As the title says... spotted a reasonably cheap - £15 - Parasene in an antiques shop recently and wondering whether to get or not. It's a silent burner, 2 pt version with raised lettering. Having been bitten on the bum by the monumentally stress cracked South African Chalwyn a few months ago I was wondering whether to grasp the nettle or leave well alone. It seems (always a good word that...) to have had little use but has gone green in many places and needs a thorough overhaul. So in general... worth getting or walking away from? Thoughts... best Chris
Usually £15 would be a bit steep but the raised lettering examples are much less common than the depressed lettering. Quality? Good, sturdy and reliable- a world apart from dodgy Meva and BAT products! They were made in huge quantities to be sold under various brand names, but were purely functional as paraffin pressure stoves were on the decline, and being not as pretty or exciting as earlier stoves they are not as valuable.
Good, sturdy and reliable suits me! It would be nice to have one for a collection filler as it were… just didn’t want another lemon! Ta as always sir! C
In what ways? Why? Should just need the standard basic service - change all the rubber compound seals, pips and washers (old rubber goes hard and ceases to function), revive or replace pump cup, make sure jet pricks clear, and that should be it as far as functionality goes.
@igh371 Ah well... When purchased it still had a lot of TVO in the bottom slopping around, and the sludge from it was crusted everywhere. Much cleaning up ensued. Despite this mind you, it looks like it's had minimal use - there doesn't seem to be much in the way of scorching etc, even on the trivet. Every seal was rotten, including the NRV pip. Tasks done were - Prick jet Replace seals Replace NRV pip and seal Free off pump - the shaft had rusted to the brass pump holder. Heat and quench sorted that New leather - old utterly perished So far so good. But... the symptoms - Warm paraffin coming out under pressure from the pump tube handle pushing itself out Low pressure from burner - extinguishes itself Can still pump paraffin through jet even when air screw closed Tried replacing NRV with a working one and resealing - no good Checked other seals and tightened Removed jet and cleaned thoroughly then reseated All threads copper greased Suffice to say - symptoms remained. My view is pump tube cracking... C
Definitely an issue with the pump. That would then cause the low burner pressure, and not be incompatible with there still being enough pressure to put paraffin out through the jet. But now unfortunately, given all that you have done with the NRV, it does seem likely to be either a crack in the tube or a badly soldered end cap at the tank end of the tube Brace yourself for the 'pulling the tube out' experience If nothing else it will be an experience! It happens to us all sooner or later.
There's the answer to this thread then. Any good? Absolutely! I do have a soft spot for these, yes they are simple and lack the finesse of earlier stoves but they are good and solid without the obvious cheapness of- say- late model Tilley lamps. And the tank stampings are good looking in their own robust way. This one is an 'inny' after all- keep your eyes open for an 'outy' with raised lettering.
