Fire Maple Petrel Ultralight Pot

Very fast boiling, small backpacking pot

After seeing some reviews, I decided to give this a go.

I started testing with my old 900ML cheapo aluminum pot that has served me well for the past 5 or so years. Coupled with an MSR Pocket Rocket 2. Going against the PocketRocket 2 and FireMaple Petrel G3. For both tests, I am cranking the PR2 to full blast—something I don't normally do, but for the sake of science. I did both boils with no lid on. I normally boil with lids on as I do find it a little faster. But since I needed the thermometer to stick up, no lids were used on either.

I took 4 cups of water and did 2 boils of 2 cups. 

The water started out at 70 degrees.

My old set with the PocketRocket got the water to 200 degrees in 2mins 9 seconds.  

Now for the Fire Maple. 2 cups of water and my PocketRocket 2:
200 degrees in 1min 17 seconds! 

The stunning thing to me was the amount of heat that my PR2 and the old pot gave off. It was literally hot all around the pot. I was sitting down holding the thermometer. But I had to stand to be above the heat and not burn my hand. And the handle was a little warm when I picked it up.

With the G3, there was little heat coming off the sides and around the pot. So that little heat exchanger was very effective at keeping the heat centralized to the pot. And although not a really windy day, there were a few times during each burn when there was a slight gust. I could hear the flame flicker substantially more using my old pot. Where the G3 had fewer issues with the wind. 

Now for the bummer part. My PR2 does not fit in the fin slots as is. To get this to work I had to slightly fold down two of the arms.

The lid is also not very tight. It wobbles quite a lot when it comes to a boil. And I had hoped I could use the strainer holes to pour, but that doesn't work as the holes are too far from the outer rim. I have read some users are having issues with the lid sticking after boiling. I have not experienced this issue. I suspect the plastic lid is melting to the pot if it gets too hot, but I so far can't replicate this issue.

I was a little nervous about the stability of this setup. But, the arms are locked into those slots pretty well. I picked up the stove, pot and water and wiggled things around a bit and was unable to get the pot to move. So it's actually more stable than my prior pot that would have just slid right off.

https://youtu.be/TrnREwljVwU?feature=shared

I might put this under my chop saw and make a new fin slot. Or I may just leave and deal with the bent arms—not sure right now.

 A 110g fuel bottle does fit just barely inside the pot. But anything larger will not fit.

The handle is a squeeze and flip to put into position and it does lock in well. But, if for some reason you squeeze the handle while pouring, it will release and the pot will flip. So be careful when pouring.

The pot weighs a bit more and holds a bit less than my old aluminum pot, but given the time savings—and therefore fuel savings. I think I'll be bringing this with me. Hopefully FireMaple will put out a 900ml that is slightly larger diameter in the future.

The pot does not come with a cozy. I think those do help. So two beer cozies and 10 minutes of sewing:

Background

Been using stove and pots for a long time now.

Compact aluminum pot with lid, handle, and built-in heat exchanger/wind screen, especially helpful in windy conditions

I recently learned of Fire Maple products (available online) and was intrigued by the Petrel 600ml pot with built-in heat exchanger/wind screen.

I have often taken my MSR Windburner on solo trips to windy high places, because of its built-in heat exchanger/wind screen. Typical small canister stove/pot combinations in these conditions are pretty inefficient. Although the Windburner does great, it's larger capacity means it's bulkier and heavier than I desire for solo trips.

The Petrel has a heat exchanger/wind screen that is similar to the larger MSR Windburner, but only weighs about 6 oz and is much more compact. Capacity is 600 ml which is sufficient for my needs. An attached handle folds out and locks during use, and also folds up to lock down the plastic lid for storage/packing. Small gas canisters fit perfectly inside, along with my Soto Wind Master stove and its removable three-prong pot support. The Wind Master stove has a slightly longer stem than some other stoves, which would also easily fit inside the pot.

Note: the pot is designed to work only with three-prong pot supports that are spaced 120 degrees apart.

The only downside I've found so far is protrusion of the handle hinge assembly on the side of the pot, which can catch on items when stuffing into tight spaces during packing. I've learned to pay attention to this when packing up.

A nice way to save a little weight and bulk on solo trips.

Background

Have used it on several trips so far in this first season of use.