UPATE – you might not need any of the info below if you choose to make a stove out of a beer can…
Continuing my occasional series of inviting gear geeks to review kit on my site (because I don’t know a lot about kit!): here outdoor enthusiast Eric Tomczak shares his thoughts on his favourite three lightweight camping stoves; the MSR Whisperlite International, Jetboil and Snow Peak Gigapower.
MSR Whisperlite International
The Whisperlite International has set the standard for multi-fuel stoves for its durability, reliability and serviceability. Countless overseas expeditions have relied on it and it rarely fails.
A liquid-fuel stove such as this one is less convenient than a canister type because you’ll have to pump the fuel bottle to pressurize it, and it has a less adjustable flame.
However, liquid fuel is much more readily available all over the world, and is overall the most versatile option.
The International version of the Whisperlite runs on multiple different types of fuel beyond white gas, such as diesel, gasoline, and jet fuel.
A small service kit is available separately that will repair almost anything that can go wrong with it, short of being run over by a truck. As far as liquid fuel stoves go, the Whisperlite is very simple and easy to use. This is a perfect choice for a long-lasting expedition stove.
Jetboil
The Jetboil is one of my favorite stoves because of its light weight, extreme convenience of use, and speedy cook time.
It’s a canister stove with a small pot integrated into the stove itself. The stove and fuel canister fit into the titanium pot, making it pack away extremely small. It can boil 2 cups of water in less than 3 minutes, so making tea is almost easier than it is at home.
The pezio igniter eliminates the need for matches (although it’s a good idea to carry some anyway), and gets you cooking very quickly. The only drawback to this system is its small pot size. It’s perfect for one person cooking pasta, although if you’re cooking for two, you’ll want either their larger pot system (sold separately) or a second regular pot that can be quickly swapped out for the second person to cook their meal.
If you’re looking for a fast, light, convenient way to cook, the jetboil is an excellent option.
Snow Peak Gigapower
The Gigapower is a good compromise between the versatility of a standard stove type (to use any kind of pot or pan) and the convenience of canister fuel. It screws onto the top of a regular butane canister, and has four arms that fold out nice and wide to hold your pot or pan.
The flame is spread evenly, to prevent creating hot spots in the bottom of your meal and has all the adjustability expected of a canister stove.
It folds down to about the size of a large Swiss Army knife, so you barely know you’re carrying it. This is probably the most versatile option for traveling anywhere you can find standard butane canisters.
What do you think of Eric’s opinions? Have your say in the comments.
Nice post!
Personally I have never tried the Whisperlite, but for longer expeditions I always opt for MSR XGK Expedition, which also is a multifuel stove. Burns on almost anything and is very robust.
For high altitude the Jetboil is a given. You can also buy a seperate hanging kit for the jetboil, so you can hang the stove above the tent floor.
I find the pezio igniter for the jetboil very unreliable, so the tip for carrying matches is a very good one.
For a long time I used MSR multi fuel stoves but some years back I got enlighted when I bought a Primus. I found that travelling through third world countries where fuel is of a very bad quality the MSR stoves clog up. Too many times I found myself sitting in front of my tent, hungry, swearing, hands black with soot, cleaning the stove.
Major problem is that MSR doesn’t provide a high altitude jet so the stove is running rich above 3500 metres. I have asked them about it and they suggested I buy another stove. I did, a Primus, and am very happy now.
http://osmosno.wordpress.com/2009/06/22/msr-pans-and-stoves/
I believe Optimus Nova Plus and Primus are great value for money. Thanks to a little magnet cleaning done in three seconds and mine has proven super reliable. Also, I have been burning everything with it, even alcohol in an extreme situation and it worked fine.
I could find a butane canister about anywhere I went climbing… I bought the Snow Peak GigaPower for its small size and light weight. The only trouble is the gas tap is quite sensitive. It has been really reliable – and always in my backpack!
Spooky …that lists my current stove collection.
I like the MSR when on trips where buying gas is difficult …or low temperatures can be expected (i.e. Glasgow right now).
The jetboil is super efficient but I do find it a bit on the bulky side. Replaced the original piezo and the new one seems much better (or is it just newer ?!?!). Still have a wee lighter just in case. Had problems with low gas pressure in the cold but that is to be expected. The depth of the pot is not great for cooking much other than pasta but for water cannot be beat. I tend to only use it with dehyrdated stuff …so not really an issue. The black plastic base cover makes a good mug :-)Been looking at the “group” pot they make but it seems a tad expensive. The coffee press kit however makes for nice morning coffee …always a good thing.
The wee snowpeak is my stove of choice )along with a titanium pot) for fast and light trips / mountain marathons.
Been tempted to try the home made meths burners (usually made from a coke can) but attempts at manufacture have not been good to date !
GK, i’ve made alcohol burners from beer cans and they burn hotter than Trangia stoves…
as above, don’t forget the humble coke can cooker… nothing is as light, or as cheap!
Echoing Graham K’s comments – this is my current stove lineup, and I’ve hung on to all of them because of the variety of conditions I tend to get out in… The MSR in the deep cold – a workhorse for melting snow or when I take the kids out and know that I’ll be using a lot of fuel. The Jetboil comes along when I’m just boiling water and don’t want to bother with any more kitchen kit than necessary. Not so good for melting snow though – it just takes too long to fill a nalgene. The GigaPower is probably my fave though – a few Ti pieces with some olive oil and I can cook up just about anything outside that I’d do at home.
I do want to make up some alcohol stoves though – might be a fun project to do with my boys…
I found some articles about getting firewood for free from this multi fuel stoves blog – do you think it is actually possible and realistic?
Also is there other ways to get wood cheaper?
yes – by getting an axe and, rather than spamming blogs, going out and chopping down a tree.
Do you know if I can get any real cheap multi fuel soves? I am looking for new ones – not from ebay etc. I found this article on multi fuel stoves blog – do you think it is actually possible to get any of them cheaper?
Any thoughts… ?
John
Thanks for the informative post guys, have been following your blog for the past few months while trying to lose weight for my wedding on the Cambridge diet plan and it’s going really great. I’m down about 25 lbs in the past couple of months and this website has really inspired me to keep going. Great job.
I’m glad we have all been able to help with your diet plan?! A little less spam may help.
Clas Ohlsen meths stove. £10.00, smaller and lighter than Trangia 27, and boils a bit faster too, and at that price.
wow – awesome for ~£10
Butane cook stove is always been very helpful for my camping trips. Indeed it is very handle and very useful in heating food. Thank you for sharing this information, I would recommend it to my friends, and hopefully this article useful to those who read it. Thanks again.
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These camping stoves are a bit okay to use when on short camping trips. But I’m not so sure about longer trips because the risk of them running out of fuel means you’ll need some alternate form of fuel for that like wood.