I have accumulated a number of the older MSR pumps over the years. I had been planning on taking advantage of MSR's pump exchange/upgrade. The last time I saw a price posted for the upgrade it was $20 for a new pump if you sent in your old one. I finally contacted MSR about their pump upgrade this last week. Well... after a few days wait, I finally received this reply: ------------------------------------------------------ Hi there! We’re sending this automatic email to help you find the information you need right away—no waiting required! If you still have questions, just reply, and someone from our team will be happy to assist you as soon as possible. Resolving Issues with Older Liquid Fuel Pumps: If your fuel pump is 15 years or older, we strongly recommend replacing it, regardless of the issue. Over time, plastics and gaskets degrade—through repeated exposure to petroleum products, and even when stored indoors—making the pump unsafe to use because those soft plastic components can be prone to cracking. Much like a rubber band stored in a drawer for 15 years! Because we care about safety, we no longer service pumps this old. However, we’d love to make a replacement easy! If it's time for an upgrade, use [i'm omitting the code here] at checkout for 15% off a new fuel pump. Choosing The Right Fuel Pump: We offer three different fuel pump models. Be sure to select the one that’s compatible with your stove: Standard Fuel Pump – Compatible with WhisperLite, WhisperLite International, WhisperLite Universal, and XGK. Arctic Fuel Pump – Designed for use below 0°C (32°F) only. If you're using the stove in varying conditions, you may also need a Standard Pump for temperatures above 0°C (32°F). Compatible with WhisperLite, WhisperLite International, WhisperLite Universal, and XGK. DragonFly Fuel Pump – Only compatible with the DragonFly stove. For general questions on troubleshooting or maintaining your fuel pump, check out this article we wrote - it has just about everything you can think of! If you have any questions, just reply to this email—we’re happy to help! Best, Cascade Designs Customer Support Thank you, Customer Operations https://www.cascadedesigns.com" --------------------------------------------------------------------- A measly 15% discount is too little. 15% off their current price (at time of writing, MSR's website price is $56.95 for both a standard or Dragonfly pump) is still higher than what a new pump cost at full price just a few years ago. I had acquired a number of MSR stoves over the years that had older pumps. I thought the price at the time was acceptable as I was basing my decision on the supposed guarantee of being able to acquire new pumps for just $20 a piece with an exchange of the old pump. I had imagined that part of their pump upgrade program was to get the older flawed models out of circulation at very least to avoid having their name tarnished after someone is burned or worse from using one of their substandard previous pump models. It seems that idea was incorrect. If there was ever any debate as to whether to purchase a MSR liquid fuel stove or a Primus one, I think this definitely settles it. Comparing a pump whose functionality is essential to protect the user against serious injury or worse to a "rubber band stored in a drawer for 15 years" is certainly not a good endorsement for a fuel pump made of "soft plastic components" that "can be prone to cracking" after "repeated exposure to petroleum products". Interestingly, I cannot find this 15 year caution given anywhere else whether in the manual or on the webpages for the stoves or pumps.
Write them back - “after reviewing your advice, out of an Abundance of Caution, we have decided it is best to never use your products again. Stay Safe!”
Surprised MSR kept offering deeply reduced replacement pumps as long as they did, they have to draw the line somewhere. MSR is still the best option for burning whatever dodgy fuel one comes across and I think is the only one that gives the ability to de-coke the burner in the field. $50/15years or $3.334/yr for this service seems like a really good deal to me. Wonder what else I spend under $4/year for and appreciate as much. Metal pumps aren't immune to catastrophic failure. I had a metal Optimus Nova pump come apart on me and start dumping fuel from the pump. Incredibly thankful I was burning kerosene at the time. Incredibly thankful. Thinking on it now, I should have reached out to Optimus and given some feedback. Edit: @Petromark You might respond to MSR's automated email and specifically ask about the deep discount in exchange for an older pump. An actual customer service agent might still be able to offer that deal even though the automated email will discourage most from that path.
I contacted them about the same issue a couple of months ago. I got the same automated reply, but I also later received a reply from someone saying they actually still do this. He asked me to send pictures and he gave me an RA number. I'm waiting to hear back since I just sent the pictures back to them. I received an automated reply from my last message a couple of days ago, saying that they are very busy at the moment and may take time to reply.
Sounds like during COVID when I wanted to exchange a broken pump from a evilbay buy, took around six months to get a response. Duane
Morning, Mates, I have to agree with @Marc . I do not think there is any other company making and selling stoves that can safely burn as many fuels as MSR offers. And, a quick look at the breakdown Marc shared easily shows that the MSR pumps are a bargain, for what you are gaining! Safety first, last, and always! I used to trust the older yellow pumps, but as I mentioned here before, a close inspection of those of my heretofore trusted yellow pumps, revealed micro cracks that I had never seen before! And, this was on pumps that I had not used in a long time. That proved to me that plastic pumps, need to be replaced, after a certain amount of time. If we can get 15 years of safe use out of an MSR pump, then I think it's time to replace it, even if no cracks have yet to be found. Having had one older MSR pump let go on me, and experiencing the almost instant conflagration that resulted, makes getting a new pump every 15 years is not only a bargain, but the ONLY safe way to go! That is my course of action, and I feel quite safe in having taken that course! Take care, be Safe, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc
@Doc Mark , you're making me nervous, all I have (I think) is yellow pumps, now I gotta go give em a good look over.
Think its been within the last year , when the service department was moving I exchanged 3 ea for $25 ea Will see if I still have papers but doubt it . I wound up keeping all the Leather pump parts from the old ones and installing in the new pumps . Hope those in need get the stellar service I have received from MSR over the years . Cheers Sorry 2 years lapsed , time flies . Cheers
@Majicwrench , Keith, I was shocked to find more than a few of my older, heretofore trusted, MSR yellow pumps, showing micro cracks! I still have a few that do not show the cracks YET! But, I'm now worried to use them, as too many ARE showing micro cracks! I began just using the new pumps, and I feel MUCH more safe and confident about using that with all my MSR stoves that require it. Better safe, than sorry! - Doc
Same here with their automated messages, I emailed them twice asking if the could upgrade the hose in my stoves to the longer ones and they replied to me that they are very busy right now and they will contact me in a few months. I also asked if they had the burner screw for the WhisperLite stove and no reply yet. I will wait
I always interpreted MSR to mean Maintain Stove Regularly. One stove that always get test fired up before a trip.
I got my email replied and waiting for instructions from the company to when and where send my stoves to see if they could upgrade the fuel hose to longer size.
