Who here is a stove junkie?

I'm a stove junky too.

Coleman Apex II
Coleman F1 lite
Coleman F1 Spitir
Svea Climber 123R
Optimus Hunter 8R (4x)

I prefer the Svea 123 and Hunter 8R for gasoline and the F1 Lite for natural gas.

CZ
 
markhait said:
Yeah.....I'm a stove junkie, but I like to make mine. I've been working on many different designs, but have yet to settle with one.
Check out this link of a video with one of my favorite stoves I made.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kC40CiIpGDU
Click to expand...

Hey! Cool design... It looks very light and sure it has a great output. The only downside I could think off is that with such a small pot you are loosing too much heat on the sides. Just look at the flames that engulf the pot! Maybe you would be better off with a bigger pot.

Mikel
 
Not sure how long the wick will last, but I've tested it well over 2 dozen times and its still going strong. I just made a smaller version that will work with a Heini pot. I can boil a pint of water using 3/4 oz of alcohol in 8 minutes. Not screaming fast or terribly efficient, but I like it. I've been trying to make a stove that works great with a Heini pot, but have come to the conclusion that although the Heini pot is compact and just plain neat to use, it's not a great cooking container.

With that same stove in the video I posted, I used a tea pot to see how fast I could boil water with it and if I remember correctly, it started to whistle at 8 minutes and that was with 6 cups of cold tap water! Here's a link to that video.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=fyS7iNzXFs8
 
markhait,

Enjoyed your videos in your search for the perfect stove. Still looking myself.
 
Thanks mhpoole, I'm starting to now lean toward the penny stove. I've done several tests with it and am very impressed. With an ounce of alcohol I can get a burn for over 15 minutes. If you add the simmer ring,it will remain lit after boil for another 20 minutes!
For some reason it works best with the 16 oz Heini cans. I've tried tons of other type of cans and they just don't work as good. I'm trying to add a wick so that it will bloom more quickly. Once I figure this out, I'll make a video and post it.
 
I made the penny stove, make sure you have alcohol in the top. I made the mistake of lighting without a tight seal of the penny and it blew alcohol all over the place lit. I then read the directions again and pounded an impression of the penny with a socket which made a much better seal. I am not a big fan of it myself, but I do like the sturdy cans.
 
I just re-made one myself. This time, I moved the ports to the highest part of the cans ring. I then used some Devcon and glued 1/4" fiberglass wick where the original ports would be. I drilled a 1/4" hole for the fill port and then got a 3/8" ball bearing and tapped it lightly while it was sitting in the fill port. That made it alcohol tight. I then fill it with 1/2 ounce alcohol and then pour another 1/4 ounce alcohol around the wick. It seem to bloom faster this way. Still fooling around with it though. What I like about the penny stove is that with the simmer ring, after I get a boil going, I can install the simmer ring and have it continue boiling for another 20 minutes. Thats impressive!

Heck, with all the money I've spent trying to make the perfect stove, I could of bought many! Oh well....its been fun :-)
 
markhait said:
I just uploaded my latest stove on You Tube. Click on the link below to check it out.
I usually narrate my videos, but my 5 & 2 year old were fighting over their swords they got from Chuckie Cheese. :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vr43261pi2g
Click to expand...

Nice one,I`m going to make one soon.This is what I use for last two years.
DSC00008.jpg
jpg[/IMG][/URL]
 
I made one of those last week and it worked great with a wide pot, but I did get more minutes with the penny stove. You can't beat the simplicity of yours though!
If you crush yours (cat stove), no real loss either as the cans full with cat food are only .39 cents! Do you cook with yours or do you only boil water? How much alcohol do you use?
 
I mostly boil water for coffee and soup,for bigger meals make small camp fire.Use 96% denaturated alcohol.Depends on temperature and wind 300 ml boils from 4 -10 min..If cold put up to bottom holes,in summer need less.But found out,on very low temp. fire steel doesn`t work, I guess due to poor evaporating,so I need match to light it up.
 
Trying to make the "perfect" stove is down right frustrating!
Trying to balance between boil time, fuel consumption and size/weight.
I still haven't found it and I am getting tired of looking for it, but for now I'll keep on trudging on. :-)
 
I have a weakness for a good stove. Here are a dozen Optimus from the 22B at bottom to 6 111's including 3 B's, 2T's and a C as well as the three 8R's and a 99 and Svea 123

Optimusdozen.JPG


Beside these I have an old Canadian 2 Burner Coleman and a three burner tourist as well as a bunch of Trangia and Swedish Army alcohol kits.

I also make wood stoves and have about 8-10 of these critters too.

I guess that makes me a bit of a stove freak!
 
Hey North61....how do you like the SVEA 123? I've been thinking of buying one even though I'm pretty addicted to making my own.
 
North you are the man I wish i had half of the stoves in your pic..
I got the Svea123 and its a great stove. Never fails always works. Out of all the stoves out there if i had to keep only one then the Svea and the 8r or the hunter would be the ones i take.. They just never fail. not easy to break too as everything is there in one piece. No hoses pumps or tanks that might get lost or riped out.

Sasha
 
markhait said:
Hey North61....how do you like the SVEA 123? I've been thinking of buying one even though I'm pretty addicted to making my own.
Click to expand...

I like the SVEA just fine. It's a great one man stove and with the midi or mini pump it is even a decent winter rig. The little dimple on the tank should be just a tad bigger IMO for pre-heating in cold weather. I actually like the 8R's a bit better but that's just me. Both are fine stoves.

As you noticed from my picture the 111's are my favourite. I use twin 111T's for family canoeing and twin 111B's or the 22B for family ski pulking.
Solo I'll just take a 111. These babies are still the best winter piece going IMO.

Sasha..thanks. I forgot to mention my MSR dragonfly earlier. Good stove with the new improved pump added. Plastic hasn't the same charm as steel, brass and leather though!

The 22B after a ski
22Bonthedeck.JPG


My ski buddy
sny.JPG
 
Thanks racer944.....I've been working on it for a while now. I made a larger one out of a tobacco tin and man o man did it throw out the heat! I love the Heini pot, but to use one effectively though, I wanted a real compact stove. The problem was finding a tin that would fit inside. I finally found one and as it was, it was staring at me the entire time...my wife got some travel shampoo and this tin was in our shower! She didn't want me to use it, but my charm eventually won her over (actually I just took it). Not a fast stove or even a really efficient one, but I think it fits the bill. I've compared the fuel consumption to other "backpacking" stoves and when I do that, it's actually pretty efficient.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top