Been out camping a bunch lately. Well "camping" in the sense of "sleeping outside near a parked vehicle" as in a drive-up campsite with the kids and their uncle and his kids.

In short - cooking on a campfire sucks. It's time for me to get one of those dual-burner stoves and I figure I might as well get one of the Coleman 424 models or similar.

Assuming that cost isn't an issue, what's the best bet for a dual-burner, multi-fuel cooking system? I don't want some featherweight backpack system, I want something I can toss in the car and cook fried eggs with a cast iron pan.

Is the Coleman the state of the art? Are there brands I never heard of?

The Coleman 424 model isn't really a dual fuel burner, I really wouldn't want to use anything other than Coleman white gas with it. I would basically rule out the possibility of using unleaded petrol with the Coleman. Using petrol is a last resort measure and quite a dangerous one.

For a Kerosene double burner the Optimus® 155W Kerosene cooker or the Optimus® Double Marine Stove might be worth looking into.

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/optimus-double-marine-stove.aspx?a=713474

For a portable LPG stove the Primus Oden Stove Stainless steel might be worth a look. A campingaz 907 butane refillable bottle can be used carrying around 5lbs of LPG. These are mostly used in European countries though.

Coleman also have their 1lb propane bottles for there dual burners.

http://www.coleman.com/coleman/ColemanCom/subcategory.asp?CategoryID=2010

I don't really think that there is a true multifuel dual burner available i.e. such as a dual Primus Himalaya Omnifiel. i.e. burns Kerosene, LPG, Coleman White gas, Unleaded Petrol and Diesel.

Probably best to stick with a propane or LPG gas dual burner. They are easy to set up and burn clean and are generally safer in use and to store.

Go with Coleman. Get the DualFuel (silver tank) model. I've used one for several years, but I've only used Coleman fuel in it. It will work with unleaded gasoline, but it's my understanding that doing so shortens the generator (fuel tube) life a bit. If that's a concern, pick up a couple of extra generators, too. They're relatively cheap, & easy to replace.

In addition to the dual fuel capability, pick up a propane converter for this stove. Century sells one (got mine at Wally World for about $15...made in USA, even!), and it allows using the same stove with 1-pound propane cylinders, or, with a hose, the 20# bulk tanks as used on grills. Really extends the versatility of the stove, & the propane is easier to use than the liquid fuel.

I have several Coleman 2 & 3 burner stoves, & the propane adapter will fit any of them. They're all easy to maintain & repair, & parts are generally readily available from Coleman, and common parts like pump repair kits & generators are available at big-box stores, and dozens of other places.

If you care to get out & hit some garage or yard sales, you can pick up practically new stuff for next to nothing. I paid $7 for my last 2-burner--a 1970s vintage stove still in the original cardboard box. didn't look like it had ever been lit! Others were even cheaper; just needed a little soap & water, & maybe a pump seal, tank cap, generator, or, worst case, all 3.

You won't go wrong with a Coleman stove.

David

Martin, I have a Coleman 424 that I use for car camping, but I run propane through it using this convertor. This taught me how much easier it is to run camp stoves off propane and the big LP tanks (with adapter). I want to dump my Coleman dual-fuel (tri-fuel?) stove and just go with a single-fuel propane one. The weight and size savings along with ease of use are significant.

-Blast

p.s. All my camp pots and pans are castiron and the propane heats them up easily.

keep a eye out for a old used one at yard sales.i have about ten of those Coleman suitcase stoves and never payed more than $10.one new in the box for that much.the older ones seem to me made a bit more heavy than the new.like Blast said get a propane converter and a couple small bottles and your good to go for a easy light up.Coleman fuel works great and burns hot if you want to take a minute to pre-heat the burner.the second burner over on the left does not seems to burn as hot has the main on the right.if you really want to get into it look for a THREE burner in an aluminum case,that will cook meals for a big gang of hungry kids.there are lots of Coleman copy's from Sear,Wards and some off brands,i have those too, and they all seem to work just as good.so anyway watch the yard sales.used stoves need a bit of cleaning to clear the generator but just running them with some carb cleaner in the fuel does the trick.cobwebs--no joke--in the big vaporizer tube is a common problem.

If you're not cooking in temperatures below, say, 50F/10C, then I fully agree with Blast: Propane (or propane/butane) is the way to go. Very easy to use. No fuss.

Due to much higher pressure, pure propane comes in heavy canisters which are different from your lightweight butane/propane canisters. But when it's chilly, butane/propane canisters give up their ghost long time before a pure propane canister.

My impression is that anyone and his cousin can and will make propane burners that work well. You don't have to worry about fuel tank and pressurizing the system - just a valve and a burner. But then there are accessories... like pot stand, piezo-electric ignotion and such. And particular ultra-light stoves will give you a welding torch which will burn the food in the center of your pot if you're not careful. For the use you describe you're better off with a bigger diameter head that fans the energy out over a larger area.


In some areas I am so sceptical that it is probably borderline neurotic. I know dual-fuel or multi-fuel stoves have extensive track record & dirt time, but still I can't get comfortable with the concept. In my head, a burner is designed to run optimally on one fuel and one fuel only. But hey, that's just me. My impression though, is that most multi/omni/dual owners will converge on the fuel they're most happy with, and then stick with that.


Me, I use a propane/butane burner with a pre-heat loop (the one Trangia makes to go with their system - a single fuel burner, mind you). The purpose of the pre-heat loop (the fuel line has a loop that goes through the flames) is to evaporate liquid propane in the burner head, as opposed to in the gas canister. I can flip the canisters upside down and feed liquid propane/butane into the burner. This is NOT recommended practice and has some disadvantages, but it works as a charm for the experienced pyromaniac. It greatly extends the usability of the stove in mild and cold conditions.

I purchased the MSR Whisperlite International.

I like it so far, I've only used it once. From the limited number of stoves I've seen other use there are a few advantages:

- Separate tank (top it off before you leave)
- Quieter than some I've seen
- Collapsable/Portable (it's under their Expedition classification, not Basecamp )
- Comes with two nozzle jets for multi-fuel use:
IG - White Gas/Unleaded Gasoline
K - Kerosene/Diesel

Here is the product listing at MSR: http://cascadedesigns.com/msr/stoves/expedition-stoves/whisperlite-internationale/product

Here is the users manual in PDF:
http://www.365adventure.com/reviews/manuals/whisperlite-international-manual-english.pdf (source of nozzle jet information)

It is somewhat expensive. Around $100.

I would keep it as uncomplicated as possible. I like the idea of the straight propane models. Fuel is everywhere and it fits the need of car camping. Get a big tank and a distribution tree and yo can run the stove and light.

My $.02

Consider purchasing one of the admittedly expensive "volcano" water boiling thingies as a pot; it will also work as a stand-alone wood/debris-burning water-boiler and stove if other fuels run low. Kelly Kettle, Thermette, ?Edyon?, are names I recall.

Having just seen another program where people are shivering in a vehicle:
Is there any reason one cannot use the vehicle fuel to keep warm? Just put some of the petrol/diesel/aviation fuel in a pot and burn it?
In World War II british tommmies in the desert simply filled a tin with sand, poured petrol on it and lit it.
qjs