Coleman 295..what is the pink gunk here?

Yes, i think the acetone has done its job, with little more in returns. It definitely turned pink over the course of soaking. I also agree with the theory that unleaded gasoline degrades the fount lining. I had lots of glossy flat flakes come out…i believe that is the co,mean lining degrading
The other junk…i believe is body filler…very different composition from the flakes. The lump inside the fount was very much larger than the filler cap hole. It could not have been put inside the fount..it formed inside the fount. I suspect this is a clue to everything else.
I have a replacement fount en route from USA. At this point I am just curious to what has gone on here. When i have the 295 running i will figure it out…maybe cut the ruined fount open. I will do all i can to resurrect it first

 

Update.
New fount and generator arrived…also the heat shield, which i realised was missing entirely. New fuel pickup tube.

installed, new mantles…
Been running for 15 mins….the dunk test showed a small leak from the gas cap, so when it has burned through the fuel, I will replace the cap gasket.
But I think it is a runner…….counting parts and postage it is about twice the cost of a brand new 295 lantern, but…..that is the price of fettling broken things back to life I suppose.

thank you to all who offered advice, tips and help.

‘kind regards

Les

 

Exellent ! - maybe try the other cap ?
re: Costs - you can have faith in it as you built it ! and I am not sure you can even buy a brand new one now.

 

@LesRiekie


How’s this? If it suits I’ll clean it up and get it running.

Australian 249 1957.



Cheers

Tony

 

Tony..it’s perfect.

kind Regards

Les

 

Update. The valve removal tool arrived this morning and it worked a treat…what an ingenius invention…

the CV was tight tight in the seat…a bit of squeaking and it came free eventually. It looks ok but the ball bearing is stuck solid…no rattling. At the moment it is in the ultrasonic cleaner, in a jar of Shellite. I think it will take a few hours, if it comes free at all.
I tried the pump in the fount with the CV removed and it pumps just fine…no blocked snorkel, thank goodness.
most information suggests that a failed CV is rare, and most times they revive with a soak or spray of carb cleaner. I guess I got the rare failure…..
I will try to revive it but at least the fount looks like it will be serviceable again.

Les

 

Les, Shellite might work but Acetone or Acrylic Thinners works well to free up a stuck CV.

 

Hello Robbo.
An hour of ultrasonic did the trick with Shellite. I was planning on acetone as the next option, but the CV has come free, re-installed and seems to work just fine. It looked good,even when it was seized up…shiny ball and the valve looked undamaged in any way. I did not see any rust or gunk either. The Shellite was stained yellowish and cloudy after the ultrasonic cycles, so I think it was just stuck with varnish or hardened turpentine from old fuel. it seems odd, because the ball should rest naturally in the lowest position, unless it was left pressurised for many years.
I will never know…

 

Les, I don't know if the new CV tool comes with instructions or not. I bought mine from the original maker many years ago. According to him the correct way to use the tool is: Screw the rod into the CV, slide the body of the tool over the rod and engage the tabs at the end with the slot in the CV. (apply some inward pressure to make sure they seat in the CV), tighten the nut (I replaced the hex nut with a wing nut, makes things easier). Put a 5/8" open end wrench on the flats at the top end of the tool. Give the free end of the wrench a quick, smart rap with a hammer.

I use a one pound rubber mallet most of the time, occasionally a lead or rawhide hammer if they are closer on the bench. Giving the wrench a quick blow works much better than applying slow steady pressure by hand. Normally after one strike I can easily turn the tool out by hand. The tool makes the job so quick and easy that removing and cleaning the CV is part of the routine for every Coleman I work on. I have heard of folks bending or deforming the fount or tube when trying to loosen the CV through slow pressure, although I think you'd have to be pretty ham-fisted to manage that.

Good job on getting your lantern working. Save the old fount, it should work if you find any of the 220/228 or newer Colemans with a bad fount. Nothing wrong with building a frankenlantern as long as it makes light.

 

Thanks Bill. I was going to ask about fount threads and compatibility with other Coleman lanterns but your suggestion shows me what I was wondering.
I am really enjoying the 295 and would like to make another. The fuel and simple lighting features are great. However I would be happy to get any other type assembled on this spare fount and make it work.

‘the removal tool worked a charm, and I have seen a few instructional videos from various sources on how to assemble and use it. Clever invention.

The pink layers inside the 295 founts seem to be a Coleman ‘solution’ to preserving the steel founts. Due to the number of similar reports about pink flakes, I suspect the lining degrades over time when in contact with gasoline or white gas. The balls of gunk in my fount were very different texture and never showed any similarity to the slippery flakes that were also there, and widely reported in other 285/295 founts. The ball was also very much larger than any of the possible entry holes, so it’s still a weird mystery to me as to what it was and how it got in.
Even if I suppose that the CV was stuck, what conceivable reason would suggest a remedy of pouring in body filler? You just gotta laugh and move along….i will eventually revive this poor old fount into a working lantern, and that will be the best result.