History
During World War II, the U.S. government tasked Coleman to develop a compact stove for military use. The stove had to be lightweight, no larger than a quart-sized thermos bottle, burn any kind of fuel, and operate in weather from minus 60º to plus 125º Fahrenheit. Within 60 days, Coleman came up with what became the G.I. Pocket Stove. Designated the Model 520 Coleman Military Burner, the stove first saw service in November 1942 when 5,000 of the stoves accompanied U.S. forces during the invasion of North Africa. Over 1 million of the stoves were produced for war use,[5][6] where it won high praise in the field: Ernie Pyle ranked it “just behind the Jeep” in its usefulness.
By the end of the war, Coleman began production of a civilian version of the Model 520, designated the Model 530 and advertised as the G.I. Pocket Stove. The Model 530 was promoted by Coleman as the “perfect pal for hunting, fishing and camping trips” that would “slip easily into a hunting coat pocket, glove compartment of a car, or corner of picnic hamper.” The single-burner G.I. Pocket Stove was only manufactured between 1946 and 1949; afterwards Coleman did not manufacture another single-burner, non-military backpacking stove until 1972. Larger single-burner stoves continued production starting with the 500 Speedster.
Construction
The G.I. Pocket Stove is 8½ inches high and 4½ inches in diameter, and weighs about three pounds. It was designed to burn either leaded or unleaded automobile gasoline (sometimes referred to as “white gasoline” or pure gasoline, without lead or additives). It will hold a pint of fuel, burn for over 3 hours on a full tank, and generate over 5,000 Btu per hour. Six small-hinged metal pieces on the top fold outward for use a pot supports, and fold inward for storage. The stove comes with a two-piece telescoping aluminum case, which can be used as cook pots, an aluminum wrench that also serves as a handle for the cooking pots, a small metal disc or top plate which is placed on the burner grate to help disperse the flame, and a fuel funnel. An integrated hand-operated cleaning needle is used to remove soot or other impurities that can clog the burner tip.
The civilian version differs only slightly from its military cousin: the Model 530 G.I. Pocket Stove has a nickel-plated brass fuel tank, while the Model 520 military version was painted olive drab. The military Model 520 also has three small folding legs at the base, which are omitted on the Model 530, and the civilian version has four vertical supports for the upper frame assembly (supporting the cooking grate) while the military version has only three.
