that little brass lever on the generator is to actuate the cleaning rod, which is NOT automatic on older coleman stoves or lanterns.The cleaning rod is also used as a secondary metering device, because on startup the fuel will not always atomize in small enough droplets. So the cleaning rod is used to change the spray pattern from a "colid cone" of fuel to a "hollow cone" during startup. One thing the Coleman stoves have that the Optimus and various clones lack is QUIET. My very first Coleman stove was a two burner 413E that I bought in 1980 at a yard sale, the asking price was $10, but it was late in the day and they were already packing up, I offered $5, the seller countered with $8.50 I offered $7 and we settled on $8 I still have that stove, it still works... Infact I just checked yesterday, it is still holding pressure and is ready to go by simply hanging the tank on the stove (it stores inside the "suitcase") opening the valve and striking a match.... (I keep a brass match case tethered to the fuel tank) I've cooked Oyster and Scallop stew in New Hampshire, venison medallions in Ohio Pasta and Italian Sausage (for five people) in more places than I'd car to try counting and next month I will probably be cooking Buffalo Chili in Wyoming on that stove. Yes, we Yanks are quite attached to out suitcase stoves they are functional and rugged. Though I also have (and more frequently use) an electronic start Propane fueled "Briefcase" stove... there are times I simply don't want to carry either the (expensive) disposable bottles or the 8lb refillable bottle with me. the gasoline stove is MUCH faster to setup than the propane stove with a non-disposable tank. You'll get good service out of it provided the generator is in good condition and it hasn't been run on petrol getting it all carboned up... BTW, the "suitcase" stove generators for the naptha stoves are generally all the same EXCEPT the earlier stoves use a "fatter" brass nozzle tip, the nozzles only rarely go bad and they have an external hex that makes changing them relatively easy, so with some patience the generator CAN be disassembled for cleaning. Here in North America most people wouldn't bother as a new generator is only $10-$14 depending on where you buy it, but down in Kiwi Land where it might be harder to obtain... BTW, the 421 is not a US model number, but in the petrol "suitcase" 2-burner stoves we have the 425(which is smaller) and the somewhat larger 413 model. AllanD
