Questions about long Coleman fuel can be stored pop up on a regular schedule, and the general consensus seems to be "a long time". But fifty years? Maybe, here is the story. A couple months ago I picked up another Coleman (like I needed another) from a local lady. She told me that her dad had bought it when she was a kid, that he filled it up with fuel, fired it up one time, and since that time it was in storage. She said they never went camping. It came with an old can of Coleman fuel that seemed about two thirds full. On the stove there was some external rust, blisters and corrosion, but the inside was basically spotless, so her story seemed reasonable. I shook the tank and it seemed empty but I could not get the cap off at the time. The pump would not pressurize -- but for $20 who cares. I was looking for an easy project. The stove is a 413F and I cannot find a date anywhere. It looks like the 413F was produced from '61 to '64 (Terry Marsh's site). So, if so, the stove is at least 50 years old. I don't know how to date the can of fuel. There is a price tag from a store called "Drug Fair" for $1.99. Now, I don't remember what Coleman fuel cost back in the 60's but that does seem about right to me. I am not familiar with Drug Fair stores. The outside of the can, especially the top, had a lot of rust so I was not too keen on taking the fuel but I figured I could get rid of it. Note the plastic cap on the fuel can, it is a pain to use. Getting home, I poured some of the fuel in to clean clear glass jar and it looked fine. Smelled normal. I filtered it anyway because the outside of the can had so much loose rust. The check valve of the tank was stuck open so that required a "little" work. I rinsed the inside of the tank with the old Coleman fuel until it came out clear -- a lot of greenish stuff came out with the rinses. I still had half of the possibly 50-year old fuel left so I tried lighting the stove. Worked fine. Put some of the fuel in a Svea 123 clone and it worked perfect. Again I cannot say for certain the fuel is 50 years old but the evidence seems to indicate that it is, and it can last quite a while. On the other hand, fuel left in the tank of the stove may have evaporated over those years and left a mess and a gummed up check valve. As to the stove. I don't care for the handle style, or the spring out legs so much but since I did not have the F version, all is good.
Good tale! I am not in the least surprised that the fuel worked fine..... Fifteen years ago Coleman Fuel was $3.99 and it had been about that for a long time around here. $1.99 could easily be 50 years back, or near it. Pump gasoline would have been around $0.30/gal. back then. It wasn't really all that long ago....I know because I graduated from high school in 1966. Stadium High School class of 1966 fifty-year reunion coming up on August 13......
Great find, great story. I use my 413E all the time camping, and bring other vintage stoves for the fun. The oven fits the 413 best, except for the 426. Ken in NC
I remember paying either $1 a gallon or $2 for CF in the mid to late 80s. I recently finished a can that I had purchased sometime after that. The Walmart sticker said $2.89. So I would reckon your can could be around 30 years old. Before that I have no idea what it went for. Who knows, maybe in the 60s it was a might higher and the price went lower a decade or two later. No matter the price, I certainly wish I had bought more of it then, with its potential 50 year lifespan.
what is it about Coleman fuel that makes it last so long? the survival folks buy some sort of stabilizer to add to the auto gas they store away.
Coleman fuel is pretty much pure stuff --heptane, I think. Auto gas has ignition retardants and such for high-compression engines, detergents to keep this stuff in solution, and likely all kinds of other things that react with themselves or each other and precipitate out as gunk. ....Arch
Look on the underside of the tabs on the fuel tank for a date. IIRC Coleman started dating the stove tanks around 63 so maybe/maybe not on yours.
https://classiccampstoves.com/threads/coleman-msr-superfuel-heptane.28631/ Some more discussion about fuels.
That gallon Coleman can doesn't look very old. Those safety caps are a modern pain in the ass. Old fuel can be used for other things like started charcoal, cleaning grim off old founts or tools, cleaning paint brushes etc. I also use it to kill the damn weeds growing from the sidewalk.
I remember using CF cans with that jerk of a cap in the 90's. It always got in the way. Old fuel make a good ant killer.
Yes, thanks, now I'm convinced the gas was not the same age as the stove. Since Billyboy actually remembers that nightmare of a cap, I am going with his dating. Oh well, 20 years plus or minus is still nice to know.
Hi, For a long time in my neighborhood, after auto gasoline reached $1/gal (USD), Coleman fuel ran about double what auto gas did. So I'd guess $2 CF as late '70s or perhaps early '80s around here. And that's a fantastic life expectancy I've never had--a buddy came upon a couple of supposedly unopened cans that, even at an estimated 10 years, contained fuel so bad it would barely light. So we date the cans and try to rotate the stuff out at a max of two years now. Rick C
Coleman fuel does not go bad if sealed. I have used Coleman fuel over 50 years old in original sealed can with no trouble. I once bought two Coleman lanterns from the late teens that were sealed in a mine since the mid twenties. I am not sure of the type of gas they contained, possibly auto fuel but they both fired and ran well. I bought a large amount of cans over 20yrs ago and am still using them. Mike...
