Mason constant flame candle lamps

[slowworm]

Any one heard of these? I picked up four holders, without the glass shades, for £10. They have a spring loaded cartridge, similar to the Uco lanterns so the flame is at a constant height. Mine are a dark earthenware brown but are similar to theses: https://www.shoovantiques.co.uk/products/48-retro-pair-mason-constant-flame-candle-lamps

I've done some searching but can't find out much info about them. There's plenty of brass ones for sale but I've not seen many ceramic ones. I would like to track down a set of glass shades for them but any info would be good.

What I like about them is the base is very heavy and stable so ideal to use for power cuts as they are very unlikely to be knocked over.

 

[SaraR]

Any one heard of these? I picked up four holders, without the glass shades, for £10. They have a spring loaded cartridge, similar to the Uco lanterns so the flame is at a constant height. Mine are a dark earthenware brown but are similar to theses: https://www.shoovantiques.co.uk/products/48-retro-pair-mason-constant-flame-candle-lamps

I've done some searching but can't find out much info about them. There's plenty of brass ones for sale but I've not seen many ceramic ones. I would like to track down a set of glass shades for them but any info would be good.

What I like about them is the base is very heavy and stable so ideal to use for power cuts as they are very unlikely to be knocked over.

Interesting! Do they take normal-sized candle sticks?

 

[Mesquite]

Very interesting, they look like they're ideal candidates for making some trench candles for them.

 

[slowworm]

Interesting! Do they take normal-sized candle sticks?

What's a normal sized candle? It looks like the Uco ones would fit, so about 80mm x 32mm or thereabouts. I do wonder if there's a cheaper alternative.

 

[slowworm]

Very interesting, they look like they're ideal candidates for making some trench candles for them.

I don't tend to use my oil lamps much as even good quality lamp oil smells too much for me. I also have plenty of beeswax so I may make a mould if I can't find any cheap candles.

 

[Toddy]

There's a wax hardener called stearin. It's a plant 'extract'.....it's a chemical but widely produced.....that makes for clear bright flames and candles that don't run so quickly when they're in an enclosed space. Ideal for candle lanterns which can run hot.

Beeswax is very good, but the addition of a little stearin really helps keep the candle in shape instead of a soft mess.

Not quite so much an issue if the light is being used outdoors in the cold, but even inside something like a yurt or a tepee, the temperature of a lantern really does heat up.

M

 

[SaraR]

What's a normal sized candle? It looks like the Uco ones would fit, so about 80mm x 32mm or thereabouts. I do wonder if there's a cheaper alternative.

You know like you’d have in candle sticks on a table - 20-22 mm in diameter and 20-25 cm long, I’d guess…

 

[slowworm]

You know like you’d have in candle sticks on a table - 20-22 mm in diameter and 20-25 cm long, I’d guess…

Sorry, I was being a bit rhetorical as I've found what I would regard as a classic household candle has become taller and thinner, more of a posh dinner candle.

These holders need a shorter and fatter candle. I have some 28mm pipe I might try to turn into a mould.

@Toddy I'll try the stearin and see how it goes. As the holders are spring loaded the beeswax would benefit from being a bit harder.

 

[slowworm]

New candle mould eventually made it through the postal strikes and has made me a few Uco style candles. They fit well in the holders and ones into its 5th hour of a test burn...

 

[slowworm]

Here's a pic of today's progress. I've made a 6 with a thinner wick (NT17) and 6 with a slightly thicker NT20. The candle with the NT20 wick took 6.5 hours to burn out and it burnt well even just using our plain beeswax, you can just see the remains in the photo. Just need to track down some glass shades but the lanterns work well without anything.