Today I picked up an older Nova, with the all-metal pump and CEJN fitting. The female fitting on the pump seems to have the locking collar stuck in the rearward position ( near the pump) so it will not move forward to lock the male end of the fuel line into place. Previous owner says it was used "maybe three times" and mentioned something about "a beach". Could there be sand or grit preventing the collar from closing? Due to the rusty condition of the Coleman fuel container he gave me I suspect it has not been used in many years. I have tried light oil in the collar and a lot of pulling it back and forth (it moves perhaps a 1/64th of an inch) with no success. Any suggestions?
It would seem that something is preventing the balls from seating. Other than a full rebuild of the female fitting, look at the male fitting. Any burrs that might prevent it from seating all the way, or keeping the balls from dropping into the "trough"?
Let me know if you need o rings. I have likely two or three lifetimes worth of Nova O rings. I'm in WBL.
The collar will not slide/spring into the "locked" position unless the male end of the fuel line is inserted into the female connector. Are you trying to move it without the hose inserted?
The fitting on my KAP Arctic was a tough rebuild, took the proper size oring and careful positioning. It is stiff to work to get ends together. I located another style of fitting whenever I want to change out parts, just trying to keep it original. Duane
Actually, I was trying it both ways, not being at all familiar with the system. But, with a bit of Kroy Oil inside and outside I finally got it to operate (yes, with the male part inserted!). So that problem is solved. But now I am thinking that the previous owner is related to the little old lady who only drove her car to church on Sundays, and that his "few uses" might have been more like tough trips. Here are pics of what I received from the seller: Note that the previous owner removed the plastic filler tube with its fuel filter, etc. I can see a bit of the plastic tube remaining in the hole in the pump, and the pump tube has several scratches / marks from being scratched by a pair of pliers, I assume.\. The stove body is marked "Optimus of Sweden QA001010", obviously one of the first iterations of the Nova model.So my next question is - did I get all the parts I should have or am I missing something, and is it possible to get replacements for the fuel tube, filter, etc? Will the current Nova parts kit have O-rings to fit this model? Thanks to all for your suggestions and help. Tom
Good News!! (I think) Today I emailed customer service at Katadyn since I could not find the said fuel tube on any parts list, and within an hour I had a reply from Sarah at their customer service saying they would send me the part, along with a warning to carefully super glue it in place without clogging the tube. Also told me I had a "real classic stove" So here is a thumbs up! to Katadyn! I will keep you posted after I receive the part. Tom
The story is now complete, I think. Attached are pics, one of the pump with the new replacement fuel tube in place, another with the stove in operation. Katadyn sent the replacement tube quickly, by FedEx with instructions to seal it in place with super glue. Hardest job was digging out the last bits of the old tube without damaging the pump. I spent many minutes cursing the previous owner (forever to be known as "that dumb @#$%"). Cost of the new tube - nothing!! ("Covered under warranty" --hah!!!) and thank you!!!! I tried the stove on both Coleman Fuel and kerosene. Both work very well, although when burning the kerosene the flame tips are quite yellow. Just one last question - since I am a total newbie to the CEJN fitting, should one lubricate the fitting when assembling? Thanks again to all. Tom
It’s comparable to assembling any bottle stove where a connector pushes through an O-ring to make a seal. If the seal’s dry it’ll offer more resistance, but not likely to be enough to result in damage to the seal. A thin smear of pump cup lube (or spit as Doc Mark recommends) makes them easier to assemble. In practice I rarely do, or need to. I’d be interested to hear what @Staffan Rönn has to say about his former company’s use of the CEJN fitting and the lube issue. John
Hi all, thanks @presscall Unfortunately I don't remember what the specifications were in terms of lubrication of the couplings on delivery from the Cejn factory. It may have been silicon grease, but I may have dreamt this up. We recommended a few drips of oil to lubricate/service the coupling if it was jammed. One side note - as far as I remember standard Cejn couplings had nitril o-rings, and the ones delivered to Optimus had viton o-rings custom fitted. Just a word of caution for anyone buying industrial Cejn couplings as replacement part. @Greeley - very glad to hear you got your stove working. It seems the components are from different generations. The pump is pre-2005-ish but the burner is from a few years later. What puzzles me is that the fuel hose is from Swedish generation burners (until ca 2008) but the burner cup is from Asian production (QA number) after ca 2008, so either the burner is "original" with the cup and the fule hose has been replaced, or a slightly older burner and fuel hose has been fitted in a newer cup. Only Swedish made burners had the Cejn coupling system. Nothing wrong with this at all, the components work well together. It's just an observation.
Staffan, this is all very interesting! It reinforces my theory that the previous owner's story of the stove being used "only a few times" is utter hogwash! I am glad to have the stove working again, and thanks to everyone at CCS, Katadyn, and all! Makes my day!. Tom
