I love my "old" Nova, we have been wondering about the quality, and why Optimus dont do anything with all the errors in thalater time: Nova recall Now it is a fact, but..is it to late to save one of the last from getting down??? I hope so. dsk
this is something to think about when you buy one of the cheaper clones that are also made in China.if something watched over by Optimus has problems what about the others and would they ever be recalled.
now all we have to do is wait for Trangia to recall theirs bigger design flaw than i thought the older Nova's aren't perfect either as they can shoot fuel if the connector sticks edit just checked the optimus pics and they reckon the pump pictured above is faultless
looks like there are problems across the entire Optimus product line, with the exception of... you guessed it! the SVEA 123R! (OK, the Crux brothers are fine)
It has taken a long time & pressure from those dealers who know about the product & customer service to get that result. Prior to the recall sending out half a dozen spare seals to dealers was not an adequate response. I feel heartily sick for the likes of Staffan Rönn & the past employees of Optimus that Katadyn have let it come to this.
Can't say I feel too bad for companies that chase cheap and abused labor in china and then have to go through a recall. I love my old (first year) Nova which I assume was made in Sweden. It keeps cranking and has never clogged or even hiccuped in over 100 meals. It has climbed most of the White Mountain 4K's with me and has cooked many meals on sandy beaches. I'll be honest though, I've been thinking about going back to MSR when it finally dies. The specs might not be as good, but at least they are not making poor people work in miserable conditions at unlivable wages just to better the lives of a few. my 2c. Joe
I just checked my Nova+ and it falls under the recall. Just my luck. I guess I won't be blowing myself up in a fuel fire. Apparently it's the black-painted ones that are affected. Mine is definitely made in China. QA went right out the window. Good thing I haven't fired it yet... My QA number is QA001010, which falls within the range of the recall. The dreaded Art No. 8016277 is also on recall. The box. The stove. sam
I have one as well. Sadly enough I got it as a replacement for my old Nova where the nut holding the burner to the windshield broke off. Apparently also a known problem with early Novas. A bit sad to see the quality issues appear after moving production to China, sometimes such a cost reduction is not worth the money it cost... Might have to add that I'm working as a design engineer, sending drawings and designs to China where we have almost all of our manufacturing facilities today... Regards, Rickard
Is this break caused by force or heat fatigue or what? Mine seems ok so far, but you have me wondering.
I raised this example in discussion with my Chinese-heritage work colleague and while he's unable to comment on the specific circumstances relating to the Nova because he's not in possession of enough facts, he reflected on what he's seen happen with other products in the photographic field (he's a professional photographer): Chinese manufacturers are capable of producing high quality products but the specification has to be precisely defined down to the finest detail. He fears that something can be 'lost in translation' at times, literally because of linguistic problems. He reckons that without that detailed spec they'll produce a visually identical product but with shortfalls in metallurgy and materials. He maintains that the tendency is for Western retailers to exploit the potential for high profit margins by not passing on the savings in manufacture to customers, yet failing to invest more in manufacturing to get a better quality product. Plausible I'd say. John
Just emailed Katadyn requesting an RMA(return material authorization) and prepaid postage. Curious how long before I get a reply. It could be a good idea to start a new thread just for repair/refurbishment stories. Here is old correspondence: AR
Glad I got the older model Nova originals. Still have one backup, NIB. Guess I'll hang on to it now. Truly sad, another sell out company, chasing the quick buck.