View Full Version : jetboil ignition!!
PUNKINPUSS11
03-06-2010, 00:56
im thinking bought purchasing a jetboil flash, but scared bought its reliability on the trail. anyone chime in for long term (doing the jmt). have a PR now, like it, but was thinkin bought JB.
hal0ofwint3r
03-06-2010, 03:49
i personally own a jetboil. i also own an msr reactor. for the type of stove, they are both the same concept. screw on unit above a canister with the cup over the stove, trapping the heat from open air so it can heat the water as fast as possible. not that you don't know this, i'm sure you do. everybody does. what i'm trying to say is, if you want to get this type of stove, i would not recommend a jetboil. the starter will not spark in cold air as well. you can click and click all you want and it will take a while. the fuel canister doesn't hold that much fuel. after so many uses, the heat guard and handle kind of gets loose. the design of the cup that goes secures onto the stove unit isn't the best design - sometimes when it's in place, and you're done boiling, it doesn't always want to come out easily. the flame adjuster is ok, but sometimes it feels like you have to reach in there. i always as most other people that own one probably always dries the cup but it doesn't matter what you do, the inside of the cup rusts, even if you dry everything else. the bottom plastic cover breaks at the snap point. lid isn't the best design, you have to be very careful when taking it off. it's like taking a tight lid off - burned myself several times from the piping hot boiled water that splashed out. note i don't abuse my equipment. kind of sounds like i throw it around. it's just not a durable piece of equipment. on the other hand, the msr reactor may be slightly bulkier in physical dimensions, but it is MUCH sturdier and reliable; boils water faster than you will believe, and more of it at once; the fuel canister is larger(can use the 4 or 8 ounce), much better handle and lid(lid is clear and has a lid handle); better flame control, even though you don't actually have a flame, it's contained in the unit, bright orange glowing unit is pretty neat; works well in the cold.
am i giving you a harsh gear review, no. i am just being straight up. i know other people that have HAD a jetboil and gave it up for other stoves. the reactor might be more, but it is WELL WORTH IT. but then i also have other stoves too, they are also great. keep the pocket rocket too, that is a great stove.
My jetboil is aluminum and doesn't rust. Aluminum can corrode, but keeping it clean takes care of that. It can use the 4 or 8 oz canister. Boils water just fine. I know better than to try and remove a tight lid with boiling water inside. My lid only goes on tight for storage. I simple sit it on top when cooking. I've had this stove for over a year and have taken it for a couple of week long trips, and a few weekend ones too. It's going with me on my thru hike starting Tues.
Starting a canister stove in cold weather requires you to warm the fuel and is not a problem with the starter. Simply put the cannister in your jacket or sleeping bag and warm it up first. Basic understanding of chemistry and the properties of gas in different temperatures explains this concept.
Roughin' It
03-06-2010, 08:57
the fuel canister doesn't hold that much fuel.
you can buy it in 2 sizes, just like your msr.
I have a jetboil, and have no complaints.
im thinking bought purchasing a jetboil flash, but scared bought its reliability on the trail. anyone chime in for long term (doing the jmt). have a PR now, like it, but was thinkin bought JB.
If you're satisfied with your Pocket Rocket, may I ask why you want to buy a JetBoil?
im thinking bought purchasing a jetboil flash, but scared bought its reliability on the trail. anyone chime in for long term (doing the jmt). have a PR now, like it, but was thinkin bought JB.
:)jet boils rock.i been using nothing but jet boil over 5 years now:cool:neo
white_russian
03-06-2010, 12:13
I have a Jetboil and have had no problems with its operation. I don't like the narrowness of the pot because it is harder to clean than something that is wider. That is my only gripe with it.
hal0ofwint3r
03-06-2010, 12:41
that's the funny thing. i warm my canisters, keep my camera batteries in my pocket, keep my bladder in the bag at night so it doesn't turn to ice, but the jetboil just doesn't spark. bad jetboil? either way, my reactor is still more reliable!
that's the funny thing. i warm my canisters, keep my camera batteries in my pocket, keep my bladder in the bag at night so it doesn't turn to ice, but the jetboil just doesn't spark. bad jetboil? either way, my reactor is still more reliable! Maybe the ignition is damp. Piezoelectric sytems are high impedance, meaning a litle dampness can allow a short circuit. It's hard to keep things dry on the trail, which is why I would never rely on a piezoelectric ignition system. Use it when it works, yes, but also carry a backup, like a lighter, flint/steel, matches, etc.
that's the funny thing. i warm my canisters, keep my camera batteries in my pocket, keep my bladder in the bag at night so it doesn't turn to ice, but the jetboil just doesn't spark. bad jetboil? either way, my reactor is still more reliable! Maybe the ignition is damp. Piezoelectric sytems are high impedance, meaning a litle dampness can allow a short circuit. It's hard to keep things dry on the trail, which is why I would never rely on a piezoelectric ignition system. Use it when it works, yes, but also carry a backup, like a lighter, flint/steel, matches, etc.
I have used both long term.
MSR reactor
cooks for 2+ much better
better handle
you CAN cook on a fire if you are willing to blacken the pot
works better in wind
works better in cold
When I lead larger groups we use a white gas stove for cooking and this one just for boiling. We take the 16 oz canisters.
nothing melts snow or ice faster
durable
more fuel fits inside
wally world Colman side canisters fit inside
heavy and bulky for a solo hiker
Jet boil
kinda flimsy
nice to have igniter
bring spare lighter anyways
4 oz canisters are too small in my opinion unless your only out for a weekend solo
better solo stove
slightly lighter
attaching stove to cup sucks
If I was doing a solo long distance hike I would take this over the MRS
both are.....
fuel efficient
boil water fast
can use any size canister
both have horrible flame control so cooking can be a challenge.
both have larger pots you can buy
both are over priced
I lead trips from time to time and have many stoves but when I go out just myself or just my GF and I both stay at home. They are one trick ponys. They both suck for anything other then boiling water. I prefer my PR for anything above 40 and white gas for anything colder but I take my GSI dualist. Everything fits inside and you have many more options for cooking bowl and mugs and sporks. But my luxury item is my kitchen. I like to cook real food on the trial.
twosticks
03-11-2010, 15:55
that's the funny thing. i warm my canisters, keep my camera batteries in my pocket, keep my bladder in the bag at night so it doesn't turn to ice, but the jetboil just doesn't spark. bad jetboil? either way, my reactor is still more reliable!
Sounds like your piezo is cracked. That happened soon after I bought mine. No worries as I always carry a lighter. As for the rust, I keep my canister and "stove" in a old ski goggles bag. Everything is dry for the next time. I've been using mine now for over 4 years with my kids and without and have no complaints. Good stove. I don't recommend the coffee press though. It's hard to get the taste of coffee out.
As I understand it, there has been a problem with JetBoil, but I have an earlier model, and love that thing. If you go to REI, they have a chart that tells you if the one you have or are considering falls into the repair catagory. Luckily, mine was fine. Once you start using it, you may wonder why you hadn't gotten one sooner.
I have a Jetboil and rarely take it because the weight/benefit ratio is way out of whack for me.
Having said that, I had trouble with my ignition too... Look and see if you are getting a spark. If you are but still not getting the burner to light the spark is too far from where the gas escapes.
I solved my problem (permanently) but bending the ignitor over more so the spark would be closer to the escaping gas.
My JetBoil is one of the very early units. Mostly it is my "car stove" (for a quick cup of coffee or soup ) or loan unit. The piezo has not worked from almost the start (common problem then, not now)
You can use with it any cartridge that works with the standard Lindal valve , of course only the 100g fits inside the pot.
Mine hasn't rusted nor had problems with the lid, but I can see how some may have problems with that.
BTW, if you use a larger canister you can always fill the pot with other stuff, like food for example. So that space isn't wasted.
Franco
(I use the TiTri Caldera Cone and I always have a spare Mini Bic))
SmokeEater
04-02-2010, 10:13
Only one issue with the JB the ignitor, but i always carry a lighter anyways so that fixes that problem of not wanting to light. I have used it for three years now. I buy the smaller fuel cannisters and i can get up to 14 boils out of it pretty easily. No rust problems or breaking of plastic. A little bulky but very quick and easy.
I traded in my Jetboil for an MSR pocket rocket. Much better--the Jetboil is 15 oz. and the PR is 3.5. Just got the Soto OD-1R as I will be doing a month on the AT in Sept. It is rated better in the cold.
myles to go
07-05-2010, 11:19
I had trouble with my ignition too... Look and see if you are getting a spark. If you are but still not getting the burner to light the spark is too far from where the gas escapes.
I solved my problem (permanently) but bending the ignitor over more so the spark would be closer to the escaping gas.
Some times my stove will not start even tho it sparks. I solved this by cupping my hand around the bottom of the cup just at the time i turn the gas on and spark it . It seems to hold the gas in just enough for it to ignite every time.
theinfamousj
10-04-2010, 14:47
I have an older Jetboil I picked up at an REI garage sale. I don't know that I ever would have purchased a Jetboil, had it not been $12.
It was tagged as not having a working ignition and while there is an (albeit small) spark when I click the red button, this isn't enough to light the gas. The demo unit at REI had a spark that was 10x more powerful when I clicked its black ignition button.
So I followed the directions to remove the ignition and have cut that weight. I carry redundant firestarting stuff anyway, so have no need of ignition on my stove.
Since I got a used stove (and an older model at that), I can speak to the "rust" issue. Whoever had the stove before me managed to patina a circle around the very bottom outside ring of the cup. Since I have teensy hands, I am able to get my hands all the way down into the cup to clean it and determined that while it looks all the world like rust when looking at it, it is only a patina. So I stopped trying to remove it and just let the stove have its badge of honor.
I find that the bottom cup/heat exchanger guard/thingie is a PITA to remove from the cup when I want to cook with it. ESPECIALLY when it is cold. (Recently cooked in 20*F weather at 6k ft altitude.)
Don't know why other people are having trouble with the lid. Did they change the material? Mine is made of flexible silicone and is very easy to replace and remove by a peeling motion.
No trouble cleaning, since my hand fits in it just fine.
Ramen (provided you break the brick in half, hotdog style) fits in just fine.
Hot drinks are easy to make and drink.
Soup is easy to make.
Freezer bag cooking is easy.
This is going to be my above-the-treeline winter stove of choice. It beat my buddy's MSR stove for boiling water time which meant that I had delicious soup for myself and two others traveling with me (each soup cooked separately), before he even achieved a boil.
that's the funny thing. i warm my canisters, keep my camera batteries in my pocket, keep my bladder in the bag at night so it doesn't turn to ice, but the jetboil just doesn't spark. bad jetboil? either way, my reactor is still more reliable!
I have had a JetBoil for three years and love it. I had to replace the ignition module after I dumped it in the lake (don't ask). Replacement module was cheap and switching it out took only a few minutes. Nice thing about it was I was in the middle of my trip and could just light it with my Bic lighter until I could fix it.
dcmidnight
10-05-2010, 08:17
Curious if the people who have had ignition troubles had the PCS or the Flash? IIRC when I bought the Flash I remember reading that they had redone the ignitor design from the PCS model.
4eyedbuzzard
10-05-2010, 08:37
Just FWIW / IMO, I wouldn't buy or not buy ANY stove based on the ignition system. They ALL are prone to failure in the field. I'd figure that eventually I'd wind up lighting any stove with a bic, so I'd make my choice based on other criteria.
dcmidnight
10-05-2010, 09:13
I always have a mini-bic as backup but have never needed it. I think its safe to say that just about anything *can* be prone to failure.
"Just FWIW / IMO, I wouldn't buy or not buy ANY stove based on the ignition system. They ALL are prone to failure in the field. I'd figure that eventually I'd wind up lighting any stove with a bic, so I'd make my choice based on other criteria.'
yes, and on my first walk after I poo pooed the use of a magnesium stick "because my mini Bic never fails" it just happen that my Mini Bic got wet and as it was also a bit cold it would not start...
My mate had his magnesium stick, after striking it in vain for about 10 times to start my Caldera Cone stove I finally opted to get out some petroleum jelly smeared cotton ball and that lit up on the first strike.
generally below freezing I do that to start my alcohol stoves anyway.
(talk about back ups..I also had some matches , somewhere)
Of course the Mini Bic started working again about 30 min later (warmed up in my pocket)
I have the first version of the Jet Boil. The ignition never really worked from day one. It was a promo unit so I could not really send it back.
A friend fiddled with his and sort of worked but did not succeed with mine. So I just removed the offending part and used my Mini Bic , 'cause that always works...
From what I see in various forums the new version works much better (it could not really be worst)
BTW, the ignition on my Kovea Ti works .
Franco
This past weekend we camped at Speck Pond Shelter on one of the platforms.. Sunday morning when we awoke the temp was 32.4 F, just a smidge above freezing. My Jetboil and cannester spent the night under my vestibule.
I filled the pot with water, pushed the ignitor once, and off it went... This has always been my experience with the Jetboil... Never do I have to push the ignitor more than twice to get ignition. I will admit, that when I first got the stove, I bent the ignitor a smidge closer to the escaping gas..
Very pleased with the jetboil for boiling water... Efficient and fast!!!
Alpine Jack
10-25-2010, 19:44
I've been very pleased with the Jetboil. I can squeeze 32 boils (2 cups) from the smaller gas canisters. It might be heavier than my MSR, but seems twice as efficient. Yes, the igniter is lame, but I use my mini bic on all my others stoves too.
Speakeasy TN
10-26-2010, 18:17
I've had mine for a couple of weeks now. I've been using it at the house to get a feel for burn time on the cannister. I wonder if the wife will ever get used to the startup WHOOSH. Watching her jump is worth the cost! Super happy so far.
Try torching it with a little less gas flow. The older ones could really poof.
Tough on sleeves. (Glad it was fleece, not sil-nylon.)
i been using jet boils 6 years now ,i am very happy with mine:cool:neo
Trailbender
10-27-2010, 12:45
I use Esbit tabs on a bent piece of sheet metal. I don't like finicky gear, especially in the woods. As for weight, I can get 24+ burns out of 12 esbit tabs, which weigh 6 oz.
Personally, I can't justify the extra expense of a piezo ignition system. I've seen them fail too many times on the trail. Although, Jet Boil says it addresses this issue by protecting the piezo ignition from breakage. I've also heard that story before. If, for some unknown reason to me, you HAVE to have piezo ignition have a back-up ignition source too, which in my mind, defeats the purpose of having piezo ignition.
I know someone will say it's good to have a back-up source of ignition or a back-up to the back-up. BS. A mini bic or two OR a mini bic and magnesium flint OR mini bic and a few WP stick matches are cheaper and more versatile for starting a flame or creating a spark.
If the JetBoil system works for you great. It has several great features. It uses fuel efficiently for a gas stove because it combines the burner and cooking vessel into one unit and the flux ring was simply designed but made the stove that much more fuel efficient. The cozy attaches to the stove. The system nests nicely together, etc.
I wish I had designed the system, the Jet Boil accessories now available, and marketed it as effectively as has been so I could be on the receiving end of that handsome paycheck!
What I can't justify is the additional cost, usually about $1, for a small Jet Boil fuel canister that has only 100 g(3.53 oz) of a isobutane fuel mix versus the 110 g of fuel in a Snow Peak Giga Pro gold label isobutane mix(65 % isobutane, 35 % propane) or the 113 g of isobutane fuel mix in a MSR canister(80% isobutane, 20 % propane). IMO, these MSR and Snow Peak gas mixtures are just as efficient as the Jet Boil Isobutane mix. Additionally, the Snow Peak Giga Pro gold label fuel mix, with the added propane, is probably better than the Jet Boil fuel in the coldest temps that one would typically employ a isobutane stove or isobutane fuel mix. Keep in mind that I'm only comparing the fuel mixes not stoves!
Despite some searching I still could not find the isobutane/butane ratio of Jet Boil fuel. It seems Jet Boil is keeping that to itself for now. WHY? I had little issue locating the fuel ratios of all the other backpacking gas stove manufacturers and their fuel canisters! All I keep getting from Jet Boil is their blanket marketing statement about how efficient their fuel is. Show me the proof! Display your fuel ratio so we can compare it against other fuel mixes. I know the Jet Boil stove is fuel efficient for a gas stove but I want it demonstrated to me that Jet Boil fuel is so much more efficient than other comparable fuels that it should command/warrant the higher price tag FOR LESS FUEL! What's so special about Jet Boil fuel? Show me the proof!
Who ever is profiting from the sale of Jet Boil fuel canisters is sure making a steep profit by selling less fuel for a greater amount of money when the fuel in the Jet Boil canister is no better performing than the Snow Peak Giga Pro gold label isobutane fuel mix! If anything, I think the Snow Peak Giga Mix mentioned performs equal to or better than the Jet Boil fuel in equally cold temps! WHY would I pay more for less?
Dogwood, I use the Snow Peak canisters with my Jetboil all the time. They and the Jetboil brand canisters are the only ones I've found that fit inside the pot. In my limited experience I haven't seen any difference in performance between Snow Peak and Jetboil fuel.
Jethro, that's my contention too! So, why pay more money for less fuel if they perform the same? Why the additional cost of Jet Boil isobutane fuel? What justifies the extra expense of Jet Boil canisters, WHILE IN THE PROCESS YOU ARE GETTING LESS FUEL/LESS BOILS, if it's no better performing or more efficient of a fuel than the MSR or Snow Peak canister fuel!
Seems like I'm making a big deal about it but when you consider that someone might use quite a few gas canisters over the course of a long thru-hike or several thru-hikes the additional cost of Jet Boil fuel starts adding up. And, when you consider how many canisters Jet Boil sells in a year their additional profit starts adding up too! Another thing I would point out, as I surprisingly found out on one of my thru-hikes, because I had mistakenly assumed that the small Jet Boil canisters contained the same amount of fuel/boils as other canisters is that when using Jet Boil fuel canisters in my Snow Peak Giga gas stove(Jet Boil fuel canisters were the only ones I could find) I get LESS BOILS at a GREATER COST! This scenario came into play on one of my thru-hikes because I was expecting to get a set number of boils with the Jet Boil fuel canister as I get with other 4 oz(small) canisters. I ran out of fuel!