OK, brethren, a question to ponder. The M1950 was made by a lot of manufacturers, Coleman, SMP, AGM, Wyott, Fiesta, Rogers, Aladdin--did I miss anyone? Now, we know they were ALL made to meet MILSPEC requirements, but with no doubt, some makers made them just a rat's whisker better than the others. Now, presuming that Coleman was the top of the chart, how was the quality of the other producers, and what do you base that judgement on? I've a Coleman '72 here myself! Murph
Of those I have I'd rank them Coleman > Rogers > SMP > Fiesta. However, I have a Coleman bias and the sample size of the others is too small to make the comparison meaningful. All of them worked or could be serviced, and the biggest difference may be the quality of the paint job -- which again could reflect a bad paint lot that week, rather than a general quality issue. I'd have expected the final assembly by SMP to be the worst of the bunch but I have a couple and they both seemed fine.
Itchy, why would you think SMP would be the worst of them? They weren't assembled by prison labor, that's been hashed out and disproven long ago. Murph
I sometimes use my '52 Coleman (bought new a few years ago (as in "new old stock" )) and it always delivers. Quality looks top to me. I also have a new '52 Rogers & Acron and it looks equally well made. Haven't used it as yet as I only need one M1950 at a time 8) . Note: I replaced the seal/washer in the filler cap before first use. Best regards, Wim
My SMP was bought from an army surplus with a great big non-serviceable sticker on it. Filled it with fuel. Thought these are also made by Coleman so it should light like a Coleman. Pumped up, turned on, threw in a match. Never will get that mark off the garage ceiling. Downloaded instructions from here, primed and lit correctly and it went fine for a minute before the pump started extending followed by a little fountain 2 inches from the flame. That was also when I discovered the needle valve was worn and didn't turn off properly. Replaced the pip in the nrv, replaced the needle with the spare in the pump and its gone fine ever since. It does prefer to be primed with meths as it gets a longer prime that way and this stops it flaring. Also it leaks a little in storage if it isn't packed still pressurised.
I stripped mine down to bits to replace the inner O-ring, so it doesn't "drool" when it's shut off. Also found that when these are pumped up to full pressure, it's a real bear to get the cap off the fount. Easiest way to depressurize the fount is to turn the stove upside down and open the valve to full throttle, and all that comes out is air (for the most part!). Cap comes off right easy then! Murph
Over the years I've bought and otherwise accumulated a lot of US Military surplus gear and equipment. The "Not Serviceable" labels on some of it simply meant that use specifications had changed. Some things like stoves, fuel cans, some long storage foods, and clothing items had newer specifications so as older stock was issued, simple things like slightly "wrong" paint color, easily repaired or replaceable parts were determined to make an item unserviceable in order to justify issuing a new item. In the early 60's I bought an "Unserviceable" M1 Carbine through the Director of Civilian Marksmanship. When it arrived it was apparently unissued, it looked brand new with not a mark or worn place on it. I wrote (no internet then) a letter to the National Rifle Association who administered the DCM sales and asked what made my carbine unserviceable. Turned out that since it was no longer a general issue issue weapon, several things could make it unserviceable. The lot that my carbine came from were shipped with no magazines, slings, or oil bottles. So the lesson we can take is that in US practice almost any reason an item or device can be declared unserviceable is used, from being out of fuel to being damaged badly enough to be scrap or good only for landfill. As I wrote above, I've been buying and using US Military Surplus stuff most of my life (I still do.) and have found nothing that was unusable. Beat up, scratched, torn, full of bullet holes, funny tasting, paint worn off, in need of repair, but never unusable. Some things were brand new new and unmarked. I kept those anyway. Gerry
Catch 22, sometimes you have to turn in an outdated item but thou shalt not turn in a Serviceable item therefore.... My Deuce had a bad U-joint and a bad lower radiator hose. Or so the tag said :-)
Of the ones I have owned and fettled, most were either SMP or Fiesta. All had been used and tossed around like a lumber camp whore. I never had the advantage of putting fuel to a homogenous stove out of the box. After messing with them and coming to the conclusion that I preferred my M-1942 the best!
I've always wondered about those perfectly straight cracks at an angle to the hose. They look incredibly similar to knife cuts.
Government says flat washers have a 5 year shelf life. Older than that they toss them and buy another few million for 5 bucks each.
Old thread from the dead but here's my input: I have a '52 Rogers and a couple of '54 Bialaddins. Theres not much in the build quality but I find that the brass tank of the Bialaddin heats quicker and helps maintain the pressure better. When you vent it to simmer, within 5 minutes its roaring again!! Great stoves, great build quality, I do like them! If only there was a way to easily regulate them without venting/simmer plates Alec.
"Are all the parts interchangeable for all these stoves?" All m1950 parts should be interchangeable regardless of manufacturer. As an added bonus some of the parts fit other stove models. Both of mine are Roger's 1966, so I can't contribute much to the quality discussion.
I think the whole point of these stoves is that parts from all manufacturers are interchangeable. I'm pretty sure that would have been part of the government contract for them. However, as the owner of a single 1981 SMP, I am also in no position to make a definitive test. ....Arch
Yeah, as Rangie hinted above, Willis & Bates of Halifax (England, not Nova Scotia) made a batch which were badged 'Bialaddin'. I've only ever seen them dated 1954 so my presumption is they didn't tender for the contract in any other year. I've got a few of them and they work just fine - indistinguishable from the stoves I've got produced by the various other manufacturers...
In my collection are Rogers, Wyott, Fiesta, Smp, Coleman, & Lyese. Bought parts from sellers that fit all stoves. I will say any parts mixed between Manufactures worked from one stove to the other stove. The M1950 production ended in the middle to late 1980,s as the U.S. Marines wanted to move from Gasoline to Diesel fuel for the Individual Squad stove. Later adopted by the U.S. Army The development of MRE's and Diesel fuel vehicles demanded the development of diesel fueled stoves. The M1950 stove had a use cycle of 60 hours before the generator needed to be cleaned, ( as per Coleman ) also the canister was not large enough to heat the MRE food packets in. Technical Report NATIC/TR-90/020 called for a MISS= {Multi fueled Individual Squad Stove } that ran on diesel and was enclosed in a canister large enough to heat MRE food Packets. Eventually development of MRE heaters were supplied to heat the food packets with and the MISS was developed but good luck finding one.