Hi my name is Thomas, new to collecting pressure lamps I recently found a AGM 256-A at a flea market; it was intact with original shade and ceiling hanging bracket and so it came home with me. I have been restoring Aladdin and flat wick lamps for years but this will be the first pressure lamp (other than the hord of colman lanterns I have in the garage) I have found. I have since disassembled the lamp and stripped the four coats of paint the years have given it and found a few stress cracks I need to solder. I also will replace all the orings as the have turned to dust. The only picture I have for now was taken before disassembly I had removed the shade and placed it somewhere safe before taking the lamp to the garage.
Those 4 layers of paint were applied in the factory. Looks like it was a nice original condition finish. Still if you have stress cracks it was never going to survive the solder repairs. Good working lamps these and you can fit a Coleman R55 generator if the original is shot. ::Neil::
It had a color rainbow the brown was sticky feeling alkyd enamel it then lead to a gold that I believe was a lacquer then to a red and finally a slighty differnt red that was hard to remove. The wood handel was only painted with the brown. The generator is in good shape but it is good to know I have an option should this one fail.
I found five cracks all were undercut and drilled then soldered, I only had time to file and sand one before the Mrs. Reminded of a social engagement we had to attend.
Welcome. Thomas. If you intend pressurising that fount again it is highly recommended to coat the inside with an epoxy sealer like Caswells or POR15. There is a very real risk of a fuel leak and a fire when stress fractures have occurred in a fount, no matter how well repaired with soft solder.
Hi Thomas, welcome aboard, heaps of experience and knowledge here. Looking forward to seeing your lamp after fettling. Cheers Peter
Hello again, It's been awhile since my last post. I herniated a disk in my back and was out of action for the last few months. I did manage to coat the inside of the font with Redkote and pressure tested it. Then sprayed it with 2k high build epoxy and sanded it out with 400. My first plan was to use automotive paint and clear for the fuel resistance it provides but for now tremclad will have to suffice. All the components that get handled regularly I polished and the handle has two coats of tongue oil on it. When assembling the burner what do you use as a thread sealant? Or is it just a metal on metal seal?
Looking good. You don't need a sealer on the burner threads. Just clean the threads and screw them up. That part of the lamp is actually a low pressure system and you don't have to worry about leaks. If there are any you are not likely to see them and in any case they will be very minor and will just burn off without affecting the performance of the lamp. ::Neil::
