Greetings, I recently purchased my first 8R to try my hand at fettling. These are very cool stoves! I gave the tank and burner assembly a good preliminary wipe down and a lot of dirt and gunk came off. It's missing the flame spreader and the heat shield. I've ordered a Bernie Dawg silent cap and a good used heat shield is on its way. The next thing I wanted to do was check the wick. When I separated the tank and burner assembly there was no wick. Hmmmmmmm. So, I removed the tank cap and used a flashlight to peek inside. I saw what appeared to be fibers. So, I fished them out and it turned out to be "a" (not necessarily "the") wick. My questions are: 1. Given the number of pieces of wick and their length (they were likely 6"-7" end-to-end and some of the length of some of the strands tore off when I fished it through the tank fill nozzle), it does not appear that this wick would ever have fit in the narrow fuel tube between the tank and burner on an 8R. Is it possible that this is a wick for a model other than an 8R? I can't conceive how this wick would have been installed on my stove. And I have no idea why it would have been entirely in the tank other than a failed attempt by a previous owner at some sort of maintenance, giving up in frustration. 2. Does the wick appear to have any useful life left? 3. If so would removing all but 2-3 strands get me down to the size that would properly install in the fuel tube, following the excellent wick guidance earlier in this thread? 4. Or would it be better simply to start over by rebuilding the wick? It has what appears to be its original twisted copper guide/support wire. Thank you for any insight and assistance you can provide.
@kkburner That may we’ll have been the original wick, but given its condition, I would replace it with a new cotton wick as per the instructions above. Cheers Tony
Hi Tony or rather "G'Day, Mate!" Thanks for reviewing my post and responding. I thought the wick's "better" days were behind it. I'm still perplexed as to how that large thick wick would have been installed on an 8R. But, at this point, I appreciate the confirmation to just move forward with a newly built wick. I appreciate you, Tony. Thanks, again. Kris
Welcome. The wick is stuffed into the fuel line. Like you surmised, a PO must have given up on pushing it back into the line or something. Some go in smoothly. Sounds like the correct size, go off of its originality. Use 100% cotton. I collect these among other models and some (8's) have had a fine brass screen wrapped around the wick, those have been real tough to stuff back in, removal of the screen does not hamper operation. Duane
Hi Duane, Thanks for the welcome and the guidance. I have the stove all cleaned up now. And I'll need to purchase or make a replacement wick. I didn't observe the fine mesh screen. So, maybe it never had it. Or maybe a prior owner pulled it out with the wick and gave up on trying to get it back it. I'll post pics when I have the case refurbed and the wick installed. Thanks, again, Duane. Kris
They made model 8's starting in the late 30's, patented a few years before that. I've only had a few in my 8's, not a 8R that I recall. Fun projects sanding down and repainting. I've done many of my 111's too. The next expense is finding a 100% cotton mop to cut a strand off. Duane
And if you cant find that mop - I use a round wick for a regular small Kero-burner, which I untangle, so it is in straight threads and not woven in between each other. As Duane mentions above - 100% Cotton or you will be cursing that 99% cotton, when the remaining 1% not cotton melts inside your burner tube. Thickness of your wick —> not too loose and not so tight, that it restricts the fuel flow. There are several pics and tips here at CCS on how it should look. Just make sure no remaining wire parts are still stuck in the stove. I use a thin brass wire, which I twist around the wick like seen here (Pic Courtesy of FOGAS.se). With a pair of needle-nose pliers I make a small tip (2 mm) as a distance keeper at the end of the twisted brass wire towards the burner bell. When finished twisting I measure how deep the wick has to be pushed in, and then I cut the twisted wire in the same lenght. That way - when using the twisted wire as a grab-point to my pliers in the center of the wick, I can see if- and when I have pushed the wick as far as I should inside the fuel tube. Congrats on your old classic! Looking forward to a flameshot ;-)
Duane and Harder, thanks for the great input. Yes, it is a huge challenge trying to find 100% cotton mop heads. I found a "cotton" mop head locally today. When I cut off a piece and burned it, the ash didn't crumble and there was an oily residue beneath the ash. That tells me there is something else along with cotton in the strands. All but one of the cotton mop heads I have found online state they contain "up to" 100% cotton but contain some amount of "foreign fibers". I found a manufacturer in New York which states on its web page they make their mop heads with 100% cotton grown in the USA. So, I may email the company to confirm there are no other fibers mixed in with the cotton. But I really don't need an entire mop head. So, I may just end up ordering a wick kit from one of the eBay vendors. Thanks for the great information, guys. And when I get the stove up and running I'll post a pic. Kris
I pull the wire down the other way. The cotton goes all the way in. The wire does not stick out above it as shown above.
That would seem to be the easier way to go, than the increasingly futile search for a truly pure cotton mop head. Definitely burn a test piece, though, before you trust it in a stove. ….Arch
Hi Majicwrench, That is very generous of you. I purchased a "cotton" mophead locally. However, when I test-burned a small segment, the ash wasn't all that crumbly and there was a sticky-oily clear residue left underneath the ash. So, I assume there was some amount of synthetic material woven in with the "cotton." I did find a rebuild package from a source recommended by Bernie Dawg, with cotton wicks and other gaskets which I also need. So, I purchased one of those. However, I really appreciate your offer. This is a great forum! Thank you!
Yes, the eBay seller is located in Beaverton, Oregon, USA: ENHANCED "PREMIUM REBUILD KIT" - FOR OPTIMUS 8, 8R, & 99 STOVES. / OPTIUMUS | eBay Hope this helps!
I haven't received the kit yet. But I'm hopeful it will take care of the last "needs" of my 8R! Bernie Dawg recommended this eBay seller to me. So far, the other sellers he recommended have been great!
