MTFCA Forum

Just got this nice set from an estate sale and wondering what they should go on, color makes me think Military but just guessing, I know lots of cars and trucks used this name lamp, thank you, Bob

That is WW1 olive drab. Many trucks used Deitz and Adlake lamps. I see them advertised as Railroad lamps also.
White used Adlake.

This one was awarded at the 1990 Glidden tour for "Best Dressed Gentleman". I believe many were surplus stock and remained in like new condition. These are presumed uses as described on eBay. Notice how valuable they are. I would be willing to sell mine for that wouldn't you?
The lens cover is to prevent being seen from the air for those who might not know.
Rich

Early 'blackout' driving lights from WW1 ?

They do kind of look like they are army truck green!

I would guess them to be more modern than WW1, more like Ww2 instead. Night flight was pretty limited in World War One, and there was little need to avoid being seen from above. World War Two was a much different story, and oil lamps were used in the European theater quite a bit. Oil was much easier to provide for lamps than batteries or wiring due to war time restrictions. Oil lamps were made well past the forties and fifties. Night flight was common by the late thirties and from then on, with navigation systems being developed quickly.

Though Dietz lanterns are still made(off-shore)- these look old and military (olive drab paint)to me. Most that I have seen and own are tinplate (rust resistance) with automotive cowl lamps being painted black. An exception was during WW2 when Dietz had to use terne plate and painted general purpose lanterns gray (I have just one) for rust resistance. My guess would be WW1 for ambulances and the relatively few trucks at the front - artillery and ammo was moved to the front at night by horses. I don’t know if airplanes flew at night, but there were were plenty of observation posts and observation balloons looking for targets - troops and field artillery dug-outs.
Nice looking lanterns!

I looked at a few hundred pictures of early trucks and didn't see any Dietz like those. There were some Adlakes like these. Several Dietz came up for sale and most were that light olive drab. I didn't see any small Adlakes like these:
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=21284&p=194275&hilit=Adlake#p163193
The construction looks like teens or twenties, but they may have been used later.
Rich

I have a pair of Adlakes in black, nice with burners. If anyone is interested, email me.