Micro Starlyte

[SHI-Warlock]

Hi all,

I'm new here, but I got to playing with Stoves and decided to post a couple of my Starlyte knockoffs.

My first knockoff is made out of V8/Redbull cans. It works well for my full size Caldera Clone for a 24 oz Heiny pot.

I then wanted to make a Half size Clone for a 12 oz Heiny pot, and stumbled across TerraFirma369's Youtube video of a Micro Starlyte. I did mine a little different than he did though. It's still made of 2 tea light cups, but I stretched the burner, because I couldn't find the 2 different sizes like he had, and I didn't use the aluminum tape like he did. I found that there was a leak in the seal between the cup and the burner causing flares out the bottom... I started looking for a way to seal the stove without having a gloppy mess on the outside of the stove... Some where I read that pop makes a good sealant/glue, caramelized sugar, so I figured if I could "float" the stove in pop and burn it once I could get the caramelized sugar to seal the stove. It worked!! Not sure how long the seal will last since I've only burned the stove a couple times... but who knows.

I've also made a couple of Featherfire knockoffs(Drak's design and TerraFirma's Mini Featherfire design) and a 12-10 clone made from 24 oz Arizona tea and V8/Redbull cans. I got my Caldera Clone designs from captain paranoia over at http://www.outdoorsmagic.com. He offers a script that you can use to customize your Clone to work with any pot/burner combination. You can even design a "Strata ring" to use one clone for a big and smaller pot.

Here is a pic of my Starlyte knockoffs, the black you see on the burner wick is the alcohol running the sharpie ink.

[zelph]

They really look nice, well made, picture perfect. What made you decide to go with the StarLyte design basics? What did you use as the fuel absorber? Thanks for sharing photos of your creations, you've got talent

Here is a link to the thread I had mentioned in your introduction thread.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=36

[SHI-Warlock]

Here's my though process in going with the Starlyte design.

I wanted something that would work with the Caldera Cone Clones. I tried a V8/Redbull chimney stove and it got too hot and lost it chimney properties, basically becoming a top\side burner at the same time... I tried a Featherfire knockoff and it also ran too hot, ran out of fuel before achieving a boil. I tried my version of the 12-10 and it just did not seem very efficient, maybe mine was too big for the Clone I built, a lot of lost heat(flames coming out of the upper holes). Since the Clone acts as a chimney for the Stove/Burner, I started thinking about open burners, but I wanted something that had a reduced risk of spilling the alcohol. The Starlyte fit those two requirements. Plus it offered a slightly longer burn time over open top burners, indicating more efficiency.

I started looking for the wedding tins to make a Starlyte and couldn't find small quantities, the smallest quantity I found was 20(realityguy has directed me to Dollar Tree for smaller quantities). So I started playing with V8 cans I had laying around from my chimney experiments. I figured I could cut the whole bottom out of one can and then make the cup out of another one. I already had the fiberglass mesh laying around from a boat repair and I had some screen laying around from a door repair. So I went into the attic for insulation, yellow fiberglass sandwiched between 2 layers of paper, really old and not too clean, but it worked. Since my insulation source is hard to access, I looked at ACE and found some pipe insulation(also fiberglass) in a 5 inch by 25 foot by 1/2 inch thick roll and will be using that from now on, I know it's clean.

As for the Micro Starlyte, I decided I could use the tea light tins, but I needed to stretch one to go over the top. An empty pill bottle with a hole in the bottom worked to stretch the burner. A half dollar works for the pattern for the burner opening. I then flattened the "rim" of the cup and burner(the tops of the tins have a slight ridge) by using the lid from the same pill bottle and rolling it inside the tin on my desk. The pill bottle lid also became the pattern for the screen and mesh, perfect fit without being too big or small. Stuff the insulation in the bottom(non-stretched cup) and slide the 2 halves together with the mesh and screen in the burner half(the stretched cup with the big hole in the bottom/top).

Sealing it took a while to figure out... I thought about superglue, but didn't think that would hold up to the heat. I then thought about high temp silicone, but didn't want the glob of silicone ruining a slick design. I thought about JB Weld, but again didn't want the eye sore. That's when I remembered reading about using pop for a sealant/glue. The caramelized sugar fit the bill. I had to figure out a way to get it in the seam though... I tried dribbling it on the seam and then burning it, that worked to glue it, but not to seal it. I was still getting flame out the bottom of the seam when the alcohol started vaporizing. So I tried "floating" the burner in some pop while it burned to get the pop in the whole seam while being heated to caramelize it. That worked, at least for now. We'll see how long it lasts. Like I said I've only done a couple of test burns since sealing it.

I have my Mini Clone template printed and cut out. I'll get it cut out of some flashing and put together tonight. Then do some more testing, and possibly use it this weekend on a hunting trip for some tea/joe/coco while on the mound waiting for the ducks to show up.

BTW Sorry for the long post, but thought processes make for long discussions.

Oh and Thanks goes to Zelph for the original Starlyte. I just realized I forgot to mention that in my OP.

[zelph]

That's when I remembered reading about using pop for a sealant/glue. The caramelized sugar fit the bill. I had to figure out a way to get it in the seam though... I tried dribbling it on the seam and then burning it, that worked to glue it, but not to seal it. I was still getting flame out the bottom of the seam when the alcohol started vaporizing. So I tried "floating" the burner in some pop while it burned to get the pop in the whole seam while being heated to caramelize it. That worked, at least for now. We'll see how long it lasts. Like I said I've only done a couple of test burns since sealing it.

Solutions come in many forms. Sometimes in a dream or just before falling asleep causing you to get up and make a note of it. Jojoba oil makes a good heat resistant seal. I think the plant grows in Kansas and other Southern states. Oil comes from the bean. Makes a nice wood sealer/finisher also.

I had to modify the StarLyte burner in order for it to work in a Caldera Clone. The Mega size StarLyte burner should also work in confined areas. The Mega is the one I made this week.

[Ridgerunner]

Welcome Shi-Warlock. Best wishes on your duck/geese hunting adventures. I have a few good friends that head that way every year for pheasant, quail, and othe game birds. Their trip is coming up soon.

[Bumper]

Hi Everyone!
I found this site yesterday and love it. So here's my first post...

I make no claims to being a stove whizz, but love playing with the. I couldn't find JB weld to seal my pop can stoves for the longest time, but I did find some self-fusing silicone tape. It goes under the name of "Rescue Tape" and can make a really nice seal between the top and bottom parts of a stove. It has the added bonus of giving a bit of insulation if you need to move the stove. So far it seems to be lasting ok.

Sorry if this is old news to everyone, but I got excited when I found so many stoves in one place!

Thanks for a great site

Kerri

[ConnieD]

Welcome, welcome, Bumper.

I had not seen this thread before now.

zelph, I wonder, does this mean I can use my modified StarLyte with my avatar cone clone?

Does this mean I can use my modified StarLyte with Captain Paranoia's Caldera Clone? I like to cut foil.

[zelph]

Hello Bumper/Kerri, welcome home. Kick your shoes off and relax Make yourself feel at home!!

the rescue tape sounds like good stuff to use. I've procrastinated big time on purchasing some to see how well it works. I have a plumbing problem on my RV. I'm leaking tiny drops of water from a grey water line where a clamp suspends it to the RV. I can no longer go without purchasing some...........like tomorrow

I'm interested to see how well it "sticks to itself"

Kerri, it's good to hear ideas repeated, especially for me Sometimes we need the repetition to make ideas sink in (stick) I need to order the rescue tape on line for the best deal. Local big box stores are high priced for a small roll. I'm cheap and I like easy!!!! I can no longer wait till I find a roll of it in a thrift store

Connie, yes you can use your StarLyte in the avatar cone and Captain P's folding cone. It was made special for that cone and a Kmart grease pot.

Just today I revisited a thread on BPL that deals with the StarLyte stove being used in a modified caldera cone. Search in the make your own gear forum for "Calder cone my adventure" In that thread you will see I sent the OP a plastic lid for use with the burner(he removed the pot support). He is now able to fill the burner with 1 ounce of fuel and then use only what is needed to get a boil and then snuff it out and put the cap on. Today I found a source for caps in quantity, that fit the StarLye burner

I found the bpl thread for us:

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin ... d_id=57721

.

[marksevlin]

These are really awesome.