A Coleman suitcase 442 arrived in the mail today. According to the reference gallery, Coleman only made an aluminum stove of this ilk for one year: 1963. Stove had no dents and minor rust on part of the burner assembly. After major scrubbing to remove layers of baked on grease and some minor fettling, all is good. No dents or structural problems. The stove is significantly lighter than similar models with the steel case. The relatively light weight is what made this particular model of interest to me. A few interesting features of this stove are: 1. The two "wings" that act as a wind shield are made of aluminum rather than steel. 2. The "feet" are also aluminum and pull downward from the stove (see picture). They are surprisingly sturdy. 3. The fuel tank is larger than that of a 425D; it is the same size as my three-burner beast. Maybe one of the experts on the site knows the history of this stove; why it was introduced in the first place and why it was only made for one year? Cheers, Steve
Nice stove Steve! I don't know about the history either. But I believe it didn't sell as Coleman hoped. The weight savings would be great but it is a large stove still and wouldn't be used by backpackers. Do car campers care how much their suitcase stove weighs. I don't think so. Cars of the time proved that. So why use aluminum? It doesn't rust. I would buy it but I believe these came at a higher price tag. Coleman at the time was still recovering from the whole 501 and 501A problem. I would guess they wouldn't want to risk losing any more money on a stove that isn't selling. Just my thoughts. Cheers, Jeff
Steve that stove is the same size as a 413. That is the reason for the larger tank. Good stoves those. lance
Thanks for sharing your information and throughts about the stove. I noticed that the referenced 443 went for $5 plus $40 shipping. Probably not too bad a deal. One thing that I was wrong about in my original post; the legs are not aluminum but steel. Steve
I'm new to this site and appreciate the information I have recently found here when researching my newly acquired aluminum suitcase stove similar to marblecreek's. Pictures included here. Does anybody know how rare this might be and should I hang onto it?
I’d hang on to it, if only for the novelty... It’s a swell add to any collection... I have a Coleman 459 that I keep for that reason... It’s rarer still than the aluminum stoves,,, it was made but a few months.
It was mass marketed, but only for a few years, so in that sense it's rare. I would hang on to it, but then I'm a stove collector. But if you're asking if you should hang on to it as, say, part of your retirement portfolio, then I would say no. ....Arch
Thanks Arch. Good way to word it. It's sentimental and makes for a good conversation adding this to the collection.