The Kelly Kettle Reviewed

CWL said:
You'll find it a lot easier to tote around than the Kelly Kettles, but still big enough for 2.

Get or make a coke can alcohol stove for it, there's room to keep it in the bottom of the base. Makes for faster, hotter & less sooty cooking sessions.
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I'll have to play around with it a bit. I've got a lot to work out with all of this. I "reviewed" the Kelly Kettle but I left a lot open. I know what the features are, I just am not 100% sure of how it will fit with me. I have a lot of different ways of doing things and a lot of different environments/trips. It doesn't hurt to have more options I reckon. Thanks for your suggestions for the alcohol stove. I have a series of videos on that from when I was experimenting with them. I use them, just haven't relied on them in deep wilderness yet.
 
Great review,I've had a large KK 7 kit for a few years now, great for car camping, the canoe and other places, have though about a smaller one in SS for packing with.....I too store matches, lighter, some fire starting material , newspaper/cardboard with my kit as well...
 
averageiowaguy said:
I'll have to play around with it a bit. I've got a lot to work out with all of this. I "reviewed" the Kelly Kettle but I left a lot open. I know what the features are, I just am not 100% sure of how it will fit with me. I have a lot of different ways of doing things and a lot of different environments/trips. It doesn't hurt to have more options I reckon. Thanks for your suggestions for the alcohol stove. I have a series of videos on that from when I was experimenting with them. I use them, just haven't relied on them in deep wilderness yet.
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I looked at and considered the Kelly Kettle for a long long time, but ultimately did not get one because it was simply too big for my needs. I like to pack everything on my back and am into ultralight backpacking. The Swiss Volcano stove is even a bit "heavy" for me sometimes, but I've been using alcohol coke can stoves for maybe 10 years now in the Sierras. They have never failed me and burn hot enough to compete with the gas cartridge fuel stoves that other's have brought (I hate these because of the disposable cans). I do have one made from a soup can that is much sturdier than the soda pop cans.
 
AIG
Great review. I will be looking at the smaller version in the near future. A qui k question O.T. What type of jacket do you have on in thay video.
Thanks.
 
Tasselhoff said:
AIG
Great review. I will be looking at the smaller version in the near future. A qui k question O.T. What type of jacket do you have on in thay video.
Thanks.
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I think it is the Condor knockoff of the one by TAD gear. I can't remember the model number, but it is a famous knockoff. I like it a lot.
 
I already wanted one, but now I'm gonna buy one after Christmas. Great info Doc, thanks!
 
^^ same here think ill try to pop one after the holidays too looks like a good piece of kit:thumbup:
 
Success thru funtion

A really important point of the Kelly Kettle is that is a dedicated kettle for only boiling water where the cooking ability is limited
This is excellent for a cuppa tea and freeze dried meals

I personally prefer stoves that I can both boil water and cook food
The Mini-Trangia set is an example a small self contained set
But it uses alchol not wood, which makes it cleaner
 
neeman said:
Success thru funtion

A really important point of the Kelly Kettle is that is a dedicated kettle for only boiling water where the cooking ability is limited
This is excellent for a cuppa tea and freeze dried meals

I personally prefer stoves that I can both boil water and cook food
The Mini-Trangia set is an example a small self contained set
But it uses alchol not wood, which makes it cleaner
Click to expand...

You can do more than just boil water with the Kelly. If you watch the whole video, there is a grill accessory. It's not going to allow you to cook large amounts of food for a group, but you can cook with it.

I have a Trangia as well, and like it for what it is. But it's also really nice to not have to carry a bottle of fuel around sometimes. And have you ever tried to use an alcohol stove in cold temps?
 
Smithhammer said:
You can do more than just boil water with the Kelly. If you watch the whole video, there is a grill accessory. It's not going to allow you to cook large amounts of food for a group, but you can cook with it.

I have a Trangia as well, and like it for what it is. But it's also really nice to not have to carry a bottle of fuel around sometimes. And have you ever tried to use an alcohol stove in cold temps?
Click to expand...

I use Alcohol in cold not sub freezing weather
And I know the attachments on the kettle
But I would not want to cook pasta that way

I just like the relative fuss less ness of an alcohol stove
 
I have had a stove warming with the small Trekker model.

Thoughts on it so far:
1) Don't bother with the accessories kit. They scaled down the pot/lid/grill so much that it is not really useful at the current size.
2) The pot holder is still very useable and you can put a larger pot on it. BUT, and it is a big but, the size of the chamber for wood is so small and the water in the container boils so fast that it would be hard to cook anything meaningful in a pot placed on top of the kettle on the pot holder.
3) Better just to carry a billy can and when your water is done boiling, dump the coals out of the base and build a real fire. The kettle does have the advantage of being extremely easy to start a fire in (works like a charcoal chimney). It builds up coals really quickly without having to mess with making shavings etc.
4) Stainless model in the Trekker (small) weighs 1 pound 10 ounces. I'm not sure what to think of that. It is heavy, but if I carried an MSR whisperlight, plus bottle, plus fuel it would be heavier and I can't burn found fuel in the MSR. Once your fuel bottle is empty you're done, and you're still carrying the weight of the empty bottle. Alcohol stoves might work as well, but suffer in colder temps. Again, with alcohol stoves the problem is you've still got to carry the fuel, and when the fuels is gone, you're done.
5) For trips into areas with burn bans, the trekker model might make a lot of sense depending on your style and the burn ban. Depending on how strict the ban is, you might not even be able to burn twigs inside of a container.

I'll make a video on the Trekker model soon.
 
I have the "Trekker" model and those are the limitations i've found (though i didn't buy the accessory kit).

However, it is the strength of needing *only* 'found' fuel that has made it my preferred short-trip, cool-weather stove. Add in the extra bonus joys of wood-working and using other essential tools (knives/saws/etc) that makes using the Kelly Kettle a pleasure. Cleaning the soot/resin is decidedly *not* joyous.

Looking forward to seeing your vid.... While new to me, I made a brief video using my Kelly Kettle yesterday, but the audio wasn't good so it will remain unposted....
 
I haven't bothered with cleaning the soot. Just run a little water down to get the big chunks off and call it good. I want the chimney side of the kettle to build up a little soot.
 
averageiowaguy said:
5) For trips into areas with burn bans, the trekker model might make a lot of sense depending on your style and the burn ban. Depending on how strict the ban is, you might not even be able to burn twigs inside of a container.
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That's how the mountains near my house are. There real strict, but they allow you to use stoves. I used a pop can stove for awhile, but recently I went to an MSR Pocket Rocket ( I haven't tested it outside of the kitchen yet)
 
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