My antique electric lantern and flashlight collection (many pics)

[SunWolf]

Hello, just wanted to say, sometime in the future we will put up some pics of more Grethers plus some old adds or info sheets. My dad bought the company in the 70s and reproduced the lanterns through the 80s with the orginal wooden patterns and left over parts for the old fire engines.

Over the years, we kind of put the different lights in model numbers aswell the years, as you did, when they was used. We sell parts for almost every model. We are still in Dayton, Ohio and just made another 8 lanterns or so in the past two years or so.

 

[captain smiley]

That's fantastic, it will be nice to have a parts source, I have one with a broken handle and missing lid (lost in move ) anyway, much looking forward to seeing some new pictures, ads, or anything else you would like to post, also is nice to hear the old patterns still exist, I must admit I had wondered about it a time or two, I read something a number of years ago about someone having them and casting parts from them.

 

[Walterk]

Great ! I really love the engineering of ' those days' .....
They feel good and they look good.

 

[Chauncey Gardner]

Great thread & some old lanterns in incredible shape.

Thanks for putting all of this up for us, the history behind some of these is pretty interesting stuff.

I'd been to the flashlight museum site before I had even found this place, also fascinating.

The latest addition of the wood bodied Ever Ready lanterns shining (after all those years) again is great.

Staying tuned.

 

[SunWolf]

Captain Smiley, not sure how to send you a private message so will just use the boards. Sometime when your free, if you won't mind emailing me at [email protected] . We want to write up a paper on the Grethers with the different models and which models came out in which years. My dad did his research and has what he thinks is what. Since you collected them and did your own research, we hoping to combine the info to check out if we was wrong on anything.

I will still get pics up soon, sorry for the delay. Just got a camera.

 

[captain smiley]

email sent

 

[Exide]

I have a few of those wooden battery lamps by Ever Ready and one came complete with original blue colour Ever Ready No 15 battery which i copied an rebuilt.

 

[Exide]

love that victor battery, i notice it has a pitch top where mine is left open, i saw an American version of my battery which was Ever Ready and that had an open top like mine has, they were used in projection clocks that had those wooden bases, I have also seen that bright star torch to as i found a barrel of one washed up on Rhossili beach, it was orange in colour, it looks like a safety torch and was made in America, I have other lamps which i will post pics of soon, some with there original batterys.

 

[Russ Prechtl]

To put my own old lanterns in perspective, here is a wooden lantern:

Close-up, front view:

Note the stud-switch on top under the handle.

Back View:

Note the joints, and the vertical-sliding tongue-and-groove battery cover.

Note that I have no idea what the original battery for this would have looked like.

Something like a - no, I won't lead the witness with my guess.

I've never seen a wooden lantern like that. Can you tell me what type and age it is? Where did you find it?

 

[Burgess]

I have a few of those wooden battery lamps by Ever Ready and one came complete with original blue colour Ever Ready No 15 battery which i copied an rebuilt.

Hello Exide !

:wave:


I'm Burgess !

:welcome:


Glad to meet another CPF member with a "classic battery" moniker.



_

 

[Bwana]

Great looking collections

I have an old Delta PowerLite circa 1948....would love to juice it up a little. Not sure who to contact to work on it, any suggestions ?

 

[Exide]

Thanks so much for the welcome Burgess. I have loads of torches, some British an some from Spain, Its fantastic seeing the American ones to as i can compare them with mine, some of the American Ever ready items they made some great novilty stuff such as pistol shape lamps which we in England dont have, also some of the early American batterys were very pictoral which is great, i have a few Ever Ready American batterys with the cat an the number 9 on, Its great to see collerctors from other countrys with british examples in there collections, I also have loads of Pifco lamps which are boxed but i have so many that some are in the loft in boxes as i have no room in my bedroom with all my stuff as i also collect old batterys to and the odd radio set,,,anyway thanks for the great welcome,, best regards, MIKE.:wave:

 

[captain smiley]

Great looking collections

I have an old Delta PowerLite circa 1948....would love to juice it up a little. Not sure who to contact to work on it, any suggestions ?

the powerlites used standard flanged flashlight bulbs in the front and miniature screw base in the top, I got a 4 cell xenon maglite bulb and installed it in the front and it makes quite an improvement, the top bulb can be replaced with one rated a little lower then 6 volts, it won't last as long but it will be brighter, one could also go led, but I haven't tried to do this yet on one of these, they make a good practical light for camping and other purposes and powerlites can be had dirt cheap as they made a ton of them, I also replaced the old 6 volt battery with a battery holder that uses 4 d cells as it is more cost effective and easier to find d batts.

 

[shansen]

captain smiley, please email me at [email protected]

thanks

 

[retiredminer]

I have just acquired an old looking electric lantern. It looks like a mining light. It is cylindrical,12 In high, with a frosted glass cap over the bulb. I will attach photos if I can figure how. It has KGO cast on it and tags with 1367 and another with 926. It was presented to Mr Imbt from the managers Burroughs-Seneffe 1966-1969. Any ideas on the company and the lamp?

 

[captain smiley]

I have just acquired an old looking electric lantern. It looks like a mining light. It is cylindrical,12 In high, with a frosted glass cap over the bulb. I will attach photos if I can figure how. It has KGO cast on it and tags with 1367 and another with 926. It was presented to Mr Imbt from the managers Burroughs-Seneffe 1966-1969. Any ideas on the company and the lamp?

sound's interesting, please get some photos up, from your description I cannot ID the lamp, but sometimes makers would put other names on the product to be sold by outside dealers, look at the grether examples in my own collection.

as far as getting photos up, I use imageshack, but photobucket is also popular, I think there is a way to upload directly to the site but I can't remember how, remember that google is your best friend in these matters, look up how to upload photos and you'll figure it out.

 

[shansen]

Never heard back from you....

However, I also have this:

I know it's not a flashlight, but it may qualify as a lantern. Any help is, of course, appreciated. A carriage oil light with a red dot on back:

 

[reminiscent]

hello, im new here, i was doing some research on a light i have, and i noticd your my light looks the same as your red coloured light, the one that you referred to as a CAMPING LIGHT, mine is unpainted and in good condition, and both light globes are very bright, and it has the word EVEREADY embossed on the smaller globe's metal surround............. but i dont know what the correct name of this lamp is, Miner's lamp ?, Campers lamp ? etc ? and i dont know which year it was made any information you could give me will be most appreciated, thank you.

by the way, i love your torches very nice.\

I assume the Grether lanterns ran on 2 x No 6 dry cells?

I did note the 2.8V 0.8A on the Delta nameplate.


Here's my contribution - a comparison between a Camping Lantern and a Trouble Light.

Front View:

Note the difference in size. The Trouble Light is a generic cheapie from Hong Kong (but very like similar English style ones). The Camping Lantern is an Australian-made Eveready (but I am NOT responsible for the aftermarket coat of red paint!)

Headlights lit up:

The camping lantern battery is rather weak, and is fitted with an aftermarket glass lens, hence the weird colour light.

Camping Lantern Tent Light:

The top bulb here is a 4.8V MES (E10) blobe, but this lantern is destined for the RoP treatment. The top light is now a Reflectalite GH44, and the front headlight will sport a Pelican 3854H. When I stuff six cells (SubC or 4/3A) into a 509 shell, the "Roar of the Camping Lantern" will make its debut in the world.

Trouble Light Flasher:

The top lens can be amber or red, and is designed for a 4.8V flashing lamp, just like the Big Jim taillight. You have to keep snapping until you catch it "on".

Rear View:

Note the third key difference between these two lamps:
The switch on the camping lantern has three positions - centre off, headlight, dome light.
The switch on the trouble light has four positions off-head-dome-both. That way you can shine the light on the job (say the wheelnuts) whilst flashing your warning at the same time.

Despite their age, both lights are in perfect working order and could be quite happily used in their original service right now.

 

[Mezeno]

That is one incredible collection!:thumbsup:

 

[storm1992]

hi everyone! im hoping to get awnser asap. My folks found an old latern that is by everready..it comes up as elctric one.. Im looking for more information..as much as possible.