This lantern is in a Coleman collection near Sugarcreek, Ohio. Model L227 is a Quick-Lite model with a wide ventilator. This version, in Dwayne Hanson’s collection, is the most well coleman lantern known with a flat capture nut to hold the ventilator and several indentations in the ventilator (right). Coleman made the L220 (above) and L228 (below) for a short time in 1928.
Takao Kimura, whose collection this is in, and I believe this is Model 216, one of three lanterns noted in the Coleman Shipping Records a couple of months after the 7 9 date. Coleman also made these LZ327 (left) and LZ427 (right) lanterns, known here by their Coleman numbers, for several retailers including Sears and Montgomery Ward. These lanterns have a separate post to support the burner; the air tube, which is curved in these models, opens below the mantles.
The Lantern’s powered stabilizer jacks and power tongue jack make setting up at your next campground easier than ever before. Which means, you’ll have more time for fun and relaxation. Erb began collecting Coleman products more than 32 years ago. A red lantern in the “Photo” column indicates a photo is available. Charting which years any particular Coleman® lantern was made is a never-ending process. The company began marking lanterns with date information in the mid-1920s.
It has many of the same parts as Quick-Lite Model L327. The collar, generator, and cap nut are different from that model. The center globe cage base disk is stamped Sunshine Safety Lamp Co., Kansas City, MO. This Coleman 200A lantern has been modified with an elaborate globe cage and 3 cylindrical globes, the innermost being a Fresnel lens. An outer infrared filter keeps visible light from shining out the sides. This lantern was made for the military to help direct planes to airfields in or near enemy territory.
This product comes with a metal guard to protect the globe and reduce rattling. We used it for months during which time we took an RV trip for over ten weeks straight and used this light almost every single night. On a few nights the Northstar sat out in the rain without a cover and it still started the coleman camping next evening without any problems. The Northstar was the brightest of all the lanterns that we tested. It puts out 1500 lumens on the highest setting and consumes a lot of fuel in the process. One 16 oz canister of propane lasts about four to five hours on high and about eight hours on medium to low.
The LED was much different with its white, daylight balanced light. I wanted lanterns that ran on different fuels, but were similar in construction. The gas and propane lanterns are all generally the same type, but the battery operated lanterns come in many different shapes and sizes. The one I choose most closely resembles the other two.
The information in these chapters has been gathered from multiple sources over a very long period of time. Dates may be slightly different than those found on other websites. The Coleman Collectors Forum was originally the Old Town Coleman Bulletin Board Service in the early part of this century.
The Coleman Quick-Lite 327 was sold from 1920 to 1924 from the Wichita (USA) plant with no date stamp. This lantern, in Ron Lenfield’s collection, includes the box and accessories. Although this lantern has a later style baffle plate, the usual baffle plate in this version is as in the lower image.
The brass sided, green painted fount is also characteristic of that time. Coleman’s first production of Models 220B and 228B was May, 1930. Until early 1934 all of the founts of these two models were stamped 220B on the bottom. These models could be purchased with either a Pyrex (left) or mica globe (right). Details of the early construction of these models is shown below. We believe this lantern is a Model 221, a kerosene fueled version of their Model 220 above (McRae).