the annoyance
of having several mostly empty but not quite canisters in your garage…unless you want to take them all for your next week long trip.
Liquid fuel doesnt pose that dilemma.
Plus you can start a good fire with it if you need one for warmth. Carefully. Wont go into the details but when it has been raining for seven weeks straight, kindling needs a boost. (Northen Ontario is awash… thats north of Thunder Bay)
stoves
If you want a light weight, small, relatively inexpensive ($39) cannister stove it is hard to beat the MSR pocket rocket. Weighs 4 ozs and can be stored is a small quart pot. Cannisters are a little problem becasue you always seem to have a half full one but if you punch a hole in them after they are empty they can be recycled.
Jetboil is great stove!
Especially if you’re looking for boiling water. Not as useful for cooking up full meals, although some of their models are more suitable than the basic boiler. About $80.
Solid Fuel:
Esbit…
Liquid fuel:
MSR Pocket Rocket (Snowpeak is good but pricey).
Consider: Pepsi Can Stoves…(Free), uses denatured alcohol as fuel (HEET automotive fuel additive in the YELLOW bottle), or from a Hardware store/Walmart.
Be aware
that the above from Sportsman’s Guide looks like only the stoves and windscreens/pot supports but not the pots themselves. It may be difficult to fine pots that fit inside the supports. The stoves could be used with makeshift pot supports and whatever pots you have.
I like this little jetboil stove. Good
birthday present request. I really liked the pocket rocket stove too. That is what I used & I am definitely buying it. So compact & very stable.
yes I want to make my stove!!
Stove party must be planned.
MSR Reactor?
Anyone used one of these? Backpacker mag gave it a good review if I remember correctly.
Link to plans, templates and instruction
http://zenstoves.net/Stoves.htm
Click on the Alcohol stove tab and check out the drop down menu…
well
Well the two burner coleman stoves are always good and durable…they have been the standard for camping stove for a long time. its big and may not be good for kayaking but for canoing…
small version stove
coleman apex—good and lightweight and have a simmer mode which is nice. ive used both above stoves for a long time.
msr’s whisperlight is good too.
Thanks for the links
– Last Updated: Aug-15-08 8:54 PM EST –
I used the Pocket Rocket on my latest trip. One can of fuel lasted the whole trip practically (5.5 days). Gave out the last night. That was 3 people with light cooking, but boiling water every am & most pms. I thought that was pretty good!!
now I just have to find people who will come to a stove making party. Maybe beer will help boost the guest list.
Long Drive…
can we do the party by VTC?
Sure
I will just have to mail everyone their beer in advance. : )
MSR
I use a MSR XKG-EX. It’s loud, doesn’t simmer, not the lightest, doesn’t pack as well as others, and cost around $130. However, it will burn anything you put in the tank, is the number one proven expedition stove worldwide, super fast boil times, and has never failed me. It’s over kill for most trips but it’s cool.Also, I’m not a canister guy, I prefer liquid fuel. I used a Peak 1 prior to this for 10 years.
Jerry
Optimus Hiker
has been my latest stove. I to am moving away from the canister fuels. Lately I have also been taking a Thremette to boil water using sticks and twigs, why burn expensive fuel to boil water? Another just tried option for the water is a Littlebug folding stove. It has the advantage over the Thremette by being easier to transport in the kayak. I use a pot I was already taking but now it has a black coat 
Lightweight Camp Stoves
I have used just about every type of camp stove on the market over the 50+ years I have backpacked, climbed, river run, and XC Skiied. As an Outdoor Living Instructor I purchased many different types of stoves so students would get experience using different models and types of fuels. I have used propane, butane, white gas, alcohol, and regular gas models.
The best stove I have ever used for all around use at sea level to high altitude is the Optimus 8 R white gas stove. It has only one moving part. It is easy to prime and light. It boils a pint of water in under 3 minutes. It sits low in its windscreen and is indistructable. In forty years of using them I have never had a malfunction. Cost is $59.
Linky???
Paddle easy,
Coffee
Where?
Where might one find an 8R for $59? I’ve never been able to find one except on auction, sold as “vintage” for ridiculous prices.
BTW, I swear by the Coleman designs. I have a Feather 400 (among others) that works like a charm. There’s no complicated priming procedure to follow and I get a blue flame in under 30 seconds, max. For those really cold days, a bit of bark set alight under the generator, a blob of fire paste or a squirt of antibacterial hand gel (you should have it with you anyway, it’s mostly alcohol) pre-heats it enough to light in the coldest weather. As for the MSR folks who exclaim, “but you can’t field strip it”, that’s a load of crap. I can disassemble every piece of Coleman equipment I own with the Multi-tool I never leave home without. No tiny parts to lose. Just pack a spare generator and put a few drops of oil in the pump once a year. The real testament is though, that I’ve never had to field strip an “all in one” Coleman stove, so long as it was operated per the directions. Will my Feather 400 pack down to the size of a thimble and burn everything from ether to road tar and in between? No, but for canoe camping, it’s not an issue. A few pints of Coleman fuel will last quite a while.
Phreon
Optimus 8 R white gas stove
How funny, I’d like to find one to display…