How to Make a Gas Lantern

Procuring raw materials

Select high grade malleable steel to make all metal components. This is to avoid parts cracking under the pressure of a deep press, e.g. the ventilator hood and fount.

Get brass alloys of varied heat resistant grades to fabricate parts for the fuel delivery system. For smaller parts, e.g., bail, collar, pressure and ignition system, choose other steel alloys. For the stand-alone lantern base and control knobs, you may procure rubber or molded plastic.

For the globes, choose either a metal mesh or heat-resistant, Borosilicate glass (preferably of the popular ‘Pyrex’ brand).

Select mantles of silk or rayon mesh which are chemically treated.

Designing the lantern

While, the earlier traditional, lanterns are still popular with some users, utility convenience and shape are the main objectives of design engineers today. You must consider lantern weight for portability, this is important to climbers and campers. For other standard applications, engineers use higher steel grades. Mantles have also seen changes in shape, size and material.

Fabricating steel parts

Start by melting iron ore with coke in a furnace to obtain molten steel. Once the steel cools, pass it between high pressure rollers to form sheets. These sheets can now be moved to the parts fabrication unit.

Utilize the appropriate metal presses to shape the different parts of the lantern from the steel sheets. You may require multi-step, manual operation to move the steel from press to press, as the shaping process is not entirely mechanized.

Color enameling the parts

You may use the popular yet expensive ‘e-dip’ process to give your lantern the colors you’ve chosen. Clean all steel parts thoroughly and then place them on a conveyor belt. Subject each part to an electrical charge as this will determine thickness of paint, after the dipping process, and result in an even coating.

Bake-dry each part after applying primer, paint and the topcoat dips. An inexpensive alternative, is to enamel the steel parts using an automatic paint sprayer – a process where static electricity draws paint to the part while minimizing airborne toxins and overspray.

Extruding plastic parts

You may provide the specifications for the smaller plastic parts, viz., buttons and knobs for extruding by outside suppliers. Such suppliers are equipped with modern injection molding machines.

Molding the globes

Pour molten Borosilicate glass into a six-mould, multi-cavity horizontal wheel. Then blow compressed air into the moulds and start spinning the wheel. Keep the glass to cool after the edges are fired automatically. You will now have your globe shapes.

Producing the mantles

Stitch a ‘sock’, (mantle) of either silk or synthetic fibers, using sewing machinery. Then hang the semi-finished mantles for automated chemical dip.

Assembling the lantern

First gather all the small parts and fit them, where relevant, into the larger systems. Now screw the pre-assembled parts viz., fuel and pressure systems to the fount. Finally, mount the collar, then attach the globe, ventilator and bail, using screws and nuts to complete the assembly and you’ll have your finished gas lantern.