Anyone here have experience with alcohol stoves? The simplicity and ease of use factors make them attractive, but which one should I get?

Are the "Pepsi can" stoves adequate or do I need to go commercial?

Any experiences from field use would be helpful.

Thanks

They work just not as fast as the white gas and canister stoves. Get a swedish mess kit seen them for around 10 bux with burner. I have one and a trangia 27 won't part with them.

Lee

i have a milltary "trangia", civilian trangia, trangia clone and loads of homemade alcohol stoves. All work just fine in cooking mine meals.

The bought alcohol stoves are sturdier, last longer and you are able to hold a certain amount of fuel in them when packed. The civilian trangia are lighter and quicker than the milltary one.

The home made one are perform surpisingly well. Mine favorite design is this http://www.thehanddrill.com/halconstove.htm It's easy to make, even in the field and works well. Just don't step on it.

One word: Trangia.

I have two, and I wouldn't part with them for all the tea in China (or, is that Sri Lanka? Whatever.) Built like tanks, blindingly siimple, and earth-friendly fuel. Yes, you will have to wait a few more minutes to get your boil on. But ask yourself - aren't you out camping to get AWY from all of the rush, rush of daily life?? And Trangias are quiet, too. (If you want to see my setup, go here .)


Quick story: Last year I was camping with my son's Scout Pack. One of the dads (a lawyer, of course...) whips out his brand new JetBoil. He spends five minutes or so waxing on to the other parents at the campfire about how amazing and fast it is. He then spends another five minutes trying to get it to work. In that time, I had set up my low-tech Trangia and stove mount, and had (quietly) boiled water for my coffee, (I also got his Jetboil to work after I had made my morning cup of Joe. ) I'll let you draw your own conclusions.

Hope this helps,

.....CLIFF
(like, who else?)

Just a sidebar (get it, the guy was a lawyer! I crack myself up) on the JetBoil. Don't bother with more than one try on the Piezo igniter, they are notoriously finicky. If it doesn't light on the first try, use a match. Once it's lit, it boils faster than anything around.

I've got a couple military surplus (Swedish, I think) Trangias, and the comments from others about thier durability are spot on. They only have one problem, and that is cold weather- alcohol doesn't vaporize very well when it is cold, so you need to keep your fuel and stove warm (easy- they are little enough to carry in your jacket) and you need a baseplate of some kind to keep them insulated.

For fuel, I like the methenol HEET antifreeze (yellow bottle). Good long shelf life, multipurpose, and easy to handle. I've also tried various brands of painters denatured ethanol, pure ethanol of a couple of proofs (vodkas, I wasn't wasting good stuff :P ), and a couple others. Some might have had slightly faster boil times, but transfering to an aluminum or plastic fuel bottle was a pain in the butt. Just don't try isopropyle (sp)- it has water in it, doesn't burn worth beans.

As for the home made jobbies, I've made a few. Some were good, some were in different, some were just bad. A lot of it depends on the state of mind you had while making it, and the cans used. They work, but quality control just isn't as consistant.

yet another vote for the Trangia stove. i'm using the 25-7 duossal and its great. the cleanest burning fuel i've found is Everclear (190 proof i think) expensive yes, but burns extremely clean and hot. of course, if i used it more than a few times a month i'd probably use HEET or something much more affordable. here's the trangia website:
http://www.trangia.se/

Outside magazine's "Gear Guy" responded to questions about alcohol stoves a couple of times. See What's the deal with alcohol stoves? and Will a homemade alcohol stove be enough for the AT?

I have a couple of Trangia stoves but in the field I've always preferred the flat solid-fuel Esbit-style stoves instead. One reason is a fear of spilling burning liquid fuel. Another is that although the Trangia by itself is small, it seems to need more paraphenalia in the form of stands and windshields. The bought solutions are big, and my home-made ones are a bit too clunky to be a pleasure to use.

Two advantages of the liquid fuel are that you can ignite it with a spark (when it's warm) without needing an intermediate tinder; and the Trangia has a simmer cap and a bigger fuel store so it is probably a more realistic tool for "proper" cooking.

I'm not sure either counts as a long-term solution unless you can stockpile a huge amount of fuel, or can make it yourself somehow.

Thanks for all the great info!

Sportsman Guide has used Swedish Military burners priced at 6 for $12.97. This is not the full mess set, just the burner.

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/cb/cb.asp?a=272821

I have some of the surplus messkit stove sets. The main thing is that the plastic container for the alcohol does not take well to overheating/freezing (in truck toolbox). Went camping this last week and decided to make sure that I had enough fuel. Both bottles were empty, so I filled up before leaving. Next day, got ready to make coffee and found that the flask was leaking badly from a stress crack. Didn't lose too much fuel but I decided to get a staineless flask for next time.

A few months ago, I made a "penny stove" ; works fine. My only problem is I have no windscreen yet, and the stand for the pot is minimalist and not very sturdy.

Last month, I bought a mini-Trangia set ; I tried it this week-end, under perfect conditions (in my kitchen : no rain ; no wind !) : looks like you have to let it burn some time, before putting the pot over the burner ; if not, the flame goes out ! <img src="/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

even though they are very light and small, thats my main concern with those can type stoves, accidentally knocking it over. and i tend to be little clumsy sometimes. plus with the trangia setup it has a great windscreen. congratulations on successfully making a penny stove. those look really neat.

Sorry for the late reply, I just joined this forum. I am a big fan of alcohol stoves and I have made several. The pepsi can stove works well, as does the cat can stove. You can find instructions for these stoves and others by googling Wings: the homemade stove archive. If you wish to purchase, a mini-Trangia is a good bet if you can find one. The advantage of a mini-trangia over a homemade stove is having a compact kit that all fits in a nice little package. Alcohol stoves use cheap fuel which you can find in any hardware store. They light in cold weather, rainy weather and windy weather. Spilling in safe for the environment. No moving parts (KISS). In a pinch, you can make one with a bit of aluminum foil and the heel of your boot. I also recommend that you learn how to make and operate a hobo stove. Always good to be flexible. Use your alcohol stove for camping, hiking and emergency kit. Cooking with one is different from a gas stove. Control is by distance from the flame and how much alcohol you start with. Anything simple like boiling, simmering or frying you can do with an alcohol stove.
Downsides: alcohol has less heat capacity than other fuels such as esbit tablets, so it is more bulky.

Jerome Howard