Greetings all, This will be my first official post as I just recently found this forum. I have restored a '74 Coleman stove for my first camp stove and use it for my trips now and I am in possession of an Optimus 8R which the lid was bashed in so that will be my next. I am excited to see how that turns out. I have to first give my thanks to you all as you have been a great inspiration and a tremendous help. A big shout-out to Idahostoveguy for assisting this newb in how a "preheat cup" works. It fired right up! I found this stove on CL which was being sold by the neighbor of the deceased. I've never heard of the brand but now know more than I ever imagined. Everything was in pretty good condition and I went with the Kona Brown for the case. Another member used that and I really enjoyed the look. The only issue is the pump does not push any air out, I'm assuming the leather cup needs to be replaced. I saturated in oil to "rehydrate" and the leather seems to be in good condition but just doesn't command a seal. Since this is an odd size, I was wondering what people could suggest? For now, my mouth and hands were the pressurizer...not ideal and little power but enough to see a flame. Anyways, enjoy!
Nice work. Until you find a new cup, keep working the one you have. Spread it gently, sometimes it does not take much. Meanwhile, to get the stove running like it should -- go pick up a rubber valve stem from an auto store, stick that in a bicycle pump and just hold the bulb end against the pump hole on the tank while you (or someone) pumps a little. It should seal good enough to put real pressure in the tank; go easy at first.
very nice restoration, not much better than a PW stove, I like your color choice. Get some 120 or so grit sandpaper and give the leather a good roughing up, it will help it get traction in the pump tube, and if you can Neetsfoot oil is the best for leather regards Jan
Wow! Your PW No. 8 is superb! The brass on your tank sure shines brightly! Yeah, what those guys said about the pump leather. You should be able to massage and stretch the old leather back to some level of working condition. Just be careful not to rip the leather. It's old and could easily rip. Soak in oil before you do any stretching or massaging; this will make it a lot more flexible. Nice work! sam
Thank you all for the kind words and suggestions. I will definitely take your suggestions for the leather cup. If all else fails, I have seen some youtube videos of how to punch your own leather cups so that could also be a possibility. -Danny
So the tire valve/ bike pump did the trick easily to pressurize the tank. I am still working on that leather cup, expanding it slowly. However, the flame seems to be constant. No matter how much the valve is open, it does not seem to effect the flame. The picture I have attached is with the valve just slightly open and it remains the same with it fully opened as well. I was unable to remove the gas needle from the generator when I cleaned it up, the damn thing was stuck but now I am thinking that is the issue. I do have a spare that came with it but it just wont remove from the generator.
Your generator may be all clogged with carbon deposit. I've used heat and quench method on those old generators. I heated them with a propane torch getting the generator red hot and then dipping in cold water. I made sure the remove the jet off the end and then after a few dips, like 7 or 8, the cleaning needle should just fall out. Be careful to only get to a dull red and not bright red. That will weaken and break the generator. You could also try acetone soak for a day or two. I've tried that a couple of times, it just takes hurrying up and waiting for a few days to a week. Another cause for the low pressure symptom is the fuel pick inside the tank may be clogged. This will require removing the valve and just cleaning it. I guess I would try this first before trying to clean the generator, although, if the cleaning needle is stuck, it might need cleaned anyway. sam