hi I have a Petromax CP500 that is really not running well, I brought this new and has run well for around 10 hours I have fitted a new mantle this evening I heated the lamp up with meths and turned the fuel on the mate burned around 50 % white and 50% orange with some flame around the mantle the lamp had good pressure etc .... I left the lamp burning for around 20 minutes and it went progressively more orange I put the lamp out and the mantle is now quite sooty and black to be honest I think there is something wrong with the lamp which is really disappointing as it has run les than 10 hours It is running on decent quality paraffin so I am not sure what the issue is ? Any help advise or suggestions would be great Many Thanks Simon Edit Post Reply
Did you check if the gap between the nozzle and the mixing tube is still correct? It happens frequently that the mixing tube gets loose and slides down. Then the kerosene-air mix turns saturated. Usual should be 14mm. But can be increased up to 18mm if necessary. Br willi
Hi simon, check the ceramic nozzle which mantle is attached to has not unscrewed also mixing chamber which nozzle screws into has not done the same they both tend to come loose, also check that jet has not come loose. Hope this helps. Gozzy.
thank you guys for the replies very helpful ! The tube had dropped a lot I had about 5 mm I have now set this to 14.5 New mantle fitted and lit ... Yay no black soot and the mantle burns white ! The mantle is now burning white but only about half way down ? I have tried adjusting the grub screw ai the vaporiser this just feels like it goes round and does not seem to have any effect on the flame or burn etc Any further thoughts greatfully received Thanks again for all the help so far Simon
The screw on the mixing tube operates a butterfly valve. It's operation only affects the burn by a small amount and by design it turns 360°. Check that very thing is tight and make sure that the needle and jet are operating and in good order.
Hi Simon, pls post a photo here, that we better understand the problem. If the mantle is not fully lit, there might be not enough pressure in the tank, or for any other reason not coming enough gas through the jet/nozzle. br willi
Hi Guys Thank you for your suggestions - ALL SORTED !! I decided to strip the lantern down as it just seemed that there was not enough fuel now hitting the mantle .... I felt the top of the jet expecting to feel the wire sticking out - nothing - I removed the jet and expected to find the pricking wire sticking up - it was in fact bent over and kinked up - ahh i managed to straighten this out refitted the jet bent the tube so it was pointing up the u bend ( it was slightly misdirected after I had removed and re fitted ) yet another mantle fitted and fired it up - it is now burning cleanly and brightly as it should !! I think this must have been poorly fitted during assembly - not sure where these are made - some say China - PetroMax tell me Germany .... but I think poor QC was to blame here - bit disappointed that I have had to fix this on a recently purchased low hour lantern but at least it is fixed now. I did notice that once the lantern is shut down there seems to be fuel coming out of the jet for a while - is this normal ? it does stop after a minute or so is the wire suppose to block the jet (as well as the valve on the on off knob) or just clear the hole ?? thanks again for the tips got me thinking in the right direction !! Simon
The usual way to turn it off is to release the pressure in the fount with the air screw and not to rely solely on the foot valve (which is closed when the pricker is up) to cut off fuel flow to the vapouriser. Some Pmax type models without the rapid preheat torch do not have a foot valve.
The only way to stop the lamp operating is to release the pressure by the turn screw on the filler cap.
If it was bought new ten years ago then it was made in Hong Kong. It probably says made in Germany on te tank but that is a lie as they were never more than assembled there after about 1990 ish. You are pretty local to me. About 15 miles maybe. If you would like to come view the pile PM me and we can arrange for you to visit my lamps. ::Neil::
Hi I was keen to know if they were made in Germany as I suspected not so I asked about a year back when I brought the thing - the reply Dear Mr. Pike, Thank you for your message. The Petromax lanterns are produced in Magdeburg, Germany. Mit freundlichen Grüßen / Kind regards +++ Sandra Walther +++ Vertrieb / Sales +++ +++ Petromax GmbH +++ www.petromax.de +++ Sudenburger Wuhne 61 +++ 39116 Magdeburg +++ Germany +++ +++ Telephon: +49 (0)391 400 26 05 +++ Fax: +49 (0)391 400 26 06 +++ Mail: s.walther@petromax.de do you think they are telling me lies ? Cheers Simon
Somewhere on this site there is a link to a film about their their warehouse and "factory" if you like. One can see a large party tent (you might give these things a different name, they are large tents used for, well, parties ) inside the warehouse where a couple of chaps are assembling some lanterns. Everything comes straight out of China, no production at all locally and I suspect the assembling going on is only for the filming of this commercial. It is a bit like the Hardly Worthitson mo-bikes, just an assembly line, nothing more. Best regards, Wim
If they're still made in Germany why did Petromax or whatever parent company drop the " Made in Germany " stamp on the fount to replace it with Regd Germany?? Surely MIG has to be a huge selling point.
Hi Guys to be honest I am not so worried where it was made, just curious really - it is working great again - to me it feels like it was probably made in somewhere other than Germany .... i had to adjust the lantern when brand new as it was bent in the middle - screw loose the wire that pricks the jet all bent inside just smakes of poor assembly and no quality control ... still she is running great again now !! I mess around with Chinese air guns and it is the same they always need something fixing, some smoothing out etc even from new - not sure i would recommend anyone buying one new based on my experiences I do like the quick light feature saves the messing with meths puts out tons of heat so is good for camping I ran it again this evening as I was so pleased to have it running properly again !! A huge thanks to dday for the Petromax mantles they are working a treat as you can see from the picture below Cheers to all Simon
Hi again just wondering I notice there is a stainless nozzle available as an upgrade from the China one ? dose this bring any benefit at all ? I am also interested in a downward reflector but they seem expensive maybe I will have a go at modifying a tin plate or something ? has anyone found a cheap source or had any luck with a DIY solution ??? I have also seen cooking attachments I guess a light kettle could work ? has anyone tried this ?? Cheers Si
Recommendation. Do not usw The stainless steel burne. It will damage The mixing chamber. Stick with The ceramic burner. There is no benefit from The steel one. For a cheap top reflektor, Google for santrax lampenschirm at a German army.wear seller armeeversand.de Less than 10€. Identic quality to The petromax item. I would not apply a stove top to The px lanter. Instead rather look for a true stove. Kerosene or gasoline. Regards Willi
Hi Thanks for the tips I have a few stoves already Optimus Seva and Coleman .... The thought was when camping we often have a lantern on why not use the heat to make tea since it is on anyway ... I will look at the reflector when near my PC and see if I can translate from German ! Ideally I would like brass my quick google only found silver Cheers Simon
Check out starklicttechnik.de and stuga cabana. These guys know everything. I'm of the opinion that the new reflectors are coated steel be it brass or chrome. Stainless steel and steel cooking adapters are available with the latter half the price. I recently bought one from Martin at Starklicttechnik.
hi thanks for the mail I have tried starklicttechnik.de but get a message that the web site cannot be found ... any thoughts many thanks Simon
Hi thanks for the links Sadly I don't speak any German so am struggling a bit with the pages ... I would like to get a brass reflector for my CP500 but I am worried I would order the wrong thing Cheers Simon
thanks guys still quite expensive I think 32 Euro plus postage .... I can get off ebay for £27 so around the same cheers simon
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/301435365974?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&var=600386452398&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Sounds expensive ! Here the part of Stuga: P-21360 Reflektorschirm verchromt · 350·500 18,50 € 18,50 So 18,50 for a 500cp chrome reflector.
Hytta still More expensive than santrax top reflector from armeeversand. But also he wants to get The brass Version. I fuess there is no cheap alternative. Br willi
Hi does anyone have a link for a brass reflector fo the 500 for less than the £27 I would have to pay to get an eBay one ? The lantern is brass so I think a brass reflector would look best Thanks Simon
