Optimus Nova Plus

[rik_uk3]

Hi Mojo, how you keeping? great shot of the Nova there but its showing poor combustion (yellow flame spread). Agreed, paraffin is the cheaper option, and the one I go for, BUT, if I were using two stoves I would look for a common fuel to use, that's where the panel wipe comes into play if I am taking a Coleman stove, plus a multifuel and Coleman lamp (trust me, after the Bushmoot I am trying to lighten my kit ) The little Coleman 229 Exponent lamp has a great output, but a small burn time (about three hours) due to the tank size, but one worth a look at.

The whole panel wipe thing comes from me not wanting to pay £50 for five litres of Coleman fuel in the UK, when I can get PW for between £7 and £12, plus I won't burn unleaded fuel in a stove, lots of crap in unleaded, you do not want to inhale the fumes, and it will lead to more stove maintainence in the long run.

Base-camp are selling clones of the Trangia/Nova conversion kit for about £6 or £7 quid, I have one on the way and will report on how good or bad it is.

The Nova is a fantastic stove, and Optimus are using the burner in its replacement for the classic 111 multifuel stove, dam, I'll need to get one of them as well

 

[mojofilter]

Hi Mojo, how you keeping? great shot of the Nova there but its showing poor combustion (yellow flame spread). Agreed, paraffin is the cheaper option, and the one I go for, BUT, if I were using two stoves I would look for a common fuel to use, that's where the panel wipe comes into play if I am taking a Coleman stove, plus a multifuel and Coleman lamp (trust me, after the Bushmoot I am trying to lighten my kit ) The little Coleman 229 Exponent lamp has a great output, but a small burn time (about three hours) due to the tank size, but one worth a look at.

The whole panel wipe thing comes from me not wanting to pay £50 for five litres of Coleman fuel in the UK, when I can get PW for between £7 and £12, plus I won't burn unleaded fuel in a stove, lots of crap in unleaded, you do not want to inhale the fumes, and it will lead to more stove maintainence in the long run.

Base-camp are selling clones of the Trangia/Nova conversion kit for about £6 or £7 quid, I have one on the way and will report on how good or bad it is.

The Nova is a fantastic stove, and Optimus are using the burner in its replacement for the classic 111 multifuel stove, dam, I'll need to get one of them as well

I'm fine thanks Rik, yourself too I hope?

I have only tried the one tank of Diesel through the Nova, but I agree, it did burn very yellow indeed, it is not like that on other fuels. Perhaps preheating for longer would have helped, but it burn the full tank away as shown in the picture. I already have the trangia conversion kit, and it works great in my "Lidl Trangia"

I have a Coleman 229 that I picked up on Ebay for about a tenner a month or so ago, but I have not got round to getting a No. 20 mantle to try it yet...

 

[scoops_uk]

Used paraffin in my Nova for a two week backpack in the pyrenees. The fuel ccoonsumption was unbelievably frugal, and the flame wonderfully controllable (compared with more volatile fuels). Didn't have any yellow flame or sooting problems. Looks like the yellow flame above is turned up too high and there's a surplus of fuel.

Scoops

 

[trauma]

ok ok, nice bit of kit - anyone got any sites they'd recommend for buying one these "can't-really-afford-got-enough-already-but-oh-sooooo-nice" items??

 

[rik_uk3]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/New-Brunton-O...ryZ16036QQssPageNameZWD2VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

With postage it should be on your doorstep for about £65, email them first for postage though to be sure, but you run the risk of tax this end, but you may get lucky and it slips through. This seller has the stove at this price often, just keep checking back if you miss this one.

 

[Martyn]

Also, trangia adapter for £6.50...
http://www.xtreme-outdoors.com/cgi-...timus_Nova_Trangia_Adapter_262.html#a661#a661

Service kit for the nova...
http://www.xtreme-outdoors.com/cgi-...timus_Nova_Maintenance_Kit_260.html#a658#a658

Same parts plus lots of other optimus spares also available from...
http://www.base-camp.co.uk/Optimus.html

 

[rik_uk3]

www.base-camp.co.uk are just about the best supplier of stove parts in the UK; however, please remember that it is a two man band there, so during busy periods don't expect overnight dispatch of orders. I know that recently they have been working on up to a 5 day dispatch time (but at least they are honest, and will tell you that themselves).

Also, if you are in doubt about the spares you need, just phone them up and ask, they are very helpful.

PS, knocked up a curry on a Primus stove made in 1918 this afternoon, 88 years old and still going strong

 

[RFC1795]

Making sure it isn't the new, eco-friendly, aqueous stuff...

Hi ESpy...

I used to use benzine in ZA in my lanterns but that is not available in the UK ... 750ml would cost me about £0.20 and is exactlly the same as Coleman fuel... (least it smelt and tasted the same )

Do you know where I can purchase some of the panel wipe you mentioned locally in Hampshire?

Thanks... TJ

 

[ESpy]

I used http://www.yell.com to find paint factors using "Automotive paint" as search terms; my nearest is Autocolours ( http://www.autocolours.co.uk ). I'm still working through a tin that I picked up in York a number of years ago...

HTH.

 

[RFC1795]

I used http://www.yell.com to find paint factors using "Automotive paint" as search terms.

Thanks that helped a lot

The closest place to me that stocks it was this:
http://www.smartexpress.co.uk/acatalog/Preperation_Products.html

5L at less than £13 ... it'll work out a lot cheaper than the 2 small little cans of Coleman that I picked up yesterday for £11 in total

Cheers... TJ

 

[RFC1795]

Hi ESpy,

I managed to pick up 5L today. Opened it up and did the quick wiff test. It sure smells like the benzine stuff I’ve used before.
The liquid feels slightly different to the Coleman fuel though and left like what looked like white residue on my finger. It might be just the reaction to skin though. The Coleman fuel feels a little less volatile and almost oily in a way but the smell is similar for sure. I’ll check again tonight.

The panel wipe can has a CAS number on it of CAS 64742-49-0 which comes up as:
* CAS Number: 64742-49-0
* Synonyms:
- Hydrotreated Light Straight Run (Petroleum)

FYI - I see the composition on the Coleman fuel as this:
• Solvent naphtha (CAS #64742-89-8) 45-50%
• Aliphatic petroleum distillates (CAS #64742-88-7) 45-50%
• Xylene (CAS #1330-20-7) 2%
• Toluene (CAS #108-88-3) 2%


I’m wondering if it’s a good idea for me to mix the 1 litre Coleman fuel with the 5L panel wipe …. mmm

Does your tin of panel wipe perhaps have a CAS number that I could compare with?

FYI - I just found this.. Coleman lantern fuel is CAS 68410-97-9 (At http://zenstoves.net/MSDS/Coleman.htm )

Thanks… TJ

(BTW - Good database here: http://environmentalchemistry.com/yogi/chemicals/ )

 

[spamel]

My missus has bought me a Nova Plus for my birthday!! My birthday isn't until December but I have it already as I threatened to buy one from ebay and she went off in a huff and came back with the nova plus!! I had no idea she had bought it!!

First impressions were that it is very well built, although this was soon to become apparent that first impressions don't always count!

I put some fuel in the bottle and connected it all up and started to pump the very nice black aluminium pump, when suddenly I lost all pump pressure! Bearing in mind this is a brand new unit, I was not impressed and my heart sank. I decided that a simple piece of kit like this should be able to be maintained by the user and didn't think it would be worth sending it back without investigating the problem first.

This is the unit that pressurizes the fuel in the bottle. You can see the pump lever on the right, the quick release coupling for the fuel line is under the black plastic cover top right, the fuel hose with attatched filter is quite obvious and the aluminium tube houses the pump mechanism which is a simple leather gasket cup on a rod.

Upon stripping down the pump unit, by undoing the small knurled plate, the pump mechanism pulls out comprising a rod, a spring, a flat washer, a leather cup and a nyloc lock nut. (The spring in this picture is still on the rod) It became apparent that the leather cup had pulled over the top of the nyloc nut, I would have put a small washer there if I was designing this piece of equipment.

Therefore, I took the offending part into my local REME workshops and raided their washers tub!! I decided to put a slightly larger washer behind the cup as there is a small stepped area just after the threaded portion, that would mean the cup wouldn't get crushed when the nut was tightened. The original washer normally only goes as far as the threaded portion of the rod, it does not go on to the stepped portion of the rod. The original washer went inside the cup and the nyloc nut has been put back on. The cup seems to be in a good condition, but time will tell. It doesn't look perished at all.

As you can see, the original washer has been put inside the leather cup, the parts are now in order as to how they go on the rod. The cup can still flex enough for the pump to be effective, and when I get a bit of time I will get out and try the whole unit out to re-establish the feeling I got when I first saw the cooker. I think my modification will be OK and will stop the leather cup coming off in the future, I am just surprised that Optimus didn't pick up on this small fault, it must have happened to other units aswell.

The only thing I need to know is whether I should lubricate the leather cup at all, and if so what with? Answers on a postcard please!!

I will post my ultimate findings when I have the stove up and running, but looking at how it works it becomes obvious that the design principles themselves are sound. The unit is controlled by turning the fuel line at the bottle end, this turns the needle at the burner end controlling the flame. A brilliant idea and the large blob of green plastic on the fuel line means it will be simple to use even with gloves on.

As for the cleaning needle, it is operated by passing a small magnet under the burner. This moves a needle of some sort inside the burner and you can hear it moving when you use the tool. The magnet is very strong, I think it is the sort used on Mythbusters to bypass security and break into buildings via air ducts!!! I put it down next to my Opi 8 and I couldn't pull it straight off as I thought it would break the locking ring!! I had to slide it off the end of the blade

 

[scanker]

Quick, threaten to buy something else.

 

[spamel]

I don't think I should push my luck with her at the moment!!

I've just flashed the beast up in fact, using naptha as my fuel of choice. It supposedly runs off just about anything but I don't have any cheap vodka or rhino urine to put this claim to the test!!

I decided to stick some water on, so I filled the fuel bottle up in my sink.

WARNING!!! DO NOT FILL YOUR FUEL BOTTLE UP IN THE SINK!!!

A bit tired and I made a stupid mistake!! A small amount of fuel had spilt over the side and when I flashed the stove up, the vapour was ignited and the resulting mini-mushroom cloud took the hair off my right hand!!!! I love this stove!!!

So, I got the stove lit and the water on in my 14cm Zebra Billy, and in the time it took to rub my burnt hair off of my hand and get some cold water on it, and to then send Child #2 in to the naughty corner, the water had boiled!!

Not very scientific I know so I will do a better job later on!! I'm off on a bit of a trip next week so I will review after that and hopefully include some photos of the beast in action.

STAY SAFE!!

 

[rik_uk3]

Spamel, yes, lube up the leather, you can buy silicon gel, very expensive, I just soak all my leathers in olive oil for a couple of hours to start them off. In the field you can use butter or margarine at a push; but when given a good soak, they will last a long time before oiling again

 

[spamel]

Somebody mentioned using vaseline at work, but I'm thinking that it may not be a good idea. I'm sure it will get sticky and compound problems. Can you shed any light on this?

 

[rik_uk3]

Vaseline will dry out too quick, its a petroleum based lubricant, olive oil will last longer Spamel.

Just a personal thing, but I've used olive oil for a few years now without problems, so I guess its what your used to using. I have around 20 stoves now, who have had their leather buckets in olive oil (or sunflower oil for that matter) and work like a charm; no problems with jet clogging etc, give it a try

Some stoves have had an "O" ring fitted, like some of the Optimus 111's, but they fail much faster than a leather bucket (just replaced an "O" ring in a 111 I got a couple of weeks back in fact)

 

[wizard]

Vaseline will dry out too quick, its a petroleum based lubricant, olive oil will last longer Spamel.

Just a personal thing, but I've used olive oil for a few years now without problems, so I guess its what your used to using. I have around 20 stoves now, who have had their leather buckets in olive oil (or sunflower oil for that matter) and work like a charm; no problems with jet clogging etc, give it a try

Some stoves have had an "O" ring fitted, like some of the Optimus 111's, but they fail much faster than a leather bucket (just replaced an "O" ring in a 111 I got a couple of weeks back in fact)

And I thought I was addicted to cooker gadgets!! I only have 11, so I feel really weak! Noooooo, I am not getting a Nova, never, well, maybe later

 

[rik_uk3]

And I thought I was addicted to cooker gadgets!! I only have 11, so I feel really weak! Noooooo, I am not getting a Nova, never, well, maybe later

20 stoves are the ones I light from time to time, the other xxx are under the stairs so the wife don't kill me for having them all over the place

Get a Nove wizard, you know you neeeeeeeeed one

 

[addyb]

I lubricate my stoves with actual MSR oil. A small bottle comes in the accessory packs and it'll work on any type of rubber be it a washer or a pump seal. I even use it on the seal of my Trangia 28. It's good stuff, I highly recommend it. And like Rik, I also found Vaseline to dry out quickly. If you're in a pinch, some lip balm will work too.

Adam