New gear - Tea kettle

BlackHills

BlackHills

Joined
Nov 6, 2006
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Like Brian in his "Tea Kettle Cozy" post, I had recently looked at these to replace a regular cookset as 99% of the time I'm just boiling water. I thought the kettle would be more useful and lighter as well. After poking around on the net I had decided on the Primus Litech model. Before ordering one online, last Friday I stopped by the local sporting goods store on a whim and they had them in stock. :eek: They only had the smaller 0.9l model but I decided that should be big enough for my needs. It's hard-anodized aluminum and weighs 5.3 oz according to the manufacturer. Primus also makes a 1.5l model.

So far I've only used it on the stove in the house but it works very well and seems to be more efficient than a regular pan w/lid. I think that may be because the reduced size means less material to heat along with the water...or it could be in my head. I'm going to look for a cork or cap for the spout which should keep things cleaner inside and possibly increase the efficiency even more. While the opening isn't huge I think it should be large enough that you could cook inside if you wanted and the handle would allow you to use it over a fire. The price is under $20.


k1.jpg


This gives you a good idea of the size...

k2.jpg
 
I wonder if all the squat little kettles are made by the same company. (Mine's the GSI kettle.)

I made an aluminum foil ball to use as a stopper for the spout, and compared boiling times with and without. Absolutely no difference. I'll be interested in your experiments.
 
Looks good man, I've got a little $6 stainless steel kettle about the same size. Funny that those seem to be taking off so much lately!
 
I like the idea of carrying a kettle.

I'm in love with my new Ghille Kettle. It's a bit of a pain in the neck to carry -- it's bulky (10" tall and 5" dia.). But it works so well and is so convenient, I've been strapping it onto my daypack. It's listed as .5 liter, but it boils about 22 oz. or so very quickly. All you need are some twigs, sticks, pinecones, etc. to fuel it. You don't even need to prepare a place to build a fire; the fire is contained in the kettle.

http://www.ghillie-kettle.co.uk/page8.html

http://www.ghillie-kettle.co.uk/page4.html

Here's a video of the similar (but larger size) Kelly Kettle:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFDDVPkx8AY&feature=related

With your conventional kettle, you can store stuff inside when it's packed. The Ghille or Kelly Kettle gets full of soot and creosote inside, so the space is wasted. :(

That Primus kettle looks bombproof and well-designed. I may have to try one of those! :thumbup:

Stay sharp,
desmobob
 
SpookyPistolero said:
Funny that those seem to be taking off so much lately!
Click to expand...

If I had to guess, I'd say it's because freezer bag cooking is getting more popular. It might also be because side-burner alcohol stoves are so popular and kettles are just starting to play catch-up. I bought my kettle to go along with my White Box alcohol stove. The wide flat bottom of the kettle works great with the stove as flames aren't curling up around the sides. More efficient heat transfer. BTW- Amazon seems to carry all the various brands.
 
I had one just like that that I gave to mike, now I use my snowpeak solo. I love the kettle though, they work awesome!
 
Wow, that's awesome. In the first picture, it seemed huge. With the SAK as a scale, it's almost pocket sized.
 
task force k said:
Wow, that's awesome. In the first picture, it seemed huge. With the SAK as a scale, it's almost pocket sized.
Click to expand...

That made me curious so I tried it in the cargo pocket on a pair of cammies (BDUs for you Army types). It will fit easily. It's 6" across and 2 7/8" to the top of the lid.
 
BlackHills said:
That made me curious so I tried it in the cargo pocket on a pair of cammies (BDUs for you Army types). It will fit easily. It's 6" across and 2 7/8" to the top of the lid.
Click to expand...

6"? Seriously? That's even smaller than it looks in the second picture. Way cool.
 
Ive got one of those that holds 3 cups and Ive coupled it with a penny stove I made out of 24 oz Heineken cans. I burn grain alcohol and it boils that amount of water in about 10 minutes with stove time left over. The g.a. burns very clean.--KV
 
I like those, looks like the perfect size really. I have a really old taller and clunkier kettle.
 
I've used the hell out of my little primus kettle. because of the flat design it stores in the pack well and it is pretty easy to get boiling by setting on 3 rocks and getting a fire going with sticks.
 
kettles are essential for camping in my opinion! there is no greater pleasure than standing and chatting with friends in the woods drinking hot sweet milky tea:D

mind you, i'm english so i'm biased about tea
 
I saw those, but went backwords and got this.
C1677CoffeeBoilerGray.jpg


Its just going to be handy for car camping anyway.

I want to get a much larger one for the big campouts like this
DSC03818.jpg
 
I take one of mine out back to the woods with me to have a good hot cup of coffee:

004-Copy7-4.jpg


010-Copy8.jpg


They really do heat up the water quick!

Cliff
 
They also work great for ramen and packaged soups, just bring one of those gsi foldable ladle spoons, they have a beveled tip that scours the bottom edge of the pot perfectly. Try to pour and noodles will hit the ground from hungry hiking experience. The wide bottom sets great on 3 rocks and boils fast. I have the primus and gsi and don't notice a big difference.
 
I have an older GSI (I think) kettle that I've used on coals and it's none the worse for wear.

I suppose the heat could weaken the welds but I've never had a problem.

B
 
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