Butterfly No. 4D 500/600CP mantles

Discussion in 'Pressure Lamp Discussion Forum' started by ColinG, Dec 1, 2018.

  1. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    These just arrived this morning so as promised I'll give you all a preview.

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    I did not know they would be Butterfly branded until they arrived and actually this is positive as I've had good experiences with their products so far. 10x mantles cost me approximately £2.50 inc postage.

    They seem to be copies of Coleman mantles but they are quite a bit larger. Here are some Gold top 21As for comparison. The Butterfly is on the right.

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    The material feels identical and is rayon I think (can someone verify this?).

    Here is a Peerless 24-A on the left with the Butterfly 4D on the right.

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    Some measurements for comparison.

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    I used my 639 to perform the test as it worked OK before with a Butterfly No. 41 as seen here....

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    Fitted ready to burn in the mantle.

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    And after priming with meths/denatured alcohol, here is the result...

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    The last photo was stopped down so you can see the mantle in operation - it wasn't really that dull! Actually, this is by far the brightest light I've got out of any Coleman Lamp so far! In bright sunshine it left spots in my eyes when I looked at it!

    The only minor negative was the drawer strings which feel a little weak although it didn't break and I put it under some tension when I was tying it on.

    I have to say these seem very good and I have already ordered some more in case some future trade war with China makes them unobtainable.

    Colin
     
  2. MYN

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    I have a some of these too, Colin. Similar in packing and appearance as yours except without the Chinese words/characters. Mine are radioactive. What about yours?
    I don't have any Peerless 24-A. How does the Butterfly compare to Peerless in terms of the light?
     
  3. JEFF JOHNSON

    JEFF JOHNSON United Kingdom Subscriber

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    It's working well!:thumbup:
     
  4. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    I haven't yet used any of my Peerless 24-A's yet so I can't say, but they look so similar I wouldn't be able to tell them apart.
     
  5. Crater Eddie United States

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    I have ordered some via the US link provided in the other thread, hope they turn out to be as good as these.
    CE
     
  6. bp4willi

    bp4willi Germany Subscriber

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    My impression was, quality varies more than in other brands.
     
  7. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    That maybe true but so far I've only bought one pack of 10! I'll report what I find when I get more.
     
  8. HighlandDweller

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    These are interesting mantles, good quality and thoriated, I first came across them some time ago and and since then they have become very popular. One word of warning, the Th232 Dioxide they are made with is old, my geiger counter responds to these like it does to mantles that are a few decades old.

    I have had these arrive in both plain packaging and Butterfly branded packaging, but as so many mantles coming out of china are marked as Butterfly and vary so hugely in quality I would not pay much heed to the branding.

    If you are going to use them then do burn them off outside and let them run for half an hour to an hour before taking them inside, after that they are no more radioactive than mantles made with fresh Th232 Dioxide.

    I would also extend that advice to any mantle older than a couple of decades, although Th232 has a very long half life, it only takes forty years for all of the daughter Isotopes of TH232 to be present and not all are alpha emitters.
     
  9. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    Very interesting! I generally burn off all my mantles out in the garage so SWMBO does not smell anything, but the half an hour suggestion is good. Thanks.
     
  10. MYN

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    Buy them while you could still get the Thoriated ones.
    Things change in no time these days. Before you know it, these might no longer be available to you or they just might stop the production of radioactive mantles without prior notice.
     
  11. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    I have another 30 on order and will probably buy another 30 or more in the new year!
     
  12. Crater Eddie United States

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    Interestingly, the description in the eBay listing says that they are "Non-radiative" which I assumed meant that they are not radioactive. But if they are indeed Thoriated then that's icing on the cake. I'm certainly looking forward to testing them.
    CE
     
  13. Chip Packard United States

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  14. MYN

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    @Chip Packard
    Those mantles are the globular type, different from Colin's, which are more elongated.
    All of them vary considerably in consistency. Some would shrink more than others.
    Genuine Butterfly mantles such as those 500cp ones available from St Paul Mercantile would shink somewhat less.
     
  15. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    This look more like the standard Butterfly mantles I buy quite regularly, although I've stopped because I've got 'plenty' (hundreds!) of them now! They do shrink quite a bit!
     
  16. Nils Stephenson

    Nils Stephenson Founder Member

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    Yes I bought some very cheap Butterfly branded mantles a while ago and they shrink a lot. I find the 500cp mantles work fine on a 350cp lamp, 350cp mantles work on a 200cp lamp etc.
     
  17. Crater Eddie United States

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    Mine finally arrived this morning, they are packaged as Butterfly 4D as well.
     
  18. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    @Crater Eddie let us know how they perform. By the way, the most recent ones I've received have a star printed on them. I've also noticed that even when burnt in, they remain quite flexible.
     
  19. Crater Eddie United States

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    I'll be trying them out over the weekend, will report my thoughts in a few days. The ones I received also have the star printed on them, with the word "STAR" printed above it. If they are any good at all I'll most likely order a few more packets as I run one or two lanterns for a few hours most nights and go through several mantles in a year's time.
    CE
     
  20. MYN

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    Apparently, most of these Butterfly mantles are quite well-made. Relatively inexpensive and surprisingly bright.
    No doubt the quality still varies from batch to batch but no complaints. What more could you ask for that kind of price?
    If you stretch out the mantles before pre-burn, they are likely to form better.
    Pre-burn with the most feeble and coolest of flames. Allow to cool down before re-lighting the pre-heat for the lantern. They would shrink somewhat less compared to a strong/hotter pre-burn.
     
  21. Crater Eddie United States

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    My first impression of these Butterfly 4D mantles is very good. I had just put a new Peerless mantle on my Coleman 639 lantern a few days before they arrived... I couldn't bear to destroy a nice Peerless just to test out an unknown so I tied a pair up above the burner caps on a Coleman 295 Dual Fuel Powerhouse lantern then secured into the cap groove with a bread tie wire. They filled out to a nice bulb shape and gave off a very bright almost white light with just a bit of a green tint to it, much nicer than the orange light the current Coleman mantles produce. This lantern is one of my daily runners, I use a 50/50 mix of Crown Camp fuel (Naptha) and Regular Unleaded Gasoline in it, this might have an effect on the light color, especially as compared to kerosene. If these prove to be durable at all they will be my new go-to mantles. I have placed an order for more of these plus a few of the pink topped ones to try out as well.
    Interestingly, the STAR word and graphic survived the burn in and can be seen on the mantles when not lit, and also when lit but adjusted down to low intensity.
    Many thanks to Colin for bringing these mantles to our attention.
    CE
     
    Last edited: Jan 7, 2019
  22. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    It's a pleasure.
     
  23. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    I now have about 60x 4D mantles, about the same of the 41s plus some superior quality Peerless and a bunch of others so I reckon I'm good for a few years! I might need to stock up on Peerless double tie mantles for the Bialaddins and Tilleys at some point though!
     
  24. MYN

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    If these are Thoriated, I'd say you should keep it somewhere safe and well-ventilated. There are more than Beta particles to cause concern.
    I bet there'll be some Radon and other decay products as well.
    If you're stocking up some bulk, an air-tight enclosure is not exactly ideal. My though is, after awhile, those radioactive stuff would build up and accumulate within the enclosure. Once anyone opens it, he or she would be exposed to an unusually strong burst of radiation.
    I'm not sure if that's equivalent to the amount of curse a thief gets for opening up the tomb of a Pharaoh.
     
  25. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    I think the mantles do not contain any radioactivity but I will check the description again. Has anyone bought some of these mantles who has a Geiger counter?
     
  26. MYN

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    I've bought some of those, Colin. They are radioactive as most of the older mantles, shown from a Geiger counter.
    I couldn't find the photo which I took for the test.
    Yours might or might not be as they sell both radioactive and non-radioactive ones(Butterfly).
    My guess is that since you've described before that they are very bright or white, its likely to be Thoriated. Otherwise, the light colour would not differ much from a Coleman No.21 non-radioactive mantle.(slight orange-yellow).
     
  27. MYN

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    My No. 41 are non-radioactive while my No. 4Ds are:
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  28. David Shouksmith

    David Shouksmith United Kingdom Founder Member

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    I found a precautions leaflet from some radioactive mantles just the other day. The advice was not to eat them (you'd have to be very hungry!) and not keep them in your pockets for any length of time. I presume most especially not your trouser pockets i.e. near to your b******s... =; :whistle:
     
  29. ColinG

    ColinG United Kingdom Subscriber

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    I keep thinking of Christmas tree decorations for some reason! :lol:
     
  30. Tony Press

    Tony Press Australia Subscriber

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    Bentleys?
     

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