Fire in the beer can

Fire in the beer can

In my search on the Internet for alternative cooking appliances, I happened to stumble on this little gem made from two aluminium drink cans. It appears to be doing the rounds and there are many variations out there.
I have adapted what I think is the best version, taking into consideration the raw materials available in New Zealand. I have also converted all measurements to metric. I first tried it out because I was honestly skeptical that it would work as efficiently as some claim it does. It took about 20 minutes to make and yes, it does work very, very well. I am extremely impressed with the results. Once it was alight, I managed to boil 400mls of cold water in two and a half minutes. When you see the price of camping stoves in the shops, you realise what a huge saving this could be. You need two empty aluminium cans. Either soft drink or beer cans will do. The narrow ones that some energy drinks come in are a tad on the small side for this project. Scribe a line completely around each can 30 mm up from the base. Cut along this line with an ordinary pair of scissors. The idea is that the bottom section of one can forms the base of your stove. From the other can use the bottom section (because the top has a hole in it) and simply push it over the first base, forming a container. The base can needs to be crimped slightly to enable the top can to slide snugly over. I found that the tips of a pair of side cutters did this crimping nicely but make sure you do not actually cut the metal. On the base of one can, mark 16 equally spaced points with a pencil around the rim. Gently press the scriber point into the metal at each of these marks to make a locating point for your hole-forming “tool”.

Scribe the bottom of the can around 30mm up. A matchbox comes in handy

The finished "stove" — The finished “stove”

Using a darning needle in a pin chuck
or suitable holder, carefully make 16
holes. These holes want to be about
0.5mm in diameter, but consistency
is more important than actual dimensions.
In the recessed surface of
this can, drill a 6mm hole slightly off
centre. This will form the filling hole.
It is off-centre to allow for a small
amount of fuel to remain in the central
depression for initial lighting. Press the drilled top unit over the base unit and squeeze them together. This can be a bit tricky but it is worth spending time to get it right. I placed them in a wood vice and wound it in gently to get things even. Take care not to go too far.
To contain the stove safely it is advisable to place it in another suitable container. A small tuna can or similar is ideal.
Fill the stove with methylated spirits until it is about three-quarters full. You will have to judge this by weight until you get used to it. The stove will hold around 60mls of meths. Place a ten-cent coin over the filling hole then pour a small amount of fuel in the top depression.
Light the meths and wait for the heat from the burning fuel to pressurise the meths inside the stove. When it does, the jets of flame will start to come out of the small holes made with the needle.
Support a cooking pot about 50 mm above the top of the stove by making a stable frame for it such as a trivet. I formed 5mm mild steel rods into U shapes hinged by 15m copper tubing. I held the legs in a vice to crimp the copper on. Bricks would do as a pot support and a windbreak feature would be an ingenious addition. Now sit back and wait until it boils. It really is that simple and truly one of the most efficient heating devices I have ever seen.
This is a great little project for a wet winter day and one you could do with the kids, though remember you are dealing with fire and it is NOT a toy. Give it a whirl…you’ll enjoy it. It is also a great addition to the household emergency kit that Civil Defence is always urging us to have. Last but not least, there is the warm glow you will acquire knowing that you are both recycling cans AND saving the planet from yet another disposable butane cylinder.

Preserving the past – by the tonne

13 June 2025

What do you do when your passion for collecting means you are accumulating objects that can be measured by the tonne?
One answer is to buy a big building and open it up to the public – Mike’s Museum in Eltham displays the extraordinary results of Mike Coil’s collection mania.
Two upper stories and a huge basement of an historic building in the small Taranaki town are bulging with the strangest things. A big collection of antique chainsaws, World War II objects, including an anti-aircraft searchlight and US submarine generator engine, steam boilers of all sizes – you name it – Mike’s collected it.
There’s also a great collection of historic tools and objects from New Zealand’s past.
Mike began collecting when he was a young fella. One of a family of 12, he was raised on Taranaki farms and he recalls when aged eight his father coming home from a stint at sea with a handful of coins.

Video of From Rust to Rrrroaarrr Part Four

11 June 2025

In the first article, I wrote about nickel welding repairs to a broken cast iron engine cooling fin, magneto check, head repair, valve work and nickel plating the push rod cover tubes.
The second article was mainly about how I developed nickel and copper plating, with a little bit about kickstarter repair using nickel plate on a worn shaft and grinding teeth.
The third article, the start of frame painting, engine, clutch and gearbox assembly and installation, with magneto timing.
For this fourth episode, I had planned to write about how I rebuilt the electrical system, reupholstered the seat and renovated the fuel tank. There has been progress on each of these three things but little in the way of meeting targets.

A model life

5 June 2025

If the phrase “small but perfectly formed” can be legitimately applied to a shed, then Bruce Geange’s Palmerston North workshop certainly fits the bill. In a space of about 2 by 5 metres he creates Lilliputian machines that mimic their full-sized cousins in everything but size. An exquisitely detailed D8 1940 bulldozer is 40 cm long and completely hand-built. Bruce says it took about 900 hours to complete and is completely functional.
Born in Taumarunui in 1935, the eldest of four boys, Bruce was raised on various farms in the Manawatu area, which may explain his predilection for tractor models. A life-long love of modelling started at the age of 11 when he received a No 1 Meccano set for Christmas. As finances permitted he began collecting Meccano, building up to a No 9 set after he began working.

Fire in the beer can