View Full Version : Its true! Its amazing! Caldera Cone+MSR Titan
MedicineMan
04-12-2007, 09:26
http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2355815070084634827rbsiro
The Caldera Cone has arrived. I ordered the CC specifically for the MST 0.85 Titan...the above photo will show you the perfect fit.
Its true...2 cups of water to a rolling boil with 15ml (1/2 tbs) in roughly 5 minutes....the water was 54F if your curious. This means 2 meals per ounce of fuel...I tested with Everclear so you mileage may vary with Heet.
I also experimented with Esbit and found that performance is situational, situation specific to what supports the Esbit tab and how close it is to the bottom of the pot. I used the Triad XE in solid fuel mode and tried both combinations with the fold down legs and began with 1/4 tab. After several combinations I discovered that with the Triad XE I had to have the legs down (burner closer to the pot) and it took 1/2 tab to get the same 2 cups of water to a boil. Obviously the setup provided by Antigravity Gear is optimized for alcohol, in fact it says so in the material provided but Esbit will work-is it weight effective? I think alcohol is more efficient in all regards to this setup----and that means setup with the alcohol stove that comes with the Caldera Cone upon initial order.
The cola can stoves were a major breakthrough in ultralightweight hiking, consider them something Orville and Wilber would have flown, what the Caldera Cone does is more akin to a Saturn V.
If you burn alcohol primarily and/or have to use Esbit then the CC is without doubt an incredible product....pot stand/windscreen/optimizer all in one.
The material of the cone is flexible and some care needs to be rendered in its packing and assembly but nothing a 4 year is not capable of. Bottom line is money well spent and major kudos to the developer Rand!!! Hopefully he will chime in on this post/thread and offer more insite.
http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2355815070084634827rbsiro
The material of the cone is flexible and some care needs to be rendered in its packing and assembly but nothing a 4 year is not capable of. Bottom line is money well spent and major kudos to the developer Rand!!! Hopefully he will chime in on this post/thread and offer more insite.
I'll bet even a "cave man" can do it.:)
Looks like you've found your "stove for life"
Last I heard the closure was going to be improved. Can you give us a photo of the closure and how it works. Give us the "cave man" version:) Thanks in advance.
StarLyte
04-12-2007, 10:11
Hey Medicine Man !!!
Thanks for the photo, and I can definitely relate to your stove admirations.....I love all stoves, all kinds, sizes from my sweet little StarLyte up to that big mother of a wood stove sitting in the den at Blackburn ;)
I love my esbit too. She's been with me for many many years.
MedicineMan
04-12-2007, 10:48
delivering kayaks to the oldest daugher, should be back late late tonight and will try to post pics of the closure.
Nice photo, where did you buy the cone from, expensive?
Looks like quite the perfect fit :)
I just got my new CC today, also for the MSR .85 liter kettle. The new cone replaces the older model, which got floppy after a while. (I have used it quite a lot, including for part of my thru-hike last year.)
Here's a link to Trail Designs website:
http://traildesigns.com/products01.html
The new Cone has matching channels in the windscreen that lock together. I think it will support the pot better than the old model. The MSR kettle is exceptionally challenging to make a pot support for because it has the big handles and also a very small lip for the support to catch on.
Here is a picture of both the old and new stove and Cone:
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=16081&c=516
I went through quite a few alcohol stoves without being a convert. Now I am. This is easy, fast, and incredibly fuel-efficient.
Marta/Five-Leaf
Skidsteer
04-12-2007, 20:34
I just got my new CC today, also for the MSR .85 liter kettle. The new cone replaces the older model, which got floppy after a while. (I have used it quite a lot, including for part of my thru-hike last year.)
Here's a link to Trail Designs website:
http://traildesigns.com/products01.html
The new Cone has matching channels in the windscreen that lock together. I think it will support the pot better than the old model. The MSR kettle is exceptionally challenging to make a pot support for because it has the big handles and also a very small lip for the support to catch on.
Here is a picture of both the old and new stove and Cone:
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=16081&c=516
I went through quite a few alcohol stoves without being a convert. Now I am. This is easy, fast, and incredibly fuel-efficient.
Marta/Five-Leaf
Marta, what do the matching channels in the ends of the new Caldera cone lock together with? Is there a piece that slides over them?
So is the cup supported around the lip as it appears in the photo?
How much did the Cone for the Titan run you?
1) One channel fits inside the other. You know, slip the male inside the female and slide.
2) Yes, the lip of the kettle rests on the top of the windscreen. You need to get the correct windscreen for your particular pot.
3) I bought mine at Trail Days last year. Their website gives the current price at $35, I believe. It looks like the price for some of the bigger pots is $40. That price includes the Cone and the little stove.
Marta/Five-Leaf
MedicineMan
04-13-2007, 12:44
http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2235952170084634827CxzGhC
three pics of the slide in channels...
The good is that once they are together they cannot slide apart during cooking.....The bad of this whole system is this, the metal is thin, it has to be to roll up and form the cone, .25 inch thick steel would never do this....so if you are careless and sit on the cone it will deform....generally wont be a problem for most...and pay attention when packing...suggestions have already been made on how to protect it when rolled up for storage....but because the metal is somewhat malleable even if you deformed it you would probably be able to nurse it back into working order as long as you dont hurt the channel and the channel is fairly tough.
traildesigns
04-13-2007, 17:21
Bottom line is money well spent and major kudos to the developer Rand!!! Hopefully he will chime in on this post/thread and offer more insite.
WOW...I love all the positive thoughts, kudos, and energy! We are absolutely tickled that we can help out your backpacking experience.
A few notes:
1) Trail Designs is a little part-time project between 3 N.Cal engineers. While I had my $.02 in the design, it truly was a combined effort between Russ, Lee and myself. However, I did bask in the thought that it was all mine for a minute or two... :)
2) We are up and running with the new design! This design includes the dovetail joint that you've seen pictures of already, a venting pattern that is biased toward one side in order to block the wind even better, and a lighter material for the cone body. We are in full production now and are making our inventory available through AntiGravityGear...check our website above for links to systems that will fit your favorite pot.
3) Marta milked everything she could out of her first cone as you can see from her pictures. What you also see in the pictures is the brown ring around the top of the old design. That was a result of a coating on the first material we were provided. We have a new supplier now that is getting us uncoated lighter stock. We won't be seeing that again.
4) As noted, we don't recommend running esbit in the cone right now. It runs much hotter than alcohol and we have seen it anneal the cone material making it weaker. Now, with that said, I have run a huge number of tests with esbit and the cone definately increases the performance, but that test cone material was thicker and the closure was riveted in place. It can work, but it makes us nervous so we decided to recommend against it until we have more field tests with this material and closure. Now, with that said, we are investigating the possibility of making titanium and stainless cones that would not only do esbit....but wood fires as well!
Thanks again for all the support. Please let us know how you like the new changes as you put them through their paces in the field.
Rand :)
I missed it, what is the weight of the cone for the .85Titan?
traildesigns
04-13-2007, 21:56
I missed it, what is the weight of the cone for the .85Titan?
The weight of the cone for the MSR .85 Kettle is 34 grams. The stove is another 16 grams....so right at 50 grams together or about 1.76 oz.
I will get these numbers up on the website.....
Rand :)
3) Marta milked everything she could out of her first cone as you can see from her pictures.
Actually I was still using the old cone as of Easter weekend. There's life left in the old thing yet--though it was a bit fiddly to keep the pot from slipping off the rim.
I used the new Cone this weekend. It worked like a charm. Fits well, holds snugly. I like the way the new Cone has a windward side without air vents. I did not measure the boil times, but it seemed quicker than the old one to me.
Cheers!
Marta/Five-Leaf
Lanthar Mandragoran
04-16-2007, 18:15
2) We are up and running with the new design! This design includes the dovetail joint that you've seen pictures of already, a venting pattern that is biased toward one side in order to block the wind even better, and a lighter material for the cone body.
Oooh... nice mods... I may have to get a new one (I have an old model for the SP600). Of course, what I might do is finally get around to getting a SP900, one of these updated cones, snag a bushbuddy ultra and be all happy-happy...
Or I could impatiently wait for...
4) ...Now, with that said, we are investigating the possibility of making titanium and stainless cones that would not only do esbit....but wood fires as well!