A 111 should run with a blue flame and not soot up the bottom of your pans. It could be your jet is a bit worn. I'd run a couple tanks of fuel through the stove before I did anything to clean out old fuel and carbon. Try using a good grade of kerosene too. I get yellow tips when using pump kerosene but without the soot. I find Klean Strip kerosene from the Home Depot or other distributors works the best for me with perfect blue flame. 50 pumps seems to be a bit excessive. You shouldn't need more than 12 or 15 for max flame. And no need for fast, hard jack hammer pumping. If you see any fuel in the pump tube or if the pump handle pushes out then you have a leak and you'll need to pull the valve and replace the rubber seal (pip). The style pip Optimus made in those days is no longer available so you'll need a small brass cup in addition to a viton pip. Fettlebox can supply those and we can guide you through the procedure when necessary. Plenty of good NRV removal and fettling advice is here on the site. Edit: I didn't notice this is an older post. Seems the topic is already covered. Ray
Thanks for the reply. Actually my post was only hours old because I could not find my exact situations anywhere. I did a little more investigating on the yellow tips and here is an update. There is little soot deposited on pot bottoms, just more than my other kero stoves. More like dark brown and not coal black. Also I removed the flame shield and wind guard one at a time to see if it was an out of true problem. On my SVEA 123 flame spreader height/alignment is extremely critical as an example. I found that the yellow tips are only on the flame that wraps around the two support tubes. The areas in between generate proper blue flames. So it has something to do with what happens to flame that wraps around obstructions. I am using Klean Strip by coincidence. Best I have found as well as their odor free k1. Not a huge deal, I just tend to strive for perfection.
So I tried everything to no avail, so ordered an aftermarket jet off the bay (not being able to find just an Optimus branded jet) and installed. Threads weren't the best, but I now have a beautiful four point blue crown. Still waiting on my new pump cups though as they are coming from across the pond.
I just resolved the pump jumping with a jerk when pushing faster than a slow and steady pumping action. The NRV PIP was rock hard and swollen a bit in the housing tube. It would sort of lock in place until a certain pressure was reached and then suddenly snap open. Replaced it and all is good. Now she runs like a dream. It also pressurizes faster with fewer strokes which is why I had to pump so many times. It is easier to pump too. Now 10 - 15 strokes puts it under full pressure.
