Trangia Optimus 111T or 111C (Kap Arctic)

Hi,

For your information that we made fuel hose adaptors for the Primus pump. For the Optimus Explorer/Nova pump we have old stock left. I listed the kit at eBay.

Prepare for the winter!

 

I just put together two of these Kap Artic clones using Teuvo's amazing adapters which I plan to use on the deck of my boat. I used the pumps and fuel lines that came with the Trangia Multi-Fuel Burners.





Pouring the priming alcohol (meths)over the top of the burner wasn't going to work on a boat. No matter how carefully I poured the meths ended up all over the place. Since scorching my boat deck is unacceptable I had to come up with something. My first solution was to make bottom for the Trangia with some rubber feet to keep it off the wet deck.



On the inside of the bottom I glued a cut down aluminum pie tin to catch any spilled meths.



That worked to keep the burning alcohol off my deck. Still, it didn't keep the meths in the spirit cup. So I added some fiberglass wicking to the spirit cup to soak up the meths.



That kept in place whatever meths made it into the spirit cup. Still when I poured the meths over the burner only about half of it made it into the spirit cup and the rest spilled into the pan. So I made a chute of sorts to direct the meths into the spirit cup. For this I used some left over U shaped aluminum, a hack saw, and a couple of files.



Next I cut another piece of pie tin which I bent to hold the chute in place.







The bottom of the chute was filed and placed so that the meths would run out and down one of the burner tubes into the spirit cup.



With the chute in place, meths can easily directed to the spirit cup without spillage. Here I'm using a Trangia bottle to pour meths down the chute.



I found that lighting the meths from above works fine when the temperature is sufficiently high for the flame to jump to the spirit cup from above. But the flame doesn't jump on cold mornings. So I bought a butane barbecue lighter that I can stick into the Trangia to light the spirit cup directly.



This combination works great. I can now add meths directly to the spirit cup and have a pan to catch any overfill or meth spills caused by the rolling of the boat.



Now all I have to do is get the boat finished!!

 

WhooHoo!!!
Boys, we have another Master Fettler here!

 

Wonderful work indeed!!!

What fuel do you plan on burning on the boat?

Jeff

 

I'm planning to write a long post on fuels which is something I know a bit about. Currently I'm using Odorless Mineral Spirits (paint thinner) but I may switch to Klean Heat (an odorless kerosene substitute). Not much call for Klean Heat in sunny southern California so I've special ordered a couple of cans. I'll report back once I give it a try.

 

Hi, z1ulike,

Welcome to CCS, Sir! Please keep your eyes peeled for any and all CA Stove Gatherings, and try to join us at some, or all of them, in the future!! We have several CCS Lads up your way, and in fact, held our very first CA Stove Gathering at the Montana De Oro Campground, just South of Morro Bay. You'd be most welcome to join in on the fun, for any future events. Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

 

Nice mod, z1ulike. I have something like that planned for a stove restoration I'm working right now.

Would you consider sharing some details about your boat? I'll just bet it's an interesting craft. 8)

Best,
Gary

 

I've made another modification to my Kap Artic clones that I'd like to share. I wanted to stack one of my Trangias inside the 4.5 ltr. Billy for compact storage. But it wouldn't fit because the control knob stuck out too far.



I had an extra knob I'd purchased on eBay so I decided to try shortening it. I started by marking where to make the cut.



Then using a hack saw I cut off a little more than an inch of the rod.



Next I inserted the square end of a spare spindle into the round rod I'd just cut.



With the spindle in the rod, I hammered the round rod flat to the four flat sides of the spindle.



The rod is made of brass so it was very easy to hammer flat. I just turned it around a couple of times and hammered each side as I went. When I pulled out the spindle the control rod was nicely square.



Since I wanted the knob to be semi-permanently attached to the burner, I drilled a hole in the end of the control rod.



Then using the drilled knob as a guide I marked the spindle for a hole.



Then using a hand drill I drilled a hole in the spindle. Again, it's brass and easy to drill through.



Then I threaded a piece copper wire through the holes to keep the control knob from falling off. You might also notice the nuts and bolts I used to bolt the top and bottom of the Trangia together and also bolt the burner plate in place.



When I was done the knob was as close to the outside of the Tangia as I could get it without touching.



I was please with the result but then it dawned on me that the shortened control rod might get too hot to touch. Maybe that's why it was made so long in the first place. So I tested it by bringing 1 gallon of water to boil in the Billy.



It took just over a half hour for the water to boil with the burner cranked up all the way. The knob only warmed slightly during that time and passed the test with flying colors. I believe the knob is made of Bakalite which can withstand continuous operating temperatures of 250 F and it wasn't anywhere near that.



With the shortened knob the Trangia fits neatly into the Billy for storage.



This allows me to stack both of my Trangias and all this stuff...



Into these two stacks for storage on the boat.

 

Hey Ben, nice mod on the knob keep em coming, perhaps we can learn a few more tricks to make the Trangia more efficient.

Ron

 

I forgot to mention that the control knob was shortened to fit the larger Trangia 25, not the smaller Trangia 27. I can't say what would happen if the knob were sawed down futher to fit the 27 but it works fine on the 25.

 

O.K. my Kap Artic Trangia clone project is finally completed. The last part of the kit was a fuel caddy to hold the bottles together and keep them from flying around in the boat hold.



The caddy holds a small plastic Trangia bottle of meths, 2 aluminum Trangia bottles with Nova pumps, a 1 liter Trangia bottle for bulk fuel, and a butane lighter. The holes were cut larger than the bottles and lined with marine carpet to provide a snug fit and keep things from rattling around while the boat's underway.



The handle makes it easy to carry everything in one hand or lift out of a boat hold. Notice the rubber feet I added to keep things off the wet boat deck.



The holes in the front of the caddy hold the fuel bottles the horizontal operating position while the Trangias are in use.



The bottles can simply be swiveled in their holders to the off position when finished cooking to purge the fuel lines. I really like that feature of the Nova pumps.



O.K. that's it. I'm done with this project.

 

Nice setup there for the boat

Ron

 

Wow nice work!!! I don't know if I could take a drill or hacksaw to a stove but you did a great job!!!

Cheers,
Jeff

 

Thanks for your encourgament Ron. I'm soaking the wood with Smith's penetrating epoxy resin so it doesn't soak up salt water. I can't wait to boil a couple of lobster tails!

Jeff, I know what you mean about hack sawing a piece that isn't being made anymore. I was morally conflicted about taking the 111t burners out of a couple of old Optimus Hikers as well. I rationalized that by telling myself there are plenty of museum quality Hikers out there and the best use for my well used burners would be there continued use.

Still, once you hack saw a piece of history it's gone forever. I've often wondered if the guys who hack up old cars to make hot rods feel the same moral conflict.

 

The way I look at it your giving these old burners/stoves a new purpose or lease on life.

Spindles can be replaced... still

I believe this setup will last you a long time. A lot of good meals I can see in your future!.

Gotta love the trangia bottles eh.

I hope you have fun on the water,
Jeff

 

great stuff
now all you need is a mounting point on the fuel caddy for a decent firesteel and striker then you wont need to worry about your lighter or matches getting wet and not working and you will always have everything you need to hand

atb Bill

 

Jeff,

You are so right about the Trangia bottles. They are really well designed and simple to use. I love kerosene for the heat output but it's normally a mess to deal with. However, with the Trangia bottles I can transfer fuel and my hands don't smell like kerosene afterwards. I highly recommend them.

Bill,

The fire steel is a good idea except there is no access to the spirit cup except through a hole in the side of the Trangia bottom. The Scripto BBQ lighter is perfect. I took it apart and removed the child proof wheel so I can just pull the trigger and it lights right up. Since I can put the tip right on top of the spirit cup the lighter only runs a half a second or so. Should last me years at that rate. Still I'll carry a couple of backups just in case.

I have an old Optimus 45 that I used back in the 1970's to make coffee in my lifeguard tower in Malibu. I used it every summer for 10 years brewing coffee into an Aladdin thermous using a filter cone funnel. The thermos has a handle made out of driftwood and I still use it to make coffee on the boat. I had fitted my 45 with a silent burner and loved it. The 111t burners are even better with their flame control and internal cleaning needle. No more prickers to keep track of. With the Trangias they can be used outside in the wind with stacking pots for easy stowage. Perfect. I thank CCS for the information needed to put them together and Tuevo for the 111t adapters.

Ben

 

hi Ben
it would be easy enough to tie a bit of fire rope around the bottom of the burner (above the spirit cup) and then fix it to the top of your priming adaptor (good idea btw)
then when you fill the priming cup the fire rope would get a good soaking and when you light it the fire rope would carry the flame down to the spirit cup same as on a Primus 535 burners 8)

btw the fire rope would also act as a pilot light if it works like a 535 burner does

 

Love it!

I'm planning on adding a priming chute/wick to my 'KAP' clone. I'm thinking of using the similar assembly from an old Svea spirit-cup (originally for 'guiding' the priming flame) & adding some wired-in wick like the 535 has.

 

There is also the Coleman lantern flint igniter. I wonder If something like that could be used.
Just a thought.

I am going to order another Trangia bottle. Thanks for reminding me how good they are. They just work so well.

Best Regards,
Jeff