The curse of the common suitcase stove

[TSPORT]

I haven’t pursued any suitcase stoves in quite a while but when they are part of a group purchase ya just can’t leave them behind, right?
So just a mild vent: I have a 2/72 425E that I went through that runs perfect and looks OK. Reliable as all get out.
No friends or family interested. Been trying to sell on CL for a few weeks, can’t even generate any interest at a measly $23.
I laugh when I see them on auctions sites with silly prices.
Cost of shipping exceeds value of the stove most of the time.
OK, I’m done.
Happy 4th!

[Sam_McCord]

I know what you mean. I see the prices that some are listed at (and other common items too, even here in the classifieds) and have to chuckle. What makes me laugh even more is that some are paying it. I have never turned down a good suitcase stove. I just recently had a neighbor give me a 413G from 1980 that is a great stove. I will use it and then give it away. I have given away several of them over the years.

[Huntaholic]

Yall must live in the land of milk and honey and NEVER have power outages that last over 30 minutes. Otherwise, youd be wise to have a few stoves laid back and ready to use. Ive only got 2 at the present time, but will be on the lookout for a couple more just in case. Anybody looking to give them away, I will gladly pay shipping!

[10gage]

I run into this all the time I sell them cheap and usually I do a quick fettle and advertise that it has been gone through and works. Then I explain to the buyer how to use so they won’t kill themselves.

[10gage]

Yall must live in the land of milk and honey and NEVER have power outages that last over 30 minutes. Otherwise, youd be wise to have a few stoves laid back and ready to use. Ive only got 2 at the present time, but will be on the lookout for a couple more just in case. Anybody looking to give them away, I will gladly pay shipping!

I have 6 suitcase stoves plus several single burners to use for this very reason. I keep the older ones and cycle one out if a better or older one comes in. He’ll this whole addiction started from wanting preparation gear. Now I can outfit a battalion

[Joe_7910]

Im about ready to drop a conex in the pasture just to store my excess stoves. Not to mention the lamps and lanterns

[TSPORT]

Yall must live in the land of milk and honey and NEVER have power outages that last over 30 minutes. Otherwise, youd be wise to have a few stoves laid back and ready to use. Ive only got 2 at the present time, but will be on the lookout for a couple more just in case. Anybody looking to give them away, I will gladly pay shipping!

Right now I have 4 suitcase stoves and about 10 single burners. They all work. My home has gas appliances. I can light stove with a match if the power goes out. I think I’m covered in an outage
Forgot to mention: What I don’t have is unlimited storage space and suitcase stoves take up the real estate.

[Gasman64]

I have a 425NL, 425B, and a 425C; that's enough (although lots of single burners.)
I found my first 413 last summer, with an NOS gen., aluminum funnel, and aluminum stand for $15. The stove was rust repainted with silver, so I salvaged a few parts and then it found a home in the scrap metal dumpster at work.

[1hpycmpr]

I’m finally down to where I want to be when it comes to suitcase stoves. #9 and #10 for obvious reasons, and a 425Nl, 442A, 443, and a Frankie 413. I’m set!

[TSPORT]

I know what you mean. I see the prices that some are listed at (and other common items too, even here in the classifieds) and have to chuckle. What makes me laugh even more is that some are paying it.

Here’s a good example. I’m sure the buyers were lining up!

[Vintageish]

We got it good when we can turn down stoves.
Sometimes folks could use them that don't have em.

I'm trying not to bring anymore home.
At least till I get through the que of fettling and cleaning what's around already.

But my well used bought new 425 from the seventies is still ready to rock.
I don't consider it low value. And besides camping and hunting and shoots and traveling use , it was "the" stove in my first house for three or more months. Got an oven/stove and installed it Thanksgiving day. (Moved in mid August or earlier?)

[TwoCanoes]

Anybody looking to give them away, I will gladly pay shipping!

Hold that thought. My plan on your birthday 425D is to send it to you for the cost of shipping. I simply have a few things I need to get done before getting to your stove.

[BSAGuy]

413G, 426NL, 417B, 500A, 503 is all for me.

[10gage]

Sometimes the curse turns out to be a blessing. I always check them for funnels and sparkies. Then they have to come home if there cheap enough. I’ve always managed to sell them though. There was a time I was tripping over these, but now I think people are realizing that we are in a unstable world and people are trying to become a bit more prepared.

[Huntaholic]

Anybody looking to give them away, I will gladly pay shipping!

Hold that thought. My plan on your birthday 425D is to send it to you for the cost of shipping. I simply have a few things I need to get done before getting to your stove.

SWEET!

[Dubblbubbl]

I am cursed….part of being a stovie i guess. Hard to leave a nib behind.

[BusyB]

I've had trouble even giving away the suitcase stoves. Last time I had I think three of them to offload, nobody wanted them. I wound up putting them out at the street with a free sign on them. Right about the time I was about to give up and strip them for parts and take the rest to the dump, they finally disappeared. Someone up the street thanked me for them a while later. I still keep a couple of 425's(I think) around for camping and hurricane preps, i also have a propane conversion for versatility.

[papa]

I have a couple dozen myself.

[egroscup]

The biggest curse with stoves is their uncanny reproductive prowess. You get one or two and then it is fourty. E.

[58idaho]

I started buying stoves before lanterns. They are hard to get rid of with the cost in shipping. Favorites: 418, 3F, 3H, 9A, 6F, 417B, 500, 502, and newly acquired Model 1. Really like the sound of those cast iron burners.

[Stovie]

I wonder if there are any reasonable estimates on the total production figures for Coleman suitcase stoves over the years. I imagine they threw all that stuff away. It has to be in the millions, they made a lot of them, and that isn't counting competitor brands.

[Rfieldbuilds]

I saw a 418b in an antique store yesterday. $149.
I kept walking. Think I sold my 418 at a gathering recently for $60(?). Not sure who that is being marketed towards.

[Coldwaterpaddler]

I began with single-burner stoves, being a backpacker. I told myself over-and-over that I wasn't going to collect suitcase stoves and then . . . I saw a Model 2 for sale at a local shop and waited 6 months to get it. A few months later, a friend drops off a Wards/Prentiss Wabers 2-burner hot plate. Next came a Prentiss Wabers 409, Homestrand, Model 9C, Lakeside, a 425 a guy left in the driveway, 413 426 and some wedge stoves. While all that was going on I acquired something like 60 single-burner stoves!

Maybe GPAs will be like fashion in clothing and all of this stuff will be popular again someday.

[Sam_McCord]

I've had trouble even giving away the suitcase stoves. Last time I had I think three of them to offload, nobody wanted them. I wound up putting them out at the street with a free sign on them. Right about the time I was about to give up and strip them for parts and take the rest to the dump, they finally disappeared. Someone up the street thanked me for them a while later. I still keep a couple of 425's(I think) around for camping and hurricane preps, i also have a propane conversion for versatility.

This is one reason to attend gatherings. When everyone is packing to go home you slip unwanted items into your buddies truck! I try to make sure that they live far enough away that they won't come by and drop them back. With the price of gasoline now not so much of a problem.

[BusyB]

Hah! So, it's a good idea to check the back of your truck before leaving any of the gatherings? Probably best not to be the last guy out of the parking lot. You pull in with a lantern or two, then when you leave, it looks like something out of an episode of "Sanford & Son".