The Ultimate Camping Stove!
 

I'm pleased to tell all of you you can stop looking for the perfect stove.
I think I may have found it.
It burns hotter than gas or petrol or deisel.
It is fueled by material easily found in most places, especially in the middle of nowhere.
It is quiet and believe it or not quite fun to use.

What's it fueled by?
Wood.
How does it work?
A small battery powered fan blows beneath the receptacle where you got the fire going.

Oh, it's also pretty cheap.

The Sierra Zip Stove.
http://www.zzstove.com/
I also found another stove that works on a similar concept the Markill Wilderness Stove (even better because it has a varialb reostat and a jack to connect it to a solar panel to recharge the battery.

I heartily recommend this stove. It works like a little forge. Hot as heck.

I've used a load of different other stoves, the Optimus NOva being the last one. Great stove, noisy, get's clogged but easily clearable. But nothing comes close to the convenience of wood.

check it out.

best
scott
(by the way I don't work for these guys, I would actually recommend the Markill stove more but since it's no longer available c'est la vie)

if you think its good with wood, try it with BBQ charcoal bricks. tip- use a thick bottomed pan

link problem?
 

LINKY NO WORKY!:(

These look good also

Scotia Outdoors - Verdant Ltd Pocket Cooker

Coleman 533 for me
 

I’ve gone for what Chris Scott recommends in the adventure motorcycling handbook. The Coleman 533 (sportster)

http://www.camping-online.co.uk/COLEMAN-STOVES,LANTERNS-AND-ACCESSORIES/COLEMAN-SPORTSTER-MK-11-PETROL-STOVE.html

like he says in the book you’ll never run out of gas because you’re carrying a tank full of the stuff. And its only 40 quid :)

That stove is fantastic value for money.

My money still goes with the trangia though - what a solid machine.

m

Camping stoves
 

Hi
MSR Superfly.Best stove on the market bar none!

Or you can use a large (coffee can size) can, fill it to 2 1/2- 3 inches below the top of the can with sand. poke holes 1 inche below the top of the sand level. pour in a cup or so of whatever you have, gasoline, kerosene, light it. It will produce a hole flame for about 30 minutes on one cup. finished, just pour out the sand and tie the can to someplace on your bike, or throw it away and hope to find another can that night.

stoves
 

not trying to turn this into a 'who's got the best stove' but just to say the we took the coleman on our UK to South Africa. It runs on petrol and boiled water quicker and was quieter than the MSR dragonfly, is it?, which our friends took. It is cheaper but probably bigger than the MSR.

We have used a MSR Whisperlite. This was good, but a bit flimsy. Since upgraded to the Primus Omnifuel: far sturdier than the MSR equivalent: all metal components, no plastic. Powerful and compact. Very pleased

Having said that the wood burning equivalent looks very neat and practical. An added bonus is you don't have to buy fuel or syphon your tank, and its carbon neutral, even if a stove's CO2 output is minimal compared the motorbike that got you to your camping spot... I like.

http://www.salvo.co.uk/images/userim...0185_1_240.jpg

Whats wrong with my current stove? In all seriousness... If it ain't broke dont fix it... nothing wrong with my Coleman Sportser 533.. And the trangia's are great too

Smoke and soot..
 

Have seen a fan stove in operation, and they are pretty neat little things. So long as you have some batteries..lol.

One down side that did become apparent for me anyways, was it tended to soot up the pots badly and the stove tended to get a bit sooty.

Certainly a neat idea.. but for me, will be sticking with my jetboil and msr dragonfly.

Oh the reason msr use plastic pumps is to avoid pressure bottle explosions when stoves leak or are left unattended. The heat will melt the pump unit and not allow it to pressure cook. Or so I was informed by their rep.

Svea
 

I bought my SVEA gas stove in 1975. Its my stove and I'm sticking with it.

If your out in the desert you wont have wood. And if your batteries run out, it probably wont burn good enough either. The petrol stoves seem a better idea. Only thing you worry about is petrol in your bike. And if you run out of that, your screwed anyway.

tripper is on the money witht last post. - Perfect for some situations but not all, the same for everything.
As far as liquid fuel stoves go one thing to look at is maintance - an MSR liquid fuel stove (whisperlite, Dragonfly, X-GK, etc) are far easier to maintain than a Coleman ( I worked for a store for 6 years that was an offical repairer for Coleman stoves and lanterns - i own MSR....). Quite they are not!
Flimsyness of MSR? i owned a whisperlite international for something close to 7 years and only sold it because i was given a new shiny dragonfly. It had some serious use - the advantage of living in NZ - I averaged 65-70 days a year in the bush hunting, tramping(hiking) and climbing. The whisperlite never failed me once.
Colemen, Primus, and lets not forget the old Optimus are all good, capable bits of kit but MSR for outright long-term maintance - my money is on MSR

For me it is important that the stove can burn petrol. I seldom carry firewood on my bike and if there is firewood available I can manage without a cooker.

I used the MSR for 5 years. During that time I changed the pump four times. The pump is rather flimsy especially when it’s cold, the plastic brakes.
When I used leaded fuel it clogged up quite often, but it was efficient and light.

Now I have a Primus and is much sturdier then the MSR. The construction is more or less the same but no flimsy plastic parts.
Haven’t used it on leaded petrol so I’m not sure how it will behave.

im with kbikey, youve got the stove youve got, if it does what you want it to then good on yer. its a food heater, thats all.
10K years ago someone rubbed a couple of sticks together and cooked a mammoth steak, and we've been argueing about whats the best way ever since.

personally, as i live in the UK, petrol is far too expensive to heat food with. i rub 2 politicians together until they catch fire. they are so greasy they burn for hours

nice one davsato. but dont forget that it is hard to find politicians in rural areas as they live in expensive, big houses in or near the city centers and have a rich life with planes, yachts etc... we are only pure bikers with a low budget and out of the rich city lifes..

Not only are politicians too difficult to find away from their chauffered limos, they are so greasy that you can't rub them fast enough to get the friction needed to set them aflame.

you must learn the trick of putting sand in between, or rough them up a bit with an angle grinder 1st

the only problem with wood is. When good dry wood is lying about in abundance, often you aren't allowed to set fire to it. and it really isn't practical to carry it on a bike. Although.. I did see a wood-smoke powered combo ( ural) once.

I do like wood fires though :)

I tried to order from ZZstove and they're in the process of being bought out by another company. They have no stock until the new company takes over. I'll have to find another stove for my trip to the States.

What about this one???
 

Thinking of getting one of these
http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/b...mish/Vargo.jpg


An expensive version $30. But hey with the $-£ exchange rate it's a snip! It weighs an ounce. It should do my morning coffee no problem.

The link works fine - I think the wood under your computer is wet or the little fan isn't working.....you could try blowing on it.....

Bengahzi Stove:

"Troops on the move often cooked food and brewed tea on a makeshift stove dubbed the 'Benghazi Burner.' This was basically half a tin filled with sand soaked in petrol and set alight." www.iwm.org.uk/upload/package/ 21/creteegypt/standegypt06.htm

jesus, i cant believe someones got the balls to ask $30 for a cola-can stove, or that someones willing to pay it and not make their own!!!!!

It's worse than you think. I'm stuck at work all day today with access to the cans, the internet for a step by step guide and a workshop! The phrase "overpaid and unmotivated" springs to mind. Maybe I should spend more time working and less time internet shopping. I just hope that when I bring it back from the States in my luggage they don't think it's a landmine! :eek3:

Hi
I have had my Coleman 533 stove for coming on 15 years and its still going strong, a new genorator pipe and a good clean ever now and again keeps it working fine, only thing ive found thats better is a nice camp fire..... Skip

I was wondering why you tossed the Whisperlite... They are THE standard for real work. I've had mine since they came out with the non-rubber hose, or about 15 years and I've never done anyhting but grease the cup in the pump once. Oh, and I probably use it 20 days per year as well ... at least. Was on the road for a year in 2006 and it saw probably 100 days of use... I use it to make tea in the morning, even in hostels....

After another look around the web I settled on a Brasslite turbo II D for my US trip. The test reports for this little alcohol stove were really good. Anyone here used one?
http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/b...o2DEnlarge.jpg

never heard of it, but thats no surprise, there must be hundreds on the market these days!
its definately got the 'bling' factor

Diesel burning stove
 

I'm looking for a diesel burning stove. The MSR XGK says it burns a lot of things but does not specify diesel

MSR Mountain Safety Research : Stoves : XGK EX™ Expedition™ Stove

Does anyone know if this particular model works with diesel as well.

Any other stove that will work with diesel? The Primus Omnifuel looks promising too

Rough Gear Outdoor Adventure Store:

Known a Benghazi burner amongst other things. You occasionally see them specially made out of artillery/naval cartridge cases (which are brass).

My grandfather ran a mobile forge based on the same idea in the Western desert in the early-mid 1940's. I'd love to have a go at the oil drum version, but his "recipe" involved a jerry can full of petrol which is rather expensive and probably more than a little dangerous. There was also mention of emptying rifle cartridges :nono:. Probably one for the ADV rider lot :eek3:.

You don't need the can if you have enough petrol, just loosen a patch of sand in a compacted area, the hard sand will contain the fire.

Andy
(Arsonist)

An MSR WhisperLite works with diesel. It comes with two jets. The jet marked "K" is the one you use with diesel. I did it once, way back when I got it first. No real need to it for me, unless your 4X4 is diesel.....

I still have and use an old Coleman single burner similar to the 533, just quite heavier and with a grill over the top instead of those two crossed bars. Still works great, but is borderline for taking with me on the bike due to the size and weight. Have also used MSR whisperlite backbacking for years of reliable service, although it only has two settings: full blast and off!
Recently got a MSR Dragonfly and have only had it out on one trip, but it was great! Like an adjustable whisperlite that burns all sorts of stuff including diesel.

Whisperlite International...had the XGK...all stoves of that style are too noisy for me. Sounds like a jet engine.
Do yourself and others a favor and stay away from them.
b

Having used lots of different stoves I settled on msr years ago
I have several, but use the whisperlite most

and I don't have to source fuel other than petrol from my fuel tank

cheers

John

Hi all - getting back to the subject of wood burning stoves there's a new model out which is well designed and very compact for carrying inside a mug.

Check it out at - Lightweight Backpacking Woodstoves

Even comes with lots of acessorys.

Good link, they even show how to make the benghazi burner, from recycled cans yourself for free.
There are also videos that you can watch - 11 mins to see water boil ... if you have nothing else to do for example. Looks really easy to make and use.

Trangia Multi-Fuel
 

Just caught up with this thread and hoping people are still reading. I have been a trangia user for many years of camping trips and am now looking to venture further afield on the bike so the idea of using the trangia with unleaded straight out of the fuel tank looks appealing.....

So the questions - is it necessary? How widely available outside of Europe is a source of Meths to fuel the standard Trangia burner?

On reading the blurb about the rather expensive Trangia Multi-Fuel burner, pump, bottle combination it is so full of warnings about using automobile petrol due to additives and benzine slowly killing you that it starts to put me off. Can anyone put some perspective on such health warnings or issues using fuel out of the tank to cook food?

Will be packing for Morocco first up in April this year.

I wouldn't worry too much about the health issues. You aren't cooking your food in the petrol flame.
Also if you have lived a few years and messed about with bikes / cars, you have had lots of exposure to stuff that is supposed to kill you anyway. I have been covered in petrol and mucky engine-oil many times, used petrol to clean grease off my hands and acetone to wash tools and hands so I am buggered already.
I had been a long time fan of the simplicity of the trangia meths burners but recently converted to a coleman dual-fuel "feather". Great little stove and have found a couble of non-stick milk pans that it will fit into so it's actually a fairly compact set-up.

Fair point, have swallowed my fair share of petrol while siphoning over the years so the health warnings cant make it any worse just by boiling water for tea and super noodles can it!

Come to think of there will be worse stuff in the super noodles anyway not to mention the nightcap that knocks me out in order to sleep better!

Will have look at the Coleman alternative.

Wood/alcohol/gasoline/kerosene/gas
 

The arguments for some of these stoves seem flawed. Surley it's the fuel that counts?

• The tiny woodburners sound "green" but they're not really. Don't weigh much, but then who's counting ounces? They are also a fire risk and dirty your pots. Work in the rain?
• Alcohol gives only half the heat of gasoline or kero (so you need lots) and availability can be poor. Wind kills it's puny heat. Spill it in your pack though and just let it evaporate. Safe for 10 year old Boy Scouts.
• Gasoline is available anywhere in the world and you have plenty to spare on the bike. It's also HOT. Only diesel available? No problem.
• Ditto kero for availability but not nice if you spill it on clothing. Also HOT.
• Gas is very quick and clean but availability again questionable in some countries. Have you noticed the baffling array of different gas containers? It's HOT though, even at altitude.

A stove must be quick to put up and light, utterly reliable, have good fuel availability, be field strippable and most of all, produce lots and lots of HEAT.
My MSR is very good but requires assembly, my previous stove was a Coleman which was excellent but eventually choked on leaded fuel (which I couldn't fix at the time). The one before that was an ex US Army gasoline stove which was also excellent (stolen). The one before that was a SVEA which was excellent because it came in a tin box but leaked at the knob gland, and the one before that was a tiny metho stove used for picnics. We usually prefered to build a fire because the metho one took too long.

It's all about HEAT, stupid, and do you REALLY care about fossil fuels when you're starving and cold?

(I apologise for those who took offence at my remark "stupid". I would never besmirch all those Hubbers who contribute (and read) all these posts. It was a play on President Clintons desk sign which said "it's the economy, stupid". It was perhaps so subtle, nobody got it. Sorry. I have left the original post in to explain my contrition. Thanks to bert 333 for pointing this out. If you do a Google search on the phrase, it's in Wikipedia)

:clap: Great points. The wood stoves are a bad idea anyways. If there is wood, you should not be burning it (Nepal, Death Valley,...) and gasoline fuel is available everyhwere, even along the 800 kms between Quetta and the Iranian border. No wood though.

Your MSR needs assembly? Get an MSR Whisperlite. I did, 15 years ago, and it's still the only stove I ever had.

Stoves are like water filters... there are loads of choices, little pills etc., but the only thing that really does the trick is a Katadydn with a ceramic filter, field stripable, good for 50K liters and gives you instant water (pump). Small too. But yes, $400 and change. Not cheap.

I've used the 'wood-gas" stoves, propane, and have a Coleman. Propane is clean and my favorite for ease of use. The Coleman liquid fuel is next best, leaving some soot but an even heat source.

The problem with the wood burning ones is that they require constant attention, leave you very dirty from ash, and you burn through wood pretty fast and have to constantly add wood if you're cooking for more than a few minutes. The temperature is not steady either.