Bicycle Lantern

Step 3 Installing the Lantern

Now that we have a hole that we can pass the neck of the fount through we can test out our lantern. Fill the fount with fuel (it may help to pack some cotton wadding into the well to keep any sloshing down on your ride). Secure the lamp by inserting the neck into the base of the light housing and then screwing the burner onto the fount. This should be sufficient to keep the lamp secure and it allows easy removal for filling and cleaning.

Light it up! On your first light the flame will almost certainly be choked out by lack of oxygen. Now you can take the lamp out and play around with how to best vent your lantern for maximum light without risking the flame blowing out from the wind whipping by. I started with a ring of holes around the base of the fount hole for air to be sucked into the housing. you should also put some pretty substantial holes on top to vent heat and smoke. After you're keeping a pretty good flame going you can reposition your reflector back into the light if it happens to be metal. I had to saw mine down with a cutting wheel to get it in the position I needed it in.

Eventually I had the right number of holes to keep the light lit while the bike was stationary. As you ride the light gets brighter due to the air that blows past the vents and fuels the fire.