Ahh, I loved the smell of carbide in the morning! Smelled like....victory. Another fond memory of carbide caving was the need to constantly clean the tip with a tip reamer. Some cavers kept a tip reamer on a lanyard around their necks. Others were always asking to borrow yours. When I started caving with the British I learned they call a tip reamer a ³pricker² and I was somewhat startled the first time a British caver turned to me in a tight crawlway with his lamp held out in his hand and asked, ³Can you give me a prick?² ~Frank Binney
On 8/24/12 9:37 AM, "Carl Kunath" <[email protected]> wrote: > The care, feeding, and management of carbide lamps is a micro-culture in > itself. We're now a couple of generations beyond that (except for those who > cling to things like the so-called "ceiling burners," a photo of which started > this whole thread). > > Carbide lamps were cheap at the time ('50s -'70s) and carbide was also cheap > and plentiful. Individual users bought 2-pound cans for $2 while groups often > invested in 100-pound drums available from welding supply stores for about 50¢ > a pound in the large drums. Carbide was often made available free to grotto > members as benefit of membership. > > Disposal of spent carbide slowly evolved from dump it wherever, to dump it in > a crevice, to bury it in the dirt, to pack it out in a bottle or bag. Smart > cavers soon realized that the better solution was to carry spare pre-charged > lamp bottoms. With a total of four bottoms, it was rare to need more on a > typical caving trip. > > For most beginning cavers, the management of a carbide lamp was a mystery and > a bit of a challenge. Nearly everyone carried small repair kits that usually > included a tip, felt, gasket, flint, and tip reamer. Neophytes were tutored > and it became a matter of pride and prestige to troubleshoot, recharge, or > repair your lamp in the dark. In the early days of the Texas Old Timers > Reunion, there were carbide lamp contests with blindfolded competitors. > > With experience, cavers became expert in firing a lamp by beginning a flow of > water, sniffing the tip for the tell-tale odor of acetylene, trapping just the > right mixture of air and acetylene within the reflector and igniting the lamp > with a satisfyingly loud "pop" when the proportions were correct. Often the > built-in sparking device was not working properly, lamps were ignited > flame-to-tip, and the phrase "give me a kiss" had a whole different meaning. > > Carbide lamps were (and are) multi-purpose devices. Besides providing > illumination, they acted as stoves to heat your lunch, a little spot of soot > made a nice survey marker, and when hunkered over, they provided a surprising > amount of heat. If you cut a hole in the top of a garbage bag and used it > like a poncho, things could get quite toasty. They also work wonderfully for > melting nylon ropes, especially when the ropes are tensioned. 8-( > > The appearance of a cave lit by carbide flame is wonderful. The warmer color > temperature and diffuse pattern of light cannot be duplicated by any electric > lamp I have seen. If you have never been "carbide caving" try it sometime > just for fun to see what I mean. > > Carbide caving didn't end instantly. For several years, I was using an > incandescent head lamp with a shirt pocket battery pack. When we stopped for > any reason, I would turn off my light to conserve battery power and instantly > draw "mooch and letch" comments from my carbide companions who then spitefully > refused to allow me to heat my boned chicken with their carbide lamps. > > Electric lights have come a long way. We are far beyond the days when a Wheat > Lamp was considered a state of the art caving light. Carbide is gone and > incandescent is all but gone. LED enhancements, micro circuitry, and > advancing battery technology provide us with powerful, lightweight devices we > never dreamed of in the past. I certainly don¹t miss all that weight on the > front of my helmet, but I do miss some of the other things about carbide > caving. > > ===Carl Kunath >
