Whoohoo! I bought a complete Akron 101/102 lamp today. Tank has no dents/cracks; has minor surface corrosion but the gas valve looks great. i was able to remove the generator and filler cap. It will hold pressure but the filler cap leaks. tank needs cleaning i hear debris. Does anyone else use vinegar and BBs in steel tanks to remove rust? Rinse with alcohol or old fuel to prevent flash rusting? Where does one get gaskets for the one-way air filler valve?
@Kevin Goyer I use citric acid solution and steel ball bearings and/or steel nuts for badly rusted tanks. I rinse with citric acid solution, then kerosene. I keep the same lead on the filler washer, or replace it with Viton if it’s too damaged. Try Old Coleman Parts for any spares. Cheers Tony
It should clean up nicely I have used diluted vinegar (1 - 1 with water) but I prefer citric acid now.
Thanks to you all for your guidance. I cleaned with vinegar and all the corrosion washed off then filled the fount with same and shook around for five minutes. Some chunks and rust dust came out. It looks very nice although i found two cracks in the tank. Have i a parts lamp now? Everything else looks great. I don’t mind looking for a parts tank.
Pressurized Akron #2 font to 10 psi and the lamp started leaking from one of the cracks. A candidate for electrification i suppose. So i robbed the fuel valve and generator for Akron #1. The fiber control knob is in better shape. I had to clean the generator tip several times because it wanted to clog.
