Help with my 22 year old Whisperlite
Posted: Fri Dec 05, 2014 5:07 pm
I pulled this relic out of the attic yesterday to prepare for some hardcore winter backpacking next month. I love my Starlytes, but after blowing through a ton of MTOH when last year's temps hit -5°f, decided to pull this antique out. The last time I fired it up was about 19 years ago
No hate mail about stove neglect 
Anyway, I checked out the o-rings and they are in surprisingly good condition. I plan on replacing them anyway, but decided to give it a test today to identify any other potential problems.
I tested it using only a couple ounces of fuel in the MSR fuel bottle, so if the stove blew up, the damage would be minimized!
When I tried to prime the stove, no fuel ran to the priming pan. I could hear the hiss of gas from the jets, however. I took it apart and cleaned the obvious stuff (fuel line, checked gaskets).
Any suggestions?
BTW, I know these stoves are "bulletproof" but I really enjoy the simplicity of the alcohol stoves after trying to get this thing going again!!!


Anyway, I checked out the o-rings and they are in surprisingly good condition. I plan on replacing them anyway, but decided to give it a test today to identify any other potential problems.
I tested it using only a couple ounces of fuel in the MSR fuel bottle, so if the stove blew up, the damage would be minimized!
When I tried to prime the stove, no fuel ran to the priming pan. I could hear the hiss of gas from the jets, however. I took it apart and cleaned the obvious stuff (fuel line, checked gaskets).
Any suggestions?
BTW, I know these stoves are "bulletproof" but I really enjoy the simplicity of the alcohol stoves after trying to get this thing going again!!!