to hold it there. Its meant to stop the heat burning your fingers when you operate the pricker mechanism but you still have to be careful! I've used some stainless mesh from a kitchen strainer on the burner and so far it's held up ok. There's some stuff you can get on eBay called Rust Destructor that is pretty good. You have to leave the affected part in the solution for a few days but it does the job. It needs some mechanical action to help remove the rust but once it's finished it leaves a good clean steel surface behind ready for painting or plating - after you've decided what to do about the pitting. I've just used it to de-rust a badly corroded Vapalux 300 and the transformation is impressive! As for the thorny issue of how good or bad Veritas lanterns are, you'll have to decide for yourself but they are, in essence, very similar to Coleman lanterns in the way they operate. All the Superbs in my collection, even the grotty one, start themselves after about 30 seconds pre-heat by which I mean the fuel left in the generator begins vaporising and all you have to do is open the control valve to keep it going. I'm not sure where the poor reputation came from but it's probably something to do with the Dutch army versions that were modified to run on naptha/CF etc. Anyhow, good luck with the fettle and if you need any help there's a possie of us Veritas nuts ready to assist. Can't wait for the money shot.
Especially the 239E 'Ranger' which is a re-badged Veritas Superb. I don't know if Coleman varied the specification of any of the parts in any way but they were clearly prepared to guarantee the the lantern's performance One of my Superbs runs quite nicely even with a 1" diameter hole in the globe...
Blimey, how did it get a 1 inch hole in the globe? It's surprising it survived! As far as I know the Ranger is identical, at least AussiePete's is.
No idea - it's in the widest part of the globe so I suppose it bumped up against something at some time. The glass is also very thin there. I'm sure I posted a pic of it in one of the various Veritas Superb threads last year around Newark time. I use it routinely to prevent damage to the perfect globe which came with the lantern...
Looking forward to seeing how this progresses Alex, It's going to be a fettle and a half, but will be worth it methinks!
Yes, as @ColinG has said, the Coleman 239E “Ranger” is a rebadged Veritas Superb. Here is are some pictures of mine. Please note I’ve lit my Ranger (Superb) using a stand in straight sided globe to preserve the original bulged globe. Incidentally, I have 5 Veritas lanterns, 2 being Superbs, and all start, preheat, very well and run brilliantly. Considering my experience with Veritas, I find they’re very good lanterns and light exceptional easily. Enjoy your fettle @Alex74. Cheers Pete
Hey David, it was you, sorry mate ....... Just goes to show, the older we get the more we explore the alternate universe ...... Cheers Pete @David Shouksmith
Awww. Thanks for all the comments guys. And great pictures of your Ranger Pete. They will help me and others in future. I haven’t had the time to progress on the lamp yet as I’m doing DIY in the house as well at the weekends. Hopefully I’ll be able to make progress over the Easter holiday. Looking forward to retirement to have more time for hobbies, but it’s still about 24 years away! doh:
Still doing DIY a month’s on! No progress to report on lamp fettling and am feeling vaguely guilty!... a serious case of ‘veritas neglect PTSD’! I hope you’re all well by the way!
Sorry @Alex74 - we only take confessions on a Sunday - I am sure you will say a couple of "hail veritas" and be back on track soon Yours, Rev. Vapalux
I will certainly do that. I’ll light a couple of lamps too while reciting the hail Veritas...maybe with a beer or two!
3 months on and still haven’t had time to finish (or start?) the bloody thing! Too busy, too tired, too lazy…there’s always an excuse! And now it’s too hot. Regards to all!
No worries mate, just go to the Veritas lantern and rub your hand on it’s bulgy bits ....... soon you’ll feel a longing to do more ..... seriously, we are patient and are looking forward to seeing your fettle. Enjoy the rub. Pete @Alex74
