Durable Convenient Stove

[marienbad]

 

As with other equipment, I’m willing to pay what it costs for something that will last so I don’t have to deal with broken equipment and lost investments. I have nearly zero experience with camp stoves, and I know the internet is chock-full of stove fanatics.

 

What are some compact 1-burner stove models (new or classic) that are tried-and-true for durability and for convenience like easy to dis/assemble, stable, and usable in a variety of situations?

[DPS]

MSR Wind Pro

MSR Pocket Rocket

MSR XGK (for cold weather)

[joshzielinski]

is this the hitchhiker? are you gonna stick your thumb out there and go or sit around the gear critic forum for the summer?

 

search backpacks, stoves, etc and look at the wealth of discussion that's been had on these topics (recently).

 

you don't need any of this alpine/ultralight super 'spenive gear for a dirtbagger's-delight-mosey-across-the-country-in-the-back-of-a-pick-up.

 

get on with it before a midwest/NE fall comes around and sends you the best western ducking for cover.

 

as for your question... stove: taco bell/truck stop bucket o chicken.

 

Have a nice summer!

Edited June 24, 2011 by joshzielinski

[Water]

talk to johndavidjr or something, he will outfit you with THE BEST from walmart for $50 for the full package (socks, footwear, tent, sleeping pad, stove, etc).

[johndavidjr]

Back in my Kerouac-type travel days (with "K-Mart" pup tent) one year as usual I lugged a Primus along, but got fed up with my "cooking" & obtaining fuel, and eventually stopped using it.

 

My diet on that particular trip switched to one or two cans of cold beans per day, plus one daily meal in a diner. Was relatively expensive. I vividly remember that while eating from a can of beans on the roadside, a "real" bum threw an empty can of beans at me.....which, come to think of it, reminds me of some of the posters encountered here.

 

Today, if traveling but not intending to cook much, I often bring a Trangia mini kit, knowing that small quantities of fuel are easily available, if desired. This is akin to the "soda can stoves" one can read about, and is absurdly lightweight (or is that "fast & light????") essentially indestructable, foolproof & maintenance free.

[marienbad]

Alive threads are better than stale threads. I divide my threads up by topic. Buying gear that will last a lifetime and hitchhiking this summer are two separate projects.

[Dan_Miller]

I'm with DPS in favor of the Pocket Rocket by MSR, especially for your intended use.

Keep firing us questions. As you've already encountered we all have plenty of (if at times caustic) opinions.

[johndavidjr]

Very little gear, if any, will last a lifetime, assuming a reasonable lifespan. Trangia stove definitely might.

[Julian]

I have a Snow Peak Gigapower stove that is still going strong after 6 years. I like it a bit better than the MSR Pocket Rocket, but it's pretty similar.

[johndavidjr]

Canister stoves have disadvantages for long-distance hitch-hiking trips in that the fuel is only available at sporting goods stores, which can be especially difficult to reach without full access to an automobile.

 

One obvious alternative is gasoline stove, which is heavy & expensive & slightly fussy & dangerous for the mentally deranged (companions one may encounter) or those with severe hangovers.

 

Alcohol burners are relatively safe, light, cheap and highly reliable, use readily available fuel and are perfectly good for minor forms of cooking.

[montypiton]

if you're willing to consider thirty years a "lifetime" for a piece of equipment, I have an old Salewa "Husch" stove that I've had that long and is still my favorite stove. The pocket-rocket is pretty much a current-day version of the same... any of these similar burner-head-that-screws-onto-a-canister is gonna be about as simple, light,cheap,and trouble-free as you can get unless you just want to pack a tuna-can full of paraffin (old boy-scout cheap alternative to sterno).

[johndavidjr]

Is question "last a lifetime?" This question implies an early start and an equally stupid, blowhard digression:

 

A "Primus" brand stove acquired in 1971 in steel box and not dissimilar to the Svea-type models of era, lasted me 12 years. Nozzle threads became stripped, and following its replacement, thing didn't quite work properly. A newer Svea seemed overly fussy with weird self-cleaning crap: a Bluet left me cooking for hours following midnight hike in Alpine autumn; I nearly ruined Whisperlight in Mexico with regular gasoline.

 

An MSR canister stove acquired in Olympia a dozen years ago is my best bet these days (the Widger? the Bugger? the Schnooter?? something). Am sure this will outlast me, but is that lasting "a lifetime?"

 

Is not so long a time.

 

For ten years, I extensively used Trangia mini. Recently with my minimalist (minimal) camping, I've returned to this.

 

Fuel is universally available and cheap & trips to idiot backpacking stores avoided, and due to design, it will never, EVER cease functioning.

 

Archeologists from outer galaxy will discover it in working condition in fossilized junkyard, & make careers trying to figure out what it's for.

 

All that said (so far), is only good for minor & at least slightly sheltered cooking in 20F+ temps.

 

 

 

[billcoe]

Anything from MSR will make you happy.

 

For myself, I have a SVEA 123 (Primius now, they bought SVEA) I bought new in 1971 from REI mailorder for $15 (that seems cheap, but they raised the price to $15 from $10 just before I pulled the trigger on the purchase -rats:-) I've dropped it and watched it bounce down hills and it's seen some serious abuse in it's life. I use to get out in the mountains a hell of a lot back when. Now it gets out maybe twice a year if that and it usually seems to be on a picnic table or backing up a Coleman 2 burner:-) I have no plans to strip the nozzle and expect it will outlive me. After camping in Red Rocks with Powderhound this spring, I too bought a MSR Dragon Fly as I liked his so much. It's not that it's so dramatically better than the old SVEA, I can afford one so I got it.

 

My wife has one of those Primus butane canister stoves I can borrow if I want too, so I'm pretty covered for convinance as well.