by doug hodder » Sun Mar 15, 2009 8:21 pm
It's a re-buildable stove. Don't get intimidated about the amount of cooked paint on them. It pretty much shows lack of care or operational knowledge on behalf of the operator. It just may be a great deal as others will be gun shy on it.
Some time and effort will reveal a great treasure. Most all of the reasonably priced "old" ones, like 60yr+ are going to be in a similar condition, if not, you are going to pay for it. Unless it's really bent up, and the guts are hammered or a rotted out carcass...it's rebuildable. A new 424 2 burner from Wally World dual fuel will run you 65$+. Thing is, you got no history with one of those and as usual, the older ones are made of much heavier materials.
If you don't have access to a bead blaster, Jasco or another stripper will work fine, and at worst sand paper. Even after a blast, I still spend a fair amount of time sanding on them. Not all the parts are easily available however so if you get into a really old one, like pre-war, you may have to do a search to find them, as well as some time spent on lighting techniques/ instruction. They don't all "instant light", pretty much till after '30. On my last 417B 1940, I had 10$ in the stove, 15$ in paint (still some leftover), some stripper and time. Finished product....priceless. I'd put it up against any propane stove of similar size. Doug