UKC

(sorry would be too long to put in title, not trying to be annoying)

I know there are lots of different MSR stoves out their and they all have their purpose....so, collective heads of UKC

Size and weight aren't too much of an issue
Probably for brews for two/three people and the odd meal of pasta
But obviously the smaller and more portable the better

I'm not sure what other variations/options there might be?

In reply to ClimberEd:

Low maintenance Trangia

http://www.trangia.se/english/5614.27_series_ul.html

In reply to ClimberEd:

okay, thanks! Are they quite quick/powerful?

In reply to ClimberEd:

no they are slow.....

In reply to ClimberEd: I have the same choice to make. I was ready to get a msr pocket rocket, but I have been looking at the trangia and other similar burners based on recycled aluminium cans recently. There are quite a lot of them on backpackinglight.co.uk. I am also considering making my own.
The honey stove looks interesting.

In reply to north country boy:

ah, should have added that as a criteria, brews quickly!

In reply to ClimberEd: MSR pocket rocket boils quickly. If you don't have a pan or metal mug maybe something like a primus eta express.

In reply to errrrm?: That should be boils water in a pan quickly; the pocket rocket itself doesn't boil, I assume.

In reply to ClimberEd: pocket rocket is very good, boils water v. quick, combine it with the MSR titan kettle:
http://cascadedesigns.com/msr/cookware/fast-and-light-cookware/titan-kettle...

the stove + a small gas canister fits inside it,

alternatively you can also get a Primus Litech trek kettle (cheaper option) and the gas cannister and stove also fit inside this too.

That is a good light weight option IMHO

In reply to ClimberEd: If you're considering the Pocket Rocket then also look at the Primus Express or the Primus Micron Ti. They've got much better simmer control than the MSR IMHO. C-:

In reply to ClimberEd:

Auto/piezo starters? I'm still not convinced by them as think that the heat eventually knackers them. Mine stopped working after a few months and only now works sporadically if I tinker about with it.

In reply to ClimberEd:

You can get a gas burner for a trangia. I like my trangia (burning meths, not gas) - nice and stable, wind shield built in, everything packs up nicely. I also have a cheap burner-screws-onto-gas-canister thing which is unstable, I wouldn't want to use it in high winds, and is very prone to developing a hot-spot and burning things. Out of the wind it is probably faster than a trangia; in the wind, I'm not so sure...

In reply to SFM:

I find a fire steel is ideal for lighting gas stoves. Utterly reliable, works in the wet, doesn't run out of gas...

It works on meths stoves as well, but usually takes several tries and some swearing.

In reply to davidbeynon:

I love my Fire Steel because it is so easy to light my Pocket Rocket, Dragonfly and Trangia. Not bad for BBQ's provided that you have thrown a little meths on the coals as a sort of primer first.

http://www.light-my-fire.com/default.asp?ID=209&pID=147

I bought the smaller version, which is exceptionally versatile, but if I would much have preferred to buy the larger product.

In reply to The Lemming:

What's the trick with meths? It usually takes me a few goes.

I can't light my petrol stove with it coz the burner is enclosed and I can't get the sparks where I need them.

In reply to davidbeynon:

No trick as it takes me a few goes as well. But at least I know that it will light every time, which can't always be said for using matches that may have been stored for ages or got damp.

Plus what else have you got to do while out camping

In reply to ClimberEd:

jetboil or the larger helios.

In reply to ClimberEd:

The Pocket Rocket is a good lightweight stove and good for price, however the flame is narrow meaning u would have to keep moving the pot around to get it heating the entire pot (correct me if Im wrong this is just from researching)

Ive got the MSR Superfly its great wider stove, doesnt have any trouble with wind, auto-start and has a simmer control.

But if u want something like the Superfly maybe look at the Primus Gravity which is an off canister stove meaning its lower to the ground and more stable a wee bit cheeper.

and with primus stoves that have an auto-start, the auto starts are usually surrounded in ceramic meaning less likely to break! Always a good point but I always carry a lighter incase.

Hope this helps

Andy

In reply to andy16:

I've never had this problem with my Pocket Rocket however I would recommend some sort of wind shield to go with it to protect the exposed flame.

In reply to ClimberEd:

For quick eating of water, if you are using the stove outdoors, you really need a windshield. I discovered this the hard way once in the Cairngorms. We had a very fast and powerful gas burner but now windshield, and our pals had a very slow meths-fuelled Trangia. They finished their third course before we had finished our first.

So, unless you are cooking in a place with no wind (ie inside a tent or a bothy), then go for a stove with a windshield.

Also, unless you are cooking on a smooth and level surface, get a stove that is really stable. Stoves with burners separate from the gas canister are inherently more stable than stoves mounted on top of the canister. And even if you are cooking inside a bothy on a table, it is still nice to have a stove that is hard to knock over. You can get fitments to put on the bottom of a gas canister to make it more stable, but they are still less stable than the separate canister set up due to a far higher centre of gravity.

Finally, if you are cooking in cold weather (near or below freezing) then the gas sometimes liquefies and you get very low power. Having a canister on a hose means you can swirl the gas canister round to give a bit of a power boost, or even dip the canister in some warm water to keep the gas flowing.

I like my Trangia with gas adaptor. It is not much heavier than some specifically ultra-light systems when you take into account an external windshield and stabilisers, but is very sturdy and easy to set up. When you are cold and tired and a bit shaky from sugar debt, simple is good.

In reply to davidbeynon & Lemming: I use exactly that too as a back up. Great bits of kit.

In reply to andy16:

I have the older version of the Gravity. They've changed the design of the starter but not had a good enough look to see how much better it is now.

In reply to ClimberEd: You've got two main options for basic gas stoves:

Canister mount. The stove screws onto the top of the canister.
Pros - Light and cheap, great for brews.
Cons - Poor performance in high winds, unstable with large pans, not great for simmering and poor performance in the cold with partially full gas cartridges.

The only option worth considering is Gelert's superb EXACT copy of the MSR Pocket Rocket for £11.99. See http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/camping-equipment/cooking/gelert-intensity-mini...

Remote mount. There is a hose between the stove and the gas cannister.
Pros - Good performance in high winds, stable, better for simmering and canisters can be either inverted or warmed up using the stove for good performance when cold or nearly empty.
Cons - Heavier and more expensive.

Again another good option is Gelert's version for £19.99. See http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/camping-equipment/cooking/gelert-inferno-piezo-...

Gas Canisters. The main problem with any gas stove is the cost of the gas. However if you shop around you can find them much cheaper.

For canister mount stoves the best bet is probably standard Coleman 100 or 250 cartridges. The larger Coleman C500 ones are a bit too unstable. The best price I have found is £2.24 and £3.00 respectively. See http://www.awsports.co.uk/products.php?plid=m6b133s43p0

However for remote mount stoves you can use large C500 cartridges (£5 from various suppliers online) or the taller thinner cartridges designed for blowtorches. Primus 175g cartridges can be obtained for £2.09 online which works out at the cheapest gas I've been able to find in small cartridges. See http://www.awsports.co.uk/products.php?plid=m6b133s43p0

Hope that is useful.

In reply to Mark Stevenson:


Yes it is.

Have you used, or even handled, the second of the two stoves?

How does it compare to a MSR/Primus £50 job?

In reply to the cassin ridge: Personally, I'd be concerned about screwing a cheaply made knock-off stove into a high-pressure, explosive gas canister.

Also, I'd avoid any remote stove without a preheat coil; they're kind of pointless without because you lose the ability to flip your gas canister and would have to be very very careful if you move the canister around (eg. hold it in a sleeping bag) to warm it up.

There's nothing different between the simmering of a canister mounted stove and an equivalent remote stove although ots of them (like the pocket rocket and clones) have tiny burners. andy16 is right, these create horrific hot-spots but stoves like the msr superfly or optimus crux/crux lite have decent sized burners and are much much better.

In reply to the cassin ridge: I had a play with one in Go Outdoors in Bristol on Thursday afternoon and it was good enough for me to seriously consider buying one to replace my old Coleman Alpine I which picked up of eBay a few yeas ago.

I've always considered stoves over-priced, especially remote mount ones and that goes back to the 1990's when the orginal Epigas Alpine was, shock horror, 25 quid. Gelert has just proved conclusively that they are.

The other thing to bearing in mind is that the performance difference between the 20 year old original Epigas Alpine and latest MSR Windpro with a windshield will be pretty much identical. They have got lighter but gas stoves are a mature technology and quoted boil times have been around 3 minutes ever since I started using them. The only real advance has been the recent development of pans with integral fins to improve heat transfer rates and efficiency.

As far as the Gelert Pocket Rocket copy goes, I just ordered ten of them today.

I am still looking for cheap, high quality windsheilds. They are even more over-priced than most stoves are.

In reply to steve456: You're a marketing man's dream customer - stick a brand name on something and you're happy to pay over twice the price!

In reply to Mark Stevenson:

Thanks for the info/lins. I've used a MSR Whisperlight for years, but finally been converted to gas by the ability to cook it the porch of my tent without worrying about setting the whole thing on fire when priming it. I got a Pocket Rocket, love the size, but don't like the stability when cooking with a larger pot, but couldn't justify the the expense of yet another stove. However £20 is very friendly on the pocket!

In reply to ClimberEd: Take a look at this there are some good links on it I like the white box stove. http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=339605&v=1#x5000753

In reply to Mark Stevenson: Oh really? I wouldn't get a pocket rocket, they're a poor design and so a far-eastern clone will not make me change my mind. I've heard interesting things about the cheap copies melting for what it's worth.

Have you used one on the mountain? Have you boiled a pint of water with one in your kitchen? Based on your previous posts you are recommending something that you haven't ever used.

In reply to steve456: I'm offering genuine advice, based on what I am buying or considering buying.

I've used over a dozen varieties of cannister mount stove over nearly 20 years and their performance has all been pretty similar, and poor with empty cannisters. I've had a Pocket Rocket since they first came out and for making hot drinks I still think the design is hard to beat in terms of weight and packed size. I regularly use it with a metal mug or stove top coffee maker although I gave up using it to cook meals with years ago. Since I would never recommend any cannister mount stove for regular cooking, I can't see the benefit of a large diameter burner on the likes of the Superfly for normal use when you can get a remote mount stove for less money.

Equally I've used a good 6 or 7 different remote mount stoves and again have never noticed any great differences, other than those stemming from the use of a proper windshield.

Stand alone gas stoves are extremely simple bits of kit and no-one is going to convince me that spending 40-50 pounds on one is worth it when they all perform very similarly.