Primus first introduced the No.50 in 1925 which came with a red-lacquered steel tank and the ‘R128 burner’ .This ‘red painted’ No.50 model was only produced in 1925 and 1926 before the factory then changed in 1927 (and from then on), to manufacturing the No.50 with a ‘dull Nickel-plated’ steel tank. The following (translated) pages are from the 1925 Primus Catalogue (courtesy of @Fjellot) The 1927-1929 (circa) Primus-Condrup Catalogue No:609 (courtesy of Ross @Spiritburner ) from which the following page is taken, confirms the No.50 being ‘dull Nickel-plated’. Here are the ‘before’ photos of my No.50 which detail some of the extensive tank corrosion which required remedial attention. Some kind of ‘thermal event’ had also occurred in the past on a portion of the top rear section of the tank which had the effect of hard-carbonising the paint. The key points for me in the restoration of this No.50 was full corrosion removal with the minimum loss of any further paint, given that in a number of areas where paint loss had occurred, the edges of the paint were starting to become loose (flaking) - which over time would obviously lend itself to further paint loss. Therefore, following corrosion removal, protection of the remaining paint and the many exposed steel areas of the tank (and legs) was very important requirement. I opted to use ‘Bilt Hamber Deox Gel Corrosion Remover’ as in my own personal experience, the gel removes the corrosion but does not affect paint. Following all of the corrosion having been removed from the tank and legs, I then gave the paintwork a very delicate soap wash. The tank and legs were then treated with an automotive clear lacquer spray (3 individual coats) - afterall, the manufacturer had themselves, originally applied an outer lacquer coating. The Primus trivet had its corrosion removed by electrolysis and then sprayed in VHT black (IMO, complementing the red of the tank). New burner washer, pump cup seal and filler cap seals were fitted prior to the above restoration work, to enable pressure testing of the tank to take place. I was very relieved to see the tank passing this test with flying colours. I also undertook an endoscope inspection and fortunately found no evidence of any ‘active’ corrosion inside the tank. Here are the ‘after’ photos… Brass work was cleaned up and compacted soil removed from the bottom of the legs. Unfortunately, there is no date stamp on the base of the tank or anywhere else. That being said, I didn’t find any evidence of the tank having been nickel-plated either, which if there had of been, would have naturally then dated the stove outside of the 1925/1926 year range. Pharael.
@Pharael . What a wonderful example! A well-documented post. That's how I found out about the tank's original red color. I wonder if this was dictated by some special purpose, or if it's a form of protection for the steel tank? You've done a wonderful job with the restoration.
@Knee - Thanks very much for your very kind words. Unless it’s a ‘quirk’ of the Swedish to English translation, I find the following statement by Primus in the 1925 catalogue somewhat odd: ‘…the oil vessel of iron, rustproof and externally red-lacquered.’ It’s as if ‘rustproof’ and ‘externally red-lacquered’, are two separate processes. Personally, I would have thought the red-lacquered paint was the rustproofing agent - albeit not a particularly successful one given Primus decided to change to nickel-plating the tank two years later.
@Ed Winskill - Much appreciated, thank you. One can understand why many early No.50’s will have unfortunately been lost to corrosion.
