Old Coleman 2 burner

[Volund]

Hey all,

Just got done moving my grandparents from their house in Jersey to NY, in the process I found an old Coleman White Gas stove a camper left behind at their KOA campground sometime between 1969 and 1979.

Internally, it looks brand new, perfect paint and internals (or so it appears), the outside is.... rough to say the least, absolutely covered in rust, probably due to the sea air it has been exposed to for the last 20 or so years lol, everything metal was rusted in that garage.

I would really like to refurbish the stove if at all possible, so I'm wondering what the most common things to be wrong with one of these stoves are other than the corroded chrome on the latches and 2nd burner's gas knob. Is there a good color match for the paint on this unit (I'll be pulling a serial/model number on tuesday).

The thing really is in good condition internally (the gas tank even has gas still in it....) so I would like to get it and the lantern that I have into working order for this summers camping trips

thanks for any pointers you can give me

[hotrod]

does it still work???
sandblasting or paint stripper and sandpaper to get rid of the rust.lots of awesome reading in this thread to find some stove resto info. patience and elbow grease! have fun and welcome to the club!!

[Volund]

does it still work???
sandblasting or paint stripper and sandpaper to get rid of the rust.lots of awesome reading in this thread to find some stove resto info. patience and elbow grease! have fun and welcome to the club!!

Yeah, I've been reading through a ton of info the last few days lol Should I be worried about a stove that has been packaged up and not used for 30-40 years?

[doug hodder]

Nope...read the info in the above stickies, and get an education on it all. If one flares up, don't flip out...just shut it down. Pressure up the tank and watch for leaks at the generator tip. If it doesn't shut off clean and still drips or pours fuel when you do open it rather than a small stream...you got gennie issues. Doug

[Volund]

Thanks for the info Doug, I'll hopefully have a chance to check it out over the weekend.... might have to wait till after finals though


EDIT- Should I use the fuel still in the tank or get some new and siphon out the old?

[Wolffarmer]

I have used fuel that old, but then that was fuel I knew I put in it. As you are just starting out I would advise to dump the old stuff and use new known fuel. If the previous person used car gas in it you would smell a most fowl oder by now. If it smells something like new coleman fuel they did not put car gas in it.

A new fuel cap gasket is the most common part that needs to be replaced. And on my stoves I have replaced a number of them and only one other part, a pump leather ( thanks Doug ) Oil up the pump before you try it much. I use 3 in 1 oil or anything like that. In a pinch I have used drops of oil off the end of the vehicle motor's dip stick. Which is a pain in the pa toot so now I travel with a can of 3 in 1.

Randy

[Volund]

I have used fuel that old, but then that was fuel I knew I put in it. As you are just starting out I would advise to dump the old stuff and use new known fuel. If the previous person used car gas in it you would smell a most fowl oder by now. If it smells something like new coleman fuel they did not put car gas in it.

A new fuel cap gasket is the most common part that needs to be replaced. And on my stoves I have replaced a number of them and only one other part, a pump leather ( thanks Doug ) Oil up the pump before you try it much. I use 3 in 1 oil or anything like that. In a pinch I have used drops of oil off the end of the vehicle motor's dip stick. Which is a pain in the pa toot so now I travel with a can of 3 in 1.

Randy

Cheers Randy, Thinking about it over the course of the day I figured I would pick up a gallon at walmart or dicks tomorrow, and check their stock of replacement parts if any.... might as well minimize things that can go wrong and see if I have a local source for some replacements

I'm sure I have some oil around here somwhere..... can't seem to find anything in this place sometimes

[Volund]

Well I struck out at dicks and EMS looking for the fuel....

Other possibilites around here-
-Walmart
-Home Depot
-Sports authority
-Tractor supply
-K Mart

The most convenient would be TS, HD and then Walmart, which would be the most likely to have the gas? Or am I just barking up the wrong trees alltogether?

[Rock]

I think that pretty much every WalMart I have been in has had Coleman fuel.

Eric

[Wolffarmer]

My Ace Hardware has it. As does the Walfart here.

the local grocery store has it here but for $1 more than the others. Last year at this time they had it on sale at $5 for a few months. I often toted a can home with me. I always made sure to not deplete their stocks as that just would not be fair for someone in an emergency



Randy