There has been discussion here not so long ago about "cotton" mops not actually being 100% cotton; thus making wicks for stoves problematic. I tested a mop, advertised "pure cotton" and found that when you put a match to it, it left a small amount of black "glassy" residue indicating something in addition to the cotton being in the thread... I saw this wick material on eBay at Kibworth DIY (UK) so bought a long length of it to test out. I am working on getting a few Svea 123s and 123Rs back in service so I thought I would test it in one of those. I am very happy with the result: I'll be using the Kibworth wick in all of my fettles when needed from now on. Cheers Tony
Looks good Tony. It looks like the wicking for the small Pigeon Vintner's lamps. Is it 1/4 inch diameter? Was it a tight fit and hard to install? Ray
@Ray123 I should have mentioned the diameter. It is 2.5mm diameter natural cotton braid spirit-lamp wick. With two strands doubled over (as in the picture above) it fits into the burner tube snugly, but without having to use any force. Cheers Tony
Great thread, great posts. But, having purchased a 100% cotton mop head years ago, I will never deplete that supply, ever. Ken in NC
Yesterday I went to Home Depot to look for 100% cotton mop head to have for wick material. The package did not say if it was 100%, what normal person would care? I cheated and used my knife to ever so slightly open the plastic packing by an inch, then sliced off a tiny sample to take with me. Uh oh, hidden cameras! Back at the car I lit the sample to look for plastic residue, but it burned up to a dry ash. So I went back in and bought it. Would you NC guys have come to bail me out of jail?
A few years ago I bought some spare wicks for garden flares (you know, the tin cans fitted on a bamboo stick). Works fine and 'guaranteed' pure cotton. I do like Tony's idea, in fact I have thought of buying some wicks for the Pigeon lamps I have ( one with a glass chimney, the other one has a small cap on a chain to cover the wick when not in use) and try these in my P71s and similar stoves. If I ever come to do this, I'll tell you folk how I fared. Best regards, Wim
I was fortunate to find a small tin box packed with wicks(aftermarket type) at a second hand shop marked 'Curtain Tassels?'. They were on a shelf near some stove spares that possibly came from a camping shop and the store staff must not have realised that the wicks were also stove parts. There were about 27 cotton wicks complete with brass wire in that tin. I only paid $2 for them. I tried a couple and they worked just as good as original Optimus wicks. Most are gone now but I have enough spare to keep me going for future fettles. Cheers, John
