Petromax works after replacements, but needs tweaking?

Don't forget to tighten up that jet/nipple/nozzle you can see where gas has been escaping up the side of it. If it still leaks after tightening they try using some copper or nickel based grease on the threads. Veel Sucess !

 

Yes, that is crucial

and to make sure you measure from the top of the jet, the highest part near the needle

 

I'm getting slightly mad...



Even more flames... And now it's leaking fuel between the upper and lower carburator because I tried to turn the upper part more to the center. I think something is wrong with this specific piece of lamo although it worked a few days ago. I think I damaged something while repairing and replacing things. I'm almost giving up hope. For tonight. Tomorrow there will be energy to pick this up.

 

Don't give up. There is often more than one issue with lanterns, and most of us here have been on the journey that you are now on. I find it helps to think of it as a learning experience
As you say you probably loosened it while trying to rotate the vapouriser, or is was a little loose to begin with. You could just try and tighten it a little - or you could take it off and make sure there is no grit/dirt on the mating surfaces. There is no gasket or seal on that joint, it relies on the conical profile of the vapoursier to seal against the nut.

 

Good advice
Hang in there

 

If you twist the vaporiser while it was fixed (dus wartel niet losgedraaid) then you may damage the thread and/or loosing the joint.

The innerhood should fit normal without any aplied pressure/force. Check first why it doesn't fit.

Like I said earlier: do you get a straight fiuel spray out of the jet when under pressure and without inner hood and heating?
So a cold "shower" test. If for some reason the jet doesn't fit right on the vaporiser or is damaged the spray of fuel/gas will not enter the J-tube correctly.

This all besides the already mentioned leaks.

 

Keep trying @SulphurTX
Once you've adjusted the inner hood and burner assembly correctly as advised by members earlier, you should perform the 'cold shower' check as mentioned by @WimVe .
Normally, I would do it with the inner hood and burner assembly removed like this:-


Close the footvalve by turning the pricker needle control knob with pointer at top (needle up position). Next, pump your lantern up with some fuel already filled-in. Pump it up to full operating pressure ~2 bar or so. It is better to test this with sufficiently high pressure to allow better observation.
Once the fount is pressurized as mentioned, release the fuel by quickly turning the pricker control knob to fully open the footvalve with needle fully lowered. Preheat is not required for this.
Observe the fuel stream that is being discharged from the jet orifice. Ideally, it should be a straight, sharp and thin stream of liquid kerosene shooting vertically upwards.
If, for any reasons, the discharged fuel is in the form of an untidy 'spray' with drips all around or a skewed stream, shooting sideways or at a severe offset angle from the vertical axis, then you'd likely get the result as in the videos you posted earlier.
A straight fuel stream must enter the inlet of the J-mixer tube, preferably right at the centre of it. This is to ensure that its path is as geometrically symmetrical as possible. This should allow a stronger air draw at the intake area by the Bernoulli principle.
During actual light up after carrying the preheating, the discharged fuel should no longer be in liquid form but an invisible vapour that is discharging at high velocity.
Do the above test first and let us know what you're getting at this stage before proceeding further.

 

I will try soon and let you know!

 

Update: I also bought a Petromax 828/350 CP. I paid 30 euro. It looks quite old and is German made and has the 10 stars logo.

The difference between the problem Petromax from the previous posts is that everything fits neat and perfectly with this lamp. I cleaned it and reassembled the lamp and it worked instantly. Wow! Cool!

The problem with the other lamp is certainly in the carburator and the nozzle. The petroleum is not coming in a straight line into the J-tube. I think I'll have to buy a new needle and will try later. But so happy with my old other lamp!

What do you think?

 

Nice score with a genuine Petromax.
I believe you make the problematic one work just as well as the genuine unit you're having.
Usually, the problematic ones are those that would hone your skills and test your patience to the max.

 

Chances are, you probably need to get a new carb/vaporizer along with a new jet/nipple. On some chinese made model, I've had new jets still weep kerosene no matter how tight I can get on the carb without stripping the threads and I had to find a replacement carb.

On the same note, please make sure your nipple is tight before every firing, it's tedious I know but they have a propensity of working loose over time. You can typically tell if the tip is starting to work loose by observing the "heat" lines of the invisible flame dancing around the mixing chamber and that usually means to me it's time to tighten the nipple on the next firing.

 

I will try soon... This victory moment with this 828 gave me more courage to go on! The Chinese lamp burned for a few hours so it can work, but I unscrewed every part and possibly made a mistake somewhere. On the other hand it seems that the lamp is crooked by a fall so maybe things are really broken and have to be replaced, for example the carburator. Quite expensive to get a new one. First I am enjoying this 828 for outside and while camping this summer. I have also bought an old Aladdin 21 for the interior. That lamp is also burning very nice.

 

If those were new ones, then it is likely due to the manufacturing tolerances being off.
New jets should feel 'rather-snug', even only after screwing a couple of turns into the vaporizer/gen. If you can 'finger-turn' the jet all the way down into the vaporizer like a standard bolt & nut pair, then it is probably too loose.

I usually use some copper antiseize compound on the threads before assembly. Once heated up, the oils will vaporize off, leaving behind a matrix of copper-graphite powder in the tiny gaps between the outer and inner threads of the jet-vaporizer pair. The copper-graphite material will somewhat resist the jet from moving in a rotary direction.
Contrary to what many might suspect, the 'jet-loosening phenomenon' after several heat-cool cycles of the lantern isn't due to rotary movements.
It is due to relaxation of the material tension that was created when you first tighten the jet. The brass material will experience this everytime it gets thermally cycled. It was also initially harder but gets 'tempered' or soften after those cycles.

If there is a matrix of copper-graphite particles in-between the threads, then it helps the threaded joint to conform to whatever dimensional changes the brass material would assume during those heat-cool cycles.
That'd prevent over-loosening.
You can still easily loosen and remove the jet with a wrench but it won't get so loose during operation that fuel would leak.

Some prefer to use soft soap on the threads. Others prefer muffler/stove cement.

 

Big update! It WORKS! (with video)
thanks to all your extensive advice, tips, tricks, support and positive vibes, we succeeded! the problem lamp is on!



the problem was indeed in the needle, I think. it was brand new but possibly bent somewhere while opening and closing the lamp 10 times. I also had a leak and the wrenches didn't fit properly. this caused new problems, such as leakage around the carburetor. it sometimes drove me to despair. then the clay burner also fell off and broke after burning for 2 minutes. you will understand that I am already very happy. the lamp has been burning for at least 30 minutes now without any problems. and now also got that 828 working, which went a lot smoother.

Through an older Petromax enthusiast who had to quit the hobby due to his age, I was able to buy some clay burners for a small price. I received a mantle and spirit container for free. good guest. thanks! and I hope this post can also help other new enthusiasts get started.

like you said: hang in there, that's how we all started here!

 

Excellent news So onto the next one

 

Congratulations. I bet you had certainly gained a certain confidence level after psssing the tests