diffusing harsh lantern light, or 'can pyrex be etched?' (1 Viewer)

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

Joined
Mar 9, 2004
Threads
25
Messages
630
Location
Imperial Valley, CA
I'm looking for a way to diffuse the light from a northstar lantern. I've been using foil half shields for years but would like just a diffuser or shade that won't burn up. I tried soaking the glass in acid but it's pyrex or some similar borosilicate and the acid didn't touch it. I googled it a little and it seems inductively coupled plasma works but uh... yeah.

any ideas out there of what would etch it or has someone found a good material for a high temp lamp shade?
 
I have a 5-gallon bucket with the bottom cut out that I sit my Coleman lantern down in when I need to defuse some of its bright light. We redesigned the handle a little with an old metal coat hanger to clear the lanterns handle. I saw this idea at a hunting camp, works good. You can also drill some holes in the bucket for more light filtering through if you need it.:cheers:
 
I Like It!
 
A few wash cycles in my dishwasher ought to do it :rolleyes:

I like the bucket idea.
 
I have a 5-gallon bucket with the bottom cut out that I sit my Coleman lantern down in when I need to defuse some of its bright light. We redesigned the handle a little with an old metal coat hanger to clear the lanterns handle. I saw this idea at a hunting camp, works good. You can also drill some holes in the bucket for more light filtering through if you need it.:cheers:

This works good with an electric drop cord light also! And the bugs do not seem to be as attracted to the light source!:beer::cheers:
 
Get an old school kerosene lantern.
I used mine when I would go Stripper fishing at Lake Mead. Turned down low it was just enough light to tie a leader but not enough to kill your night vision.

It will still go bright enough for you to find your way back to the car or tent.
 
If you want to frost/etch the glass you can use a product called Armour Etch. You can pick it up at Michaels craft stores and I think I've even seen it at the local Wally World. It works great and is a pretty safe way to do what you're looking for. I've used this product on many types of glass, all with good results. You can also mask off areas that you don't want etched and it won't touch that part of the glass. I use contact paper for my masking material as it covers alot of area fast and you can draw designs on it if needed then cut with an exacto and peel out the areas you want etched.

Armour Etch
(Says it will not etch Pyrex though so you may have to go a different route)

edit*** This lady says taht the Armour Etch "WILL" work on Pyrex Happy Valley Quilter: Name That Dish
Could be worth a shot!


I've also ethced with a media blaster with great results too. The biggest concern there is the heat created by the friction of the media against your globe could shatter the glass globe. Take it slow and move around alot and this shouldn't be a problem though.

Good luck!
 
Last edited:
Thanks! I'm going to try that stuff.
 
Be sure to let us know if this works for ya. That Armour etch is like $8 for a little jar and would likely be enough to do a whole bunch of those globes if it works.
 
Will do. I'm trying to find a craft store around here. Seems like there are different pyrex formulas out there. I hope I'm lucky with the globes on the lanterns. also, I'm going to try this on my two small candle lanterns.
 
for those with coleman lanterns, coleman makes a frosted globe, but not sure if northstar does.
 
I can't find them on their site. The only globe listed under the parts section seems to be the normal clear one. If I can find the etching creme mentioned in the earlier post, I'll give it a run this weekend.
 
yep, sorry. found them, but not for your model. good luck with the etching.
 
It's good to see that coleman sees the need for something like this.

I had a fantastic conversation with the owner of a local hobby shop about this. She basically said that once the fad of etching your name in wedding glasses wore off "ages ago", she stopped stocking armour etch.

The part about it being hydrochloric or sulphuric just bounced off the tiny bits of expensive RC car parts hanging on the peg board behind her..

Somehow we got talking about A-B foam and I got the same story about how she used to stock it BUT.....

When the husband came out and asked what I was going to do with the foam, all I could say was that I needed to encase a complex shape/object and didn't want to spend the time with an exacto knife.

anyways, she brought out her catalog and we found the part # for an 8oz bottle of armour etch.
It should be there next tuesday.
 
I've got the stuff. Ammonium\Sodium Bifluorides in a creamy goodness.

Before I begin, I would like to throw another question out there.. Should I do the inside or outside?

I first thought of doing the outside thinking that keeping the inside shiny would help reflect heat back into the generator and keep the glass cooler, but I wonder if it would build up dirt too easy on the outside etched surface. If I do the inside, will the irregular surface absorb too much heat?

I plan to attack it tomorrow morning so any replies after that will apply to the other globes... assuming this even works. The bottle says that it "does not etch plastic and some pyrex"
 
Looks like it's the plastic bucket or media blasting then...

I slathered it up real good and let it for a while. The etching cream didn't even make a mark.

Oh well, there's always inductively coupled plasma...

edited to add: during the rinse, it looked clear.. but there is a very slight cloudiness to it.

Where can I get a gallon of concentrated what ever it is this stuff is so I can dip and soak?
 
Last edited:
Miked,

How long did you let it sit? If it did etch it even the slightest bit you might try it again. but let that stuff sit until it starts to dry. The outside will of course get crusty first but the inner layer close to the glass will stay wet longer. See if that does any more damage to it.

Good luck!
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom