Old camp stove reborn

[il padrone]

I really couldn't believe my eyes when strolling about the SJS website, to see that they have this old stove for sale. All new and updated!

I still have my old one from the 70s (the Optimus 8R) and it still works a treat. Been threatening to take it out on a camping tour sometime. Now maybe I can without being seen as an old fuddy duddy

[redned]

I had one for years and used it cross-country skiiing, tramping in NZ and overseas car touring. It was a terrific piece of work. Only problem was that it ran on Shellite, which I couldn't always get, esprcially overseas.

Unfortunately it was stolen from my house in Darwin some years ago. The low-life that stole it probably didn't know what it was or how to use it and threw it out.

Mine had all-brass tank and fittings.

[Mike Ayling]

The model that I have does not have a pump and after pre heating the jet with metho you simply open the valve and stand clear!

Boils a lot quicker than a Trangia but I am in no hurry these days when cycling so I use the Trangia.

But in cold wet conditions there is an advantage in getting your hot drink or meal a lot quicker that the Trangia can manage.

Mike

[il padrone]

The model that I have does not have a pump and after pre heating the jet with metho you simply open the valve and stand clear!

Boils a lot quicker than a Trangia but I am in no hurry these days when cycling so I use the Trangia.

Yes, mine has no pressurising pump and is all-brass. I eventually did the pre-heating with small fuel pellets, for greater safety.

But in cold wet conditions there is an advantage in getting your hot drink or meal a lot quicker that the Trangia can manage.

The Trangia doesn't heat very quickly at all in very cold conditions, nor at altitude, so the shellite stoves are better for those situations. Also shellite has a greater energy-density, so less is needed for longer trips.

[hartleymartin]

I still like my soft-drink-can stove (50ml of metho and away you go!) I use an old milo tin lid as a primer pan. Burns nice and hot for about 7 minutes (boils water in about 4), although you can't really control the heat. Be prepared to work fast with eggs and bacon, and I have to work out a better way to cook sausages with it.

[il padrone]

I still like my soft-drink-can stove (50ml of metho and away you go!) I use an old milo tin lid as a primer pan. Burns nice and hot for about 7 minutes (boils water in about 4),

How much water?

If it's a litre, you'd better market that stove! Generally shellite stoves take ~3 mins to boil 1L, while the Trangia takes at least twice that time.

http://adunk.ozehosting.com/trangia.html

Conclusions:
Gas stoves are apparently able to boil a litre of water in 3-6 minutes (depending on the stove). Trangia stoves (which burn methylated spirits) take around 9-10 minutes from a cold-start. The second litre boiled takes significantly less time on a warm stove. So, Trangia's are slower, but certainly not painfully so.

Another interesting review of several stoves, with features, boiling times and fuel consumption. I now know why I love my MSR Pocket Rocket iso-butane canister stove - 3:15 mins and 10g of fuel .

[hartleymartin]

I still like my soft-drink-can stove (50ml of metho and away you go!) I use an old milo tin lid as a primer pan. Burns nice and hot for about 7 minutes (boils water in about 4),

How much water?

If it's a litre, you'd better market that stove! Generally shellite stoves take ~3 mins to boil 1L, while the Trangia takes at least twice that time.

Not sure how much it is... about enough for 3 mugs of tea, or a packet of noodles, or a bowl of soup usually.

I don't think I'll be able to market them, considering that they are made out of rubbish and take almost zero skill to make.

[RosscoG]

People have marketed them.
Just garage setups as far as I know but, making some really nice little stoves and yes, still out of old cans. Green sells.
Community based tweaking has brought them a long way in effectiveness too.

I had one for a while, although I'm not really into the super light trekking type gear as I was generally camping out while working.
What I have found much more usefull.... ok, more fun, is a gasifying camp stove. Again, made out of scrap materials.
More recently I have been working on one that can operate for hours untended with only several handfuls of small sticks and stuff that not only cooks dinner, but is a mini power plant for the camp site. Lighting and charging of all those mod cons for the next day.