Trouble in Svea Land

[rafe]

I assure you, it's both.

I have a couple of AT icons in my cubicle. One is an AT map (the skinny 4' x 9" one, on styrofoam) and the other is an ancient 35mm camera.

The camera is the same model and vintage as Earl Schaffer carried in 1948 -- a folding Kodak Retina. Hell, for all I know it might have been Earl's. I used it for a couple years when I was 10-12 years old or so. It was pretty awful. It weighs about a pound and a half, maybe two. My Dad got it out of a junk bin in the photo district in New York City. Prolly paid $5 for it... in 1962.

[Marta]

Marta,
If David finds a specific part that isn't working on your Svea do a search on A & H Enterprises.

Thanks, David--A&H is who we bought the stove from.

Update--my David did NOT work on the stove this weekend. He spent the whole weekend messing with and riding his bike! What's wrong with the man?

The saga continues...

[Marta]

Hey, Marta,
Here's another option. Buy the one I took in '06. It's 31 years old with only 3500 miles. Works great but loud.
Merry Christmas, Mango

Please PM me with your price, Mango.

I tried to buy a used one off someone this weekend. He said he hadn't used his in 10 years. But when I got to talking about it, he decided he really needs to start using his again. Doggone it!

[generoll]

check ebay. some possibles there.

[mudcap]

Please PM me with your price, Mango.

I tried to buy a used one off someone this weekend. He said he hadn't used his in 10 years. But when I got to talking about it, he decided he really needs to start using his again. Doggone it!

Marta,PM sent on a 123. Old but in perfect working order.

Just in case you still need one.

[sliderule]

Sometimes the stem gets bent or askew, hard to fix and results in poor performance. I think the old Svea is a relic from the past, albeit a beautiful brass one, and needs to be retired to a high shelf somewhere. Fun to look at, hassle to use. The obvious advantages of having a separate fuel tank(like MSR), alone, is worth deep-sixing the 123. The website cphobes highlighted is a college course in these brass babies, going back to dim prehistory with a myriad of product codes, numbers and nomenclatures. All Hail therefore the Optimus/Svea miracles of old technology, now it's time to upgrade.

I have a SVEA that has been going strong since 1972. I have lost count of how many times a have loaned it to fellow hikers whose MSR stoves let them down. When it comes to either durability or efficiency, a MSR has absolutely nothing on a SVEA.

[oldfivetango]

I must be missing something.It is a NEW SVEA,right?
Cant you send it back for a repalcement or a refund?
Just curious why you would want "him" to tinker with it
and have a defective stove with a recurrent problem?
Oldfivetango

[Marta]

It is a new Svea, the second one with a similar problem. The reason he wants to tinker with it is to see if he can locate and replace the source of the problem. One of the charms of the Svea is that everything is replaceable.

Having had two consecutive new Svea failures, we no longer have enough confidence in the stove to take it out in the backcountry in the winter unless we are sure we can fix it in the field. Getting a third new stove wouldn't give us that confidence.

And he loves to tinker with stuff. It's a hobby, more than a quest for consumer justice.

[generoll]

makes perfect sense to me.

[generoll]

Oh, under the for what it's worth department. I ran one of my stoves last night and then shut it down and put it in the freezer. I just got it out and after opening the fuel cap to equalize the pressure and putting the cap back on, I put about as much firepaste as you would use as toothpaste. The tank was frosted, but as soon as the frost melted to the level of the fuel I opened the valve and ran the cleaning needle out. Once I pulled the needle back the stove started up and made its' usual purr. I ran it until all the frost melted and then shut it down.

That's the way they are supposed to work. If the new ones are crap, then all the more reason to buy a used one on Ebay or wherever.

[take-a-knee]

Oh, under the for what it's worth department. I ran one of my stoves last night and then shut it down and put it in the freezer. I just got it out and after opening the fuel cap to equalize the pressure and putting the cap back on, I put about as much firepaste as you would use as toothpaste. The tank was frosted, but as soon as the frost melted to the level of the fuel I opened the valve and ran the cleaning needle out. Once I pulled the needle back the stove started up and made its' usual purr. I ran it until all the frost melted and then shut it down.

That's the way they are supposed to work. If the new ones are crap, then all the more reason to buy a used one on Ebay or wherever.

Sage advice, I'd send it back.

[Feral Bill]

Oh, under the for what it's worth department. I ran one of my stoves last night and then shut it down and put it in the freezer. I just got it out and after opening the fuel cap to equalize the pressure and putting the cap back on, I put about as much firepaste as you would use as toothpaste. The tank was frosted, but as soon as the frost melted to the level of the fuel I opened the valve and ran the cleaning needle out. Once I pulled the needle back the stove started up and made its' usual purr. I ran it until all the frost melted and then shut it down.

That's the way they are supposed to work. If the new ones are crap, then all the more reason to buy a used one on Ebay or wherever.

I think you might get different results if you tried running in in a cold environmet, espcially sitting on a cold, icy surface. My SVEA works perfectly in cold temperatures, (and I mean well below 0 degrees) IF it has insulation below and, in extreme conditions, around. Sit it on an icy stump and no go.

[Gumbi]

I think you might get different results if you tried running in in a cold environmet, espcially sitting on a cold, icy surface. My SVEA works perfectly in cold temperatures, (and I mean well below 0 degrees) IF it has insulation below and, in extreme conditions, around. Sit it on an icy stump and no go.

I don't doubt that what you are saying is true, but in this case, it isn't a matter of insulation, it is a malfunctioning valve, a mechanical problem. Something is wrong with the stove.

[hootyhoo]

Here's the thing: It's a new stove.

We ordered one last December. It functioned for a few weeks, then the valve broke and the stove wouldn't shut off. (The key could be turned indefinitely.)
Was it stored with gas in it?

We sent that stove back. A&H said they had to wait for a shipment of stoves from Sweden to replace it. In April or May we finally got a new stove. Didn't use it all summer and fall. Started using the new stove maybe three weeks ago. It worked well at first, then started misbehaving.

I had one that did the same - never could get it fixed so I sent it back.

Thanks for the info, especially the link to the repair kit, Skids. David is going to completely disassemble that valve this weekend. If it breaks, we'll order the repair kit.

I can't say I'm impressed with the 123R's reliability. On one of the sites we found through a Google search, they mention that the self-cleaning Sveas are not nearly as reliable as the older models. I'm starting to think that's an understatement.
I always was impressed with the reliability. You could count on problems- like clockwork. Very reliable. It would be 'retro-neat' to have another. But there are too many advancements in stoves over the last century to buy one for any other reason.

I consider most stoves to be over priced. but if the masses are willing to pay it they may as well mark 'em up.

Typical Whitegas Stove/ Windscreen optional/ does not come with fuel bottle (and won't work without it) And the "Guaranteed to Break" Plastic parts are expensive.
Retail Price - 129.00
Cost to produce stove - 25.00
Retail markup - 50.00 (Includes REI executive salary)
Corporate Executive Compensation per unit - 54.00
Plus tax (another form of Executive Compensation)

And MSR is the worst of them all.

[Tipi Walter]

I've used a Peak I and I own a Wisperlite and have known and witnessed many of MSR GK owners. None of them is an upgrade to a properly working SVEA. The only "improvement" I've found is an alcohol for the simplicity and weight.

Uh, let me mention an external fuel tank much bigger than the Svea's and not needing frequent refilling. That's one improvement. Another plus: No little nail-like prongs holding up a pot which fall out and get lost, w/o which you won't be cooking. And have to replaced with homemade bent nails. MSRs prime easily, Svea's don't(unless held over an open fire)and require pouring gas into the bottom trough-usually resulting in spilled and wasted fuel--unless you use a spout or eye dropper.

I can assure you that my Whisperlite is not sitting on my desk. It's a fookin' stove, not a religious icon.

The MSR stoves are just stoves, but the Svea is a religious icon. Get used to it and compare the looks of the two: polished brass versus a nondescript wire contraption. No comparision.

I have a SVEA that has been going strong since 1972. I have lost count of how many times a have loaned it to fellow hikers whose MSR stoves let them down. When it comes to either durability or efficiency, a MSR has absolutely nothing on a SVEA.

As before, I'd take my Whisper/Simmerlites over my old Sveas any day. My Simmerlite can be field repaired with all new seals and grommets, the fuel cable can be pulled out and cleaned, the pump disassembled and upgraded, a new pump can be cached on long trips(never needed, though), there's no support prongs to lose or on/off keys to drop or get tangled in the brass housing, and the MSR's tank never runs out of fuel like with the much smaller tank on the Svea. Ever run out of fuel in the Svea right in the middle of cooking? You gotta let it cool, remove the key, remove the brass housing, carefully refuel into tiny refill hole, replace housing, put key back on--and here's the fun part--prime again and relight. If you want your meal to be finished fairly fast, you'll refill a too-hot stove and when relighting, well, there'll be a small explosion. None of this happens with a MSR.

[oops56]

I got lots of stoves and the svea don't need a repair kit in the field. Also it can simmer if you know how plus i cam bake on it with a oven.

[Marta]

Update--We've been using the classic Svea all winter with nary a problem. Great stove. I'm not sure why they felt the need to "improve" it. It'll be interesting to see if David ever gets the new one working reliably.

[take-a-knee]

Update--We've been using the classic Svea all winter with nary a problem. Great stove. I'm not sure why they felt the need to "improve" it. It'll be interesting to see if David ever gets the new one working reliably.

So you bought an older one?

[Marta]

So you bought an older one?

Yep, from Mudcap here on Whiteblaze. A great little stove.

[Feral Bill]

As an obviously loyal SVEAista I am happy for you. Now you will never need another stove.