From Robert and Beverley Isdale, Brisbane, Australia comes the following images of what appears to be the type of lamp Diane asks about. Quoting a booklet from The Science Museum (London?) from 1967, they also snt, W. T. O'Dea writes; "The Naphtha flare [center] was... for the open air, but it had to illuminate while the slush-lamp [right] only had to warn. The street trader lit his stall by the surging light of these flares, patented originally for use with 'coal tar maphtha' by Reed and Holliday in 1848 and 1850, and surviving well into the 20th century in London. The burner is wickless, and the fuel supply, controlled by a needle valve, was vaporized before combustion by the heat generated at the flames. To start up, the burner was first heated by burning some menthylated spirit [rubbing alcohol]."
Diana...Robert (very active in the Australian "Antique Machinery Restoration Society") would like to know the exact configuration/style of the valves at the burner. He has a similar lamp that he has gotten burning, but thinks that the "...burner/jet system can be improved...". Robert is none too confident on E-Mail, but can be reached at < robev.zip.com.au > for you can help him with more details of your lamp.
First Image: This picture is
the lamp as it is now hanging. Unfortunately you can't see the
writing on the top "plate" part. You can see the knob at the top near
the ring, which is the fill hole. The pictures on the wall are 8+ x
11", which will give you an idea of size. 
Second Image: This is a
close-up of the "carburetor" [burner]part. Notice the hanging
square valve control. The only other control valve is the one in the
center left of the picture. This [burner part] protrudes from
the wall approximately 2 feet. If it's possible to "zoom" in with
your software, you will see that the top part is slightly domed, and
I don't know for sure if that square knob at the top right actually
un-screws. It certainly looks functional, but for what remains a
mystery.Greetings Dave,
I am pleased to see that another of these
naphtha flare / campaign devices has turned up. I have been
interested in them for some time, and I would like to know the
function of the valves in the burner head. Diana Marvel is in the
process of organizing a photograph of her lantern, and I look forward
to seeing those illustrations appear on the screen.
You have got
an interesting little repair job ahead of you. There is a fair chance
that the lantern may have been manufactured before the days of
standardized threads, as we know them today. I have heard the comment
that in early industrial times, a particular thread (diameter, pitch
and threads per inch) might have been commonly accepted in a
locality, a town, or even just one particular engineering shop. The
need for standardization was imperative.
However, any thread can
be re-produced to the original specifications with a screw-cutting
lathe, and that is the way that I would approach your problem. I
would start with a solid brass bar of the same diameter as the fuel
tube, and cut a thread to the same specifications as the internal
thread in the valve body. I would then drill a hole through the
center for fuel flow.
When I parted off this new stub of threaded
pipe, I would leave a stepped-down spiggot that would fit firmly into
the inside diameter of the old pipe. File the end of the old pipe
square, fit the new threaded bit, and float a touch of silver solder
though the joint. The final clean-up should leave the joint barely
visible.
I made a lantern of this type some time ago, purely
guessing from that illustration. I did not know about the valves in
the burner assembly, so I created a very fine jet hole that would
allow just a smear of naphtha (in Australia it is called by the brand
name Shellite) to soak into an asbestos pad.
The result was a
flickering surging flame, just like that author, W.T.O'Dea had
described. If the alternative in those days was a candle or an oil
lamp, then you would have to say that it was certainly brighter, but
an open unstable flame like that would have to be treated with a lot
of caution and respect.
Whichever way you do the repair, I hope
that it is successful, and I would be pleased to know how the lantern
performs.
Regards, Robert and Beverley
Isdale
I think this is the icing on the cake! This has been a long and rather torturous route, but here, out of the blue, is the answer! :: Fil ::
Diana:
I knew I had seen your torch somewhere but
it took some time to find it. Your torch is exactly what it appears
to be. They came in gasoline and kerosene. Yours is kerosene so you
can safely see if it works. The attached clipping from the 1902 Sears
catalog gives the details. Sears is in Chicago, not far from your
James Laurie Co. so Laurie probably made them for Sears. Glad I could
help. -Dennis
Your Kerosene Lantern Connection is at: <
http://home.earthlink.net/~pearsond/ >
