Hello. This is my first time posting. Until now, I have enjoyed reading your collections and your posts. I will keep a record of the difficulties I encountered during the repair and how I solved them so that they can be used as reference for future repair attempts. I wanted Ditmar581 and kept looking, and I came across 583. When it first arrived from Germany, the distance ring was cracked and the needle was broken, but overall it was in good condition. It looked like it had been sleeping in a barn somewhere, and there were dead insects and spider shells inside the top bench. I am grateful to the original owner for keeping it in such good condition, and I have decided to restore it so that it can be used again. To remove the NRV, I used a tool made by cutting a faucet type bit with a grinder. The NRV for vapalux can be used as a substitute for ditmar's NRV, but this individual's NRV was in good condition, so I only replaced the rubber. A lead packing is also included to prevent sticking. I repaired a needle that had broken and was missing, but when I turned the wheel to check its operation, it bent several times. So, when I read the instruction manual uploaded to CPL, it stated that "the needle should only be operated while the lamp is operating = pressurized." Previously, operating the needle in hot conditions would shorten the life of the nipple, so operation checks were performed with the lamp not lit. However, I learned for the first time that in the case of a thin needle like this lantern, the fluid flow when the gas exits the nipple hole acts as a guide, preventing it from hitting the nipple wall and bending. And the repair is complete. When I attached a mantle for kerosene 150CP, it did not burn well, so I replaced it with a mantle for Coleman 229, and it burned very well. I connected the cracks with solder. For preheating, I attached carbon felt using a clip I made from brass. When lit, soak it with a small amount of alcohol and ignite it. A very small and cute lantern. Thank you for reading it until the very end.
@Camp numao That is a very good presentation of this nice little lantern. According to the catalogue sheets that are available the lantern is designed to operate with petrol/gasoline. That could be the reason why it did not operate correctly the first time.
Welcome to the forum. You've got a nice lantern. Ditmar Maxims are not very common or in fact, almost quite rare to find in the 'wild' outside of Europe. A very neat presentation. The lantern is nicely finished.
@Martin K. Thank you for your comment. You're right. Most of the lanterns I own are for kerosene, so I made the mistake of using a kerosene mantle when lighting the 583 with gasoline. It was a new discovery that differences in the mantle mesh can have such an impact.
@Henry Plews @Sellig33 Hello. Thank you for your comment! I actually wanted a 581 with a stamp on the tank, but I was having trouble finding one that was only very expensive. Although there is no engraving, I will treasure this lantern.
@Scott D Thank you for your comment! Your collection is also very nice. Like everyone, I will try to record any useful information. thank you.
@JEFF JOHNSON I'm honored to be included in one of your posts. I don't have a very rare lantern, but I thought I would post it to record the problems I encountered and how to solve them.
@MYN Thank you for your comment. Yes, you are right. I am grateful to have come across this lantern. Since I can't get most of the lanterns I want, I mostly spend my days looking at everyone's collections posted on CPL.
@ROBBO55 Nice to meet you. I'm glad to be able to interact with you all. Thank you in advance. @podbros Thank you for your comment! I thought it was only Japanese people who liked small things, but I'm glad there are people in the UK too.
