Morning, Lads, Been talking to one of our Stove Mates about a possible swap, and I found the stove I was going to send has quite a bit of rust, in large flakes, in the tank! Now, before I send this stove off to a new home, I would like to remove all of said rust, and get it in reliable condition. I was going to shake out as much as possible, then partially fill the tank with Meths. Shake, shake, shake, and dump, several times. Then, after drying out, I wanted to put something in the tank that will remove as much of the rust as is possible, and leave the inside of the tank as clean as it can be made to be. I thought about some sort of acid, and I also thought about using something like a Naval Jelly solution. Will either of these two things harm the nickel-plated outside of the tank? Any other suggestions you lot would care to offer, will be much appreciated. Thanks, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc Mark
I have been using Naval Jelly as the final cleaning in steel fonts for some time now, after using something to rattle loose the rust flakes, etc. After I let it set in the naval jelly for about fifteen minutes I rinse it well and then add some baking soda to pacify the metal. I have seen it leave a discolored spot on the nickel where I got sloppy and let it (naval jelly) sit too long, other than that I haven't had any problems using mild acids. Regards, Ed
Toss a handful of good old fashioned square nuts in there with the naval jelly, screw on th lid and shake the fount like a terrier killing a rat. If you can, putting th fount on an olde fashhyndde rolling rock polisher for an hour or two with a charge of coarse sand, water, and scouring powder in it will clean it to almost surgical specifications. Almost anything abrasive will help, but the square nuts have sharper corners. Cleaning and de-rusting the insides of things is troublesome. Gerry
I usually use BB's from my old Red Rider BB gun and fuel. I shake, pour, shake, pour. When the fuel comes out pretty clear I then use a compressor to dry out the inside. I might try it again with the BB's and fuel to be sure the big flakes are gone.
Hi Doc, here is one I prepared earlier. I believe the main ingredient of Naval Jelly is Phosphoric acid: https://classiccampstoves.com/threads/4239 Good Luck with the work. Best Regards, Kerophile.
Doc be super carefull on what you put into the 530 It has a longer filler neck that extends down in the tank aways and is a bugger to get anything out much less fuel. If you have the valve off maybe only smaller items that will fit thru that hole. I have made this mistake before and have a really nice 530 with a nut in the bottom. I worked at it for days and to no avail it just would not come out.
I also use BB's but I mix them with 6-32 Hex nuts EITHER can be retrieved with a skinny mechanics magnet. In cases of really bad "Crud" I'll use a phosphate solution intended for converting rust on auto frames. DO NOT use "meths" or Methanol as it is generally a waste of time and if you use real methanol it can make a bad situation worse. Many appliances intended for use with gasoline or coleman type fuels use seals and O-rings that are NOT compatible with alcohol... I find that old fashioned "carb cleaner" works real well for removing varnish on older appliances that were neglected. AllanD
Doc be super carefull on what you put into the 530 It has a longer filler neck that extends down in the tank aways and is a bugger to get anything out much less fuel. If you have the valve off maybe only smaller items that will fit thru that hole. I have made this mistake before and have a really nice 530 with a nut in the bottom. I worked at it for days and to no avail it just would not come out. Not too long ago, I needed to clean out a 530 tank. I got seven 1/4 - 20 nuts and dropped them into the tank and cleaned it just as described. Prior to putting them in, I waved a magnet over them and noted that four of them were magnetic as they were steel and the other three were stainless steel non magnetic. Yup. Upon completion of the cleaning the tank, six of them came out easily. The seventh one, a non magnetic took up the rest of the evening. It finally came out. To get it out, I refilled the tank and just kept sloshing and dumping and refilling. It was a real task and I will never do it again in that manner. I am sure I refilled that tank twenty times at least. At this point, I do not know what works the best. But I know the worse way. Ken H.
Greetings, All, Right, then, Lads!! Many thanks for all the suggestions! I will not use Meths, as I'd originally planned, but rather the combination of cleaners and steel nuts, "shaken, not stirred", to loosen and remove the rust present!! Afterwards, maybe a little carb cleaner, to finish things off, and then I'll give it a go. If all works out, then maybe it will be ready to go to a new home, assuming it's wanted. Otherwise, I really don't mind just keeping it. I'm down to three 530's, now, and don't mind having them all. But, I also don't mind turning one loose, and just having two, either. Thanks, again, Friends! All your suggestions were very helpful!! I'll let you all know how it turns out, when I get around to working on this 530. Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc Mark
Doc Mark I am currently working on a Coleman 530 with a boggered up gas valve. The entire valve and vaporizer tube has been removed from the tank. Can someone please tell me how to take the gas valve apart. Thanks, Ken H.
Hello, Ken, I've never tried to completely disassemble the valve from one of these. But, if you check in the "Instructions" section of this site, and then click on "Coleman", and then on the "Coleman 530 Pocket Stove", you can see a fantastic exploded view of the entire valve. I would think you can figure it out from that, maybe. Hope that helps. If all else fails, I might have a spare valve, but I'd have to check, and that can't happen right now. If you do end up needing such a thing, and as long as you're not in a hurry, I can check for it sometime next month, but not before. Let me know. Take care, and God Bless!! Every Good Wish, Doc
POR Marine Clean rips everything out of rusted tanks and does no damage to steel or brass,if the tank is weak from excessive rusting,coat with POR tank sealer,this stuff hardens to a ceramic like finish strengthening the tank considerably. Link
Mark The Coleman 530 has a vaporizer that appears to be made of a screen material quite similar to window screen. Have you ever made a replacement from window screen ( metal, not fiberglass ) ? I have not yet as I am trying to locate some stainless steel screen of which to make it from. Should there be anyone who has made this part already, I would be very happy to hear how it worked out. Thanks, Ken H.
Suggestion: Common household faucet aerator repair kits generally come with stainess and/or brass screens in them and there are always a few left overs either from the new one or the old one that was replaced. May not be as fine a mesh as is needed, but it might work. Best, bob
