Hi Guys, Would you believe that both of these ended on Ebay with hours of each other, one from Scotland, the other from Tasmania. The copper one is a beauty and I am very happy with it. A copper meth burner is missing, with luck I will find one. If anyone has one they will sell, please PT me with photos plus costs. The convex hump in the middle of the pot support is 4.5 cm or 1 3/4 from on side of the hump to the other. I am in two minds as to stripping and polishing, there is a lot of impacted Brasso polish, so a strip and buff is a probable resolution. There is something really nice and basic about the tin box Sirram. It appears to be all there, I have lit it up but the flame is very sooty. The burner is a sealed unit so changing the wadding is not possible so I guess it will be a modern meths burner if I want to use it. I brought it mainly because of the kettle, so I am pleased. cheers, Sooty Blackwood South Australia
Nice buys Sooty. Sometimes, sellers misinterpret the warning on the side and list these style of copper kettles as 'oil lamp'. I've got a number of copper kettles but I've yet to find a Sirram in copper. Have a look at this post by Zincman ( Link) . The right hand set looks like yours. The Sirram burner that crops up most frequently is the W4 show here by Shed-man ( Link ), but I think it goes with the more modern sets. The burner shown by Zincman shows a differently shaped burner that fits into the depression in the base of the kettle. I don't know if the W4 would fit. Zincman may be able to tell you if there is any model number on his burner. Terry
I am thinking I would add water to the burner and heat it until just under boiling, rinse and repeat this until nothing but pure water comes out then dry thoroughly. A couple of rinses with meths may also help with the crud. This process should dissolve most impurities. Ian
If you suspect there's been kero in the alcohol burner, swill out a few times first with Coleman fuel (or equal). The Coleman fuel will dissolve the heavier kero, and will itself evaporate with little/no residue. Then swill with alcohol a time or 2, and it'll be as clean as ever. Alcohol itself doesn't dissolve kerosene very well. Good luck! J
