help wanted to identify lantern

[earlee]

Hello All.

Today my latest ebay purchase arrived -an absolute bargain at $5 plus $10 postage.
I am excited - it is an old lantern that will probably be the external light on my old bondy caravan. I like blue. ;D ;D ;D ;D



Here is a pic of the sticker ( not a decal) on the side.
Can anyone tell me history or an approximate date of manufacture? It is a "Sentinel" brand and made in Birmingham. ?




Well I reckon I must be one lucky bloke ' cause i started pulling it apart and found some old packing that was under the base where the battery fits..



So i had a close look at the packing and this is what i found..



Geez I am lucky - this is what was on the piece of paper when i unfolded it. Dated September 4 1955.



Does anyone know what type of battery this lantern uses.

Cobber - if I hang this lantern outside my Bondy van - does that make it a lantern van?



Earlee.

[sutcac]

;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

[minicamper]

Hi Earlee,

Can you get a shot of the battery contacts?

I have seen a few torches around that age that had similar contact points to the 6v lantern batteries of today. Even if they don't match, it would be a fairly easy job to adapt it without any obvious changes..

Cheers
Chris

[earlee]

Hi Minicamper

Here is a pic of the contacts inside the lantern, hopefully a 12v battery can be made to fit -oh - i must remember to use 12v globes.



and under the top light lid..

[Franklin1]

♫ Bryl..CREEM!…a liddle dabba do ya, ♪
Bryl..CREEM!...ya look so good! ♫

Sure was a step up from the old Californian Poppy hair oil. Yeech!...that stuff seeped outta ya hair the whole day!
And get a load of the guy using two hairbrushes at once!!
Wonder if he brushed his teeth with two toothbrushes at once as well??!!

Hi earlee,
These are apparently known as "Police Lanterns" or "Police Lamps". (What's the diff between a lantern and a lamp? B*ggered if I know!)
This is the one I bought at an antique shop in Tassie about 15 years ago [ahhh Tassie...lovely place..."Hi exocet"]...



Apparently they were used by those who were employed to keep the community safe and secure at night (hence the use of the word "Sentinel" on your label). Mine takes the standard 6v square Dolphin torch battery.
I was never able to find any info on the internet that matched exactly my lamp, and most info relates to lamps from early last century...



Yours is the only other one I've seen since I bought mine. Assuming yours was a similar design to mine originally, then you are missing the stand and handle from the ratchet fitting on the side. Must have been to allow the lamp to be put on the table and tilted up so the light could be shined in the suspect's eyes..."So where were you on the night of the 14th??"

cheers,
Al.

(Sighhhhh...8 days of showery weather here so far...why doesn't it rack off and go where the drought is....? )

[minicamper]

Earlee, i reckon a lantern battery may be the go. The left vertical tab in the pic (with the rub mark) would be one of the contact strips. The shot under the light, not sure what the switch mechanism is, but i reckon the raised tab is the other contact. You've just got to check for insulation and continuity between all these parts and that'll answer the question. By the looks of it, you will need to organise something for the contact points.

Cheers
Chris