Coleman Medical Stove - Updated 5/2/07

Today?s flea market hunt started off well with a nice Coleman two mantle lantern in like new condition for six dollars. On the way back to the Jeep I saw another lantern, a very rusty 200A. The 200A lanterns had, I believe, unplated burner frames and when they are found in rusted condition they do not clean up well. The fount was also rusty and a lot of paint was missing so I left that one there. After placing the first lantern I bought in my Jeep I headed back to the stalls and started browsing again.

I figured anything else I found would be gravy for the morning?s hunt. After entering the third stall I smelled gravy. Bacon grease gravy. It smelled like it was running all over fresh biscuits. Biscuits and gravy. And there it was. Sitting in an old chair with a stuffed Elmo doll sitting on top of it. A Coleman Model #523 M..D. suitcase stove.

After a quick examination I located the owner. Que questa este cooker? I said in my best Tex-Mex. Beinte dollars. He said. Quince? I said back. No! No! Biente! He said firmly. He obviously knew it was no ordinary camp stove. OK. Gracias. I said as I handed him a twenty.

This is one heavy stove. About twice as heavy as a two burner camp stove. I was delighted to find that it contained a wind screen, two tubes containing spares under the deck, and a wrench clipped to one of the supports. All the knobs turn and the pump is functional. The wind screen clips to the support legs and slides to lengthen it to allow for use of either one or two pans.

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More photos on the next page.

 

Here are some photos showing a bit of detail.



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Best Regards,
HTG

 

HTG,

Gotta be brief. I have a new one, with the proper FM. Want a copy? Great score, talk later!

Doc

 

Hey, HTG , well done , thats what i call a worthwhile day ................ nice find , at a nice price ..
Wiser men than i, have said ... seek & ye shall find !... a good days hunting 8)
nick........................ car boot sale junky

 

Doc - A little too brief. What is an FM? I probably do want a copy and appreciate the offer, but would rather know what I am asking for before making a commitment.

Best Regards,
HTG

 

Hello,
He is offering you the Field Manual. That is an outstanding catch for $20.00. I have seen them go for well over $100.00 and more. You got the stove for the shipping costs alone.

Chuck

 

Hey, HTG,

Sorry, I had to make the PO before they closed, which they do early, on Saturday. An "FM" is a US Army Field Manual. The stove I have, is a US Army Model 1942, and it is brand new, as I mentioned. I got it, yeah, you know where!! That "Same old Swap meet", yet again!! It came in it's original cardboard carton/box, with the Field Manual, and all the goodies. I bought it back in 1990, and it was stove #88 in my collection! I paid $50 for mine, and was quite happy to do so. I've never fired it up, and that's exactly the way it shall remain: A Military Virgin!! 8)

Anyway, the FM has all the part numbers, exploded diagrams, service information, and even a bit on how to destroy the stoves, so they will not fall into enemy hands, should you have to leave them and bug out!! It also contains the very same information for the Model 1950, so you get two stoves, in one manual. If you want a copy of it, I'll go down to the printer's next week, and get one made for you. Or, if you'd rather just hunt up the proper FM for yourself, so you'll have an original copy, here is it's designation. (I note, after looking at it, that it's called a "TM", for "Technical Manual", instead of a "FM". Sorry, my mistake. Been out of the military too long, I guess!! ) Nevertheless, here's it's number: TM 10-7300-200-12, Stove, Gasoline, December 1973. I'll be out of touch for part of next week. But, let me know if you want me to copy this for you, and I'll do it as soon as I can arrange it.

By the way, after walking out of the PO just now, I noted a small Thrift Store, which is right behind the PO, having a "sale". They had stuff strewn around in front of the little cabin they laughingly call a "store", and told me that there were other things to see, "out back". Seeing nothing of interest in the front of the "store", I headed "out back". Imagine my happiness, when I immediately found several items of interest! To whit:

1 - Coleman Folding High Stand, for campstoves and coolers. NIB. The box was not in perfect shape, but the table had never been used. The original price on it was $21.99, from Big 5 Sporting Goods.

1 - Coleman red plastic fuel funnel and filter, #5103-7006, NIB(ag). The original price on it was $3.69, from Running Springs True Value, a hardware store up here on the mountain.

1 - Coleman Silk-Lite 21A bag of two mantles, still sealed. Original price on it was $0.99.

1 - Mirro Aluminum coffee percolator, appears to be 7-8 cups, never used and complete. No price on it.

1 - Therma Rest Standard, full-length sleeping pad, in slightly dusty, but excellent shape, without a hole or tear and holding air perfectly.

I gathered up all these goodies, and left "out back", heading for "out front". I laid it all out on the ground, and asked what the total price would be for all of it. The older Gal who was in charge, looked at it all, and within seconds asked, "Would $4 be OK'? Trying to remain calm, cool, and collected, I am almost certain that my voice quavered, ever so slightly, when I asked, "Do you have change for a five"?? \ \ \ \ As Nick has so rightly said, just a few posts up from this one, "Seek, and ye shall FIND"!!!! Smart man, that Nick!!! 8) 8) God is good, and I am blessed, and extremely lucky!!

HTG, let me know about the TM. Outstanding scores, by the way!!! As my old Grandma used to say, "Ya' done good"!!!! 8) Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc Mark

 

Doc
Way to go. The stand was worth the 4 dollars alone !!

Chuck

 

Hello,
The sterilizer is only missing the top 'boiling' pot. But, given the state of the stove and all the bonus parts and pieces it is still a great score.

Chuck

 

A $20 bill damn well spent by the look of it! Can it be turned down to a simmer, or, resembling as it does a fertilised M1950, only work full bellow ahead? I've never seen one like it, very tidy indeed.

 

HTG, Chuck and Doc - outstanding timing!

I got one of those Coleman double burners last week for ?10 ($20) and the AGM version for the same price. Not sure I got all the accessories, though, although the windshields are there and I think I got one wrench between them.

Great photos, HTG - nice to see how they go together. Do the cases really double as cooking containers? - mine are a bit too 'grubby' for that...

P.S. Doc - any chance of a copy of the FM making it over the Atlantic? [-o

 

Hey, David,

Thanks! It WAS fun that both HTG, Sketch, and I all scored on the same day, and got some fun stuff! Congrats on your own good fortune, too!! Sounds like you got a couple of very good deals, especially being over the pond, and all.

About the TM, absolutely! I don't think I have your mailing address, though, so please send me a PM with that information. When I go to the printer, I'll have a couple of copies made. Easy to slap one in an envelope with your name on it!! If Ross wanted to add a copy of this whole thing to the site, that would probably be OK, too, though it's a fairly large booklet. Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc Mark

 

Sure, Doc, I would love a copy of the field manual. Thanks. Quite a haul you made on your trip to the PO. Especially on the sleeping pad.

brassnipplekey - Thanks, I keep looking and every now and then I find something.

CWilkins - Yes, I thought that was a good price. There have been a few go for a nice price on eBay.

CWilkins - Very nice photo of the entire kit.


nzmike - We will know in a couple of days. It looks like the burners are adjustable but you just never know.

David Shouksmith - Thanks.

Best Regards,
HTG

 

Hello,
It is a nice photo. I wish it was mine! I found that picture on the web.

Chuck

 

Great Score!! They are really pretty nice stoves. I have burnt mine a couple of times and both times they fired up with ease and no problems.

Doc if its not too much trouble Could you make me a copy of that also?? I will gladly pay you for any shipping or copy fees? Thanks Wade

 

What a fine looking stove, and for just $20! Nice. Me thinks me wants one. My preciousssss. . . .. Hearing about these great deals yesterday, the stove stars must have all been aligned nicely.

 

Beautiful stove at a great price! I've seen them go over $200.

I missed a unused coleman version on a BIN for $25 by minutes! Saw it listed in Alaska to US only. I asked the seller if he would ship to Canada and he relplied within two minutes that he would. It was too late, stove was already gone. I think it had been listed a total of 15 minutes befor it was gone.

I was too new at eBay to know I should've just bought it and asked for forgiveness later...

I've since paid more for one in worst condition with parts missing. Spent a ton of effort and time to make it like new. Bought a second for part out of the US. It vaporized in the mail system!

I guess I was never ment to have much luck with these.

 

She is all in pieces on the work bench. The valves are standard Coleman stuff with their typical fuel shut off and fuel/air pick-up tubes that extend down into the tank. They were in great shape. Got them all shined up. The burners are somewhat like the other military stoves except for the jet cleaning needle. It is screwed into the eccentric block. The generator is very much like the ones on the M1950 stove.

The tank is very non standard. It has a fuel plug that uses a lead gasket. Like the one under my blowtorch. Also the tank has some sort of baffle arrangement inside. When trying to rinse out all the old sediment I found that the fuel will not just drain out of the fuel fill bung. Shaking the tank does not help. After taking both valve assemblies off it was found that the fuel will easily drain out of one of the valve holes. Very strange. I would like to see a diagram of how this tank is made.

The pump is exactly the same as the one used on the Mil-spec lanterns. I actually took one off a lantern and installed it in the medical burner's tank to test the NRV while the stove's new pump leather was soaking in oil.

Looks like it will be ready to fire up in a couple of days.

Best Regards,
HTG

 

All finished. No problems with the fettle. It was motsly cleaning and polishing and a fresh coat of paint. The first lighting was easy. It is obvious that this stove was designed to boil water and not cook. The burners have almost no control. The fuel knobs are really for either turning off the burners or running them full blast. The best flame control is by use of the cleaning levers.

Running the stove on Coleman fuel gave a nice hot flame. A little too hot in my opinion. The fuel valve wheels got too hot to comfortably turn with bare fingers and the top of the tank also got very hot. Maybe that is the reason for the internal tank baffles.









Best Regards,
HTG

 

Great job!

I have one by AGM, and I had to pick out rust flakes from inside. It was a tedious job. Pick out flakes through the small hole, add more gas, shake, shake, shake, drain, and repeat...

I find the stove just perfect to grill. Plop a cast iron grill on top of it, and let it go full blast.

It's a great stove.