Tilley X359 burner pre heater

@presscall Thanks mate, that's so thoughtful and very kind of you.
But please don't go out of your way, because I may never use it as I believe all of my X359 have broken pins.
Regards
Brian.

 

@Buggerlugs
If this pin on the die-cast jet block has broken off its a goner …




If the brass pin that’s pressed in component ‘A’ has fallen out or is missing that’s repairable.




If that’s the case, poke a screwdriver in the arrowed slot and ‘A’ can be eased out. You could send me just that (whether or not you’ve still got the brass pin) and it would economise on postage. I’d fix that and make one of those brass/viton components to return with it. Re-installing ‘A’ is a reverse of getting it out, the three ‘dimples’ in the pre-heater flame tube corresponding with the three holes in the rim of ‘A’.

I’m happy to do that Brian. It’d be good to get a second opinion on a working, reliable Tillite.

Regards,
John

 

@presscall Thanks I will have a look, when I manage to get some time, thank you very much mate.

 

Wouldn't it be possible to drill a hole into the die-cast jet block when the pin is broken off, and press in a peace of steel wire of the fitting diameter and cut it to length?
I did this with an excenter shaft of Petromax where the pin was broken off with good success.

 

@Martin K.
It would Martin, yes. Knowing Brian has more than one Tillite to choose from however I was helping him select the most suitable candidate for repair. Installing a replacement pin in the diecast jet block would be an unnecessary procedure if he only wants one working Tillite. The expression I used of ‘a goner’ makes it sound like it was irretrievable, which of course it wouldn’t be.

On a second Tillite I have the jet block fuel and air passages to create an atomised fuel jet output had collapsed and could not be cleared, either manually by pricking or with the use of compressed air.

I’d to create a spray head out of two concentric brass tubes (inner, fuel; outer, pressurised air from the top of the tank) to install in the defunct jet block.

Inner fuel delivery tube, the sleeve surrounding the tip creating a constriction in the outer pressurised air tube to increase the velocity of the air impacting on the fuel, assisting droplet formation.




The outer tube tip over which the seal/shutter rides, creating the seal (‘off’) or creating an atomised fuel outlet (‘on’).




The two tubes before assembly (soldering).




Assembled.




Installed in the pre-heater, the jet block drilled axially to accommodate the fuel/air tube. An air inlet hole can be seen, inner fuel tube visible within.




The restored Tillite.




I created what I gather is called a two-fluid (kerosene, air) internal-mixing spray head.




Installed in a Tilley CS56 kerosene stove.

 

@presscall l love your work mate, very impressive.
I would have no chance at doing that.

 

Does an Optimus rapid, which also has a rotating rapid valve, not give a good valve body, for the base?

 

One of these eh, Wim?






The Optimus needs the lever to clamp the on/off component onto the jet outlet. Finger grip around the body wouldn’t be sufficient to apply the necessary torque, however moderate. The Tillite seal/shutter sliding over the jet requires no application of torque. Having the lever visible would spoil the authenticity.

 

@presscall , yes that is the one. So it can't be modified to look like a Tillite.
Pity, because the plastic valve base is the worst design part ever. Besides the plastic feed tube.

How does the Optimus seal btw?

 

The lever requirement would impact adversely on a lookalike and I’d not want to go down that route. Scavenging an Optimus pre-heater from another lantern rather than fixing the authentic device for the Tilley simply doesn’t measure up for me, collector-wise.

The nylon base is aesthetically-challenged, I’ll agree, but it works. The examples of it being scorched and melting have been due to a user’s persistence in applying an ignition flame to a Tillite that’s drenched in kerosene due to pressurising the tank when the seal/shutter hasn’t sealed. Unsurprisingly, bathed in flame the nylon component has been damaged. Avoidable if the weak link of a leaking seal/shutter has been put right first.

O-ring seal in the body …




… lead seal for the pre-heater to tank joint.

 

The conical part at the top of the main body makes a brass on brass seal to stop the flow out of the jet in the rotating part. Therefore it is necessary with the extra torque provided by the lever. The o-ring stops flow to the outside world.

 

Which means the fuel /air mixture must come out of the side of the conical piece as indicated by the angle of a (250 cp) cleaning needle in this image -

 

Also, there's a Revolto torch(from CCS):

 

I agree but when there is no Tillite to repair then it may provide a base.
With what I mean is without the lever and the same shape of flame pipe on it which you have to turn.

 

With no Tillite, I’d use an alcohol lighting torch on Tilleys.

 

Well yes …

… but out of separate outlets.

Fuel outlet.

Pressurised air outlet.




The shut-off, or release, of the atomised fuel and air is achieved by that raised ‘pip’ on the tip of the atomiser head …




… mating against the rear opening of the outer combined fuel/air jet orifice.

 

It is actually the top edge of the conical part that makes the seal. You can see how it is done from the patent drawing. This is from Swedish patent 200001.

 

Of course, Nils, thanks for putting me right on that.

I should have remembered this grubby example I have where the contact rim is clearly visible …




… and the taper it mates against is just as the patent drawing depicts.




Additionally, there’s this example of an Optimus Rider white gasoline-fuelled stove pre-heater.




Rotating the body with the lever shuts off the pressurised air when that same rim mates against the corresponding conical surface in the rotating component.






On the stove, however, the pressurised fuel passes through the tip orifice, into the generator tube and on/off is controlled by a valve at the far end of the generator.