i've always found these lamps interesting too, but i've never seen one operating.. i don't have much info, but i do know lamps and carbide fuel are still manufactured mostly for use by cavers.. here is a small article with a cool cross section of a lamp's workings:
http://www.caves.org/
Andrei Padlowski Glen Ridge, NJ
On 2/18/07, Julius Naim <julius.naim@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi
>
> I came across some calcium carbine in my loft during a clear out, I
> didn't know what is was and found it was used in lamps for caving and
> cycling.
>
> I was wondering if anyone uses carbide lamps on their bicycles,
> perhaps like this one;
> http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/
> I was thinking of getting one and a bit more info would be
> interesting/useful
>
> All the best
>
> Julius Naim
> London, UK