Way cool, ultra light weight camping stove

[TranquillityBase]

Two soda cans, and time:green:

Burns denatured alcohol.

This is my first, and I'm sure I will build many more There seems to be endless info on the net, for plans, ideas, mods, you name it! It was a really fun project.:twothumbs

40 jets, #71 drill

I didn't use any glue, or fasteners, and it's fuel tight:thumbsup:

Thanks for looking

 

[schiesz]

Thats pretty cool TB. I'm getting into the ultralight camping right now, and these alcohol stoves are right in there. What I usually see, however, is a design just like yours, but the center cavity is just filled with fluid and lit. No holes for burners like you have there. It sure looks like it works well though. Eliminates the need for a pot rack as well.
:twothumbs

schiesz

 

[shakeylegs]

TB,
Nice job! It's easy to put one of these together and have it look not so nice. Workmanship looks first class. For your next project you might look at using some of the new spun aluminum beer bottles as your raw material. The walls are thicker than soda cans and the neck makes a very effective venturi. I think Whitebox stoves uses them. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYjn8Urk7YA

There are infinite variations on this neat little stove. One offered on ebay even has a variable flame as I recall. I've built flamethrowers that burn an ounce of fuel in 7 minutes and others that simmer 20-30 minutes on half an ounce. They are truely ultralight and functional. Up to about 15 days self contained, they hold a weight advantage over cartridge stoves. Their primary drawback is that they are geared toward boiling water rather than more elaborate cooking. And, they really need a wind screen for maximum performance. The caldera cone from http://www.traildesigns.com/ is great though it adds back some weight to the setup. Light weight aluminum or titanium foil windscreens are the best ultralight windscreen options.

Using these stoves gourmands need to adapt their recipes to the boil-n-bag style. Fortunately, there are a wealth of ingredients to make boil-n-bag meals palatable. One of my new favorites is the bullion concentrate from Trader Joe's. It comes ten individual packets per box, each good for about one cup of broth when water is added (chicken, beef and vegetable). Much better flavor than bullion cubes and more convenient. Real broth flavor makes a great base for whatever dehydrated goodies you include in dinner meal. If I want to do more serious cooking, something more than just boiling water, I will take two of these stoves, a torch for boiling and a simmer stove for sauteing, or for rehydrating dinner in a pot rather than a bag.

 

[mossyoak]

a buddy of mine that jsut started his through hike of the AT is taking one of those with him, he went super ultralight.

 

[tiktok 22]

I've built several pressurized alcohol stoves. They're fun to build and very useful. You might want to consider building a windbreak for it as they are almost useless in the wind.

 

[TranquillityBase]

Thanks for the comments peeps!

I gave a pressure style a try today, much better:twothumbs

40 #73 Jets for this stove...I broke the #71 drill:sigh:

TB

 

[Buster Bodine]

Here's one I built some time ago. The worst thing about these things is when your friends see it, they want one and will pester you until you make one for them. I've built a couple dozen by now, pretty much have it down to a science.



I've experimented with just about every type of flammable fluid you can think of and by far, Methyl Alcohol works much better than anything else. "HEET" brand fuel additive is pure Methyl Alcohol so if you can't find it anywhere else, that'll do just fine. Burns hottest and leaves no residue.

Tranquility Base, that's an awesome looking stove!

Do you know of anyplace online that gives instructions for making the pressurized version? Got a link? I've been looking all over for one and can't find anything specific enough to help me build one.

 

[TranquillityBase]

Nice stove BB!

I have been using the info from zenstoves.net

The pressure stoves are easiest to make...Just two can bottoms, the jet holes, and a stopper for the fill hole. You will need a primer tray to light the pressure style burner.

 

[shakeylegs]

The pressure stoves are easiest to make...Just two can bottoms, the jet holes, and a stopper for the fill hole. You will need a primer tray to light the pressure style burner.

I can't remember where I saw this but one stove maker, whitebox or minibull maybe, epoxies several wraps of fiberglass wick around the circumference of pressurized stoves. A few drops of alcohol on the wick, light with a match, and no need for a priming tray.


Buster, do you use the red or yellow version of "HEET"? If I recall correctly the yellow burns cleaner.

 

[CM]

That's awesome TB. I'm gonna have to build a few of those.

 

[Buster Bodine]

THANK YOU for the link TB!

Buster, do you use the red or yellow version of "HEET"? If I recall correctly the yellow burns cleaner.

Use the Yellow version. Yellow is for gasoline, and is pure methyl alcohol and the red bottle is for diesel treatment and is nearly pure Isopropyl alcohol

I've experimented with both brands of HEET, Swan's pharmacy type Ispropyl in both 70% and 92% strength, Zippo fluid, Ronson fluid, gasoline, vodka, the stuff you burn in Tiki torches, and pretty much anything else I could think of that might burn. Pretty much everything but the Methyl sucked.

Gasoline, both lighter fluids, 100 proof Smirnoff's, Everclear, and the Lantern fuel all burned too cool to even pressurize the outer chamber, so no pretty (and HOT) little gas ring.

Both strengths of Isopropyl worked fairly well but were pretty sooty, which is of course, a VBT when you go to put it back inside your pack.

Methyl Alcohol burns so clean I have one stove I polished all the labeling off of and I've used it with ONLY MA and after probably a hundred uses or so, (I use it to make coffee in my shop.) it still looks brand new. Perfectly clean. You just can't beat that!

 

[TranquillityBase]

I can't remember where I saw this but one stove maker, whitebox or minibull maybe, epoxies several wraps of fiberglass wick around the circumference of pressurized stoves. A few drops of alcohol on the wick, light with a match, and no need for a priming tray.


Buster, do you use the red or yellow version of "HEET"? If I recall correctly the yellow burns cleaner.

That was from Minibull designs. I found that site yesterday. Looks like a great idea, no primer tray, and the wick insulates too.

 

[jamesraykenney]

THANK YOU for the link TB!




Use the Yellow version. Yellow is for gasoline, and is pure methyl alcohol and the red bottle is for diesel treatment and is nearly pure Isopropyl alcohol

I've experimented with both brands of HEET, Swan's pharmacy type Ispropyl in both 70% and 92% strength, Zippo fluid, Ronson fluid, gasoline, vodka, the stuff you burn in Tiki torches, and pretty much anything else I could think of that might burn. Pretty much everything but the Methyl sucked.

Gasoline, both lighter fluids, 100 proof Smirnoff's, Everclear, and the Lantern fuel all burned too cool to even pressurize the outer chamber, so no pretty (and HOT) little gas ring.

Both strengths of Isopropyl worked fairly well but were pretty sooty, which is of course, a VBT when you go to put it back inside your pack.

Methyl Alcohol burns so clean I have one stove I polished all the labeling off of and I've used it with ONLY MA and after probably a hundred uses or so, (I use it to make coffee in my shop.) it still looks brand new. Perfectly clean. You just can't beat that!

What kind of Everclear are you using?!?! It should be over 90% pure(180 proof).
I am not surprised that 100 proof anything would not work well, as it is only 50%!
I use Everclear almost exclusively in mine, and they work very well.

 

[J.McDonald Knives]

Where can I find plans to build one? Something simple that I could make while in the boat when we take a break to eat.

 

[ozner1991]

i made several of these but i cant get the inside piece to fit good enough to build up the pressure and get the flames out the side

 

[HoopleHead]

i use the Vargo Outdoors Triad Titanium Alcohol Stove instead

 

[greenLED]

I've been meaning to build one of those myself.

My lack of patience led me to by a Ti instead, but it was of horrible build quality (crooked legs, etc.) so I returned to the store. Turns out all the Ti stoves they had were built the same.

I ended up with a Trangia Spirits burner kit.

I'm very happy with its quality. I still wanna build my own, though.

 

[Dirty Bob]

I find the Penny Stove (http://www.csun.edu/~mjurey/penny.html) to be the best choice for me. It's sturdier than many (Heineken beer cans), burns very hot, is very easy to light (no preheat tray) and the design includes two useful accessories: the simmer ring and the cover. The cover goes under the stove while in use to insulate it from the cold ground.

It's simply a great design. I've given one to each of my sisters-in-law, with a small cook kit (Olicamp Space Saver cup from campmor.com) and the windscreen and stove inside.. The simple-to-light feature is one of greatest points in its favor, as a cold, tired person could still light it and heat up food or drink.

Regards,
Dirty Bob

 

[Dirty Bob]

I wanted to add: I visited the Penny Stove site again a coupla' days ago, and it has been expanded and improved. Lots of good info, whether you choose to make a Penny Stove or some other type. There's even a how-to for making the flames of alcohol stoves visible for safety reasons.

Regards,
Dirty Bob

 

[LED_Thrift]

I also love the Penny Stove. I've used both the regular sized cans, and the large Heineken cans - both are great. I'll have to check out the new improved site.

I use the aluminum from a disposable turkey roasting pan to form the windscreen - very lightweight and effective. I use the metal wire from stick-in-the-ground election signs [wait till after the voting] for the pot stand. It's a bit heavier than necessary, but I had a few pots fall over when the others deformed under the weight and motion of boiling water. One sign yields about four pot stands.
I use S-L-X brand denatured alcohol available at Lowes or HomeDepot.

One accidental discovery I made when the pot fell off the flimsy coat hanger wire pot stand: If you add about a tablespoon full of warm water to the stove once it has primed, it slows down the fuel consumption and simmers, extending the 'runtime'. When finished burning, the water has evaporated. I find this more convenient than the simmer ring.

if they could just reduce the cost of the 'pressure relief valve', it would be perfect