Hi Folks, Had an interesting day chasing down an unused Vapalux M320... The man said he bought it from civil defence stock that was being sold off in the 1990s. Any information would be much appreciated. he's got another one to sell too.... Stevie
Stevie, M320 civilian...not much age to it and pretty common but one I often recommend to friends as a no nonsense reliable, easy to light, usable lamp. My understanding was civilian silver or military green? Yours is English made which is good, you can still buy new ones but production has moved to the far east (Korea?) Only trouble is..unused..you won't dare light it! lol Martin
Hi Martin, After I'd bought the lamp the seller told me he had two more, another unused one and one that had perhaps been lit twice. I told him that I'd take the 'used' lamp and let him know about the other unused lamp. I guess if anyone's interested on the forum I could buy the second unused lamp (the seller won't post). If any other member is interested in the second unused lamp, please pm me. What are they worth? I don't know. I do know that I had to buy this lamp! Stevie
New ones boxed...£80 - £110 on the bay of thieves, if you're lucky they can be picked up for much less, local auction sites etc £40 - £55. You just need to have a keen eye and patience. Anchor Surplus supplies were selling lightly used militaries for £55 a year back. Martin
Hi George, thanks for your comment. It would be a bonus if it were an MOD issued lamp. As I mentioned earlier, the seller (a retired RAF officer) did tell me it came from post cold war reserve stock... Stevie
It is. The lose metal collar that you have at the control cock is only on the MOD lanterns. These lanterns was sold off the stocks for some years ago when the military was down sizing. There where either the silver version or the more common green version. I believe the silver one is 80s and the green one is 90s models. Michael
The MoD had these lanterns in military drab green but also in the civilian silver finish. I have seen many examples of both come from surplus sales. The broad arrow says MoD for sure. You can't really date these with any accuracy. The design didn't change from 1968 to around 2000. ::Neil::
Thanks Neil. I wonder which is the rarer, MOD or civvy? I guess the MOD must have had these lamps by the thousands during the cold war.... Stevie
If I have not misunderstod anything I think that the rounded top of the hood came in 1980. Yours has the rounded top so that should mean that it was made after 1980. The previous hood had a more flat top. Michael
