im getting geared up for my 2004 thru-hike and i have yet to decide on a stove. at the moment im considering 2--the optimus nova and the trangia 27. ive never used either white gas or alcohol before so im relativeley clueless to the benifits/hindrance of using either. after alot of research i can see both the plusses and the minuses for both. i like the metal pump of the optimus and the apparent ease of simmering and i also like the relative ease and idiot-proofness of the trangia but as a complete newbie i was wondering if the more edcuated people might be able to shed some insight as to which may be a better purchace