Welcome to this weeks video a very old vintage and rusty west German oil lantern or hurricane lamp restoration with a twist.
As you can clearly see the lamp has seen better days, it is VERY rusty but appears to be still structurally sound which is surprising to say the least.
First step in the restoration process is as usual the full tear down to assess the condition of each of the parts. The tear down didn't really present any surprises or real challenges the only job i was dubious about was removing the glass in case it was brittle but to my surprise its very tough glass! :).
The next step in my process was to immerse all of the steel parts into a bath of rust removal solution which is BILT HAMBER DEOX C. This was left overnight to do its thing and the next day as if by magic im left with a bucket full of dirty water and perfectly clean bare steel parts :). All that was required after this stage was a quick grinding with the dremel and the brass wire wheel to sand off any imperfections that were left behind then it was onto a quick degreasing before masking up.
After the lamp was hung in the booth it was coated with etch primer to provide a key for following coats of high build primer. Once the high build primer is fully cured it is wet flatted back with 800 wet and dry to remove any imperfections in the surface and provide a good even base for the base coat to adhere to.
Once the lamp had been hung back in the booth degreased and tack ragged a final time i was ready to hit it with a base coat i had custom mixed to mimic dark war time green but with a modern metallic twist to it. I think you'll agree the colour really POPS!. After base coating it was coated with 3 heavy coats of scratch resistant clear then allowed to fully cure before handling.
While the paint was curing i took a mad notion to make this a restoration with a twist so i chose to copper plate the handles catches and wick mechanism, once they were plated i gave them a rub with wire wool to scuff them up and give them a vintage used look. And personally i think they look fantastic! as well as stopping corrosion of the steel the copper layer will oxidise over time and give the lantern a changing appearance which im looking forward to. And before anyone criticises my plating method yes its very DIY and yes its very crude but it works for me and always delivers the results im after so please be nice!
When the paint was cured and the parts were plated it was simply a case of reversing the tear down process and building it back up.
I hope you'll agree that This old vintage rusty oil lamp has now been revived and is now a beautiful thing to behold! :) Unlike the other green lantern... you know what im talking about ;)
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