Which alcohol stove

[thepokerkid227]

In the process of going lighter and I am stuck between buying an end2end thru hiker open jet alcohol stove or making a pressurized jet alcohol stove since I do not know of any site that sells them pre made.

[Raul Perez]

www.minibulldesigns.com real good stoves

[thepokerkid227]

Not sure which fuel root to take seems the best choice methanol is also the most hazardous will it really be that bad to take on a thru-hike?

[Elder]

Check out www.etowahoutfitters.net Great stove.

[thomas533]

Have you tried making a SuperCat stove? They are ridiculously simple and will cost you less than a dollar if you already own a paper hole punch. I've build over a dozen alcohol stoves and the SuperCat is the best I've found.

[flatfeet]

Don't make your own. It sounds easy right? Just cut and glue together an old pop can. It won't work though. I've met several people who brought their homemade stove and found it to be really unreliable. Any of the stoves mentioned above are great and will work well for you.
I personally use the whitebox stove. Really a great stove.
Also use HEET in the yellow can. Works better than denatured alcohol. Really great stuff.

[Hooch]

I'm a big fan of the Fancee Feast stove from Zelph's stoveworks.

[Rocket Jones]

+1 on the Supercat. In fact, they're so simple and useful that we keep one our home emergency kit, as do my grown kids.

[Doc Mike]

supercat
i made another last night for my trip starting thursday

[EastCoastFeastCoast]

+2,000 on the Fancee Feast or Supercat style stove. You can find full kits available here from Zelph . You can also find good accessories and stuff from Minibull designs . And if you need a premade keg can, go here to traildesigns . They have Heineken kegs and fosters pots.

I have a Fancee Feast stove from Zelph, a H Keg from traildesigns, and my carbon fiber wick (to wrap the H Keg) and secure lid with maple knob are from minibill.


Happy Hangin'
Ben

[beaudetious]

I'm a big 'cat fan too. Mostly for the simplicity in making them and the light weight. My big concern is fuel efficiency. From practical experience (in the woods and at home) it seems they require at least 1 ounce to achieve (or nearly achieve) a rolling boil.

What about double wall stoves. Are they more efficient?

[EastCoastFeastCoast]

My fancee feast can boil 2 cups of water on 3/4 ounce of fuel. Rarely do I need that much water at once time, either. In fact I've never put that much fuel in my stove. Are you using a wind screen?

[Raul Perez]

My minibull bongo boils 2 cups of water with less than 1/2 ounce in late spring-summer, and about 1/2 ounce in the late fall. Takes about 3/4 ounce in the winter time. If' I'm trying to convert snow to water takes about an ounce (maybe a little more) per 2 cups.

[Doc Mike]

1/2 to 1 ounce alchy with about any alchy stove depending on temperature. Yes some are more efficent and some better for larger volumes but overall performance is very similar.

[beaudetious]

Are you using a wind screen?

Yep. My design is a straight up cat food can (3 oz. I think) with holes near the top. Works great other than the amount of fuel I burn.

I have recently been using a double walled stove by Antigravity or whatever that comes bundled with a plastic container, a windscreen that fits my Ti pot and a cozy to fit the container. I'll try to find a link somewhere.

http://www.antigravitygear.com/trail-designs-caldera-cone-system.html

I think I'll give the Fancy Feast stove a shot too. Sounds pretty darn efficient.

[Farr Away]

I use a windscreen called the Fire Bucket with my supercat. It gets the stove up off the ground, and seems to have improved the stove's efficiency. http://jwbasecamp.com/Articles/Fire-Bucket/index.html

The Fire Bucket can also be used with esbit or as a wood stove.

[4eyedbuzzard]

Zelph's Starlyte is pretty good as well, spillproof as well, and probably the lightest. Lots of options.

[B-Rabbit]

On the homemade topic... Do you guys find that the cat design is better and more efficient than the "beer can stove?'' If so why? Both versions run on denatured alcohol... right? Is that something that will be easy to find on the trail?

[EastCoastFeastCoast]

It also matter which type of pot you are using. The burn pattern also matters... don't ask me how.

[Rocket Jones]

Alcohol is easy to find, plus you can use Heet (in the yellow bottle, not the red), which is available at most every gas station, hardware or general store.

What made the supercat better for me is the utter simplicity of constructing it. Plus, if I need to make another, I can improvise one that works reasonably well with an empty can and a small knife.