High-temperature cylindrical sodium/stainless-steel heat pipes were manufactured and tested for transient as well as steady states. Total length of the heat pipe was 1 m and the diameter was 25.4 mm. Screen meshes of 3 different sizes were used to estimate the effect of mesh size on the thermal performance of the heat pipe. The minimum thermal resistance achieved was as low as 0.02$^{circ}C$/W for the maximum thormal load of 2 ㎾. The average heat transfer coefficient in the evaporator was about 2,000 ㎾/$m^2$K and those in the condenser region were up to 5 times higher.