I think I will have need to buy and use a Coleman-style lantern this season, mainly for squid fishing off docks that dont' have electric power for my flood light. I've never operated one so I was wonder how do you ignite the light? Does it come with some type of ignitor? Or use a match? A spark maker? How much fuel should I expect to use?

Also, if there's a specific model or feature to look for or another brand altogether I'd appreciate the insights.

Thanks.

I would recommend one that takes Coleman fuel as opposed to one that takes gasoline. The Coleman fuel burns very bright.

You fill it with fuel, pump it about a dozen times, ignite it with a match or one of those long lighters and then adjust the brightness. I like to wrap foil on 1/2 of the glass so that it projects more light forward and doesn't blind you as you hold it in front of you. A full tank should get you at least 3 hours on the highest setting. Be carefull! The top of the lantern gets very hot.

Colemans makes a series called Peak 1. I think thats the one to get.

The lanterns I've used while camping ran off the propane tanks commonly used for grills. I think they were made by coleman. We ignited them by sticking a match up the hole. They worked very well as I recall. Since these were permanent lamps hooked up to propane tanks, I couldn't tell you about fuel usage.

Don't look at the lamp. They burn very bright. It's like looking at the sun.

The tops of the lamps get really hot as Mike said. I bet it would get hot enough to cook an egg. Watch your fingers.

coleman sells a nifty little sparker that attaches to the mantle base of the lantern.. you can get them at walmart. my dual mantle coleman lantern will take me through the entire night on a full tank, and yes the top of the lantern does get very hot, great for cigs or cigars in a pinch.