I found this old stove in my shed & decided to give her a clean up rather than upcycle into something else. There is no date letter underneath so am I right to believe it is an early variant? Has it been heavily repaired or is the massive amount of solder original? No date letter.. Original burner? Original burner? So much solder...
@gumby76 Yes, pre-1911, and no, that solder is well aftermarket. Your stove has been well used, and not so lovingly repaired. Was that cast iron trivet with the stove? It looks like an Australian Brandt’s trivet. Tony Tony
Probably would've been cheaper to buy a new stove considering the amount of solder used It's the trivet that has been with the stove as long as I have had it. Seen a couple of similar ones on other Primus stoves.
Repairs were often a case of needs must, a pressure stove was a sizeable investment around a century ago and replacement not a financial option for many. A lot of these stoves were the sole means of cooking and critical for everyday living, and a lot more at least so in summer when the cost, work and unwanted heat of solid fuel ranges made them the economical alternative. Repairs would mostly have been needed quickly and cheaply, and in remote areas there were few options. Plumbers would be the likely choice, often with unsuitable grades of solder and large, clumsy copper bit soldering irons, hence the heaped on mess... There's a lot of social history in those repairs.
@gumby76 definitely very old. The filler cap suggests pre-1899, and with the round provenance mark on the tank bottom most likely c.1898. A good save
