Ok so doing some searching I see anecdotal stories concerning these but no first hand accounts. I looked for Happy Camper in orbit but I did not get any results. I got one of these more for collecting than a user but would like to light it at least once to see it work. Any first hand experience with these?
Hi, Have a look at Doron Papo's post which is found when you use the search facility which is underneath the fettlebox online store box, the page of posts makes for interesting reading. If you type 'Stesco handy camp stove' on Youtube, you'll come up with a few videos. Best wishes=John. -------------------- If in doubt, brew up.
Not much involved. Do not prime as you would a Svea 123 or 8R, it requires only a drop or two of fuel to get going. A match held below the loop may be all it needs to start. Be a little extra careful the first time because a small crack or leak may be undetectable until it heats up and builds pressure. So a means to put out a white gas fire is recommended. I had one such stove that leaked around the bottom seam the first time I tried it. A different one had a half inch hairline crack in the tank. The proper way to extinguish the stove is to blow out the flame, wait a second, and then release the pressure. When a leak occurs, blowing out the flame becomes much harder.
Ok so it was pretty sooty when I got it and I decided to clean it before doing anything else. After cleaning I have determined at least on my stove it might not have been designed to fail but it was sure built to. There are enough deep scratches from the die that it is garunteed to crack and fail. Add heat, time and constant pressurizing...........booom.
I didn't mean to be too negative. These are fun little stoves when working properly. A boom is probably unlikely, but a pool of burning gasoline is exciting. It is worth doing a warm water dunk test with the empty stove and a finger over the jet. If it passes, I'd probably go a head and try it -- just keep a close eye on it and be prepared in case.
No you were not negative, I am just disapointed in the construction method of the stove. It looks to be a vary neat design but mine has three deep scratches one at least 50% percent of the wall thickness and it is obvious that they were there before the tank was plated.
