I managed to find this Tilley for under a tenner - who could resist? (just don't tell the wife) This is my first X246 and from research I think it was made between 1957 & 1961. No name stamps on the side of the tank but looks like it has a very faint date stamp on the bottom. Although I'm happy stripping down and servicing X246 B's I've never done an X246 before so will be proceeding slowly!
In my opinion, a more straightforward fettle than the X246B. Good for under a tenner. I'm curious about the date you think it has stamped on it. The hood is brown, and of the original shape for that kind of hood (ie one 'lip' rather than two). Let us know what the stamping says. Have fun! Cheers Tony
I think the styling at the top end of the cage dates it earlier. Going to say 1949 - 1954. But others more knowledgeable will provide the correct answer.
The handle attachment would suggest earlier - up to about 1954/5 There's not a great deal of difference. The NRV is plain (as opposed to shaped) and sits in a small brass cup. Also, the control cock sits in a small brass collar which allows the knob to be positioned between the brass uprights. I've never had to do it so I've not bothered to figure it out but, apparently, it's not difficult. Gneiss published a 'how-to guide on here, somewhere. Hope that helps... Edit: crossed with Stuart...
Scouter Bill, when you have bought these back to life, are they used by the scout group? or are some "reserved"
We orignially started with two Tilley X246Bs which were going to be chucked out because according to the previous leader they were "unrepairable"! We now have 12 X246B's, 2 Bullfinch Gas Lights and 8 Hurricane Lamps which have been donated or purchased very cheaply at boot sales/ebay and then bought back to life. Cubs are taught how to use the Hurricane lamps as an introduction to fuelled lamps and when they are Scouts they progress on to Tilleys which counts towards their badgework. As a result of this we hardly use battery lights at camp anymore and the Scouts enjoy using the Tilleys (no shortage of volunteers to light them) I have four Bialaddins and one Anchor light in my collection (and now the X246) I use these to show the different types of pressure lamps out there and often a patrol leader will get to use one. My current favourite is my Bialaddin 310 and that is my "personal" one when on camp. I find for scout work the Tilleys are pretty robust and stand up to a lot of abuse. When nosing around bootsales if I can get even "dead" Tilleys cheaply it's useful to build up some spares. Whilst on the subject I would really like to encourage all you Lampers out there - if you have a local Scout Group near you why not show them what you have or share your knowledge? A lot of groups have a pressure lamp or two lurking in the back of their stores and often the lamps are seen as a "mystic" art. All the groups near me are now using their Tilleys (I wonder why!) as they are proving cheaper than forking out for batteries or disposable gas cylinders. I'll get off my soapbox now!
Trevor (Shagratork) and I did that a few times many years ago for a fairly local Scout Group - the pictures are on CCS if you want to look for them. It was a bit of a trial, to be honest, and not really worth all the effort. There were insurance issues, exacerbated by Trevor having the biggest flare-up I've ever seen - about 10-12 feet high! We weren't allowed to have them light anything so no opportunity for teaching or learning. Their only interest was seeing the biggest lamp (an FL6) lit up and five seconds later they were bored. For me as an ex-teacher, coping with about 50 screeching 10-12 year old kids on a Friday night was just too much. Nein danke.
Bit of a shame that and why they were not allowed to light anything is beyond me ! Our lot would ceretainly get bored just watching a lots of lamps being lit up but would be queueing up to light them... (and they would certainly relish a flare up!) Some of the younger Scouts are a bit wary about lighting Tilleys so we let them use the Hurricane Lamps instead until they build up their confidence. Our Beaver colony (6 year olds) are introduced to "live flame" and the safety aspects with the use of Tealights and then melting a marshmallow over the flame. On the insurance side I'm not quite sure what was going on there - If the activity has had a proper risk assessment etc etc etc then I can't really see a problem. We do however try to use the lamps outside or the hall's smoke detectors start going into overtime and theres less of a lingering smell of meths and paraffin......
Oh yes, I'd forgotten, there was all that administrative/bureaucratic/red tape nonsense, too - parental permission required, no photographs showing minors etc. Still, I'd probably do it again on a much smaller scale for the local group - about 400 metres away - although I suppose I'd now need to be CRB-checked again (sigh)...
If you are not going to be with young people on their own then you shouldn't need to be crb checked. If you were coming to us all you would have to do is walk through the door -we would have done the rest and we'd have asked beforehand what you needed. Sounds like you had to deal with a bit of a "Jobsworth". Let us know if you are ever coming to East Sussex!
Update: I've given the tank a good scrub and what I thought were numbers are just scratches. There is no makers stamp or numbers anywhere on the tank. does that narrow down the possible date of manufacture?
The guys are right. Tilley started to stamp the tank sides in 1954 and added a date stamp in the base plate from October 1956. Your lamp without any stamps and that loop attachment for the handle places it from 1949 to 1954 for sure. This means the quality of the parts will be good but the burner may be worn internally and might need replacing. ::Neil::
Scouter Bill, you sound as if you run scouts as it should be run, with safety but responsibility for the Scouts themselves. So i salute you and would encourage you to always lee that up. My little one is coming along in age now so it won't be long before I get involved again in what has given me a lifetime of experience and the love of the outdoors.
Thank you for the kind comment. I'm in Scouts to help young people achieve -as simple as that. I'm hope your little one enjoys Beavers!
