Any Lantern Collectors ?

[Ejs4029]

10 years or so ago while living in Southern CA I started collecting gas lanterns it seems I was always able to find some interesting ones at garage sales, Flea markets and Craig's list...

Fast forward to 2016 and a move to North Carolina the collecting took a back seat to getting settled here but from what I am seeing now the pickings are a lot slimmer and not near as good from what I was able to find in CA

Here are a few in my collection.

[upflying]

Not a lantern but I have a Primus gas stove from the 1940's. Made in Sweden. It still has the owners manual.
Kind of dangerous because you have to heat the stove with lighter fluid before you can light the burner.

[Wiscampsin]

IIRC a forum member with the user name TURBS used to collect and restore them. Not sure if he still does.

[Tombsy]

Not quite the same as gas but I’ve been collecting the lamps from my career on the railroad.

[TacBear]

Nice collection of gasoline lanterns you got there. I collect only kerosene lanterns. Gas is too dangerous for me 😊.

I have been restoring oil lanterns for abouT 15 years. I have given many away to friends and relatives. I never sell them. I think my collection stands at about 50 nowadays. My selections are always barn lanterns and railroad lanterns.

When I Snowbird in Florida each winter, my friends usually bring me some old lanterns to restore. I am usually there for about two or three months, so I bring a big bunch of chemicals, paint, solder, epoxy and a load of wicks with me.

Us old people do a lot of weird things in our senior years...🤪

TACBear

[Burnking]

Originally Posted by upflying

Not a lantern but I have a Primus gas stove from the 1940's. Made in Sweden. It still has the owners manual.
Kind of dangerous because you have to heat the stove with lighter fluid before you can light the burner.

I have a small backpacking stove (Optimus) that has a tray to put a small amount of gas in to heat the burner orifice. Also a shield to protect the tank. This creates the gas vapors. Never had a problem. Later someone came up with a small pump which eliminated the need. It also helped the stove in cold weather!

[Dobbs]

If you want to see the ultimate collection of Coleman lanterns and such stop at Jerry's Camping Center in Madison Wisconsin.
Jerry, now deceased, was an avid collector and he was an authorized Coleman repair person for warranty work. His family has taken over and does a wonderful job.

[Wiscampsin]

Originally Posted by Dobbs

If you want to see the ultimate collection of Coleman lanterns and such stop at Jerry's Camping Center in Madison Wisconsin.
Jerry, now deceased, was an avid collector and he was an authorized Coleman repair person for warranty work. His family has taken over and does a wonderful job.

Thanks for the reminder. I was in there about 10 years ago and couldn't believe all the Coleman lanterns at Jerry's. And I agree, great people.

[oxcamper]

Here in Amish country, those aren't collectibles, they're in use every day.

We have a SVEA backpacking stove, all brass and needs to be prewarmed with stove fuel to get the fuel container warm enough to vaporize the liquid fuel.
It still works!

[Adogbmw]

Yes, I'm a Coleman collector here in ohio. Lot of collector's here so rare to find anything cool in the wild anymore but always fun to look. I've got some old Coleman, Akron etc..i burn them all and always take 2 camping. In addition, i cook over Coleman or Preway stoves.

[oxcamper]

I don't know if this holds true for the coleman type gas lanterns, but for the old RR kerosene lanterns, many people strip them down, shine them up, and make them look pretty. For antique collectors, that devalues the lantern significantly, as you want to keep the patina of the metal.

[Adogbmw]

Definitely keep them as they were intended. I just clean them as best I can. it is amazing how they can clean up. I don't sweat road rash or a little missing paint. I have a 1917
Akron with some worn mica but still looks and burns good. I personally never keep a lantern unfired. If i can't use it i sell it. I've had presentation lanterns, new in the box true collector's but have sold them. Nothing like getting a little "Sunshine of the night" at times. But, always cognizant of my neighbors.

[TowPro]

I can remember my parents (or grandparents) using several you show there.

[Fish N Farm]

I have thought about getting into that. I would need to throw away a U-Haul full of shoes before I could get started. Most of the older stuff has bad rust issues around here being in garage in the Gulf coast dampness. I would like to find a WWII army stove and lantern. Just haven't got a round 2 it.

As far as where you live now. Those things are probably out in the woods making people livings still. Or the revenuers busted them all up.

One post in this thread has someone with their RR collection. My grand father worked for the MKT his entire life as a brakeman, fireman on a steam engine and a switchman and he had tons of lanterns most battery powered but some maybe carbide. I don't remember I was small. I do remember they had thick glass lenses in them. They still had a steam switch engine working in Galveston when I was small and that was so noisy it scared the heck out of me. The Galveston round house was right across from the cotton company my father worked for. If you have ever been on the Strand in Galveston you probably drove right buy both places. The round house is gone now.

Since we got wound up on these old lights does anybody remember those old black smut pots that burned kerosene to mark the construction and damaged road on the highways at night?

[Adogbmw]

Don't get me wrong, Lot of stuff out there. You can get military stuff at flea markets. Prices have gone up as more people are collecting. Check out Coleman collectors forum on internet. And, yes I remember smudge pots. I've seen them at larger flea markets as well.

[nomad297]

Originally Posted by oxcamper

Here in Amish country, those aren't collectibles, they're in use every day.

Here, in the Amish country I live in, those aren’t collectibles, either — they’re trash — or they’ve been sold at one of the many Saturday firehouse yard sales/chicken BBQs or mud sales to be replaced with rechargeable LED lamps.

Bruce

[Adogbmw]

As stated, you can find lanterns at yard/garage sales everywhere. Prices are all over the place. Not uncommon to find lanterns for $10-20. Depends on typical factors such as age, condition, rarity etc...

[Tombsy]

Originally Posted by Fish N Farm

One post in this thread has someone with their RR collection. My grand father worked for the MKT his entire life as a brakeman, fireman on a steam engine and a switchman and he had tons of lanterns most battery powered but some maybe carbide. I don't remember I was small. I do remember they had thick glass lenses in them. They still had a steam switch engine working in Galveston when I was small and that was so noisy it scared the heck out of me. The Galveston round house was right across from the cotton company my father worked for. If you have ever been on the Strand in Galveston you probably drove right buy both places. The round house is gone now.

Your grandfather was a whole other level of railroader working on steam engines. I was lucky to work with some amazing engineers and switchmen that transitioned from steam to diesel.
When I took this picture in the 70’s I had no idea how valuable these kerosene caboose marker lights would become.

[Chief T]

Can't remember where or when, but we picked up a couple lanterns. I really like the one from Spokane Portland & Seattle Rwy since I'm a PNW RR enthusiasts.