If this spirit set was a house, the estate agent would describe it as "whilst retaining many original features, the property is in need of some updating". As I am a regular customer, a stall holder at my local market gave this to me FOC. He said he was going to throw it in the bin, but thought I might be able to salvage something from it. Whilst it is a fairly routine looking set, it has a small feature that I have not come across before - the burner has two lugs on the base to allow the burner to lock in place on the stand. The kettle is tin, with a copper base and brass caps for the kettle and spout. Although generally sound, there is extensive surface rusting on both the outside and inside. Any internal protective coating is long gone. As I don't enjoy rust in my tea, I will probably just clean it up and use the set for display. The stand is again sound with just surface rust and has two slots in the base to mate with the lugs on the base of the burner: The burner however, is a complete basket case. I suspect that it originally contained some sort of absorbent wadding. This has a drawback, in that any unused spirit cannot be simply poured out. If cap is then replaced on the burner, the spirit sits there for months or years, quietly rusting away the burner: The base of the burner has two lugs or studs that engage in the slots set in the base of the stand: Normally I would throw away a burner in this state, but I have not seen this engagement system on a spirit set before (or have I just not noticed it?). It would be a pity to consign it to history. Obviously, there is no chance of restoring it to the state it was in when it left the factory, but I wondered if I could at least make if usable. After cleaning up the base, I could see that it had a couple of small holes. If I sealed the base on the outside, it might have prevented the lugs from engaging in the slots in the base of the stand: So instead, I sealed the inner surface of the base using ceramic sealant: I then used aluminium cooking foil to act as a reinforcement of the rust holes: Next I coated the inside and outside of the wall of the burner with sealant and inserted wadding made from rockwool insulation: Finally, I refitted the original mesh screen. When I get hold of some decent brass mesh I will replace it, but it will do for now: OK, the final result isn't pretty, but it works : Regards, Terry
I think the estate agent would describe it as a handy man's dream. Very clever way you brought it back to life, well done.
Hey, Terry, What a neat old kit!! Your kettle very much reminds me of your old copper kettle, which you so kindly sent to me!! Very neat that it was made in both copper, and tin, and that is one very interesting bit of kit. Thank you for sharing, and well done on the fettle work!! Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Mark
