Although the Advance is shown in advertizing that is supposedly from 1912, I believe it was only made by Ham in late 1913 to early 1914, if at all. We already know that Dietz made some Ham lanterns from the parts and tooling acquired in 1914 and filled standing jobber orders from distributors like Shapleigh Hardware in St. Louis. Norleigh Diamond is the house brand of Shapleigh and was made by Ham and others over the years. Anyway, a short period of production is the reason they are so rare, as are most of the lanterns shown in the 1914 Ham catalog.
As I have purchased 5 of the 8 Advances on ebay over the last 5 years, I can tell you the price can vary between $40 and $90 which I consider a bargain. Price goes with provenance, and collectors just don't know how rare they are. That is how Ham is different from the other manufacturers; their last lanterns are among their rarest.
Please post some pics of your lantern, or email them to me, and we will be glad to tell you more.
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