The nights here can get chilly... not as cold as Iowa or Kansas, but still can be cold. So, I bought an old bullet heater for 50 dollars. It's an older unit (probably built before 1980), but overall seems in good shape. It heats well, but has a bit of a stutter.

I pulled the ignitor plug to check and see if it was fouled. The threads on the plug and the plug hole were stripped - the plug with gnarly threads was just kind of stuffed in there. The company was bought out ~1975, but someone kept producing the thing and most of the parts are still available.

I figure I can helicoil it, but then I discovered something else... it appears that the plug is locked in place with some kind of set-screw.

So... any ideas on how to repair this?

Take out the set screw?

C

Wulll... I'll have to take it out to do the repair.

But you mean permanently? Am I being dense here?

You might find some info at this link:
http://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthreads/ubbthr...t/Number/343239

I think it a chat page or maybe a SIG and they are chatting about stoves including bullet heaters.
What is the brand name on it.

Cooley

Rusty,
If you mean by "old bullet heater" you are refering to a "torpedo kerosene heater", by all means be careful. If it's that old, be doubly careful. Many years ago I worked in and around those and you gotta make sure you have a sufficient amount of fresh air available, or the fumes will give you a headache, ....or worse.
You can just about count on someone here in Cincinnati coming to grief every winter on account of those old heaters. BE CAREFUL!

Paul

Whatever insert is usable for a sparkplug should work.

The torpedo operates at much less pressure than a piston engine so most anything should work...

Maybe you can use the plug insert that the dealer put into my bug head...

Inner thread for the sparkplug, outer thread for the hole and a flange around the outside that you can stake a dimple in to keep it from turning....

Or Use the setscrew to lock it.....

Ken

OK' I'll do it.

thanks, everyone for the input!

Ken - that's exactly the info I was looking for, combined with Clayton's idea to just ditch the setscrew.

The unit is a Centurion 160ES (I think... the model number is very faded). It was built by Century Engineering Corp in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The style and setup is very similar to the older Toro heaters, but is 150,000 BTU per hour.

With that kind of heat, I should be able to really heat up the garage, and then ventilate and still have enough ambient/radiant heat from surfaces to be comfortable.

Sounds like the kind of unit you needed in Kansas.

Hell yeah.

Did you know that lady complained to my landlord after that weekend? They shut the power off to the garage because I wasn't supposed to be doing any maintenance in there.

Figures... the world is full of 'em.

Yep.

She said were were rowdy and loud and disrespectful to her and her kids. I was stunned. I think the landlord knew better, but felt like he had to do something.

I'm glad I moved.

I don't even remember talking to them. Let alone being disrespectful. Whatever...