I have a Coleman 200A from 1951 I'm going to rebuild. First time working on a lantern. As I initially tried pumping it up, air was escaping out a small hole in the filler cap. The hole is not threaded. Would a new filler cap gasket seal up this hole on the inside. See pics. Thanks.
wow a very nice one for sure;tats a christmas lantern coleman made for a few years ;i have one as well 'if your not really sure of these things look on the bottom and it will give the date an year it was made ; the problem you are having with the air leaking is the fuel cap might need a new leather ;it goes under neath where the cap is screwed on to the tank ;i have an extra cap a one piece if you can use it; hope this helps mine is dated 6-51 ;no decals till the later year
yep looking at the photo again there is no gasket under the cap;those can be found on e-bay or another member might have one as im out of them;
This one has 8 51 stamped on the bottom. I guess that's August 1951. Yeah, I guess the filler cap gasket is missing. Darn, that means I don't get to break out the torch to extract the old one Is the three piece cap dangerous? I read on oldcolemanparts.com that the one-piece replacement is recommended if you're gonna use the lantern. Three-piece only good for display due to safety reasons. Do most people replace the generator, check valve, stem, and packing when rebuilding or just clean and replace as necessary? The generator's the only thing more than $10; does it make a big difference in the output to use a new one? Thanks for the help.
than you have a good one if thats the dates no they arent dangerous ive been restoring and collecting for years colemans akrons and irons kerosene ;stoves and so much more the cost of the 200 generators have gone up thought coleman like more items;on yours you can always use a 0-ring in the cap till you find the correct gasket i used them and they work great;i prefer the one picec cap as times its hard to get that little screw out to replace the gasket ;as i mentioned i do have a spare cap a 1 piece and a extra generator used but it should work fine ;and yes i have several of the 200 reds ;you really dont need a torch to get the old gasket out;just put the cap in a vise if you have one or screw it really tight on a lantern than use a flat screw driver to turn the screw out some come out easy where others are really rusted in some oil will help 'hope this helps ;the one i have i stripped it down clean the burner and frame plus the valve assembly a fresh coat of green that is so close to the coleman green ;than fired it up took a picture than drained it and its on the shelve with the others ;i even have one thats my mrs birthday the black band 8-52 10 bucks at the flea market no globe but i had a spare;hope this helps ;dean
the out put on a new generator is always the best but i clean my old ones and they work just as fine as a new one;i have used both the 3 piece and the 1 piece never any problems just the darn gasket replacing at times;
again i have never had any issues or problems with the 3 piece ;you cant really believe everything you hear or read;
Greetings and welcome to the group! About the dangerous part. Are you referring to this post over at CCF? If so, I think it's a bit of a stretch. Let me give you my thoughts... 1) First of all, one is violating all rules of safety by releasing pressure in a lantern while the mantles are still glowing (or perhaps still very hot). Regardless of the cap, the cloud of flammable vapor released can easily ignite. 2) Under normal usage, it's virtually impossible to get liquid fuel released out of the fuel cap when venting it. It's all air at that level and that's what comes out. I've had caps pop like a champagne cork and never got liquid. There are two ways I can imagine that you would get liquid fuel when venting: a) The lantern is tilted so much toward the fill hole while you are venting, that fuel is backed up under the cap. (don't do that!) b)The lantern is tilted while adding fuel so that you can fill it really full. (It's in the instructions, don't do that!) Both of these scenarios are improper use of the lantern. There's a reason for the collar around the fill hole which goes down into the tank (making it difficult to completely drain the tank). It's there to set the proper maximum fuel level. You stop adding fuel when you see it at the base of that collar. I actually like the three piece cap. It's doesn't twist the washer as you tighten it down, it makes replacing the washer easier than the one piece, and I like the venting hole. I'll bet you dollars to doughnuts that there is still a lot of old washer down in that cap. I find it much easier dealing with the washer replacement if I take the cap apart. You can then clean it up, especially the surfaces at the bottom of the cap and the top of the washer holder. The easiest way to do this is to put the cap on really hand tight. This will usually keep the two cap pieces tight to each other and enable you to remove the screw with a big properly sized screw driver. You can then torch away without fear of melting the cap paint. Personally I always replace the generator when starting fresh, unless it looks to be in really good shape. As you say they are cheap. I seldom (once) replace the check valve. In Colemans there is virtually nothing to go wrong there. If the little stainless steel ball in there is stuck, you will usually be able to free it up with carb cleaner or lacquer thinner. The packing at the valve and/or pricker also seldom needs to be replaced. Carefully tightening the packing nut usually seals them up. I do this only if the packing joints are leaking while the lantern is running. Keep an eye on these points when you first fire up an unknown lantern. You should of course do a leak test with the tank under pressure in a bucket of water well before this point. You should oil the leather in the pump or replace it if it's ripped or otherwise does not pump air into the tank. The only other part that sometimes needs work is the fuel/air tube (the instant start mechanism). This tube is located inside the tank and once in a while (rarely) it gets stuck. Good luck, Dan
Thanks all. I think what Dan wrote regarding improperly loosening the cap of a hot lantern is probably why this page (http://www.oldcolemanparts.com/resources/safety.php) #16 says not to use it. Like you said, I don't have to worry bout that if you don't unscrew the cap while hot still. I'll proceed with just getting a new gasket and clean up the other old parts like you said and see if any of them need replacing as I go. Thank you!!!
The hole in the filler cap provides a very essential service that you need. When you have a gasket properly in place, the tank seals nicely. If there is pressure in the tank when you begin to loosen the fuel cap, the hole vents the pressure to the side instead of having the cap (and possibly fuel) flying in your face. It's not too difficult to cut a gasket from cork from an auto supply store.
Yep, in my view it's just sheer stupidity to vent a gasoline or Coleman-fuelled lantern (or whatever) whilst it's still hot. The fault's not with the cap, it's with the operator. I think a similar situation applied when someone had an accident when lighting a Coleman lantern. In that case, the spark ignitor fitted to the lantern took the blame and Colemen went through hoops removing them from as many lanterns as possible. Apparently what had happened was that the operator hadn't fully turned off the lantern between lighting attempts and the globe had filled with vapour. As far as I can see, any source of ignition he then used was then bound to result in a flare-up/explosion or whatever it was...
Do the cracks in this pump leather warrant replacing it? Do you replace just the leather or the whole pump? I don't see how the leather would come off the way the pump has a piece of metal retainer on the end.
That square retainer should screw off just like nut. Get a pair of pliers in there, it should come off. That leather is shot and should be replaced. It also looks like it was too big originally as you can see the folds in the leather in the upper picture. That's what happens when you squeeze an oversize leather into a pump tube and usually results in lees than optimum sealing. Dan
Yes, either an oversize pump-leather or possibly the sheet it was made from was a bit too thick resulting in the crinkled folds when it was moulded into shape. It doesn't look to have been cut out too well so I'm guessing it was an amateur job...
I have gotten parts from Lanternking (eBay) and also from Old Coleman Parts website. Both were great to deal with. Ken in NC
That does not appear to be an original Coleman fitting. You certainly do need to replace the leather, but I'm thinking you might want to check the bay for the rest of the end bits.
That pump assembly (and the square nut) is the real Coleman deal. It's part #200A5201 and was used in many Coleman models. Below is a picture from my 1955 Coleman 220 and also a snippet from the 1955 parts catalog for a 200A. Dan
I got around to finishing up restoring this 1951 Coleman 200A. Here's the finished product. Thanks everyone for the help. Next up is an old DayLite kero-burner. It's nickel plated and has the preheater torch. Very cool lantern.
