Recently a lot of these Hunter Manufacturing military space heaters have sold on Gov. Liq. (like more than 600 of them in the last month, easily) so I'm assuming these are going to be showing up at surplus stores and online retailers. I don't really know who all buys these things but I would guess that most of the buyers are retailers not private individuals. BUT anyway chances are these are going to be showing up for sale. There are a few on ebay now with wildly varying prices. This thread is to share with you what's in the box, what they're like and how they work.



The first thing that struck me upon picking up these heaters is, they're new. Not like NOS new but new new. These have not been sitting on some base since the Vietnam era like a lot of GL surplus I've bought. Check out the box:




Note the shipping label on the end of the box: the original ship date of 11/20/08 so it's a little over 2 years old and has never been opened. Sweet! Also note the weight: 44 lbs. These are not light.




Upon opening the top I found a full Technical Manual AND a CD-ROM inside. Wow, how cool is that? I don't have to print my own TM?









Pulling the unit out of the box, I was surprised to see that it is black. From the GL auction pictures I had thought they were mill-finish silver. But this one anyway is black and seems to be powder-coated. The marks you see on the side are just dust that had settled inside the corrugated box. Wipes right off.









Note the large data plate. Lots of info here. I haven't read it all yet myself!









Clearly there is a lot of stuff packed inside the unit that needs to be gotten out!




Here's what I got out just from the top. Before I go any further I want to leaf through the TM and see what's on the CD-ROM. It may be the weekend before I update this thread again but I will continue to post as I learn more and eventually fire it up. Can't wait to try it out! Maybe in the back of the deuce? We'll see.

tag

oh, very much tagged

Wow, the CD-ROM starts with a 43-minute instruction video where the heater parts and usage are explained by a dull narrator with the visual aid of a blonde soldier lady.



Edit the video is a 645-megabyte .mpg file. Little too large for me to post up, I'm afraid.



The CD-ROM also contains a PDF of the tech manual and a readme file explaining what will open the other files. That's it.

Nice stove, and review.

Screen cap of blondie or ban!


Looks like a cool unit.  Awaiting AAR.

yankeeprepper over on youtube did a great video on the Military M1950 Yukon stove and it's urban applications during a power outage/grid down situation.  I emailed him about his thoughts on this particular unit and the three biggest downfalls are that it only puts out approx 25,000 BTU's compared to the M1950's 60,000 BTU, isn't multi-fuel like the M1950 and the lack of legs to keep it off the ground while in use.  
Here's the video he did Yankeepreppers off grid heat

I would love to have something like this as a backup to the kerosene heater since I'm not in the financial way of getting a woodburning stove insert for the fireplace.

I figured out how to open the back door of the unit and found more parts inside not pictured above. Included among those was the gravity feed unit that screws on to a jerry can. Looks like the can I need is one of the new Scepter plastic ones with the wide round mouth. Don't have one of those, so it could be a while before I get to test this with diesel. But, maybe I'll find one on ebay for a reasonable price.

could you get a picture of that?



thanks





 

The door on the back took me a while to figure out how to open it. It has an arched spring holding the door UP onto a pin, so you have to push it down off the pin and it'll open.



Inside are the cap for the top of the exhaust stack, with guy wires attached and ropes provided to stake it (no stakes, though). Also the fuel regulator which has a bracket that slides into a slot on the side of the unit. Also in there is the gravity feed adaptor that screws on to the wide-mouth fuel cans.







( I think the little measuring cup is for priming the fuel system but wouldn't swear to it).

I have one of those in my garage; I have taken it apart about as much as you have. I am looking forward to hearing how it goes, and letting you figure it out first. AZHONKY

Found a heavily-edited version of the training video from the CD-ROM. The original is over 40 minutes this is like 12 minutes but...



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5K2GocCcx3k

Copied from an EE thread that might get deleted...

http://stock-number.com/06MilitaryFuelCans.htm

$38.95 per can. New.

I have some cans on the way so I can use the heater with liquid fuels.

Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile

Pretty cool.  Wonder what the ballpark price will be for these things.

I've seen them selling for $165 (plus shipping) to $250 on ebay. Actually some are listed at $350 on ebay but I don't think they're selling for that. Saw them on Amazon as well I think for $260 or thereabouts. Whoops, I just checked it's $380 on Amazon.

Oh I'll be waiting lol  

Hell yeah, I feel pretty good about my purchase now! I bought one of these heaters new in the box for $50 bucks at the flea market two weeks ago.

And yes, the little measuring cup is for priming the burner.

I got a fuel can that fits the gravity feed so I'll fire it up in the next couple days.



I'm just a little scared to try it in the garage because of carbon monoxide. Maybe I'll take the detector out there with me and fire it up...



Edit 12/25 I ordered a fuel can holder on ebay; I'll save my live test until it gets here.

I tried my first test run today and didn't have much luck. I didn't get fuel flowing to the burner. It was too cold to stay out there long, I tried it twice. I think it was either just air in the lines or else the angle of the fuel can was wrong. I have a proper fuel can holder on the way but it's not here yet. Will try again after that.



Also I'll read the instructions and watch the video before the next try.



Interesting discovery: the lighting process involves a short length of toilet paper. So be sure to keep some on hand.

Im thinking of getting another..

I just ordered one as well Paid $145 shipped I thought was pretty good. I have not had  a chance to use it yet but am trying to decide if I should get a couple of MFC or use my NATO cans with the generator gravity adapter and stand

Any updates? AZHONKY

I am interested in this as well....

He he, sorry guys. It's been too damn cold to play outside but maybe this coming week I'll give it another try.



Thanks for asking.

Finally comfortable to mess around outside and I had a successful test today. Best advice I can give about these heaters is don't be in a hurry. The manual says wait 2-5 minutes after everything is hooked up before lighting and I believe it. My first try today I didn't wait that long and it didn't "take." 2nd try I waited much longer and thought it had failed again, went inside to get my camera and came back to find it burning heartily (I had it set on "hi").



The paint on top of the unit blistered immediately and there was much smoke coming off the unit (first use and all, I expected this). Not sure exactly why it was painted in the first place, but...



I regret that I did not have my non-contact thermometer with me (it's at work) so I was not able to take temp readings. My impression though was that a lot of heat goes up the exhaust stack. I guess that is to be expected with this kind of heater. The paint on the stack didn't blister though so I guess it stands to reason that the base unit is hotter.



After turning it to "off" it took a good 10-12 minutes to stop burning. And of course much longer than that to cool down.



Bottom line all I can say right now is, "it works." I would like to get a 5-man arctic tent and really try it in its intended environment next winter.



I'll upload some pics later on.

What type of fuel did you use? AZHONKY

Diesel.