Svea vs Svea

[Rachel P]

I have two Svea 123s. One says “Sweden”, the other says “Made in Sweden”. I was about to sell the “Sweden” one to someone but he’s saying it’s a Chinese knockoff. My husband and I both brought one Svea to our marriage, and I’m pretty sure my Svea should be authentic as my parents bought it for me in the 1990s at REI. My husband doesn’t know where he bought his but he got it way back when as well back when we bought things at stores, in person, or from catalogs.

The “Sweden” Svea has a spindle that is larger diameter, and the nozzle is horizontal. The Made in Sweden one has a downward pointing nozzle and the spindle is narrower. Pictures to follow once I upload them to Dropbox.

[Rachel P]

 

[Rachel P]

Also it doesn’t really matter much to me as I know both stoves work well! I’m just curious about this.

[Rachel P]

I think I found the answer to my own question. The one that says “Sweden” is the Svea 123R and was either made in Romania or China but is not a knockoff, just not made in Sweden.

Side note — anyone know where to get a key for a Made in Sweden Svea? We are missing ours.

[David Thomas]

That’s the kind of thing, 20-30 years ago, I’d go to a backpacking store and ask about.  Or call them.  We had spare part kits from various manufacturers that we’d sell parts out of.  REI did as well.   Swiss Army knife tweezers, toothpicks, the little spring for the Wenger scissors, MSR fuel bottle pumps and gaskets, Svea keys, Svea fuel caps, Svea mini-pumps to put over the aftermarket cap to pressurize the tank, etc.  An older chain like Sport Chalet would have been be a good bet but they shut down in 2016.  I’d start with an older REI store like Berkeley or Seattle.

Or crowd-source the search and see if any BPLers can check their local, old-school outfitter.

[David Thomas]

I’ll check my local, old-style outfitter.

It wouldn’t be too hard to fabricate one if you roughly bent some thick aluminum around a large nail and then crimped it around that square-head valve stem with a crimper:

There may or may not have times I’ve gone into a Home Depot and done a single task like that to assess a tool I might buy.  And then decided not to buy it, because the task was completed.

While the factory version also serves as a wrench, I’ve never used the wrench function in the field.

BPLer Nick Gatel still uses his Svea 123 regularly.  Maybe he’s noticed who stocks parts.

[Rachel P]

I’m pretty sure we have a crimper around here somewhere. It looks very familiar. Probably in the basement with our old hybrid car battery :-)

[Franco Darioli]

BTW, you can upload photos directly from your computer (Visual, Insert Image, Choose file)

[Ken Thompson]

For all things old stoves

https://classiccampstoves.com

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Have a “Made in Sweden” SVEA 123 and a mini pump and adaptor cap AND the SIGG TOURIST cook kit made for it. That combo has seen a lot of trips and still works fine.

Both that stove and I could be museum exhibits.

[Nick Gatel]

Yep, still use mine a lot and I bought it in 1971, and since I retired it has again become my go-to stove, because the fuel is cheap and in California, where I live, alcohol stoves are often not allowed in dry years.

I have a second Svea 123 that is matched to a Sigg Tourist cook set that include a built-in wind screen. I still use that one too, but only for car camping.

BPL member James Marco also uses a Svea regularly, but his is a 123R model. I bring this up because the keys for the 123 and 123R are different sizes.

The plain 123 was discontinued sometime in the 70’s and the “R” model was introduced in the 70’s also. The “R” indicates it has a self cleaning needle. Both of my stoves are the non-R models.

One way to quickly identify the 123 and the 123R is to note the control valve for the “R” model is perpendicular to the stem, whereas the 123 has a pronounced downward slope (approx 45 degrees) to the stem (see picture blow).

Many years ago Optimus bought Svea, and as with most good things in life, the production was moved off-shore to China. Newer Seva 123Rs are made in China.

A few years ago I stocked up on the cotton wicks and fuel cap gaskets because they were becoming hard to find. During my search for these items, I noticed the keys were pretty rare, and the only place I know you can get one is eBay.

The end of the control valve that the key fits is square, so it would be pretty easy to make a key.

For anyone who might be interested in these old stoves, here is a link to an article on my blog, with some of my old stoves. All of these old gas stoves are obsolete because the canisters have been discontinued, but the Svea uses good old fashioned white gas (Coleman fuel) and the stoves themselves are pretty bullet proof.

Here’s another article where I do a lot of comparisons of types of stoves and fuels, which led me to start using the Svea again as my go-to stove, especially when I looked at the “cost per day.” A new Svea lists for $120 and are often discounted at around $90. I think I paid around $13.50 for both of mine :)

[James Marco]

Actually, they simply changed the valve assembly on the 123 to incorporate a little needle (actuated by a complete backstroke.) At the time I got mine, I could get both models. Yes, I still have mine and use it fairly regularly. The old “Made in Sweden” logo was when the stove and parts were made in Sweden. Now days (as of about 4-5 years ago,) many of the parts are made elsewhere and only assembled in Sweden, hence the major difference. In between the two “Made in Sweden” and “Sweden” model stoves was a brief stint where the stove was made and assembled entirely in China.  These were not marked and were a threatened knock-off, I think. That one was pretty much not the best to buy, since, the “brass” had a different formulation and was hastily put together (read low quality), inferior spot welds, etc…and, the aluminum cup/cap was badly made.

On part I had to change on the 123R, since the ’70s, was the valve stem. Mine was so worn, I could not turn it off. The best I could do was to simply turn it down to a very low yellow flame. And, of course, it leaked with decreasing pressure during climbs, weather fronts, etc. I kind’a miss the barometer effect (I could tell when low preasure was moving in by smelling the stove) but, it was a bit dangerous….

Valve, gas cap are the only moving parts…no pump and all those parts. I had some minor issues with the valve for many years, but when it started getting worse, I changed it. And, I lost a good measure of fuel economy. It went from around 15-16liters per four ounce tank to about 11-12.  I need to carry significant more fuel (about 25%.) When I get around to it, I will see about doing an evaluation, why and correct it. However, I think the old jet was smaller. They were not worried as much about BTU ratings (at best around 6500BTU) back when. I could turn it down to Very Low and still maintain a good blue flame. The newer valve won’t do the very low even after changing the flame spreader/ flame cup.

Anyway, it will burn a lot of different fuels: Benzene, acetone, white gas and auto fuel (with alky in it.) Auto-gas can give it a problem and it clogs up, but the “R” model has a cleaning needle which you may need to use once or twice a day. Nor does it burn very fast. The additives are not real great, but are easily flushed out with tank full of a mixture of white gas and alky (about 10%, about the maximum that will dissolve into white gas.) In a pinch, it works well enough…that is to say, it works. BTW: white gas is lower order carbon chains, not “octane” itself. Usually a blend of pentane, hexane, septane…most auto fuels are mostly septane with some octane and other higher order alkanes. Older white gas actually burned better than newer white gas…soo, mixtures can change a bit.

Anyway, I think the smaller jet caused more pressure (the tank body ran a bit hotter) and utilized a more efficient combustion zone nearer to the bottom of the pot. Since I use a 1qt pot for almost all camping and normally run on low, I can likely drop the pot about 1/4-1/2″ closer, too.  Anyway, the older one was about 1/4″ lower to the pot. I believe the pot stand had been hammered closer after I dropped a load of firewood on it.  On the valve stem, it is possible to grind in some shallow grooves. This lets it heat up a bit more for easier priming. Also, many of the “stock” wicks are too full. You can drop several “old cotton mop”  threads out of it to get a higher maximum BTU. The valve “gasket” can be replaced with finely ground pencil lead (graphite/ceramic) for slightly easier operation and *much* better control at low flames. You may need to pack this in two or three times for a good seal.  (It had lasted in the old valve about 30 years or so.) The original/newer gaskets are a bit sticky.

And yes, this is still my go-to stove. I have been trying to replace it for more’n 40 years. Most of this stuff I have learned the hard way…fixing the stove in the field and/or noting some deficiencies in design and fixed when I got home. Be a bit careful about hitting the safety on the stove cap. My original old stove had a melt out safety or possibly a rusted out spring…never bothered to check it. Once you hit it, it ruined the cap it always leaked till I dropped a bit of superglue in it. Newer ones are all spring loaded and need some oil to allow them to work properly. I did replace the cap after that trip, around 40-45 years ago, with the add-on pressure pump just released. But, really, the pump only works in cold weather. In that kind of temperature, I simply hold it over the fire till it warms up. The key and chain make this a reasonable thing…check frequently…

The single most reliable, most durable stove out there. I think the antarctic Scott Expedition used a variety of this stove. The actual design is from the 1880’s I think… refinements only since. I also believe Primus was the original designer…

Good stove for two in the winter. Despite being low powered, it runs fine at -30F. Do not set it on snow!

[Patrick W]

I love it!  Haven’t used my SVEA for many years, except as a conversation piece or gateway to ‘how we used to do it’.  Back when i carried the SVEA i didn’t weigh my gear (now I weigh everything).  Just for fun I stuck it on the scale. 18.38 oz!!  Of course, that is with the aluminum pot and holder :-)

[Ken Thompson]

You also may find a clock key that fits.

[James Marco]

Patric, the weight varies between the various stoves. you can always remove the cup/handle, of course. But, it is generally competitive in weights to MOST newer stoves and runs *much* cheaper as Nick pointed out. Once you figure in the weight of the canister for gas stoves, it is actually fairly light. And it is VERY compact and robust. Like I say I dropped a load of firewood on mine (well, my brother did, actually.) And the burn time on 4oz of fuel is really good. We would get just under 4hr on low. Great for warming up our tent out icefishing. The Whisperlight, Windburner, Reactor, etc cannot really compete with this for a little heat in the tent, either in weight, or, burn time. We would stay up playing cards, checking tipups, every couple hours. Just leave a high vent and a low vent for circulation. Anyway, a good stove. Sometimes on short trips in warm weather, a Caffin V1 is considerably lighter. But for a couple weeks out, I bring the old SVEA…ultra reliable, no fuss or bother, pour in fuel, prime and light….every time.

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