K_Y_L_E Posted October 22, 2003 Posted October 22, 2003 Looking at getting a new stove.... Anyone have any info on the: Brunton Optimus Crux Snowpeak Giga Power Primus Alpine Power cook HPS Thanks Quote
boatskiclimbsail Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 Again, this comes rom running a college outing club... Whisperlite is king. I like my dragonfly but when the whisperlite stops working you can always make it work, even if you cant feel your fingers in -40 degrees in the snow... Ive run both stoves on white gas, gasoline and diesel without a problem. If you wanna go cheap get the CampinGaz cartridge stove (the 270 I think?) its the blue one... Quote
Alpinfox Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 I disagree with the GAZ stove rec. Those cartridges are even harder to find than the screwthread kind (MSR, snowpeak) and their fuel doesn't work as well in cold/high altitude as the MSR iso-pro fuel. If you wanna actually cook shit with your stove, I think the white gas ones are the best. I don't own one of these because I don't like carrying them (heavy, bulky, messy) and I've seen white gas leak all over the place too many times and shit gets set on fire when they flare up and... I could go on. Whisperlite (classic, dependable, repairable, fincky, flareup, bulky, heavy) Dragonfly or XGK (high altitude, noisy as hell) For cartridge stoves, I like the really small and light ones that aren't good for much except boiling water. They are extremely dependable, small, lightweight, and don't cost too much: Snowpeak Gigapower MSR Pocket Rocket Etc. For winter use, I like hanging stoves: Markill Something-Or-Other I think... Bad things about canister stoves: Hard to tell how much fuel you have (takes practice) In very cold temps, need to warm canister before use Sometimes hard to find canisters in boondocks Can't recycle/refill canisters (I've talked to folks at MSR about this, maybe they will listen to me someday) ARE YOU LISTENING MSR!?!?!? I ain't no gourmet in da woods. I like to heat water and pour it on some instant noodles or make hot chocky or snizzle like dat. Save the fancy shmancy cookin' fer when yous at home yo. Quote
Alpinfox Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 Features of the Svea 123? Here are the excerpts... Blah... Blah... Blah... Blah... Blah... Weighs JUST 19.5oz!!!!! Blah... Blah... Blah... Blah... Quote
marylou Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 Alpinfox said: Can't recycle/refill canisters (I've talked to folks at MSR about this, maybe they will listen to me someday) ARE YOU LISTENING MSR!?!?!? Totally recyclable. Run stove until all gas is burnt. All of it. Every atom. Puncture. Throw in recycle bin. No more waste than a tin can. No one is going to officially tell you how to do this because if there is any fuel/pressure in the canister when you puncture it, it could blow up. Lawsuit. I've done it dozens of times since I got my PR. I turn away as I puncture, but never had a problem. Quote
Alpinfox Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 Interesting Mary Lou. I may do that in the future, but my guess is that the recycling company throws it away because they a)consider it hazardous material b)don't know what the canister is made of. MSR (or snowpeak or whomever) should take them back and refill/resell them. They could also have refilling cylinders at major retailers like REI. It's really stupid that those canisters are one use only. And now, to really get the thread drift going: "Washington state should implement a bottle/can deposit". This gives homeless folks a source of income, reduces litter, and results in more recycling. Move it to spray maybe? Quote
marylou Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 (edited) Moderators, please remove post from JD. Edited October 23, 2003 by marylou Quote
Beck Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 recycle your stove, use white gas. mmm, svea climber 123... Quote
AmberBuxom Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 K_Y_L_E said: Anyone have any info on the: Brunton Optimus Crux Snowpeak Giga Power Primus Alpine Power cook HPS yes. i have info. Quote
Lambone Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 marylou said: Moderators, please remove post from JD. Done, thou who shalt spray within the gear critic shall be tossed. I like the MSR butane stove (can't remember the name) light, compact, burns hot and simmers as well. Very trustworthy. Quote
b-rock Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 marylou said: Alpinfox said: Can't recycle/refill canisters (I've talked to folks at MSR about this, maybe they will listen to me someday) ARE YOU LISTENING MSR!?!?!? Totally recyclable. Run stove until all gas is burnt. All of it. Every atom. Puncture. Throw in recycle bin. No more waste than a tin can. No one is going to officially tell you how to do this because if there is any fuel/pressure in the canister when you puncture it, it could blow up. Lawsuit. I've done it dozens of times since I got my PR. I turn away as I puncture, but never had a problem. Are you sure? I inquired and in Portland they will not pick this up with curbside recycling, you need to bring it to the recycling center yourself. Sno-peak canisters can be returned to the store they were purchased from (sans hole) for recycling. Quote
Ade Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 K_Y_L_E said: Looking at getting a new stove.... Anyone have any info on the: Brunton Optimus Crux Snowpeak Giga Power Primus Alpine Power cook HPS Thanks What do you want it for? It's hard to answer the question otherwise. For general cooking I'd recommend one of these... excellent for baking but not very portable: For summer camping I have an MSR Pocket Rocket and have been very pleased with it. The half empty canister thing is a pain in the butt and the stove is very tall making it easy to knock over. There was a review of these types of stoves last year in Climbing or R&I it did pretty well and was a bit cheaper than some of the others. I've also used the Giga Power and didn't notice any significant advantages over the MSR. It also seemed to cook slower. You can use a canister stove in very cold conditions but you have to insulate the canister and build a heat exchanger to recycle heat from the burner back to the canister. You can also make a dragonfly into a hanging stove. I've seen this done but never used one. I'm guessing you could do the same with an XGK. Has anyone else done this? How good was it? The other alternative is to build a stove base out of plywood for cooking on snow and/or in a tent. I have one of these and it's great. Attach some shock cord to hold the fuel bottle and spray it with heat resistant muffler paint. Note: The bottom of an XGK will still get hot enough to delaminate a thermarest through the wood! Put socks or something else made of natural fibers under the wood to provide more insulation. Quote
boatskiclimbsail Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 As for the canisters, Like every product in every market they have limitations, one if which is cold weather / high altitude. When I use that stove I am usually not hurting for fuel so badly that I need to go and search for it, I bring a few canisters with me... Come to think of it, I usualy do the same thing with my dragonfly as well. Dragonfly is mountain material, but a pain in the *ss to set up on a road trip or when car (beer) camping. I like the cartridge for the simple, warm, relaxation kinda camping. Portland recycling rubs me the wrong way. In every neighborhood I've ever lived in back home, they would take your used oil in the recycle bins as long as it was in sealed containers. They simply won't take it here, not when I lived in SE or even when I moved south of the city. Quote
marylou Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 B-rock, I have been throwing them in the recycle bin since I got my PR, and no problem. If the canister is punctured, there is no reason they shouldn't pick them up. At that point, it's nothing more than a tin can. Dunno. Quote
JoshK Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 If you are set on a mini canister stove, I've found the snow peak is the best. I compared snow peak, MSR pocket rocket, brunton crux, and coleman F1 all side to side. Every one except for the snow peak could be blown out *really* easily. I found the snow peak to be the only stove that could reliably resist any sort of wind outside. Quote
Ade Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 JoshK said: I found the snow peak to be the only stove that could reliably resist any sort of wind outside. Good point. I made a wind shield for mine, a bit like an XGK windshield from tinfoil cut out of a baking tray. Quote
gslater Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 boatskiclimbsail said: Portland recycling rubs me the wrong way. In every neighborhood I've ever lived in back home, they would take your used oil in the recycle bins as long as it was in sealed containers. They simply won't take it here, not when I lived in SE or even when I moved south of the city. Sure they do. I do it all the time (NE Ptld.). Just gave 'em another batch yesterday morning. Always in plastic milk jugs. And back on the topic of recyclable canisters, the Coleman stoves which use the Powermax canisters all come with a "key" which is used specifically for puncturing the empty canister to let the residual gas out for recycling. Quote
boatskiclimbsail Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 I always put used oil in the empty quart bottles and write "USED" all over it. I guess Ill have to go with the milk jugs... Maybe they don't know what is in it? Quote
hakioawa Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 Except for really long outings canisters are the way to go. Unlike what most people think, these stoves do really well at altitude, they are actually much more efficient. They do not do well at cold temps, but that can be worked around. There is an really cool new prumus micro stove. Its the sine of a film canister, is hot, and has a built in sparker that won't break, unlike ever other stove I've seen. As to recycling, I don't know why people make such a big deal out of this. If you want to, puncute and crush them. But think about it what else do you recycle? Do you use ziplocks? paper coffee cups? What about freeze dried meals, you can't recycle those containers. first aid suppiles? There are lot of thinkg you can't recycle. Don't get me wrong. Its good to recycle, but its kinda a red herring for the fuel canisters IMHO. Quote
K_Y_L_E Posted October 23, 2003 Author Posted October 23, 2003 I would be using it for general backpacking/hiking and also for a few climbs per year (ie Shuksan, Baker, Glacier, Crown hill, Queen Anne). So I would really like it to be light, and fast boil times would be nice. I am not much of a mountain gourmet (no cakes or lamb cutlets) I have a multifuel now but am always afraid it will spill, and I really hate being on fire. Anyone who has spontaneously combusted can tell you how much it sucks! I like the snow peak because of its wind screen, size, BTU's. But am a bit put off by the fact you can only use snow peak fuel (is that true?). Quote
lummox Posted October 23, 2003 Posted October 23, 2003 K_Y_L_E said: But am a bit put off by the fact you can only use snow peak fuel (is that true?). not true Quote
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