I thought I'd create a separate post for the Bialaddin 320 now it's finished. It's all original apart from the glass which came from the donor Vapalux 320 and the preheater which was broken so I made a new part and soldered it into place. One final lighting check to make sure I didn't disturb anything during the fettling... And as promised, a before and after shot
I've only just noticed, the preheater stand was there when the previous owner posted the listing photos but was missing by the time it got to me! How annoying!
Looks perfect. Is that a plastic pump knob though? Not sure that’s original to Bialaddin or Vapalux, could be off an RM stove or blow lamp.
It certainly is plastic, Bakelite be the look and feel of it. I assumed it was original but maybe not. Anyone else know if the pump handle should be brass or not?
The filler cap is alloy of some sort, probably aluminium. Was that original or a replacement? Just wondering if they started to find ways of lowering the production cost and began fitting cheaper components such as aluminium filler caps and plastic pump handles. I actually tried to unscrew it so I could clean it better but it wouldn't budge!
Hmm, I’ve seen chrome filler caps, but not alloy ones I don’t think. Possibly some of the larger diameter filler caps came in alloy, but I don’t think these small ones did.
First time i see it... I only know this two parts in brass, painted brass or brass with chrome. ... Nice bright lamp! Regards, Frank
What paint did use?? Looks good - I have a 320 with a red top, that I've just stripped back to brass. Might be tempted to paint it as the grey/silver sets the colour of the hood off better than the brass I reckon. Hmmmm....
The colour and finish look pretty much as per the original lanterns - great stuff, Colin. There was an alloy filler cap which was painted to match the tank colour - probably not fitted to the 320 though. They have a very coarse 'knurling' or whatever it's called for gripping (fine would be no use with alloy). I think I've seen them painted in green and purple so probably from the late '40s-early '50s Bialaddin 305s...
I spent a little extra time with the finish, lacquering the silver after it was dry to get the effect I wanted. The original has a very glossy surface, something it's hard to get with silver sprays as they come straight from the can. The filler cap had evidence of silver paint but it had mostly fallen off - aluminium can be like that. The knurling is quite course as you say but I'll leave it in place. Whatever happened to it on lit's journey to me was it's own history so for now it can stay! The black Bakelite pump knob looks very original and I couldn't move it so it could have been cast in position. I could have sprayed that too but decided against it. All in all I'm very happy with my new acquisition and it's fast becoming my current favourite.
A question David... is the frame aluminium? It doesn't feel or look quite right to me and as I cleaned it I began to wonder if they'd used Mazak, or even just plain old zinc as was used for Dinky toy cars. Even when it's been cleaned and polished it stays a dullish grey colour whereas Aluminium would shine beautifully. Just a thought. Mazak would have been slightly easier (and maybe cheaper) to cast.
Hmmm, good question Colin. I'd always assumed they were aluminium but I take your point about the polished finish...
Yes Colin, @ColinG it will most probably be Mazak (or Zamak, it is the same, I don't know why the difference in writing), a mix of aluminium and zinc. This alloy is specifically developed for injection casting. Difficult to get a decent 'shine' to it, much depends on the amount of zinc. I don't think pure aluminium can be injection cast. The process is cheaper as one can make much finer shapes, atmospheric casting would need to be much more heavy. Best regards, Wim
This late (? - see dots) Bialaddin 320 has a plastic / bakelite knob fluent with the concave form of the brass pump cap.
I stand corrected then, must be original. Never seen that, perhaps I just haven’t seen a Bialaddin 320 before. Great something else to start looking out for. I had an old Atlas clone lathe for a while and quite a few parts of that were made from Zamak the screw cutting gears for one but also a gear carrier. Must have been a bad batch though, it crumbled something terrible and I had to machine a new piece from real aluminium. Obviously Willis and Bates got the recipe right.
Interesting. I suspect that, just as Tilley did, Bialaddin tried to reduce the productions costs and started to use cheaper components such as Bakelite knobs and Aluminium filler caps. Good to see mine is not the only one with such things.
Well, as been noted before, aluminum has also been used to make those caps. I only learn this now. But the military might have decided against it, and they were very likely the most important customer. For what was left, the idea to economize with alloy was perhaps not that economic after all? Regards, Mike
So as to confirm that black plastic pump knobs were, at one time, part of the Willis & Bates' catalogue, here's a piccy from a oct.2019 ebay ad. Perhaps only seen around the time Bialaddin lamps became Vapalux items again, so 1966-68 ish. Have not seen these on M-1 models, nor on later 320's. Could have been a last ditch effort to cut down on prices by Aladdin Industries, who must have seen the market for these lamps fall away.
