M-67 Puffing Billy retired by British Army

I hope this subject is not too left of field but I thought members may find it of interest - especially the ex-military among us.

On 11 Dec 2010 the British Army announced the retirement of the M-67 water boiler:




The one above is at Ajax Bay, Falkland Islands, 1982.



It was a US designed petroleum drip fed system of 1960s vintage based on a 1943 version that could be run in an oil drum/dustbin or similar. I saw them still being used in the first Gulf War and I think they are still in use in Afghanistan. They were used by the cooks to heat washing up water (not water for cooking) and also used to supply troops with hot shaving water etc. They were supposed to be safe if the operating instructions were followed! However, what soldier ever reads the instructions:

"Correct flow of the products of combustion must be established prior to lighting the heater. This is accomplished by swinging the lighter cup (Figure 2) beneath the metering valve so that the cup can be half filled with fuel. This fuel is then ignited and, while burning, placed in the flue compartment. This fire heats the air in the flue compartment in approximately 2 minutes causing a draft to be established. Once the correct flow is established, the burning cup is transferred to the burner compartment, the metering valve opened, and dripping fuel ignited by the cup flame. The cup is then placed into the flue compartment while the fire is automatically established at the burner. Once the fire is established at the burner, correct burning rate is attained by adjusting the valve. The cover is then closed."

Er yes, quite. In practice the valve was opened and a match thrown down the pipe often with spectacular results. The highlight of a boring night guard duty was to watch the cooks trying to light one of these at 4am.

The cooks called them 'Puffing Billys' whilst the squaddies called them 'Tommy the Turbo'. I think the Americans called them 'Kitchen Mortars'. I don't know if the US forces still use them.

 

When I was a child we had a similar device for heating shower water at home. Kerosene was held in a rectangular metal tank with a drip valve. Beneath the valve was a copper tube with a funnel at the top, that was feeding the kero to the burner. The water tank and burner were in the bathroom, and the flue went out the wall. The bad smell of half-burnt kerosene would stay in the bathroom for half hour after ignition.

Yonadav

 

The US forces technical name is "immersion burner"

"Kitchen mortar" though leaves a humorous impression.

AR

 

Trojandog wrote---
"What soldier ever reads the instructions [?]"
---That is why the U.S. Army went with the 'comic book' approach to the field manual.

 

Immersion heaters worked great -- we always ran ours on regular gasoline, but diesel could be used if you started it with gasoline. I never saw the instructions but yep, run some gasoline into the tube, then drop lit matches until it caught and then adjust the drip and keep an eye on it until it was holding steady. It could heat a lot of water pretty fast. They sometimes show up at surplus stores for not too much -- I suppose one could fashion a rather rustic hill billy hot tub.

 

We had these in the Canadian Army in the 80's.We weren't clever enough to nickname them,we went with "immersion burner" If I close my eyes I can hear the fueldropping onto the burner plate even now.
Also the image of an exhaust stack launching into the air will remain for life.
Ours were labelled from the 1950s and are no doubt still in service.Thanks for the trip back in time!

 

That's great invention !!! Simply solutions are the best .Nickname Puffing Billy is wrong .Submersible Buzzing Bomb is correct

 

Oh, this does bring back the memories!

I first saw these being used in the Army to wash mess kits. I think we had 3 or 4 in a row, the first one with soapy water, then a disinfectant maybe, then one or two more with clean water to rinse with.

Later on, metal mess kits were for inspection purposes only, not for eating from. So we polished them up with Never-Dull and chucked them in our lockers.

After that, we used immersion heaters to warm up T-rations, or Tray-packs. These consisted of a large rectangular tin full of a certain food stuff, say lasagna, or meatballs. Then you might have another with green beans, and another with a dessert. Just chuck them in hot water for 30 minutes or so, pry them open and feed the masses. I remember not being able to readily identify most of the entrees by sight, smell or taste.....

A photo from the 'net.

 

SOS, Yum. Get the toast...

 

Memories: "Yesterday we had Unipatty with brown sauce ("Swiss steak"); today it's Unipatty with red sauce ("veal parmesan"), and tomorrow there will be Unipatty with white sauce ("chicken-fried steak").

....Arch

 

Oh yes, the "Meat Patty, Breaded, Multi-Purpose". AKA track pads.

 

Just searching the tray-packs what I found : http://www.mreinfo.com

 

I remember my father telling me about being stationed in Germany in the early 1950's when he was with the Army. Him and another wag decided to stuff a toilet brush in the chimney of one of those, and waited for the results in the morning.

In the morning the guys on KP couldn't get the darn thing to light, so the mess sergeant went to the motor pool and returned with a can of starting ether, gave the stove a good, long spritz, and tossed in a lit match.

The stove lived up to its nickname "kitchen mortar", and with a loud "whoomp", launched a flaming toilet brush high into the air, while half the mess crew hit the dirt, wondering just what the **** happened!

Dad and his friend had a good laugh on that one!

Murph

 

Hmm...I remember a few people coming into the medical inspection room for singed eyebrows and a new redness in the face when leaning over these - wondering why they were not starting.

 

"Starting ether"....now that sounds like a bottle of something to play with!

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ether_addiction
You're welcome ...

 

Interesting read! I remember from my youth people would put some ether on a sugar cube and eat it just before entering a race. Seems they could run faster for a longer time. Dunno, never tried it as I couldn't run anyway. Far to tiring......

Best regards,

Wim

 

I must invest in a galvanised dustbin and get mine going again.....
Fearsome bits of kit in the wrong hands, like most of my military cookers!

Alec.

 

@ Rangie .Just checked Hydra burner No.1 .Thats a beast !