I am picking up a swedish military trangia stove for my planned "Jeep Escape Kit". As this is coming from overseas, they recommend using metrhyl alcohol for the stove exclusively. As, even though we speak the same parent language, sometimes things get lost in translation, is this the same fuel I would use in an alcohol stove? I had a homemade cat stove for quite a while, that suffered irreparable damage (crushed). I used HEET brand gas line antifreeze as fuel, with excellent results. Can I use the same fuel for these? I looked at the ingredients, and it seems the same. I just dont feel like ruining a stove though. Thanks for the help!

I don't have one (yet), but from all I have read, the answer is yes. Same fuels. Like you, I have had very good results with yellow HEET...

Well, after a little more research, they actually recommend the HEET brand as well. OBG, thanks for the input. I'll give a quick review as soon as I get my stove. Hopefully, within the next 2 weeks!

Reviews are always fun.

Be prepared, from what I have read, for it to be much heaver than the soda can stoves you may be used to. Heavy, but reportedly bombproof...

Yeah. I have one and it's a nice piece. Actually, it's pretty banged up but still functions great. The stove portion is probably bomb-proof. The 'wind screen' is very easily damaged so be careful with that. Other than that, it's a great little thing to have lying around for emergencies <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Well, after carrying an MSR multifuel stove, I'm sure it wont be TOO heavy. besides, It will sit in my Jeep, and, barring the occasional decompression overnighter, wont be carried too far. I normally use a pocketrocket when hiking. I just wanted something for the Jeep, as a backup to a backup to my main stove. And, its something new to play with <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />.

"...something new to play with..."

Always a good thing. I do the same with a soda can stove and grease pot, yours won't get squished like mine could be...

for questions about stoves i would go to www spiritburner.com..this is a site out of England that is devoted
to camp stoves..they have ALL the information you need on
fuel,repair,BTU output and on and on...

I have purchased a half dozen or so of the burners in the last few months and it seems that all of them have cracks in the lids that allow them to leak fuel. You may want to ask about this before you order the surplus ones

I just picked up a Vargo Triad alcohol stove. Will post a review when I get a chance. Haven't played with it in the dirt yet, but set it up the garage. Ultra light and very cool. Quicker to boil than the esbit and can be flipped over for esbit, hexi use.

M

I've got 4 or 5 of these surplus military sets, and have used them extensively over the past several years.

Though all of the surplus dealers refer to them as "Trangias", they really aren't. The burner is of the same design, though larger and made from heavier material than the commercial Trangias. Secondly, the burners were made by several contractors, of which Trangia was only one; Svea also made some, and there was a third company (whose name escapes me at the moment.)

Parts and accessories from the commercial Trangias will not fit.

If possible, look for one that is unissued. Used burners that have been poorly treated will sometimes be work-hardened and cracked, which makes them unusable. A nice, shiny new one (which are quite easy to find) will last many years with modest care.

Burn only denatured alcohol (pure ethanol or methanol), and never isopropyl. If you're in the U.S., denatured alcohol is readily available in just about any hardware or paint store. You can use the HEET gas line de-icer, which is nothing more than methanol - though it is considerably more expensive than buying the same stuff in the paint department at the hardware store.

I avoid the denatured alcohol sold as marine stove fuel; the blue coloring that they add to the alcohol reduces the burn efficiency, resulting in soot-blackened pots. Use clean, clear alcohol and you'll have no problems.

The burners are often referred to as "stormcookers", because the stronger the wind becomes, the better they burn! While they wont come near the prodigious output of a kerosene or white gas burner (not a good choice if you have frying to do) they are efficient enough to provide hearty meals, nearly silent, and just about as bomb-proof as a stove gets.

You can see pictures of my very first one at the spiritburner.com site:

http://spiritburner.com/collectors_galleries/g_cunningham/collectors_cunningham_swed_mil.htm

-=[ Grant ]=-

Thats the exact set I picked up. A guy in ME was selling off a bunch of them from his SAR team. I thought they were fairly expensive, but, I liked the idea of keeping everything together in one place. Once I burn off the HEET stuff, I will try the methyl stuff from a hardware store. I'm interested to see if one burns hotter than the other.
As far as damaged units; the guy I bought it off of on evil-bay had over 3000 positive feedbacks. And, through several emails, he assurred me that it works, and, if I'm not satisfied, to return it. does that mean he's a good guy? Nope, but it gave me a little more confidence.
And, worst case scenario, I can BUILD another alkie cooker for it. Give me a project to do <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />