My nice shinny new Petromax HK500 worked ok, but had a fault in that it very quickly lost pressure. I was a little worried that a brand new lamp would prove to be as problematic as an old one... I reached out to Petromax and they suggested a number of faults it could be and I was able to track it down to the pressure relief needle. When I told them that was the problem they shipped from Germany a whole new pressure gauge, which was very nice of them and sorted the problem.
No offence, but the old lamps are by far better than the new lamps in my opinion. My first Petromax was a 829b from 1959, just had to tighten the jet and it worked fine after so many years packed away. Owners of new lamps complain of lack of quality control. Congratulations on your buy and greeting from Ireland!!
Non taken. Compared to the Optimus 300, which I think could be over 80 years old and the most similar in design in my small collection, there's a world of difference in quality and attention to detail - on the pressure relief screw, on one side its says Optimus, the other it says Stokholm, and everything works well. Just a pity about the Black Mantle disease. I think what lets the Petromax down is the plastic - seems a bit, well plasticy and the pump isn't that great.
Yes, I'd tend to agree. In a nutshell and in general, the old lamps were built up to a standard whereas the new stuff is built down to a price...
I'm going to reserve judgement until I get to play with an old Petromax :-) I'm sure there's a little bit of snobbishness which I've experienced before: My new(ish) Land Rover Defender with a modern engine is apparently not as good as the old ones because its faster, doesn't break down and I don't get wet when it rains. My new Gaggia coffee machine isn't as good as my old one because they're made in Romania rather than Italy these days, despite it having a more powerful pump and boiler.
Hello Matthew, I drive a 1998 Subaru with 286,000 MILES on it. (Or, and I like to think of it, one light-second of distance.) I'm using a 10-year-old laptop running XP to type this. Seriously, I'd prefer new and improved if it was in the budget! Retirement is the art of doing as much as possible for as little as possible. I have seen some of the newer Pmax lanterns to compare to the older. While the older are stouter, I'd be hard-pressed to say that they perform better. The new Tilleys (especially the vapourizers) are lacking for sure. But they work. Enjoy your technology, be it young or old.
I agree that they just don't make them like they used to. The black mantle disease on your Optimus can probably be cured with a new jet and/or a thorough cleaning of the vapouriser. Then it will be good for another 50+ years
I have to say the Optimus has been the most entertaining lantern because it doesn't work properly - a new jet is the next thing to try. May also get a smaller size just to see as well - postage tends to be more than the item, so might as well :-) But am interested in the new and old - I also bought a Feuerhand Hurricane lantern, basically because a colour brochure came with the Petromax and if something like that sits on my desk long enough I usually end up ordering it :-) But I was curious, having spent £1 on a Hurricane Lantern (from a pound shop) in the past.....what did I get if I blew £15 on a posh one actually made in Germany. Could actually spend a lot more if I'd wanted a painted one, but I decided that its not that important a life style choice. The difference is its quite a well built little lantern - has 'Made in West Germany' imprinted on the side, so I guess they're using the same press to stamp out the shapes.
The next thing to try... It's one of the first things you replace. No wonder people are having problems with their lamps today when they don't exchange the normal wear parts (not directed to you specifically Matthew, but people in general). When these apparatus actually wwas used for real, the jets were exchanged on a regular basis. Just as a good clean of the vapouriser (or probably a swap there too).
Do manufacturers normally state how long a jet or vapouriser will last? Reading through an old Wizard manual it states that the No20 generator will last between 200 -400 hours burn time and the No130 and ARC generators will last 500 to 600 hours burn time.
>No wonder people are having problems with their lamps today when they don't exchange the normal wear parts But if you don't know... My Petromax came with a tool kit, spare needle and a jet, but there's nothing in the manual to say what to do with them, or when they would need to be replaced. Its part of the interest in these lanterns though - re-learning what has been forgotten.
