Its been commented on the site that the British Antarctic Survey use the Optimus 45 on their field trips. I can see why beside looking good thay are very simple to use and repair . My question is about storage I cant see them stripping them down all the time as the wear on the burner would be to great . When did thay start using them ? Do thay store them in boxes of some sort ? what do thay use to lubricate the pump leather in the extream cold ? where do thay get there supply of 45s from ? I know it an odd subject but I worry about theses things Cliff
Hi, CCS is a wonderful place, with a diverse and talented membership. I would not be surprised if an Member, with initials which are fourth and third in the alphabet, has direct experience in this area and could answer your questions. Best Regards, Kerophile.
Hi two dogs, When i was down south ( Antarctica) in the early 1970s the optimus 45 were in use and as far as i know they still are. They were never dissembled. They were always kept fitted out and kept in a sledging box attached to the sledge. The pump washer was kept lubricated with Vaseline and the base had an abundance of optimus 45 spares. They sure are a hearty stove as they took some abuse down there. We used avtur fuel for the stoves. It is the same stuff that runs the generators and even the aircraft. I hope this is of some help. DC.
I think I started this 'thread' a couple of years ago after contacting the BAS direct and receiving a very nice reply from a chap there. DC will know more, but when you look at the 45 its such a great stove that even today it would be hard to beat. As much as I enjoy my Nova's and Omnifuels I know which stove I would prefer to field maintain in the cold and that would be a 45 I'm sure I'm not the only member here to have bought a stove that comes in a big tin, you know the type, big old biscuit tins from the 50's and 60's; people would store a 5 type stove in them to use, sometimes cutting a hole in the front for easy access, so it makes sense that BAS used boxes as well
