Preamble Some months ago, on the Bay of Evil, I won this Canadian Coleman 128C, also known as the “Princess” table lamp. The date stamped on the fount is 11 39 representing its manufacture date as November 1939. The 128 Canadian Princess lamps were manufactured from 1935 to 1942. The lamp was intact and complete with, I believe its original 355 glass globe. The text “Coleman” as the name “PYREX” appears to be in a green coloured font. The lamp was found to be in a clean and tidy condition however, on a closer inspection the following issues were evident: The fuel filler cap, housing the external pump connection, seal had deteriorated and hardened causing pressurised air leakage. The fuel filler cap’s external pump connection’s steel ball had seized allowing pressurised air to leak out unacceptably. The fuel control valve wheel was severely burnt. The fuel control valve wheel shaft was seized. The fuel control valve wheel was severely burnt. The lamp’s wooden handle, at the top, was burnt. The lamp’s fount (tank) although sound had some areas of local rust inside on the base. The rust hadn’t penetrated the base. The Coleman R55 generator was found to be swollen, split and damaged beyond repair. The fount’s paintwork was dirty but overall, in reasonable condition for its 82 years. Notwithstanding, the lamp was found to be in a reasonably good condition. The Fettle The lamp was dismantled into its various components and cleaned. The air tubes and manifold were dismantled and cleaned in a vinegar bath and, along with all the other small parts, given a final clean in an ultrasonic cleaner. The Fount (Tank) To preserve the original cream with gold highlights paint finish, the brass fount was carefully cleaned with a hand detergent using a very soft brush then after drying, given a polish with a gentle auto shine compound. The gentle cleaning removed the dirt leaving the fount in a reasonable for age condition with multiple small blemishes caused by age and use. The internal rust was successfully treated with a motorcycle fuel tank repair kit. The Wooden Handle and the Control Valve Wheel The lamp’s wooden handle and the control valve wheel showed significant burn damage. The burn areas were filled with 2 x pack epoxy resin. The Air Inlet Tube The air inlet tube showed an unexpected feature. The actual air tube had a restricting sleeve inserted and crimped in. Checking with a fellow lampie, ColinG, he confirmed that his similar 128C also had the tell-tale crimp dimples in the air tube signifying the installation of an air restricting sleeve. From this it was concluded that the restricting sleeve was factory fitted. Assembly The various components were gathered for final assembly. A new Coleman R55 roto generator was procured. The Money Shot The assembled Coleman 128C lamp was fitted with mantles and then fuelled with Shellite. Using a for purpose hand pump, the fount was pressurised with about 20 pump strokes. The control valve was then opened for approximately 2 seconds and closed. Using a small gas torch, the generator was preheated for about 5 seconds until the mantles caught and lit. After a about 5 further seconds, the fuel control valve was slowly opened fully, and the lamp’s mantles fully illuminated. Pumping a further 60 strokes into a half full tank of fuel, the lit lamp settled down and ran flawlessly for over 2 hours. After the 2 hours test run the lantern was turned off by closing the fuel control valve. A Curiosity In the book “Guide to Vintage Coleman Products 1900-1983” by the International Coleman Collectors Club, Inc, page 52 the reference to the 128 or “Princess” lamp states that it’s a “Match Lighting, gasoline, separate pump 300CP lamp. The absence of a preheating cup would confirm this. However, the presence of the restriction in the air tube, on other lamps of similar design, were installed for the use of kerosene. These lanterns also had the preheater cups as the Coleman 129 lamp, shown on page 53 and the 169K Canadian “Royal” shown on page 63. Although the above 128C example runs quite well on Shellite fuel, ColinG’s, 128C runs very well on kerosene with a brighter light output. Summary In this fettled Coleman 128C lamp, all the original parts excepting the seals and generator, were reused, including the original 355 globe. The fettled Coleman 128C lamp lit and ran flawlessly, for its 2-hour test. I had a lot of satisfaction resurrecting and seeing this table lamp royalty commanding the dark away. Thank you for looking. Cheers Pete
You did a great job Pete and your write-up is excellent. My 128 runs incredibly bright on kero and visually it looks more like 500cp although it's impossible to tell exactly how bright it is without a light meter. I forget where I heard/found the following but I remember being told that the 128 was one of those rare Coleman lamps that runs unaltered on CF or kero with the addition of a pre-heater cup... it's probably be but mine runs like a champ! Having the original globe is a huge bonus!
Well fettled! Hello Pete, perhaps you could try that lamp with paraffin/kerosene for an evening to see if it's brighter, dimples and a restrictor tube mean a paraffin burner.
Thank you everyone. I do hope this fettling description is helpful to those fettling similar lamps. Cheers Pete
@AussiePete Can't work out how to quote but above you posted that they were manufactured from 1935 to 1942. I have a 128C fount made in December 1946.
If you could supply me with some measurements I will add the 355 globe to the lantern glass reference spreadsheet.
The shape makes the 550 globe difficult to describe but I would measure it this way: Top orifice smallest dimension*: 77mm Bottom orifice:83mm Widest outside diameter: 135mm *: because that determines what hanger it fits on. Cheers Tony @ColinG
Thanks for the data Tony, that's great. That's pretty much how I handle bowed and other strange shapes Top, bottom and middle diameters plus the height. I'll look at the link and add the others.
Thank you . Hope this has worked. I used to quote portions of a thread but have since changed phone brands and something happened ( probably just me). @Henry Plews
Hello! New to the forum! I was looking in an old shed and found a Canadian 128C Table Lamp. I would like to refurbish it. It is mostly intact but is missing the globe and a couple other parts. Where would I start to look for parts?
