Right then, here we go. The first step is to scribe/scratch cutting lines at both ends of your bottle. The lines want to be the same distance from each end of the bottle … the actual dimensions don’t really matter but try to cut at least 20mm above the the point where the curved neck of the bottle becomes straight.
Now take your hack saw and carefully cut along your scribed lines. If you’re careful you should end up with two bottle ends which are the same height.
Now file two slots into what was the top of the bottle. It doesn’t matter how big or what shape they are, as long as meths can pass through these slots they’ll be fine.
While you’ve got your file out de-burr both ends of your bottle. Also with your file and some wet and dry, remove the anodising from the outside of your bottle top. At this point it’s worth measuring the height of your bottle top … you want to know the height where the curved edge of the bottle becomes straight – in the pic below it’s about 27mm, 25mm would be near enough.
If you’ve got a vice it’ll come in very handy about now … if you haven’t then improvise with a hammer and block of wood. You’re going to press the two halves together, the bottle top turned upside down . A little bit of oil between the two halves will make things easier. Don’t rush this bit, take your time and get the halves square.
Keep checking as you’re pressing the halves together, all being well you should feel the halves ‘bottom out’ as they touch … STOP PRESSING NOW. You should be left with something a little like this. If the two halves aren’t flush you can give them a quick file … the top wants to be flat though!
Hopefully you’ve remembered the measurement you made earlier (27mm) … you did, good because you now need to scribe another line around the outside of your stove at that height (in this case 27mm from the bottom). This line is where you’re going to drill your jet holes. Remember the more jets you drill and the bigger the holes are, the fiercer the stove will burn. I’ve built this to heat lots of water quickly using a large diameter pan … it would be useless if used with a small pot. If you are building a stove to use with a more normal sized pot then I’d go for 8-10, 1mm jets.
Stick some fuel in, light it, wait a minute and off you go. You don’t need a separate pot stand, just stand your pot straight on top. As you can see, this one is knocking out some big old flames, most of which will go straight up the side of your pot unless it’s a big ‘un … match your water bottle and jet size to your pot size!
If you fancy you can paint it, polish it or just leave it as it is … it won’t make any difference to how it works.
Awesome blog! Now In anticipation of a follow-up ….
Beer Mugs