stove with good track record

[IndianChris]

I think the MSR Whisperlite International can't be beat for all seasons. Don't be intimidated by the priming that must be done before operating the stove.

It's light weight, efficient, easy to operate/clean, no pressurized canister on your back while hiking. It's also relatively low to the ground when set up so your pot is less likely to fall over. Comes with heat reflector and wind shield. Really good stove.

Good luck.

 

[MadRiver]

SVEA 123R.

They can have my SVEA when they pry it from my cold, dead hands. And when they fill it up again, it will keep on working, at any air temperature down to -35F and below, just as it has done for me for the last forty years.

Yeah, the kool kids will laugh at you. They don't know what the hell they're talking about.

This is my next purchase. I currently have the Superfly and like it in warm weather.

 

[--M.]

I'm another Optimus 8R old-timer (gift from my dad in the eighties). Never ONCE have I maintained it in any way. Had decade-old fuel in it once; fired right up.

That first use in years came in 2004, when I hobbled into Imp Shelter to find it stocked with thru-hikers and college "orientation-week" kids. I guessed when they howled with (barely audible) laughter that the 8R had gone dodo, but was relieved to find it's still the winter mainstay it should be. So PHFFFT to know-it-all thru-hikers and bloody-kneed freshmen, old people rock!

If I weren't an 8R guy, I'd use the SVEA; my dad and I used one in the 70s.

Summer is for alky stoves or other LIGHTWEIGHT alternatives.

I, too, love the Whisperlight, having used it head-to-head with the 8R this winter. The 8R won for ease of use & faster set-up/breakdown; the Whisperlight cooked faster & weighs less. I still don't understand how to depressurize a nearly-full canister without spraying gas out the top. Anyone got an answer for that (other than MSR's suggestion to keep it below eye-level, which is lame)?

 

[Pete_Hickey]

..... pressurized cans......... I've heard these stoves don't work well in the cold or at high altitude because they are pre pressurized and the fuel thickens in the cold.

I'm surprised Doug Paul didn't catch that.

High altitude IMPROVES the performance of them. Cold is the problem. Not because it thickens the feul, but because it can't boil if it's too cold.

 

[Chip]

Good article from Backpacking Light on canister stoves, explains what Mr Hickey was talking about.

If I weren't an 8R guy, I'd use the SVEA; my dad and I used one in the 70s.

A good friend that I grew up backpacking with had a Svea and I always had an 8R. We used to argue about which was better. (You youngsters need to realize they are effectively identical burners packaged a little differently.)

I still don't understand how to depressurize a nearly-full canister without spraying gas out the top. Anyone got an answer for that (other than MSR's suggestion to keep it below eye-level, which is lame)?

Don't know about yours but with the Optimus/Primus Varifuel you turn the tank over to shut down the burner which bleeds off most, but not all, of the pressure. I've never felt compelled to bleed it completely...accept this one time to spray some fuel onto a camp fire we were about to light.

 

[Stash]

I still don't understand how to depressurize a nearly-full canister without spraying gas out the top. Anyone got an answer for that (other than MSR's suggestion to keep it below eye-level, which is lame)?

I wrap a piece of paper towel around the cap/pump as I slowly loosen it. The paper towel catches any spray. What spray that ended up in the towel evaporates very quickly and I store the paper towel by folding it into the foil wind block for use the next time.

And I'll chime in for the WhisperLite. I just make sure I carry a few o-rings for the pump. They don't last forever and start to leak at the most inopportune time...

 

[Viewseeker]

So when are we winter camping????? Whats going on in that head of yours!!!???

 

[sierra]

years ago I decided for the backcountry I needed 2 stoves ( one as a backup). MY primary stove is a GAZ, my backup the pocket rocket, Ive tried alot of stoves and these 2 never let me down. I still use them in the winter and sleep with my cartidge.

 

[woodsxc]

Loaned my svea 123 to my son 30 yrs ago. haven't seen it since. I really liked that burner.
Anyone know if they are still available

+1

For family backpacking trips, we bring two stoves (there are 6 of us). One is a two year-old MSR Whisperlite. The other is my dad's 20+ year old Svea. No pump, no moving parts, almost impossible to break, super stable. A bit heavier than a Whisperlite, but it's super reliable.