isobutane fuel canisters

[augie]

How is the availibilty of the Iso-butane fuel canisters along the trail. I'm hoping that the Class of 04 has some input on how tough it is to get these or if anyone used the Pocket Rocket on a thru hike and what their experience was with this stove.
Augie

[tlbj6142]

This has been covered before. Do a quick search on canister stoves, you should get a hit.

Given that 1 8oz canister (12oz weight) can last almost 14 meals (which is probably 14 days?) you will not have an issue locating canisters. However, you may need to carry two (one almost empty, one full) for short stretches.

You can mail them, but many USPS postmasters will claim otherwise. I believe the USPS "rules" is mentioned in one of the more recent threads on the topic.

[tlbj6142]

Here is a thread worth reading...

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=2868&highlight=canister+usps

Might want to read all 5-6 threads that show up on a search for "canister usps". Thay are all good reads.

In short, yes you can. Yes you can mail them. And Yes you can find them along the trail.

[augie]

Yellow Jacket,

Thanks so much for the info.

Augie

[Kerosene]

I rely on canister stoves for my 6-10 day section hikes and love them for their ease of use and speed. However, I would quickly switch over to an alcohol stove if I was doing a thru-hike. For most meals I just need boiling water, and after awhile an extra minute or two doesn't make any difference. They're quiet, you don't have to carry one or two steel canisters, you can see your fuel level, it's easier to resupply, you don't have to specially dispose of empty canisters, and if you do happen to run out then you can probably get one of your trail buddies to lend you a thimble full. For a true long-distance hike I would go with alcohol unless I was cooking gourmet meals (in which case you'll need to resupply more often and you'll stop doing it after a month or so).

[The Gnome]

I agree with Kerosene:

Canisters are great for the 1-2 week section hike where you start with a “full tank” and are confident of your mileage plan. I use a 20yr old Gaz stove with the piercing type canisters that are hard to find. I usually run a partial can out by using it at home to ensure I start fresh. The ONE time I neglected this step, the seal on the stove leaked my remaining gas by the third day. Fortunately, I carried a few spare Esbit tablets to see me through. Now I’m a convert to Alcohol stoves.

[Mouse]

I preferred my Pocket Rocket canister stove instead of alcohol during the cold weather. During the warm weather I had initially planned to consider switching to alcohol but instead quit cooking altogether!

Given that a canister seemed to last about a month, I had no trouble finding a new cannister before wearing out the old one. As someone mentioned, once I carried two cannisters for a few days until the old one wore out.

I had no trouble mailing my canister ahead in my bounce box in two-week jumps from Pearisburg all the way north to Connecticut. But it would not surprise me if a clerk somewhere refused to mail canisters.