As the old fellow used to say, "aye god, thats some fine Southern engineering". I just happened to have a pricker rod out of a 413 (or something) Coleman stove and wonder how they drilled the end of it and then swaged the actual pricker in it. I'd send this to you but the threaded end is completely different than yours. Next question is if that brass tubing is going to hold up as well as the steel rod. Guess you'll find out. Just think though, saved about $30 U.S. and it only took a eight hours, $10,000 worth of equipment and years of experience to "gitterdun". Best, Bob An afterthought.....since I just poked a hole in my finger with this pricker rod, thought I'd look closer at it. It appears that its a sewing needle or stick pin of some sort rather than a simple piece of wire. Its sharpened anyway...enough to poke a hole and draw blood if you're not paying attention.
I reassembled the Coleman 500 tonight. I replaced the tank filler washer with a nitrile equivalent and flushed out the tank with a little bit of Aspen 4T. I'd left the pump washer to soak in engine oil overnight and with the pump reassembled and the filler cap screwed down, got a satisfying build up of pressure on a fingertip jammed into the fuel pickup valve hole with just a few strokes of the pump. The non-return valve operated perfectly, ensured by a light oiling the night before and the action of the pump in my test. All that remained was a bit of wire brushing of surface rust on steel components here and there and a bit of polishing of the brassware. Canook Coleman, take a bow. First, filler cap elevation ... ... control wheel end ... ... pump and fuel/air valve control side ... ... cast iron mixing chamber end ... Ok, enough posing for formal shots, now fuelled up with Aspen 4T it goes outside for a firing! The stove flared up somewhat more dramatically and for a longer duration than I'm used to with more modern Coleman stoves, but I expected that because of the sheer weight of metal in the mixing chamber and generator assembly. It settled down to a beautiful simmer ... On full blast, it was impressive too ... After a few minutes basking in the Coleman's glow outdoors I took it indoors to get the kettle on. Having stripped, serviced and reassembled it, the Coleman inspired confidence. It's so solid! Sipping tea, I shut the Coleman down and popped off a couple more shots of the distinctive 'spider's web' grate, which I realise should be re-mounted by 90 degrees anti-clockwise to get that gap in the inner ring over the mixing chamber. Responding to my generator pricker/rod fix post, Bob ('Texas') wrote:- "Next question is if that brass tubing is going to hold up as well as the steel rod. Guess you'll find out." Good point Bob. Early days, but it's held up so far. I'll probably strip the generator down after a few more firings and see how the rod's coping. 10,000 bucks' worth of equipment and 8 hours to fettle it Bob?!!! Very droll, buddy. Just to reassure anyone who doesn't get the joke, the pricker rod fix took a couple of hours, a Dremel and sixty cents' worth of brass tubing! Cheers, John
Like the brass, like the flame, like the whole danged stove. Fine backpacing stove as long as you only pack it out to the vehicle and from there to someplace fairly close to use it. I like mine and can see it being a regular user....I mean, regular. That little gap in the grate appears to be more open than on my stove. Hadn't thought about turning it. I need to find some suitable material (tin cans) and build a windscreen for mine. Another good idea. Good job. Bob
Aww ... I've realised that the orientation of the generator I set on reassembly is out by 180 degrees. An indentation in the burner plate should correspond with the filler cap to enable easier access for a Coleman funnel. I've got it over the pump tube. Drat! Oh well, back to the workbench ... John
Evening, John, Yet another wonderful post from you, Sir! I like the orderly progression of your posts, and appreciate the thought and care that go into your writing them for us! On our recent CA Stove Gathering, I attempted to fettle my 1947 Coleman Speedmaster, which appears to have been run with cheap Mexican auto gas! The stove box has writing in both English and Spanish, and after seeing that the spring inside the generator was firmly stuck to the brass tube in which is resides, I began soaking said tube in penetrating oil. However, very soon thereafter, I succeeded in breaking off the cleaning pin from it's brass rod! What I moron I was!! Oh, well.... After reading your fine post, detailing your success in reinstalling a new cleaning pin, I "may" try my hand at the same fix.....OR, I may order a new generator, spring, and cleaning needle, and call it good!! Nice job, John, and thanks, very much, for sharing it with us! Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc
Rustbucket IV - Resurrection! It's been quite a journey ... ... with many distractions, including work ... the arrival of a century old stove in the post ... and a Canadian Coleman too At last though, I've got Rustbucket finished. First of all, I'd a problem with the pan rests. They were too far gone ... see what I mean? Now, I'm not usually reluctant to ring the ever-helpful Mike at Base Camp and spend on essential spares, but I happened to have a spare pan rest and a heavyweight coat hanger (military) of the same gauge, so ... I couldn't resist having a go at making a pan rest out of the coat hanger. Here it is part way through the process I'd a final touch to add to Rustbucket's case too, with a stencil I cut out of paper with a scalpel, stuck with photo mount spray to the case (it lifts without lifting the underlying paint) and sprayed over with an aerosol can. I chose red for the 'Magneto' font. In one of my posts, 'krankiev' said, It looks great in "magneto" I'd also try a font called "air conditioner" because it's similar but with a more classic '50s look You're right, krankiev, the 'air conditioner' font would have been excellent, but I reckoned that the Magneto would be easier for stencil cutting and came a pretty good second best. Well, I think it worked ok ... Rustbucket resurrected! Rustbucket was never destined to be an ornament, so ... fuelling up! (paraffin/kero) Flame shots ... roared beautifully I watched, listened, brewed up, raised and lowered the flame ... enjoyed the satisfaction of a stove restored and working. Last thing after a good thirty minutes was to check the paintwork under the burner. So far so good ... Thanks everybody for your interest, support and advice. It's been great to have you along. Now, what's next for the treatment? All the best, John
Oh My! What a nice resto, I'm getting quite teary! Who says there is no holding back entropy? Another good'un saved to roar another day......
Firm Handshake--Pat On The Back that's one of the best i've seen yet.. I like the coat hanger trick.. You can't slack off now,we will be expecting big things from you in the future
Beautiful job John! Now that's my kind of fettling! Making an old beat up stove into a wonderful user! I gotta ask...what did you do to keep the paint under the burner from burning? I have my own Rustbucket I've re-painted a couple of times and can't seem to keep the paint under the burner from burning/melting. I even waited a month before I fired it up! What's your secret?
Hi John, First Class fettle, now follow Nick's instructions for making a combined heat/splash shield for the bottom of the case: https://classiccampstoves.com/posts/112457 Best Regards, Kerophile.
The Midas touch - truly a super restoration from a heap of rust. I would never had believed it possible. Excellent, truly excellent.
Hey John, I've enjoyed every minute of the "Rustbucket" saga. You are a great fettler and a super story teller too. Can't wait for the sequels. The return of Rustbucket...Children of the Rustbucket...Bride of Rustbucket. I hope the newly restored Rustbucket gives you as much enjoyment as your series of posts have for us at CCS. All the best, Manny
Super John, excellent work and riveting story and for your reward a virtually NOS stove - well done my man. Tom P.S I would have preferred a Zebra stripe paint job myself
Hi John, Excellent fettle, and with the final touch of "Rustbucket" customisation you're not going to pick up the wrong stove after we've beat the world record again at Newark next May! Cheers, Graham.
Hi John: Wonderful and rare version of the 500. Looks good with good flame. The 500 should not flare up when starting. They are a super fast lighting stove for their vintage. Just make sure the lever below the plate is in the light position (toward the right) before attempting to light then after 20 seconds (good blue flame) turn to burn (toward the left). If not lit in the "light " position or if lever is switched to burn too fast the manifold will flood and you will have high yellow flame that will take about ten minutes to settle down. Mike...
Hey BBBB, You seem pretty confident, just how many 111's do you fellas have hidden away. Cheers, Manny
