Inspired to some extent by John's daylight meander:- Snow Trek - with a lantern | Classic Pressure Lamps & Heaters For my usual midnight meander around the village, I thought I might replace my usual LED torch with a Vapalux 320. This one has been hanging around here for ages but was already fitted with a viable mantle and had fuel in the tank so it looked as though I'd used it at some point in the dim and distant past. This was re-inforced when I found it still had pressure in the tank from the last time I'd used it but clearly that meant all the seals were holding. The only slight problem was the NRV appeared to be stuck but the first firm pump-stroke freed that off. One quick prime later, it burst into life - hurrah! Anyway... Fort Apache, The Bronx a.k.a. the Community Centre. It was temporarily closed in late December 2019 because it was in the process of an asset transfer from the County Council to the Parish Council when Covid hit and hasn't re-opened. A rather better standard of architecture - Christ Church. I lit this rather more successfully for the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2012:- The 'dead centre' of Great Lumley, photographed by hanging the lantern over the wall:- The Junior School:- The former Infant School, now a sports and social club - not lit by the Vapalux, obviously:- The former garage and service station, now the site of three bungalows housing the former owners:- It'll look better when it's finished! Two of the locals, somehat temporary residents, I fear:- An unusual garden ornament:- ...and Chez Moi:- The lantern ran faultlessly throughout and even drew an admiring comment from a fellow wanderer...
Amazing looks so bright Still learning about pressure lamps, but already I'm forming the opinion that Tillies and vapalux are tough reliable old workhorses, I dug out my old 246 recently and decided just to try it with the paraffin which had been in there for over 15 years, fired up in no time, and burned brightly.
Yes, the Vapalux ran for a couple of hours on the old fuel before I went out. I replenished the tank (with some of Trevor's barbeque lighter fluid!) just before I ventured out into the snowy wastes...
Yes, the Vapalux ran for a couple of hours on the old fuel Well my grandfather used to say "there's no fuel like an old fuel"
@David Shouksmith Ah, you meant it, traipsing with a pressure lantern. Well done you! Another member of The Night Watch. John
Thought traipsing was a Scottish word. Must find a suitable word in the doric for my night-time wander. I think this is a brilliant topic and John’s might be hard to beat. More please!
1590s, of uncertain origin, perhaps from dialectal French trepasser "pass over or beyond," from Old French trespasser "cross, traverse, transgress" (see trespass). Or from a source related to Middle Dutch trappen, dialectal Norwegian trappa "to tread, stamp" (see trap (n.)). Liberman points out that it resembles German traben "tramp" "and other similar verbs meaning 'tramp; wander; flee' in several European languages. They seem to have been part of soldiers' and vagabonds' slang between 1400 and 1700. In all likelihood, they originated as onomatopoeias and spread to neighboring languages from Low German." Related: Traipsed; traipsing.
Due respect to Fireexit1, but I suspect David's sojourn may be more appropriately labelled "Gannin aboot a bit under the meun wi' a lantern like". As a relative southerner, what is that white stuff on the ground? None of my lanterns cause that. Is it peculiar to GL?
What an excellent idea to go for a peripatetic stroll around your local habitat and the snow contributes to the photogenic pictures we see ... the Vapalux lamp belting out the lumens tops it all ... nice
