Vintage Stoves

[corvus]

Imagine my joy when on my trip into Pelion this week I came across a young man using a "classic" it is one of my favorites a SEVA123 the forerunner of the Optimus Climber ,this stove "has been there done that" check it out ,yet it is still a kick *&%$#! heat source .
I have retired mine to display purposes now even though it still rocks (last time it was used as a heater in the New Pelion Hut b4 it had a heater ) this little beauty in its new life is still popular with alpinists I believe but has been surplanted by the New Order to some extent.
Problem with the 123 and its successor is that you need to love it then learn to drive it and when you have accomplished this and want to use a compact shellite stove this is the one for you particularly the latest variant,its small has its own fuel tank and is almost bullitproof.
Why dont I still use mine ? other than expected extreme cold conditions I use one of my many gas cannister stoves now for their convienience but in the real cold the 123 will be considered to be employed again.
The young fellow using it said it was his dads but when I told him how old it could have been he commented that his dad was not that old and it must have been second hand , jees made me feel ancient when I think back when I got mine but time is only relevant to those of us who count time.

[tasadam]

I have an Optimus stove, the '99. Solid as.
I wondered what the SEVA 123 looked like so I found this link...
Had to laugh at this comment -

Jet engine sound reminds you the food is coming soon.

Have a read of the reviews here and see how old the average stove must be! Many of the stoves in those posts are well over 20 years old, one as much as 40...

[tas-man]

I could not resist adding to this thread with a photo of my still usable " Borde 'Bomb' " shellite climbing stove I purchased in 1968. It has served me well for 40 years of bushwalking (crikey am I that old!)

This is a photo taken on a LWC trip last year while camped at Blackwood camp on the Leven River (on the Penguin-Cradle Track). It is very compact - 25mm diameter and 125mm long. I still have the instruction sheet and it claimed that it's efficiency was such that 1 litre of shellite would boil 80 litres of water! WIth the method of lighting it likely to drop burning fuel, it is definitely not one that can be used inside a modern synthetic fabric tent. The "BOMB nickname came from the stove's lack of a pressure release valve, which meant that as the temperature of the stove increases, the flame needs to be throttled back otherwise it will eventually explode if left unsupervised. (Edit 2 - I found a reference to the design of this stove - that the lead washer was supposed to melt and so discharge excessive pressure, but I can only imagine the blowtorch flame thrower effect this would cause! (better than a grenade going off )

Well, just googled "J. Borde, Zurich" and found this link to "The Stove Collector" http://stovecollector.tripod.com/database_b.htm which has a photo of this stove in all its pristine unused glory! http://stovecollector.tripod.com/images/borde_l.jpg

Another photo on a japanese website http://img01.naturum.ne.jp/usr/cleanhike/borde1.jpg gives a good view of the stove and the windshield/billy support accessory that I never purchased, instead making my own out of coat hanger wire and aluminium sheet.

Still googling and found these close up photos here http://www.spiritburner.com/forum/viewt ... ight=borde

[tas-man]

Further looking over the "Stove Collector" website found a page devoted to SEVA stoves. Great pictures of these vintage stoves! http://stovecollector.tripod.com/br_svea.htm

[corvus]

Further looking over the "Stove Collector" website found a page devoted to SEVA stoves. Great pictures of these vintage stoves! http://stovecollector.tripod.com/br_svea.htm

It is a Triffik site that I have been droooling over for months and months ,just missed out on two SVA 123 on EBay (well I didnt miss out ) they went for more than we could buy new ones for if you can find them so if any of you have one of these Vintage stoves get out the Brasso and convince whomsoever that must be obeyed that it is a valuable antique and display it .

[hikin_jim]

Did someone say Svea 123?


The original version came out in 1955 and was produced by Max Sievert AB. Sievert sold the rights to the Svea name to Optimus in 1969. Optimus modified the stove in about 1973, adding a self cleaning needle. The Swedish word for needle starts with the letter "R", so the new version was called the Svea 123R. It's a solid stove, but many prefer the simplicity of the original version.

Brass stoves are things of great beauty.


HJ

[taswegian]

I've got one of these sitting idle.
Used it for a while with Shellite, but didn't like taking highly volatile stuff and when the Trangia came by I move over to that.

The key is essential and a natty design

[hikin_jim]

Nice stove. Very similar to one of two Primus 71 stoves I inherited from my late uncle in 2002.

That's a Primus 71L of the type made after Optimus bought the rights to the Primus name for liquid fueled stoves in 1962. Optimus continued to sell Primus stoves as the Primus Trading Company. They used what Primus parts were on hand, for example the engraved fuel tank on your stove, and then substituted Optimus parts. The Optimus 80 was a very similar stove When they ran out of Primus parts, they then sold Optimus 80 stoves with a "Primus" sticker on them. The key on your stove and the case are clearly Optimus parts. The Primus key was longer, and the Primus cases didn't have the blue and red Optimus colors. The Primus case had slightly different vents and had a raised area on the front of the case for a round AB BAHCO Primus sticker (AB BAHCO made Primus stoves prior to the Optimus buyout).

Your stove was clearly made after the 1962 buyout but before they ran out of Primus parts. Just guessing, but I'd say your stove was probably made only a year or two after the 1962 buyout, but that's only a guess. Definitely 1960's though.

Congratulations on a very fine stove,

HJ

[taswegian]

thanks for all that info HJ. Interesting.
Can't remember when I got that but have had it from new (but probably mid 60's) when starting off into bushwalking school days

Heavy little blighters and built fairly robust.

[hikin_jim]

Can't remember when I got that but have had it from new (but probably mid 60's) when starting off into bushwalking school days

That'd be about right. It's in excellent condition and is a complete set, including the pricker (jet cleaning wire). VERY nice.

Heavy little blighters and built fairly robust.

And very reliable, far more reliable than most modern Shellite or kero stoves. Not much to go wrong. Just a tank, a valve, and a burner. Very solid, all brass. The one thing that tends to fail is the gasket that seals the filler cap on the tank. Rubber gets hard after a while. Easy enough to replace, but make sure you get the fuel resistant kind.

Don't ever run them dry. That'll char the wick, which is a hassle to change, and you could possibly damage an old stove trying to get the wick out. The case can also rust out, particularly the pot supports. Yours looks like it's in good condition.

Again, a very nice stove, and a very practical one (albeit a bit heavy).

HJ

[taswegian]

Not much to go wrong

- unless you suffer from cold hands and its bitterly (freezingly) cold and then the stuff inside the burner is warmer than whats wrapped around it

But yes its a very good burner and again thanks for input.

[rucksack]

I have just returned to Shanghai after a month in Tasmania, 28 days of which were spent walking: 21 days on a Western Arthurs traverse followed by a bit of a look at the White Monolith Range and then 7 days over on the Tasman Peninsula. The stove that accompanied me on both walks was my old 1985-vintage Optimus SVEA 123R. I have a lot of stoves, but my 123R is a sentimental favourite, so I decided to give it a bit of an outing this year. It underwent its first check-up last year when I replaced the original gasket in the filler cap (it finally hardened) and the original wick (it had started to disintegrate). Everything else was and is original and remains in perfect working order, even the graphite bush, so 15 minutes later (and after 25 years of use), all the maintenance was completed and the 123R was ready for use once again. I fired it up in the Huon Campground before setting out for Junction Creek and it roared into action first go and continued in that vein for the next 28 days and nights of snow, rain and sunshine, with some fairly solid winds thrown in too. I agree with other posters on this thread, these stoves - the SVEA 123/123R and the Primus 71 - are remarkably reliable, simple Shellite stoves that defy their age. I am not oblivious to the weight penalty (my 123R weights 542g and an 8R is heavier), but it is a small price to pay in my view. I walked solo on both trips last month and having the 123R choofing away in the mornings and evenings was like having an old friend on the walk with me. Reassuring. And did I mention price? 41 cents a day. Not bad all things considered. The SVEA 123/123R, like the Optimus 8R, the Primus 71, (and the German-made Juwel 33 too) are unbelievably reliable Shellite stoves, and for those who like their stoves hot (what simmering?), their noise loud, and the simplicity of dealing with one moving part, they are unbeatable, dire weather or no.

rucksack

[corvus]

Bugga! I am heading out to purchase some Shellite so I can fire up the Seva123 when I set out to field test some other gear
corvus

[hikin_jim]

Not much to go wrong

- unless you suffer from cold hands and its bitterly (freezingly) cold and then the stuff inside the burner is warmer than whats wrapped around it

One trick with stoves like the Primus 71 is to carry a little squeeze bottle of metho. I use the metho for priming, so I don't have to use the "warm hands to make the fuel well up" technique. A 45ml bottle is plenty for a weekend of walking.



HJ

[hikin_jim]

... 15 minutes later (and after 25 years of use), all the maintenance was completed and the 123R was ready for use once again. I fired it up in the Huon Campground before setting out for Junction Creek and it roared into action first go and continued in that vein for the next 28 days and nights of snow, rain and sunshine, with some fairly solid winds thrown in too.

And that, my friends, is why the Svea 123 is as popular as it is. Of all the stoves that came out in the 1950's, only one is still produced today, the Svea 123 (the "R" version since the early 1970's, but still a Svea 123). You don't achieve that kind of popularity over the decades by coincidence, whim of fashion, or passing fancy. The Svea 123 is popular for a very simple reason: it works, and it works, and it works.

The Svea 123 beat out it's cousins, the Optimus 8R, the Primus 71, the Optimus 80, and the Optimus 99 (all of which are very similar) for two reasons: One power and two light weight (relative to the others). The Svea 123's brass windscreen conducts heat back to the tank, giving more pressure than the other stoves (and therefore more power). The brass windscreen (which serves as something of a partial protective case) was also a good deal lighter than that of the full cases that the other stoves came in. In the Svea 123, the design elements really came together; it's the stove where they really got it right.

Among its peers, the Svea 123 is the clear stand out.


Did I mention that I really like the Svea 123 just a bit?

HJ

[etrangere]

have a few vintage stoves myself but the svea 123 is a fave. Once polished up with some brasso it looks to good to use like a piece of art. Has anyone else tried the trick of turning it upside down and putting a tsp of metho in the concave base and lighting it to preheat it, then flip it over and light it??

[corvus]

G'day etrangere,
When I suggested getting out the Brasso and convincing SWMBO that it was a nice antique ornament I did not expect any one to polish it inside and out ,must add though I am disappointed in the lack of sheen from the Aluminium Cup and dull burner head
Now where is that Brasso and polishing cloth!!

[etrangere]

Lol.......yes yes and the dull key and handle...........oh the shame of it!!!

[corvus]

I will polish mine if you polish yours
corvus

[taswegian]

nah - mine wont get that treatment
sorta takes the shine off the whole affair
Doesn't look used.

Now this has prodded me into action and I'll have to get some shellite

etrangere yours does look very nice. Well done.

[rucksack]

Very nice etrangere, very nice. My 123R is too embarrassed to be seen next to yours. In fact, it's now hiding in the cupboard and won't come out.

Here is a bit of 123/123R stove genealogy ...

Late 1930's (it's in the 1939 Optimus catalogue), a stove that is often quoted as the 'grandfather' of the 123; it's the Swedish Optimus 6, which is now very, very rare. Here is the URL ... http://www.spiritburner.com/fusion/show ... /post/new/

And then to the early 1940s and the German-made Juwel 33 by Gustav Barthel. The URL is ... http://www.spiritburner.com/fusion/show ... t/new/#NEW

And so, on to 1955 and back to Sweden to Max Sievert's SVEA 123. And finally, to the early 1970s and the Optimus SVEA 123R, after Optimus bought out Max Sievert's company.

So, a full circle from the Optimus 6 to the Juwel 33, to the SVEA 123, and finally (back to) Optimus with the SVEA 123R. Note the model numbers too? 6, then 3 and 3, then 1, 2 and 3. Don't worry, stove tragics have long speculated on this genealogy, and those model numbers - each adding up to 6, of course. Coincidence?

rucksack

[Tony]

This is a Primus 71 that I have on long term loan, it is part of a Alu-Plus Groninger Swiss Made cookset, from what I can gather it is from the 60's and that would fit in with the person who has loaned it to me, I think he has had the stove and pots since new. I have not used it yet as the washer in the fuel cap needs replacing.

Tony

Primus 71

IMG_3398.jpg (129.16 KiB) Viewed 26361 times

Label

IMG_3397.jpg (184.45 KiB) Viewed 26361 times

[hikin_jim]

Rucksack, Thanks for the genealogy of the Svea.

Tony, nice Primus 71. Notice how it has a "Primus 71" sticker on the tank instead of an engraved tank like Taswegian's. This is a bit of a guess, but I'd say that Taswegian's was probably made somewhere around 1963 or 1964 and then the stove in your possession some time thereafter. Bryan Miller did an excellent write up of this stove on CCS earlier this year if you're curious to look it up, but precise dating is difficult with Optimus stoves (your stove was produced by Optimus but sold under the Primus name).

HJ

[hikin_jim]

it is part of a Alu-Plus Groninger Swiss Made cookset

Interesting! That cookset looks startlingly similar to the Edelweiss Cookset that I have, which is also made for a Primus 71.

HJ

[corvus]

Full of joie de vivre I raced out and bought Shellite and Metho so I could crank up my Seva 123 on my last outing ,guess what I forgot a pricker so ended up with an embarasing no go stove
Good thing I took my FMS 100-T with me as we would have been eating cold food.
corvus

[hikin_jim]

Full of joie de vivre I raced out and bought Shellite and Metho so I could crank up my Seva 123 on my last outing ,guess what I forgot a pricker so ended up with an embarasing no go stove

Oh, no.

Sometimes the key can be used to unscrew the jet, and the jet can be blown out with "mouth power". I've successfully cleared one stove this way. I know of one person who claims to have used a whisker from his beard to have cleared a jet. Don't know about that, but you're better off bringing a pricker of course.

HJ

[Bushman_Craig]

Had to bump this one since I have been using vintage stoves for most of my trips this last winter.

Svea 123R in use last weekend on a quick (and *&%$#! windy) overnighter in the Morton National Park




Borde "Bomb" benzin bremmer a while back down on the Shoalhaven river between Long Point and Badgery's, also in the Morton National Park - no sheoak needles were harmed in the making of this brew - the stove was primed on a patch of gravel just out of shot and then moved. The stove didn't come with a pot stand so I made one from a couple of bits of sheet metal and a brass hinge. The galvanising has since been completely burnt off and stripped in a well-ventilated area.



As someone who grew up bushwalking and camping with gas canister stoves, I find the shellite stoves to be a little fiddly to start with, but they are great when they get going. I have found it easiest to prime both stoves with shellite fuel. The Borde will release its own priming fuel just from warming the fuel coils with your hands and then cracking the valve open a tiny bit. I prime the Svea 123R using shellite carried in a Zippo lighter fluid tin, which works like a squeeze bottle and carried around 200ml of fuel for topping up the main tank.

[rcaffin]

Let's play 'guess the vintage':

7393.jpg (80.54 KiB) Viewed 23796 times

Answers in a plain brown envelope please.

Cheers
Roger

[undercling-mike]

Let's play 'guess the vintage':

7393.jpg

Answers in a plain brown envelope please.

Cheers
Roger

Dunno but it looks really old

[Moondog55]

I have no idea where my SVEA went to but it "Disappeared" over 20 years ago about the same time as I lost my 111B
Worst thing about the SVEA was and is the aluminium cup. Substituting a decent SS or Titanium cup would be a very practical modification
Somewhere in the shed I have both a SVEA cup and an original MSR cup, both simply awful to use but served to protect the stoves business end