Jetboil Flash Cooking System

Summary

Great little backpacking stove, both space and fuel efficiency in a clever, self contained package, but the best part is how fast it boils water and the stabilization means you won't spill it either. Great for hikers who want to go light and minimal but still have a hot drink or meal.

I LOVE this stove.   This is the easiest stove I have ever used. It fits in my pack easily and includes everything but the food and water.

The self contained package includes a small burner, built-in 2 C pot, neoprene cover and handle, additional bowl/cup, lid, stabilizer and fuel canister. All of it, including the small fuel canister, makes into a 4 x 7inch cylinder, with no wasted space or weight. Setup is almost instantaneous. Open it up, screw on the fuel canister and its ready to light.

The igniter never failed and burner adjustment fine tunes the flame easily. Only used for boiling water, but that is all the cooking I do on a backpack trip and this stove does it extremely fast, under two minutes. Get your dehydrated meal pack ready before you turn on the burner because the water boils that fast.

Extras: No need to wear gloves to handle it as it comes with a built in cozy. Pot can be used as a your coffee cup, comes with a sipping lid and handle, and a keeper for a spoon. The handle can be used to attach to the outside of your pack. An extra cup for sharing attaches to the bottom so it is adequate for two people.

There is no external wind screen but the burner is somewhat self sheltered, so the design works well and it did not seem to be affected by the wind at all. Max safe limit is marked at 2 cups, but looks like it will hold 4.  I have done over 3 before I noticed that warning, but honestly it is so quick, you don't need to do more.  

I used it last summer for backpacking and it is now our favorite stove, even when we have a vehicle to carry a larger stove. We have used it in the Idaho mountains around 5 - 8000 feet on five day backpack trips for three people.  Carried extra fuel, but never needed to refill the canister during the trip.

Packs up quickly and easily too, but remember how to pack it back together, as it only works in one order.  Fits nicely and compactly into my backpack, and unlike my previous stove which was in a soft bag that I always worried about damaging my stove, this one is self protected by the pot and cup.

Summary

A great, compact cooking system that has continued to perform well many times over several years. The Flash is ideal for solo backcountry use, or a couple quick cups of coffee.

The Jetboil Flash is a great cooking system that is very compact when using the small fuel canisters. It sets up with ease, and all parts fit conveniently in the pot. I personally like the cup that doubles as the protector for the heat exchanger on the bottom. 

The piezo ignition system has worked flawlessly down to freezing temperatures (all experiences with this stove at relative low elevations/<6,000 feet). The adjustment for flame control works as designed, however I have never had the need to really adjust below full throttle.

The fuel efficiency appears to be very good. I find the specs on Jetboil's website to be accurate. I only use this stove for dehydrated food and coffee, everything else I bring doesn't require cooking. Boil time is very good, I also find the cozy with the temperature gauge a plus. I have had little difficulty with the flame blowing out from wind; proper positioning and wind protection being a necessary skill for any backcountry cooking. The stove system is pretty stable, however proper care is needed when boiling over .5 liter (over max line!!!).

I have used this stove system on about a dozen trips over the last two years, and has not given me any problems. I would recommend using a larger capacity, perhaps the Sumo for backpacking trips with two or more people. 

Summary

Would not ever backpack without it.

By far the best piece of gear we have ever purchased, though it's neck and neck with the Sawyer Squeeze Water Filter we purchased. I love how easy it is to pack and how quickly it boils water. It's so compact and light. Perfect camp stove in my opinion.

Summary

Bulletproof, fast, light and easy.

I have been using my Jetboil for about 5 years now. My ignitor still works every time. I love my Jetboil. It goes with me on every camping and hunting trip I take.  I have the coffee press too which is a nice addition.

Highly recommend Jetboil system.  

Summary

Very, very easy to fire up, and use. Super easy to use also.

I love this thing. Throw it in your pack, and hit the road-any meal, anywhere, at anytime-in two minutes. Like coffee? It's yours in two minutes, or less, depending upon your temperature level. If you ever wanted to have the most convenient personal cook available here it is.

Summary

Fantastic for boiling water for your coffee, tea, or dehydrated foods.

Setup is fast and easy (remember to unfold the flame control before attaching canister). Built-in spark lighter is ideal. Adjustability is not all that great; maybe 35 degrees from off to full, 325 degrees of full flame.

Very fast time from cold to boil, two minutes under optimal conditions. I've never run out of fuel on a weekend, although i always carry a spare. Completely self contained with everything you need, including a coffee press.

Need to research a little more on different types of fuel canisters to use in sub-freezing weather; lost pressure quickly at 25 deg. with wind.

Summary

Be clear, if you are a gourmet camp cook, this is probably not the item for you. If however, like my husband and I, you have found that you can live quite well on dehydrated food cooked in the bag when you are camping, you will love this little stove.

It all fits together neatly, there is no soot or ashes or smoke. There is no messing around with liquid fuel or trying to light an esbit cube in the wind, etc. You just quickly assemble the stove with a few twists, put some water in the pot, turn on the fuel and click the ignitor switch.

One pot of water for a bagged meal split between us and another quick pot for a cup of hot tea or coffee or broth while we're waiting for the bagged meal to "cook". There is no pan to wash. Just twist the components apart and put them back in the pot and be on your way.

A small fuel canister lasted 5 days/night for us in the Glacier backcountry and that was heating at least two pots of water at each meal of the day. You can make real coffee with the cup and a press, but that is too messy for us in a leave no trace world.

Also you can't really "cook" in the pot as it gets too hot. There is no way to regulate the heat so you need to be thoughtful about meal selection. Meals that require you to cook them in the pot will probably not do well and may burn or stick to your pot.

I'm considering getting the titanium version for future trips and leaving the old Flash for the car. I've looked at other stoves and usually carry a tiny esbit stove for emergencies or day trips, but I really like the convenience and reliability of the Jetboil Flash.

Summary

Great for the day hike or over night hike, easy set up quick to boil water. Does not perform well in cold weather, hard to light.

Bought this to use for the day long hike and overnight hikes. The ability of the stove to nest everything inside of itself was extremely attractive feature.

The other feature that was intriguing was the ignitor meaning no lighter or matches. The color gauge on the side indicating how close to a boil. The cozy around the containing is impressive to say the least, grab the container with boiling water in it and not burn yourself.

The setup is easy and simple, when it is warm, above 30 deg F, stove ignition is great, below that hard to get going. Heats things quickly, no simmering here—all or nothing. Wind does not seem to have a great effect on it, but jury is still out on that as have used it only half dozen times.

Uses what seems to be very little fuel, still using the 230gm canister and considering I have not had much experience with it is still going strong. The fuel is not that expensive or hard to find if you do not mind using other names then Jetboil.

Overall the stove will accomplish what I purchased it for, quick setup and quick boil. My 7-year-old is impatient to say the least and this stove will help stem that when feeding time or snack time arises on the trail.

Summary

It's a great stove and very simple to use. Extremely efficient and man does it boil water fast!

When I first got into backpacking, I knew one of the key pieces of gear I needed to get was the Jetboil Flash PCS.  I like how everything packs inside the cookpot and thought that it was a very efficient system.  To date, this IS the fastest and most efficient stove I own. 

The JB Flash PCS that I received came with a canister stabilizer, cookpot, cozy sleeve, cup, and lid.

Here's a photo with everything packed up including the fuel canister (JB on left)

Some features of this system:

Ignition: Piezo

Flame Control: Adjustable burner housed in a built in windscreen

Cooking: Hard to cook inside but good for boiling or steaming

Boil Time: My average boil time of 4 cups has been under 4 minutes.

Fuel Efficiency: Very efficient, a 7 oz. canister can last 5 days (2 boils a day)

Stability: With the added canister stabilizer and how the pot snaps to the stove, it is very sturdy

Packability: As seen on the photo above, everything can be packed inside the pot.

Weight: In my scale this system weighs 15.5 oz.

This system is my go-to system on group and family backpacking trips.  Highly recommend this cooking system if you don't mind the weight.

Summary

Excellent product for the trail.

Great product, very easy to put together and use. I also like that I can store everything including the fuel cannister inside. Also, because it is so effiecent it boils water very fast. I really have no compliants.

Summary

Awesome product to use. Made setting up and tearing down incredibly easy. Loved cooking with this stove.

Loved using this stove. Made my first trek out with so much easier.

WOW! That can easily describe this entire product!

I picked this Jetboil Flash Java kit up approximately 2 weeks ago and it has completely changed the entire way I camp. No longer are you waking up in the morning, fighting with stoking a fire and waiting for water to boil, only to mix in cheap instant coffee mix.

This thing boils water unbelievably fast! Wake up after a good sleep in the beautiful outdoors have make yourself a REAL coffee in minutes. You definitely have to make sure whatever you're cooking, or whether you're preparing coffee or tea is ready to go before you fire this thing up because you DO NOT have the time to do it while it's boiling!

Not only for camping though, this Jetboil has already proved useful even during a day of boating. It's nice having something around that just works so quickly and seamlessly whenever you feel like a hot meal or drink.

The only thing I could possibly complain about this unit (and I'm not sure if it can or not) is being compatible with just fire cooking when you don't want to use your fuel.

Incredible stove. Boils fast, really lightweight, and is simple to use.

I do not like that the FluxRing accessories (pot and fry pan) are approximately $50 though. I did purchase a pot stand to go with this.

Good for scouting, and excellent for solo backpacking. Functions well enough for a pair of tent partners though.

I am going to rate this 3.5 stars for one single reason, otherwise I would rate it closer to 5 stars.

The Piezo igniter is exposed when separated from the container. The insulation is thermally protective ceramic (it has to be).

Drop this stove once on rocks or a hard surface upside down and you will need matches or a lighter to ignite it for the rest of the life of the stove unless you get it repaired (always have matches and a lighter in a pocket stashed in your pack with this stove and every other stove). Several users reviews have noted this and current owners should take care when handling because of this.

Simple (forward thinking) Solution: a raised metal flange welded around the rim of the burner would protect the flange better, or a small sparking tower nearby the spark wire (that would take the impact force of most impacts).

Don't get me wrong. JetBoil has taken the heat exchanger idea and welded it to the bottom of their container, geniuses. Every other camp cook company since the dawn of camping can now beat their collective heads on a wall somewhere in the world. This makes Jetboil a very lightweight and effective remote boiling solution.

The Jetboil hanging kit even makes it ultra portable, but if the weather gets hairy you may want to consider using the Ortik Heat-It for serious hanging stove survival.

Must have accessories:

1. Coffee/tea press (get it and ditch the third party press and save space and weight)

2. Pot adapter (you do want to eat for more than one at the same time right?) If you camp singularly never mind.

The Flash comes with a thermally actuated indicator that lets the user know the contents are still hot (another bright idea). It is the ultimate camping dummy light on your camp container. Hot spills should be a human experience of the distant past right? My wife disproved this theory by pouring her first cup of tea without the lid pressed firmly in 15 seconds. I promptly slapped my head in disbelief.

Warning:
This stove is ridiculously easy to use; a three year old could assemble it and start the stove. Think about that, it could be a curse in disguise.

All in all, this is a seriously lightweight sampling system costing close to what other stoves alone cost. So think of the container thrown in for free and the price may just be convincing.

Good luck with your stove decision.

Scott McClarin

Update: December 12, 2009

Longterm use revision:

After abusing this little stove by cooking with it repeatedly outdoors and in my basement when the gas was disconnected for the last two months, I have much more to talk about.

See my Blog: soon to be posted on repairing the piezo starter with simple tools in about 10 minutes! This stove's piezo starter can be repaired easily, and it is worth noting that Jetboil probably designed this in, as many companies aren't planning for the longevity of their products these guys are obviously making stoves thoughtfully. I feel this feature alone is worth the upgrade to the 5 star rating.

I have to admit to extended and repeated cooking without using the pot bracket. (it's next on my list as a must have items) so the piezo starter's wire melted and broke at the ceramic collar. (This is most people's concerns with this stove) but there is little to worry about once you read my blog on the repair!

great cooking system. once boiled 3 cups of water in 1 minute 24 seconds.

should really come with an accessory that can actually cook something besides water, but all around good. although seriously other companies that make this kind of stuff may begin pulling their hair out and possibly breaking their jaws ( though i would say to them "EMO").