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Posted by Bill S on March 14, 2008 at 11:46:55 am EDT
In reply to Jetboil or Alcohol Stove? posted by Teckwolf on March 14, 2008 at 2:56:52 am EDT

Teckwolf,
There is a very active Yahoo Group called Backpacking Stoves that is mostly about alcohol stoves (1001 variations on homemade versions, or maybe it is up to a million versions by now - everyone has their own variation).

But a good site for detailed stove discussions is Zen Stoves http://zenstoves.net/StoveChoices.htm While my opinion is that there is some erroneous information on the site, most of the discussion is very good, especially in the comparisons of different stoves. In the alcohol section, he links to a number of stove construction projects, ranging from the old and revered "Pepsi can stove" to more efficient, interesting, and complicated to build variations. Some people seem to make a lifetime hobby of inventing the better mousetrap, er, um, I mean, better alcohol stove (witness the Yahoo group).

Frankly, though, much as I like my superlightweight alcohol stove for a quick cup of tea when on a backcountry ski daytour, a small, light canister stove like the Pocket Rocket or a white gas stove like the Primus MFS or MSR Simmerlite is much more efficient and dependable in the long run. I have a JetBoil, but in practice, it really is no more efficient or better in any other way than the Pocket Rocket (their pot can be used on any other canister or liquid fuel stove and is no more efficient, really, than the GSI or MSR anodized aluminum pots). There are differences among canister stoves and among liquid fuel stoves (mostly due to size of the burner), but it all comes down to petroleum fuels (whether compressed gas, white gas, or kerosene) put out a certain amount of heat, and alcohol puts out about half the heat (using proper stove alcohol - rubbing alcohol/isopropyl is even less efficient). You can't change basic chemistry. Some stoves are better made, lighter, more compact, cheaper to buy, easier to maintain than others - look at the Gear Reviews section of Trailspace.

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• Re: Jetboil or Alcohol Stove? - Ed G 12:21:08 03/14/2008

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