proper burner and thermostat adjustment

[kenmore]

hello everyone,

i have almost completed resorting my model A and am now in the process of adjusting the burners.

the manual states that the top burners should be set to give a blue cone of 3/8" by adjusting the gas feed cap and air intake. does anyone have any tips on how to do this?

my problem is that if i lower the gas to give me the proper size blue flame, the burner does not light with the pilot very well. but if i raise the gas volume, the flame cone gets too long. now if i open up the air intake to maximum, i get the appropriate size flame, but the flash tube pilot sputters on and off.

also, my computer crashed and i lost the picture of the proper way of mounting the thermostat dial. it looks like it takes a screw post, but i'm not sure what position to mount the dial. i assume it's mounted with the handle vertically, but i don't know the position of the twist post.

any help is greatly appreciated, otherwise i will keep on fiddling with it.

[kenmore]

i neglected to mention that i am using natural gas and my stove is equipped with the proper gas tips.

[stoveman]

Hi Kenmore! Check the B/BZ Service Manual for info on your thermostat. In mine, it is on page 14, under the topic of "Calibrating Screw".
On the burner lighting, these old stoves can be very contrary. Make sure there is no built up debri in the cast iron burners. I soak mine in degreaser over night then rinse with clean water and finally blow out with conpressed air hose. Also clean out all the burner holes with a toothpick or wooden match. If that doesn't solve it, begin the tinkering! Like, increase the size of pilot flame, decrease size of pilot flame, increase/decrease gas, increase/decrease air. Sometimes I have had to switch burners from front to back or left to right.
Also, while adjusting on the pilot lighting problem, remember that the AGA requirement is: "with a 7 1/2" diameter vessel (Pot or Pan) over the burner they must ignite satisfactorily within 4 seconds after opening the gas burner valve".
Now, on the sputtering, try "softening" the burner flame, that is, adjust the air so that the light blue cone is not so pronounced or crisp. Hope this helps, Regards, Sam

[kenmore]

hi sam,

thanks for the tips. after much tinkering, i did manage to more or less get the correct flame size. i've never seen a chambers in operation so i'm not sure if it's correct, but it seems to work, so i'm leaving it for now.

i was going for sharply delineated and discrete cones, which did not work. once i softened them up and let them kind of merge into a large flame it worked great. it's odd that you mention the 4 second rule, as this was the guide that i had arbitrarly set myself. any longer than that and you can really smell the gas building up. maybe it's just my machine, but my current setting is the only way that it has a nice size flame and lights up quickly and reliably.

i installed the thermostat dial and adjusted the oven flame. i have not tested it with a thermometer yet, but it seems to work pretty well.

by the way, i installed the safety valve from TOAC/Hugh's Place and it's working as advertised. i ran a few tests by blowing out the pilot and so forth and it worked every time. i don't know what other's have experienced, but i can definitely recommend it as the oven puts out some serious gas. it's scary to think what would happen if the pilot went out with the oven turn on. having said that, i paid as much for the safety system as i did for the stove...

again, thanks for your help.