Primus ClassicTrail

Summary

Great little backpacking stove. A stove of this type is necessary for your fast and light arsenal, or really just anyone who backpacks. Not the lightest of this type, but inexpensive and very reliable

Put it on top of your canister, turn on the gas, light the gas. Cook. Eat. Repeat.  That's the name of the game here.  No more pumping, filtering, stabilizing. The canister system made famous by Jetboil remains the go-to for my fast and light system.  

This goes inside of my cook set. It's small, stable, and so easy to light at high winds and high altitudes. I do recommend heavy duty "foil" to wrap around the system, then you have your own inexpensive, insulated, lightweight, Jetboil.  

The stove is a little bigger than other on-the-canister stoves, but that makes it hold pots better. Less scalding fingers. I have used this on week-longs, 50-milers, snow camps and picnics.  

I highly recommend this stove.

Summary

Great stove at a Killer Price.

This is one of those instances where you can actually save a little money and not sacrifice on quality. My Primus has performed flawlessly up to 11K feet over its first 50 or so uses and I don't expect anything to change.

It's a solid piece of equipment that boils fast, burns evenly and, so far, has worked in a variety of conditions. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this tough little stove.

I bought this stove after doing some comparisons of other iso/but stoves. The Classic Trail was bought for quickie weekend get-aways when weight is not important. I was initially looking into a Snow Peak Giga (which I did buy...one for me and one for my son). The snow peaks are for extended trips where every oz counts.

The Classic struck me as a very stable design with no moving parts except for the valve. The Burner also looked to offer a wide flame pattern less likely to burn-in the center of a pot. First impressions when I got it home was that it looks as if the same person that designed the M1 Abrams tank designed the stove. I could probably kick it off a cliff and it would still work.

My first use was at 6,000' feet with lows in the 30's. The stove worked very well. The 4 pot supports offer outstanding stability and wind protection. The flame adjustment is touchy until you know the sweet spots. Adjustability is limited to off, low, med and high…no in between. Boils about 2.7 min and it burns quiet.

This is a no frills stove. As a Scout Leader, I’m going to suggest this stove as the one to buy for the boys. Kids are rough on equipment and this stove can take it. Its only shortcoming is its weight at 8oz.

This stove is great, especially for the price. I have taken it on almost every backpacking trip I have been on for the past two years. It boils water for my freeze dried meals very quickly (2 minutes or so) and has a wide range of heat for different kinds of meals. No complaints.

I purchased this stove from Gear For Adventure for 2-3 day trips. At first I brought along a back up multi fuel stove, Just In Case. I didn't need it. This little baby can boil, simmer and cook with no problem.

One of the other reviewers said that there were "sweet spots" on the gas control knobs. I didn't find that so with my unit. As a matter of fact I double checked it at home after the trip and found it smooth as can be.

It is a great companion to the Primus Alpine Light, another purchase from Gear for Adventure, which I have found is a really good resource when it comes to accurate descriptions and great prices. Heck they take PayPal!
Happy Trails!

I bought this and compared it with Pocket Rocket, SnowPeak Giga, and Coleman Peak canister stove. First, this stove is FAR more stable when it comes to holding a can or pot or pan. The stove boiled 2 cups of water 45 seconds to a minute faster than the others. (4700 feet) This stove has far better at flame control (simmering) than the others. The SnowPeak Giga and PocketRocket cool down faster (able to touch metal to put away).

In my opinion, the stability, the faster cook time, and ability to simmer makes the 3 or 4 extra ounces in weight ok with me. I like it!