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Post Info TOPIC: Is it worth any of my time to keep an old Chef Ranger stove going?
oztayls


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Is it worth any of my time to keep an old Chef Ranger stove going?
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Hi everyone

My wife and I have just bought an unregistered 1975 Franklin Arrow caravan and are about to start fixing it up. It has the old Electrolux 240V/gas fridge and Chef Ranger 070A gas oven/twin burner stove. Both appear to be working OK, although we haven't tested them properly. Are they worth keeping or should we bite the bullet and get new ones do you think? My guess is that these probably won't have flame-out safety features and likely wouldn't pass a gas inspection. Is it even legal to have these old units in a van? We have installed a new drawbar on it and will need to take it to have a new gas line installed from the gas bottle as the original one was damaged when the drawbar was removed. We don't know much about caravans and are learning!



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Cupie


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Might be a good time to get rid of the oven.

In the 20 years that we have had an oven/grill, we have used the oven function perhaps 5 or 6 times & the grill never.  A lot of weight being carried about for that amount of use.

I would recommend a new 3 gas burner & 1 electric plate model cooker instead.

 

 

Many caravanners these days seem to prefer compressor fridges. However, IMHO a correctly installed modern 3 way  absorption fridge does the job. Correct installation is the key.  If you camp away from 240v a compressor fridge will require a very good battery/solar set up  .. more weight & more cost while a 3 way runs well off gas.

I would suspect that a fridge the age of yours would be past it's useful working life & almost certainly not designed to operate in tropical climates.



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See Ya ... Cupie
Possum3


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Welcome to GN's OZTAYLS.
I am uncertain of the "legality" of using the 1975 appliances although I would imagine if you can get a plumber/gasfitter to certify that they are safe you can continue to use them and keep the retro look. Ensure you have working gas detector alarms.

As for learning about all-things caravan download free technical information and checklists at www.caravancouncil.com.au/

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Radar


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We hope you enjoy bringing this old Franklin back to life.

To answer your legal question,  I can not help you there.

We are Caravan tourers. We do not live full time in our caravan.

We have one of those new type 3 gas, 1 electric hobbs stoves, we find we only use 2 at a time, so I think it is a waste of space, weight and over kill.

We get a lot of use from the oven which we enjoy.

My thoughts are try to retain what you have, clean it up, you may be surprised at how well that old gear will come back to life.

Maybe a need to just add some safety fixtures.

 



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Bicyclecamper


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If you don't keep it, don't throw it. I am interested in just that stove for my cabin. The oven feature, is well known on that stove for cooking excellent roasts and cakes, and I need an oven for my cabin in the hills especially for summer. If you are getting rid of it, get in touch with me as am interested in it.

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oztayls


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Thanks for quick replies guys, some food for thought there. I'll check to see whether a gas safety cert is needed in order to get a Pink Slip here in NSW. I read that they are a requirement if selling registered vans, but not sure if they are required for registration purposes. Part of me says keep the old gear if it works fine, but I am a bit paranoid about gas appliances. They are in very good condition though, so I'll do some work. The last thing I want to happen is finish the resto and then have to pull it apart to install something else. The oven doesn't even look like it was used so it may be fine as long as we have a gas detection safety alarm.

Cheers

Bruce



-- Edited by oztayls on Monday 7th of June 2021 03:07:18 PM

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Whenarewethere


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Are the gas lines in top condition?

 

Have a look at compressor fridges, they are very efficient.



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wasn_me


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You could join "vintage vans" Facebook page. Great place for information, buy &sell, for vintage vans.

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oldbloke


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If it works and is safe keep it.
A lot of tge new gear is .ade in China and may not be reliable.

If it works dont fix it.

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Warren-Pat_01


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X2 for oldbloke's thoughts, especially if you want to keep the van "original". An extension of his saying is "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Our van has a 3 gas + electric stove top & gas grill. So far under our use, the grill is unused, we mostly use an electric frypan & microwave (on power). We carry a small gas grill for outside use. The fridge may need some work done on it - the burner, flue, perhaps regassing with ammonia. If you can get hold of a good service company, gas fitter, they may be able to help.

I would doubt that you can afford to increase your weight too much to go to a 12v fridge. AGM batteries weigh about 30kg each plus solar, etc!

There are groups who specialise in vintage caravans - perhaps look them up. If your local library has Caravan World magazines, sit yourself down & check through them.

All the best.


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oztayls


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Just an update on the Chef 070A cooker. I removed the cooker and stripped it down completely to give it a good clean. It came up sparkling. Underneath the stove, we found the original instructions for the stove and the fridge. The instructions for adjusting the burner aeration! While it is out of the van, we decided to give it a good test and to see if the burners needed any adjustment. As it turned out, the flames are all burning a soft blue, with no white-tipped flames, so the aeration is perfect and it needs no adjustment. The oven worked a treat and burned for 3 hours, so it's nice and stable, which is a relief. I've read stories about the flames going out on these, but I think those are just poorly adjusted or the jets need cleaning. These things are really so simple and maintenance will be minimal. We'll give it a proper test tonight and cook a meatloaf. It's definitely a keeper and much too good to toss out!

If anyone wants the instructions, let me know.



-- Edited by oztayls on Wednesday 9th of June 2021 01:22:07 PM

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Possum3


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It's a good looking unit and undoubtably much better quality than the latest being fitted to vans - glad you're a happy camper.

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ashheron93


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Ive been chasing instructions if you still have them, would be greatly appreciated

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Are We Lost


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ashheron93 wrote:

Ive been chasing instructions if you still have them, would be greatly appreciated

 This is an old thread and Oztayls has not been online for almost three years. You could try sending a Private Message.



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oztayls


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Hi, I sold the van and provided the instructions to the new owner. I'll go through my files and see if I made a copy, and report back.


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oztayls


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OK, either I did make a copy or found it online. Here you go...



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ashheron93


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Hi there if possible the instruction booklet would be of great help to us

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ashheron93


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Apologies thread didnt load properly so I re sent.. thank you very much for that help

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