The Coleman rechargeable lantern is the biggest and heaviest of the rechargeable lanterns that I reviewed for this project. It is a fine lantern for car camping where space and weight are not a concern, but definitely not for any lightweight camping adventures. I thought the propane lantern was going to be my favorite. It turned out to be such a pain to use, that I don’t use it much anymore. I have the Northstar edition, and it comes with an electronic igniter, but it didn’t work right out of the box.
We believe this Coleman 200A lantern dated February 1952 is a prototype for the production of the IR lanterns made several years later. For more information see The Coleman Light, Vol 26, No 2, Pages 1, 4-5. This Model 220D coleman canopy dated A 50 is unusual in having the sides of the brass fount painted green instead of being nickel plated. Coleman may have been testing the paint or the market for these prior to making all of them this way in A 51.
It hasn’t broke on me or anything, this is purely the “feel” test on my part. The lantern offers the ability to recharge at any outlet as well as charge your devices which is great. When Target and Walmart feature your product prominently, you’ll get sales no matter if your product is good or bad. As much as I hate ripping on any piece of gear, I really fell like Coleman mailed it in on their Rugged Rechargeable Lantern. Ozark Trail (Walmart) makes a better and cheaper lantern or Goal Zero’s Lighthouse 400 is our Editor’s Choice for just a bit more money.
These earliest 200A lanterns had green painted steel founts and, by November, also had the Coleman decal. The 5 hour battery life on high setting (400 lumens) is probably one of the best features of the Coleman rechargeable lantern. My biggest issue is that after the sun goes down, campers often will turn their lanterns on lower settings as not much light is needed. So a low setting with long battery life is great.
The embossed ventilators date it to 1922 or later. The LAMPAK Company, North Hollywood, California, made these galvanized steel cases circa the early 1950s. This case, in Bill Whitten’s collection, is 6 1/8″ square x 13 1/8″ tall without the gas can coleman sleeping bag and holds a Coleman 200A. The funnel and spout fit in the upper corners of the case. This 220D (dated B 50) is mounted in a Clamp-A-Hood marketed by the Ernie Brow Sales Co., Anderson, Indiana. The purpose of the hood (left) is to reflect light out.
Beginning in May, 1927, Coleman changed the design of the integral pump from built-on (above) to built-in, as on this lantern in Ron Becker’s collection. L427s built after this date all have the built-in pump. We lit campfires, cooked, played board games, had parties, and even chopped wood on moonless nights with this lantern. During one of our parties, we put the Northstar near Grandma when she was chilly. This lantern does make a bit of a hissing sound when it is lit, and when the fuel is about to run out it makes a rather loud whistling noise.
There is nothing engraved on the lantern as on a plated fount presentation lantern. This lantern, dated December ’53, is in Jamie Oren’s collection. This lantern was also made in Wichita and is dated Nov ’51 as the above lantern for the OCD. It doesn’t have the engraved OCD number on the fount but has the same parts noted above from the Coleman – Toronto factory as on the OCD model. This lantern has it’s original box with the same label as on the OCD lantern boxes (right image).