I don't have pictures as akin to the Loch Ness I don't even know if it exists... lets just say I'm sceptical. As I was carrying an Tilley around with me I bumped into someone who used to collect lamps. "How many did I used to have in the shed?" he said to his wife. "Oh, about three hundred" came the reply. Anyway he told be of a Tilley that was "much smaller" then the the X246B that I was carrying. The story went that these were made by Tilley on a special order for the Canadian fishing fleet and that Tilley only ever made about two hundred of them... So has anyone ever heard this before? Is it true? Does anyone here own one?
Most likely he is talking about the model produced about 1958 the X410 or the X410A Thats the only small lantern I can think off. Bob .
Sounds like a mash-up of the story surrounding the X458 - the so-called 'flounder-fishing lamp'. See page 53 in the Tilley book...
I don't have a Tilley book Edit: I've just seen one and it seems unlikely to be that as he claimed they were used as masthead lamps.
OK, speaking personally:- no; very much doubt it; very much doubt it... I don't think it'll be the X410/410A. If it is, I've got 1% of the total production run here, which seems unlikely if they were all exported to Canada and used on trawler mastheads...
Sounds like a fishermans tale to me. Sailors never used pressure lamps as mast head or any other type of warning lamp for the good and simple reason that they could not be reached if they needed pumping or perhaps pricking. Either operation would have meant taking the lamp down which you don't do when they are required lights. This is why small wick burners with Fresnell lenses survived for these navigation lights much later than you might think. ::Neil::
As I say I was very sceptical when he told me, but sometimes these things have some basis in fact even if the tale isn't wholly correct...
I have not heard of any pressure lamps ever being used as warning lights on ships, but I have heard of Tilley outdoor donut lamps (OL-50 etc.,) being hauled up masts by way of a pulley system. This was to light the deck for gutting fish and other night work, Jeff.
A working lamp is another matter. In use it would be attended at all times and therefore could be lowered to fettle. Warning lamps have to be reliable at all times and an Anchor lamp for instance has to run even if all the crew are asleep. I am not sure what the Board of Trade regulations demanded but I doubt they permitted pressure lamps. ::Neil::
Maritime navigation lamps, including anchor lights, fishing lights and towing lights were all wick until electric superseded them. Even cabin lights were wick in the main, but as Jeff mentioned, some pressure lamps may have been used to illuminate a deck better. Can't see a mantle lasting long in a gale up a mast. Small boat fishing in the Med. might be a different kettle of . . . ., and I'm sure we have all seen such vessels in various places with big lamps hung over the stern to catch fish. I wonder what make they might have used?
The mantles would last for a while if the proper globe was fitted and the type of work which needed the deck lit, would not often have been done during a flying gale. I have seen photos of Petromax clones being used by boat fishermen in the far east, Jeff.
There was a TV advert (for HSBC?) showing fishing with cormorants in the far East. I linked to it in the 'Lamps in Film and Print' sub-forum but the advert is now discontinued. Anyway, a Petromax clone of some sort suspended over the side of the boat attracted the fish and the cormorant dove in, caught them and brought them back on board...
Astro`s SL1 in its auction add pic`s showed a tag which read Tilley Light high powered to attract prawns. Graham::
Point I was making really is that as suggested navigation lights were always wick because they absolutely had to stay lit. A working light is another matter because you can always stop working for a few miinuted to service a pressure lamp. ::Neil::
Looking at this from a different angle are the X410 or the X410A particularly rare lamps or is there a similar lamp that is? Is the 460 a possible candidate? I could certainly see those as useful lights for illuminating the deck... Also does anyone have a picture of one of these beside say an X246B for comparison of the sizes? Whilst his whole story may not have been correct I still wonder if some elements of it are...
Now you're talking about general illumination, as I was originally! In any case, the X460 was just a slight variation of the X458 - the handle was replaced by a strap to allow it to be hung from a screw. I've not seen either the X458 or X460 recently but Neil has shown a picture of those two with an X410 alongside them. IIRC, they're all the same height. Of the three, the X410/410A is, by far, the most common, speaking relatively that is - we're not exactly tripping over them, either. That will be because the X458 and X460 were export models but the X410/410A was produced for the home market. Sorry, X246Bs aren't allowed in the house so an M320 will have to do:-
Indeed, but everyone quickly poured cold water on that original idea.... Don't shoot the messenger I now suspect we are just looking for a relatively rare small Tilley and that the story grew up around it... PS. I have to say I like the look of those smaller lamps, so if nothing else this story has set me a goal for my collection
Well I think that's the smallest lantern tank Tilley managed to make so, without a complete tank redesign (unlikely for such a small production run), that's about as small as it's going to get. In any case, wouldn't you be wanting larger rather than smaller, otherwise you'd be wasting valuable work time filling the damned things up every five minutes... When someone says 'small' I think they're referring to tank capacity and/or light output - 200cp in this case...
