dkw,
As mentioned, I've been blending using #2 auto diesel for the kerosene portion. Does burn cleaner and has less exhaust smell. Ether odor still abundant on unburnt fuel, tho. Current pump price here for #2 auto is about 20 cents more per gallon than unleaded gasoline - less than $2.50.
I don't see paying way over $10 for a gallon of hardware store "low sulfur" kerosene, or $3 to $5 a gallon from a camping supplies vendor (camp heaters and such) when both smell strongly of kerosene. Auto gas station #2 diesel has very low odor, here at least. Exhaust smells more like steam than like an old coastal rust-bucket trading vessel in 3rd world small ports.
I prefer milking the JD as described, straw into catch jar. Had tried spraying into jar open vented - too much lost ether!
Tried chilling the can before spraying - little if any gain In capture...
AFTER all pressure was blown away, using GREAT care, I punched the rim once with an awl - leaving the awl in place as a bung so I could tease the point out gradually. There was ALWAYS residual pressure venting when I did. After that two more holes to vent the can and pour out the remainder. Messy, too, and no simple, dependable way to store unused ether. Pouring it into another jar made a storage problem, too, and over a week or so it tended to find its way out. (Didn't have plumbers' Teflon tape back then)
With my method I usually capture over 9 fl oz from one JD can...
Kerosene was very cheap in the late 1950's, when I started blending my own diesel fuel. Baker's AA Castor was reasonable, too.
The ether wasn't a problem then. No druggies were trying to cook up their 'recreational use' substances using it. I walked into a chemical bulk goods vendor on old Canal Street, NYC, 17 yrs old or so, DA hair, attitude, etc. Clerk asked how much I wanted. A fork-lift "flat"? Coupla 5 gallon barrels? I had to ask what was the smallest amount he could sell me. Turned out to be a gallon. ...$2.00... So, I hopped on the subway and rode home to Brooklyn, with a gallon can 'conspicuously labeled' with "Highly Flammable" and 'skull & crossbones poison' warnings. People may have noticed that can, but it didn't faze them. ...or scare them. A different world back then...
It made great fuel, too, even without any "ignition improver."