View Full Version : Jetboil PCS stove question
I've seen many AT hikers using the Jetboil PCS stove, and all of them seem to love it for its efficiency and user friendliness. I'm thinking of getting one, but still prefer my Snow Peak Litemax stove with a simple titanium UL pot.
my question is on weight of the Jetboil. Websites advertise the Jetboil PCS weight at approx 15 oz. Does anyone know... is 15 oz. the Jetboil stove weight, not including the fuel canister?
I'm guessing the answer is the 15 oz. weight is without the fuel canister, so including the fuel canister, total weight is closer to 25 oz.
I'm actually thinking of ditching the stove entirely for upcoming AT hike to save some weight...
It's light. I have one and you can also use an alcohol base under it. I like it because it's versitile...thats MYO.
Serial 07
01-12-2011, 17:23
just weighed them...
stove out the packaging: 15oz
stove with full fuel cell: 21 oz
the Jetboil is awesome, but heavy...it is way more efficient, but it's a bit weighty...
4eyedbuzzard
01-12-2011, 17:46
Wait for the <10 oz version that's coming out this spring
Sorry for the bit of a high jack, but I'm considering one of these also. They say 1 liter for the cup.
Does it really hold 1 liter? How much is it actually possible to cook in it safely?
For instance Pasta Ronis 2 cups of water, plus the 5.1oz ingredients- shpuld fit okay, or no?
couscous
01-12-2011, 18:09
A lighter titanium version will be released this spring.
http://www.trailspace.com/gear/jetboil/sol-ti/
I love mine. I've thought of going stove-less, but haven't gotten away from a hot cup of tea in the morning.
On my last hike, with temps around 30F, I stopped several times throughout the day and made a hot cup of herbal tea. Nice to just trek on down the trail with Jetboil in hand sipping my tasty hot beverage on such a cold day.
Sorry for the bit of a high jack, but I'm considering one of these also. They say 1 liter for the cup.
Does it really hold 1 liter? How much is it actually possible to cook in it safely?
For instance Pasta Ronis 2 cups of water, plus the 5.1oz ingredients- shpuld fit okay, or no?
Yes its an actual 1Lter. yes its easy and faster. 2 mins 30 second boil...For real..
If all you do is boil water, you might like this:
http://www.theboilerwerks.com/
JaxHiker
01-12-2011, 18:48
Fine for boiling but not cooking. I love my Litemax.
Fog Horn
01-12-2011, 19:25
Wait for the <10 oz version that's coming out this spring
How accurate is this statement?!
It's supposed to be 255 grams (9 ounces) for the titanium Jetboil Sōl Ti PCS.
JaxHiker
01-12-2011, 20:27
$150 is some serious jack for a stove.
Serial 07
01-12-2011, 20:36
very excited about this! can't wait to see them in the shop...
Fog Horn
01-14-2011, 18:56
$150 is some serious jack for a stove.
Well worth it if it gets me through the hike. Says it works down to 20* weather as well now. This is exciting to me. Nine ounces for the stove. That's fantastic.
FatherTime09
01-14-2011, 19:05
This isn't any help but reminds me of the time I was on the trail in 2009, and if anyone remembers Yoon, the 53 year old Korean man who didn't speak a lick of English when I met him... Well, we hung with him for a while at the beginning to help him out and teach him some English. Anyways... for whatever reason (I don't remember what type of stove he had) but he wanted a new stove, and decided to buy a JetBoil at Neels Gap. So we're at the Franklin Inn, and he's trying to explain to me that he wants to cut the pot off his JetBoil. (I'm not all too familiar with it, but I remember there's the heat exchanger kinda thing attatched to the pot and you can't really cook with another pot) So he wanted to use this monster of a pot he had (very adamant about this) and I'm trying to convince him not to hack up his $100 stove he just bought. But we ended up getting a hack saw blade from the dollar store, and I told him I didn't know if it would even cut it (being Ti, or so I thought), but he went at it and had the pot cut off in no time, to my surprise. Ended up working great for him, he could put the heat exchanger thingy on there, rest his pot on top, and he was one happy Korean! Even more so when he had a beer in his hand later that night!
JaxHiker
01-14-2011, 20:06
Well worth it if it gets me through the hike. Says it works down to 20* weather as well now. This is exciting to me. Nine ounces for the stove. That's fantastic.
I suppose it's not that far off from buying a Soto Micro Regulator for $70 and adding a SP Trek 900 Ti for $45. However, you actually shave a little weight (2.6 for the stove and 6 for the pot set = 8.6 oz vs 9 oz) and gain the added flexibility of doing real cooking. You can use the small fry pan for little stuff (I love me some fried Spam!) or take a little extra weight in the form of a larger pan for bigger stuff.
Again, if boiling water is all you ever see yourself doing the JB is a great stove. Just don't try using non-JB cookware for cooking or you risk damaging your gear (trust me).
4eyedbuzzard
01-14-2011, 21:31
I suppose it's not that far off from buying a Soto Micro Regulator for $70 and adding a SP Trek 900 Ti for $45. However, you actually shave a little weight (2.6 for the stove and 6 for the pot set = 8.6 oz vs 9 oz) and gain the added flexibility of doing real cooking. You can use the small fry pan for little stuff (I love me some fried Spam!) or take a little extra weight in the form of a larger pan for bigger stuff.
Again, if boiling water is all you ever see yourself doing the JB is a great stove. Just don't try using non-JB cookware for cooking or you risk damaging your gear (trust me).
The biggest difference would be that the SP or other cookware doesn't have a heat exchanger ring built on it like the Jetboil, which is an engineered system. And Jetboil does make a pot stand adapter to use other cookware with the JB stove. The biggest thing with the Jetboil is how convenient it is. And it is flat out probably the fastest and easiest way to heat up water, soup, coffee, noodles, whatever. The downside is versatility. You definitely don't want to use the JB mug/pot on an open wood fire, and the stove can't be used without the pot stand adapter with other cook pots. Not that the pot stand is all that heavy (Maybe an ounce or two), but it's just one more thing. Like most stuff, there are always trade-offs and compromises.
JaxHiker
01-14-2011, 22:46
I have the pot stand. I bought into the JB stuff hook line and sinker. While the pot stand is good in theory, in practice (at least for me) it doesn't work so well. As you said, the JB cup and cookware utilizes the heat exchanger system. This means that all of the flame is basically pointed straight up to maximize the exchanger.
Unfortunately this doesn't work so well (again, ymmv) with non-JB cookware. I warped the bejeezus out of my nice GSI fry pan trying to make pancakes one morning. All that heat getting directed to the center of the pan caused the center to rise up so that the batter ended up running to the edges (it was a considerable bump in the center). Just because you use the pot stand doesn't mean the heat gets distributed evenly with other cookware.
I'll concede that it's very efficient at boiling water.
I was doing some winter testing on my gear a week ago and let my fuel canister sit out for about 20 minuets, then put it in my bag for about 20 minutes. When I broke out the JetBoil it boiled two cups in about 5 minutes (wasn't timing it). This was in 13* weather. Worked 100 times better than my friends pocket rocket head to head in those conditions.
I have yet to take it out on a trip but am really liking the whole setup. As for using a frying pan with it I have yet to test that out so I can not say anything about pans being warped.
Fog Horn
01-15-2011, 00:34
Again, if boiling water is all you ever see yourself doing the JB is a great stove. Just don't try using non-JB cookware for cooking or you risk damaging your gear (trust me).
I plan on doing a lot of freezer bag cooking, maybe some oatmeal, mac n cheese, hot chocolate, things of this nature. I LOVE things like bacon and pancakes and whatnot, but if I get a heavy craving for them, chances are I can find some in a trail town within a couple of days. I'm not committed to the JetBoil PCS quite yet, but I'm leaning towards it because I think it fits all my real needs, especially now at nine ounces.
We'll see. The ease of the system along with the variety of FBC makes me think its my deal. I'm super lazy when I'm exhausted, and won't spend the energy cooking full blown meals.
Northern Lights
01-15-2011, 01:49
Sorry for the bit of a high jack, but I'm considering one of these also. They say 1 liter for the cup.
Does it really hold 1 liter? How much is it actually possible to cook in it safely?
For instance Pasta Ronis 2 cups of water, plus the 5.1oz ingredients- shpuld fit okay, or no?
Yes you can easily fit this into it. It can probably hold 4 cups as the 2 cup mark is about halfway up the mug. Is it heavy? Not really, it's all relative.
JaxHiker
01-15-2011, 10:34
I think at 9 oz it would be a great system for FBC.