Having seen the light (so to speak 
) and used a pressure lantern at the recent DBC meet, I’ll admit that I’m sold on the luxury of a lantern during larger or longer camps. With this in mind I purchased an army surplus Vapalux M320 lantern the other day and was so impressed with the quality of the lamp over similar makes, I’d thought I’d do a little groundwork and see if there’s any interest on a group-buy for these. To give those who are unfamiliar with the lamps, I’ve attached a couple of snaps of mine:
Based upon my purchase, and the fact that he had a few quid left over from Christmas, Oakhill Wanderer went out and purchased one (unissued) and has written about it on his blog;
http://oakhillwanderer.com/2012/01/vapalux-m320-pressure-lantern/
I’ve enquired at a few places so far (Bushcraft Store, Denbigh, Military Mart, etc) and many that advertise a good price, either have no stock or will supply issued ones in good condition.
The price is you walked in off the street to buy one is between £75 and £85 (as some unissued lamps have been dinged or scratched in transit – hence the lower cost) but If any of you are interested, we’d need a minimum of five (certain) parties to get this thing off the ground. As part of the group buy, we can get them for £65, plus the cost of postage (estimated at £10 for now). Working out at £75 total.
The contents of the unissued lamp package;
The lantern (obviously) in a new unissued state including a mantle,
Instructions,
A two-piece fount reflector.
Whilst these are not the cheapest available out there, as you can get them on eBay for a penny shy of £60, they don’t come with the reflector which is another £12, plus postage at £10 = £82 total.
Another option is to go for an issued one, minus the instructions and reflector, for £45 each plus postage at a tenner = £55 Total. The advantage with this option, is that I can physically go in and choose the best ones available, as opposed to just getting whatever comes to hand.
Either way, I’m happy to do the legwork, but we need a minimum of five for either option……we can’t have three unissued and two issued lanterns apparently. Either way, they represent a reasonable deal, and maybe one of the last opportunities to purchase a one of these British-made solid and reliable lamps; the manufacturers lost the contract to supply the UK forces in 2009/2010. Since then the name ‘Vapalux’ along with the tooling and rights have been sold to a Korean firm. To buy a new one from Vapalux.com now would set you back £160!!
If anyone can find these cheaper (and in stock), please let me know and I'll see if I can either barter a better price, or switch suppliers.
All the best,
Steve
) and used a pressure lantern at the recent DBC meet, I’ll admit that I’m sold on the luxury of a lantern during larger or longer camps. With this in mind I purchased an army surplus Vapalux M320 lantern the other day and was so impressed with the quality of the lamp over similar makes, I’d thought I’d do a little groundwork and see if there’s any interest on a group-buy for these. To give those who are unfamiliar with the lamps, I’ve attached a couple of snaps of mine:
Based upon my purchase, and the fact that he had a few quid left over from Christmas, Oakhill Wanderer went out and purchased one (unissued) and has written about it on his blog;
http://oakhillwanderer.com/2012/01/vapalux-m320-pressure-lantern/
I’ve enquired at a few places so far (Bushcraft Store, Denbigh, Military Mart, etc) and many that advertise a good price, either have no stock or will supply issued ones in good condition.
The price is you walked in off the street to buy one is between £75 and £85 (as some unissued lamps have been dinged or scratched in transit – hence the lower cost) but If any of you are interested, we’d need a minimum of five (certain) parties to get this thing off the ground. As part of the group buy, we can get them for £65, plus the cost of postage (estimated at £10 for now). Working out at £75 total.
The contents of the unissued lamp package;
The lantern (obviously) in a new unissued state including a mantle,
Instructions,
A two-piece fount reflector.
Whilst these are not the cheapest available out there, as you can get them on eBay for a penny shy of £60, they don’t come with the reflector which is another £12, plus postage at £10 = £82 total.
Another option is to go for an issued one, minus the instructions and reflector, for £45 each plus postage at a tenner = £55 Total. The advantage with this option, is that I can physically go in and choose the best ones available, as opposed to just getting whatever comes to hand.
Either way, I’m happy to do the legwork, but we need a minimum of five for either option……we can’t have three unissued and two issued lanterns apparently. Either way, they represent a reasonable deal, and maybe one of the last opportunities to purchase a one of these British-made solid and reliable lamps; the manufacturers lost the contract to supply the UK forces in 2009/2010. Since then the name ‘Vapalux’ along with the tooling and rights have been sold to a Korean firm. To buy a new one from Vapalux.com now would set you back £160!!
If anyone can find these cheaper (and in stock), please let me know and I'll see if I can either barter a better price, or switch suppliers.
All the best,
Steve
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