Dietz#8 Air Pilot Oil Burning Lantern (Blue)

Looks good but more importantly it is not just for looks it works for it’s intended purpose Made sturdy and during a power failure it is ready to light ( well once you put oil in it)

Had to do some tweaking to get the burner aligned with the burner dome. This is my 3rd lantern. All Dietz (different models)Had to tweak them all. Not a big deal to do.Burns nice & even.

The Dietz Air Pilot is a reliable old school source of light for power outages, outdoor activities, or just for ambiance. The 7/8 inch wick produces more light than smaller wick models and, in my opinion, is whiter and slightly brighter light than the Jupiter's (see the attached picture for a comparison of light output - a Dietz 76, then a 2000, then a Jupiter, and finally an Air Pilot which was the brightest). It's wide base is very stable, and it is light enough for easy carrying. The rising cone burner is easier to light and trim the wick than the other 7/8 inch wick models, however it is more wind sensitive. In stronger winds, you have to turn down the wick some to avoid smoking, more so than the Jupiter. That is the only disadvantage to the Air Pilot I have found so far. In addressing some people's complaints about leaking, all Dietz type lanterns should be filled to just under the bottom of the filler neck (see picture). The 'tank' on these lanterns is a two chambered affair, with a fuel fount on bottom and a separated air chamber above. If you overfill them the oil will expand through the fount's wick opening into the upper air chamber and then leak out the side air tube crimps. None of mine have ever leaked when properly filled and kept upright. Burned with a clear non-paraffin lamp oil there is almost no smell after the initial burn-in. Very useful in winter power outages. I keep a few day's worth of fuel on hand just in case, and it has come in handy several times. Update 1/16/2020: I received an additional Air Pilot 12/25/2019, which brings my total number of that model to three. This last one had a bottom crimp seal that weeped oil just enough to fill the crimp bead, but not enough to overflow onto a surface before evaporating. So, not all of my Air Pilots arrived in perfect condition, but as Mr. Loaf once said "don't be sad, 'cause two out of three ain't bad". Other than that they all work perfectly, and that one is the only one of the 8 total Dietz's I have that required a fix. I have since sealed the crimp on that one with a couple tablespoons of spar varnish inside the dried tank, let it dry thoroughly, and it is fine. Although the fix was simple and inexpensive, it was still needed, therefore am altering my rating to 4.67 stars total for the Air Pilots I have (and I would still buy more in a heartbeat).

The dented chimney doesn't appear to affect the operation, was just mildly irritating on a $50+ lantern.Ordered another, came without the dent.

I am very pleased with my lantern. I wasn't setting my expectations too high due to some reviewers' experience with leaks. My lantern doesn't leak at all and works great. I only filled it up about 85% (as stated in the instructions and as pointed out by several other reviewers) and I had absolutely no problems with it. It's plenty bright for what it is, and it looks very nice. I was going to order another one but the price has nearly doubled in the few days since I received it. That's not to say it's not worth the new price. I would have to shop around amd see what else I can get for that price, and I am just not willing to turn around and pay that much more for the exact same product right after I paid so much less. It feels like too much like gouging at this point. Having said that, I really love the lantern and the price I paid for it.

It did leak at joints but a quick layer of JBWELD, fixed it. Now it needs repainting. Still it was a good value at 50% off. But, finding a high quality lantern would be difficult and expensive.

I love this thing! It’s bright and is roughly equivalent to 12 candles. Kerosene seems to work best in the lamps with the 7/8“ wicks. Kerosene has a strong smell, but these can be safely used indoors. To the people who say they leak, I would say you didn’t follow the advice Dietz sends with these: do not over fill (which means filling the tank all the way up).These throw a decent amount of light and definitely works as intended. I’ve got about 20 lanterns (of different sizes) and I love this big Dietz!

The lamp works, the globe was not broken and it does not leak. That is the good.The bad:It looks like whomever put this together thought it was going to end up in the Joker's lair. The whole thing is crooked. The hanging wire is an inch taller on one side. The wick holding assembly and the hole it seats into lean to one side. Even the top cap is bent into a kind of frown shape like someone pressed really hard on two sides.There is also a huge dent in the bottom of the lamp that was not a shipping ding.A few small paint scratches were likely done in the warehouse, but all the bent and crooked and dented pieces have ZERO paint scratching or compromise so that tells me all of them happened before they painted it. They knew they were sending off a Joker's lair, crooked, dented, poorly assembled piece and they just didn't care - paint it and ship it seems to be the motto for Dietz now.I'll keep it and use it - because who wants to keep returning to get a new one in the hopes of getting lucky - but such a disappointment that a once excellent brand is now complete QA failure junk.