220 questions to ask you gurus.......

[WarPony]

Man, this section has REALLY intrigued me the past few weeks. I bought some fixer-uppers a couple of weeks ago and tore into them because they didn't work. I got one going with just some new mantles, a new plunger and a general good cleaning... it's a 220K. Here's my questions......

1) What does the little cleaning valve actually do?

2) Is it better to start out with a full tank of fuel of half?

3) What is that little cardboard tube inside the generator for?

4) Would it be cost effective to buy a small ultrasonic cleaner to save some of the parts when they get dirty?

5) What are the frames covered with? Could you blast and then zinc plate them for longer life?

6) Do you guys have a tackle box full of repair items and tools when something goes bad?

Jeff

[doug hodder]

Jeff....the cleaning valve pushes a brass rod with a tiny whisker up through a hole in the end of the generator. I cleans out crud (carbon) that may build up in there.

I don't "fill" them. They are fairly fuel efficient and I don't like to leave an absolute full one in the trailer. I could be wrong on this, but it just seems to me that a full one will need to be pumped more during use to burn it down, since you are pressuring the air cavity.

I'm not sure on the exact purpose on the cardboard in the generator...may be to insulate the raw fuel and keep it from overheating....I'll have to ask over on the Coleman thing.

I don't think you'd need an ultrasonic machine...they clean up easily with vinegar or carb cleaner.

I'm thinking the frames were originally plated, 242's are stainless. I again could be wrong on it. After I bead blast them, I spray with high temp aluminum paint. Seems to be an accepted practice and works for me. Plating is so expensive.

I have a box of parts, ordered up some extras of the things that might be needed so I don't have to order every time I want to rebuild one, and some of the official Coleman wrenches. I always carry spare mantles, but since I got more into this, I'll carry parts along to rebuild others lanterns at the campground if needed. I've never carried them in the past. Some of the more unusual items are more difficult to locate parts for and at times, you need to be creative in finding a solution.

If you get it working correctly, they pretty much work for a long time with minimal maintenance. Get a funnel with a filter on it! I've never rebuilt my '76 220J and I bought it new and have used it every year since I got it. It will hold pressure all winter long. All those that I've rebuilt have at least 6 weeks on the pressured tanks with fuel in them...they are still holding and will fire right up.

I'm no guru at any of this, and learn a lot of things the hard way after I've sort of screwed up....I've still got a lot to learn and every different lantern has it's own little quirks, but they all operate on the same basic principal. Doug

[Mark72]

Hi Jeff, I by no means am no guru either but will share a few observations I have gathered on my own. Doug is right on about the tip cleaner. Coleman fuel doesn't seem to carbon up near as bad as gasoline can and has a very long shelf life. I have fired up lanterns that I have got from others who said that they have been in storage for 15-20 years on the fuel in the tank! It is likely that gasoline would never do that especially with today's gas! For how much to put in, The tank is designed to be filled while sitting on a level surface. As long as you don't tip it over to the side to get more fuel in there should always be an air cavity above the fuel. Naturally a larger pocket of air will last longer to push fuel into the generator. The tube in the generator is a question for someone else as I have no idea other than maybe it helps regulate the heat. I see no need to buy any special equipment for cleaning. as long as you use clean fuel and use your lantern regularly It should run well with little maintenance, If the generator should become clogged soaking it in carburetor cleaner and blowing it out with compressed air should do the job, Be careful with that tip cleaner! I am working on getting a collection of the more common parts put together so I will have them when needed. If you only have a few pieces of equipment I don't see this as necessary. The frame on a 1954 that appears to be all original I have just picked up appears to be no more that a silver paint so I am going to use a good quality high temp silver rattle can on all of mine!

Mark

[rainjer]

My opinion is once you get on cleaned up & running, all you should need is to keep the pump oiled and have a spare generator & mantels.

Jeremy

[Mark72]

Jeremy do you know what the tube in the lantern generators are for? My opinion on the spring in the stove generators is to increase the surface area the fuel contacts to vaporise the fuel better but I am unsure on the lanterns.

Mark

[rainjer]

Nope, not a clue. Some had a whire screen & some had asbestos. I think I would have to go with Doug's therory...

Jeremy

[doug hodder]

Jeff....trying to follow up on the plating of the frames...I'm sure it wasn't zinc because on a good frame, it doesn't have that galvanized appearance, and zinc has a relatively low melting point and the fumes aren't all that healthful to boot as are any melted metal fumes! If it were plated, I'm betting on cadmium (closely related to zinc) tin thing, I may be incorrect, but I'll find out...good thing to know.

I asked over on the Coleman forum...we'll see what the real "guru"s say. Doug

[WarPony]

Doug, I'm guessing the cad plating is/was the way they did it. Now I wish I could find a way to re-enamel the vents cheaply...... Mark, have you heard anything?

Jeff

[Micro469]

Or that cardboard tube could be just to keep the spring inside aligned and in place.........

[Mark72]

I haven't heard anything from my e-mail I might just have to get 'em on the horn..

Mark

[rainjer]

Jeremy do you know what the tube in the lantern generators are for? My opinion on the spring in the stove generators is to increase the surface area the fuel contacts to vaporise the fuel better but I am unsure on the lanterns.

Mark

I found the answer to this question. It helps to dissipate the heat more evenly to prevent the fuel from boiling before it vaporizes. With out it, the lantern will pulse.

Jeremy

[Mark72]

Thats good to know. I have a couple of pulsers myself. I'll have to check that!

Mark

[WarPony]

I found the answer to this question. It helps to dissipate the heat more evenly to prevent the fuel from boiling before it vaporizes. With out it, the lantern will pulse....

Hmmm, very interesting. I have a 220J that has a bent up generator so I took it apart and the cardboard tube was half burned up. Would wrapping a Nomex, or some sort of other heat blocker, around the generator help or harm the operation of a good lantern?

** I'm not trying to save a crappy generator but help save a new one**

Jeff

[rainjer]

Here is the entire explanation.

"You now have a couple of choices. You can live with the pulsing, replace the gen or try my sugestion.

I prefer to tinker with a stove or lantern that does something I don't like untill I understand the problem. I have found that fuel vapourises unevenly in some lanterns stoves and torches and for what ever reason you need to try a few different things to solve it. The bend is not the problem, what may be happening is one of two things. The fuel is not being properly vapourised and you have a minor flooding and spitting problem at start up. This will go away as the stove warms up. On the other hand the gen body can be getting so hot that fuel skids around inside the tube like a drop of water on a hot fry pa then insatntly flashes to steam rather than smootly and evenly heating to a boil. There are a couple of things that can be done, You can add insulation to cool the inside of the gen body so fuel vapourises more slowly and evenly or you can add a fine mesh that draws more heat into the center of the gen. This has the efect of making more hot surfaces inside the gen to contact fuel and dampen the movement liquids and gasses inside the tube so they can't pulse and surge inside.

Past experince has tought me that shielding tape will reduce surging in torches and stoves. In flickering lanterns like the 236 the best way to solve this problem is with extra insulating materials inside the gen

You have tinker and try different things to understand the problem."

Jeremy

[boomboomtulum]

Yeah, what Doug said