Hi Guys Was wondering if someone could guide me in the right direction with regard to a tilley lamp I've aqcuired and am looking to sell. The picture pretty much sums up what I've got and I was looking for a guide price for what it might be worth if I stick it on ebay. It includes 2 spare vaporizers, 4 mantles, 2 spirit cans, 2 plastic spirit bottles, a small brass tube (don't know what that is) and original instruction leaflet. It's brand new and has only been taken out of the box to take the picture. There are no marks or dents etc. Many thanks in advance...
It's not a Tilley lamp - as you say in the title, it's an M320 made by Willis & Bates. Sorry but we don't do valuations here. Best to look at completed auctions on eBay to see what these usually go for. Hope that helps...
Ok thanks for your reply... I used the term Tilley as my very limited knowledge of the subject thought that was a generic term, evidently not, I apologise. I have searched eBay, but unfortunately couldn't find one in this condition with the included spares, so was unable to find a comparative price. Thanks anyway, I'll just have to list it and leave it in the lap of the gods I guess.
Yes, the word 'tilley' is often used by the general public in this country as a generic term to refer to paraffin pressure lamps, even though they weren't made by the Tilley company and sometimes use other fuels. In much the same way, camping stoves are 'primuses', vacuum cleaners are 'hoovers' and so on. But it's as well to have it right and your lantern is more correctly a Vapalux M320. Given the vagaries of eBay, who knows what it will sell for, which is why we don't attempt to give valuations here. I've seen those lanterns in the same condition as yours listed from £30 to £150 - the cheap ones get snapped up and the expensive ones don't sell. I've seen them at car boot sales from about £20. Willis & Bates were selling them at the factory for (IIRC) about £80 but a bit less if they wanted to make a sale that day and more if you dealt with them by post. So who knows what it's really 'worth' - in actuality, what someone is prepared to pay for it on the day... The extra vapourisers will certainly help you make a sale given these lanterns are so ubiquitous, particularly as the Army sells off batches from time-to-time. Best of luck with it, though - they're excellent lanterns!
To give it the best chance make sure you list it correctly... Incorrectly listed items often don't make as much.
Hi Arkwright The alternative energy selling is to keep it and use it. They are fantastic lanterns and who knows where this could lead to once you have been bitten by the lampitis bug. Regards, Jeremy
Think he's already gone, but he did manage to advertise his lamp. Hands up who looked for his Ebay listing.
Not me! - got the link? Assuming everyone can manage to do an eBay search for themselves, I'll save you the bother - here.
Is it just me or are prices for complete lamps on Ebay, on the rise? I bought my first two on Ebay for next to nothing, and I'd quite like another Guardsman as a 'user' but there doesn't seem to be much about for less than £45 or so. I know these lamps don't necessarily sell, but it seems the expectation is there.
To be honest I don't really keep track of eBay prices... You can certainly pick them up cheaper sometimes even free elsewhere.
There might be an abundance of run of the mill stuff on our doorsteps but for others it might not be so easy. Items that are complete, working and in good condition are always likely to fetch a good price.
Well, that's one of the advantages of eBay, that it's effectively advertising to a global audience so demand for desirable items (and hence, price) will be higher. The downside is the cost - not only both eBay and PayPal but also the cost (and hassle) of international postage which for me at least is now prohibitive. Long gone are the days when I would buy stuff from abroad or engage in international swops with other collectors...
Yes but not so much because of the cost; the buyer would be paying that. Mainly because of the hoops you have to jump through these days and the risk of having the item impounded by Customs due to their highly unscientific views on what constitutes a danger i.e. pressure vessels that can't possibly pressurise and, literally, a few molecules (if any) of hydrocarbon substance - bah! Rant over...
Jet engine fuel is only glorified Esso blue but I should think there would be many lampfulls in their tanks. If I were in the driving seat I think I would be more concerned about my fuel than a bit of Old spice or a couple of Ronsons in the baggage compartment. Rant over.
