Here's a site that has some excellent descriptions of assembly and use of the Butterfly A-822 , the gravity feed Butterfly 2418 and some general advice on "wickless" gravity feed kero stoves.

There's enough here to put you off these stoves for marine use, if you read through carefully and critically! 

For example, the 822 has 22 wicks, as its name implies, all of which must be kept trimmed to equal heights, and all of which must be lit. The tank appears to be an open bowl, with the wick holder just resting on top.

The 2418 is described as being very definitely for operation in a stable environment only.

They both have the kind of "chimney" with which I'm familiar, which consists of two concentric cylinders of perforated steel, which direct jets of air into the rising flow of kero vapour, surrounded by a further concentric unperforated cylinder as a heat shield. There's no reason why this can't all be made from stainless steel. But there are too many disadvantages - cooking with these stoves is bound to be dirtier and smellier than with a pressure kero stove. 

PS the British equivalent to the above Miles Stair site is http://www.base-camp.co.uk/ - both very useful resources.

Scott Dufour wrote:

Is there anyway to view the Maxie 2 Burner here in the United States?

My new Maxie burner arrived yesterday, courtesy of my daughter in Sydney, and I've made an album which I'll devote to photos of the cooker I intend to build around it.

Amos,

I had one, and it worked fine, except that it was vulnerable to draughts - a little puff from the top would blow it out, at low flame. The problems are fivefold, I think:

• I don't know of a model that's made from marine grade non-corrodible materials, that would last long enough to be worth installing.
• I don't know of a model that is able to work in a heeling, rolling, pitching boat. They all have loose parts and rely on being in a static environment.
• They are tall - there's the tank, then the burner, then the flame modifying device that makes it burn hot and clean.
• At the beginning and end of burning, there's always some part-burnt fuel and vapour released. You would have to live with darkened paint around the galley.
• When not in use, there's always a small amount of evaporation of fuel. The cabin - and you - would smell of kero.

I've been exploring this in depth recently. I at present have six kerosene/paraffin cookers, including a three burner "Shipmate" with oven, three classic brass in the Primus style, and a Coleman I converted from white gas.  In addition, there's  two "Homestrand" alcohol pressure stoves, and  pressurized gas stoves not a few. Forgive me, I'm OCD.

I don't like butane or propane. The small cylinders corrode far to easily, and the large ones are a bomb.

I have to say that my favorite stove thus far is the now relatively rare Toyotomi kerosene cooker, which is currently out of production, (a close second is the Korean "Alpaca.") although a newer model is available outside the US. It's a non-pressurized wicked "flame spreader" stove much on the same plan as the "Perfection" kero/paraffin stove that was popular in the US for about 100 years, and is still in limited production among the Amish.

Lighting is simplicity itself. Raise the fiberglass wick and touch a flame to it. Wait three minutes for the flame to regulate, at which point the unit will be burning with a very pure blue flame. When cooking is finished, lower the wick. At this point, there may be a small puff of smoke. 

However, there are no flare-ups. There is no chance of explosive vapor in the bilge. The stoves will only leak fuel if heeled over 45 degrees or more. These stoves burn pure enough on good fuel so there is no blackening of pots or other issues. They are also relatively easily adapted for pot rails for cooking whilst underway.

I bought enough wicks -- still a very commonly available item, and the only consumable part  -- for my Toyotomi to last four or more years of of constant use for $36 USD.

The easy way is hard enough.