Fans of the original stainless steel version know they are kinda inefficient but absolutely bombproof. You can stick the cup into the embers of a fire without drama and the cooker base can take hexi fuel, bio ethanol gel or maybe a small monkeyboy meths burner. If you really, really want to you can carry the full set of cooker base, steel cup, water bottle and plastic cup all nested together.
The new version, Crusader 2, is of hard anodised aluminium and noticeably lighter. The cooker base is taller, offers much better wind protection and has ample ventilation holes to provide more efficient air and heat flow. I wouldn't willingly stick a nice anodised cup in the embers of a fire unless the situation dictated that, however. This cup has 250ml & 500ml markings, which is useful.
Crucially, the fuel saucer in the cooker base will take a Trangia meths burner. It is a lovely sliding fit. Coincidence? I wonder. The Esbit burner is a slightly looser fit, as is the Aloc (?) burner which appears to be the same animal, bar the 'Esbit' or 'Aloc' lasered onto the shiny flame limiter. The Tatonka burner does not fit. The advantage of the taller cooker unit becomes clear when you slot in one of the meths burners which fit. There is around 2cm clearance between the burner top and the cup base when it is sitting on its support. 2cm is very close to the 'sweet spot' separation distance for Trangia type burners, which are therefore very usable.
The cup does not slide all the way down the cooker base when the cup support is swung out for transport so there is headroom between nested cup and cooker to store the burner inside the cooker along with maybe a small fire starter and a baggie of circular hexi fuel tabs. This will leave the cup free to hold your brew kit makings and maybe a small extra bottle of meths/bio ehtanol.
The cup and burner, nested, makes a satisfyingly lightweight, small setup in a home made nylon carry bag which will fit in many rucksack side pockets.
If you want to upgrade to Crusader 2 from Crusader original, all you need to buy are cooker base and cup. The original canteen nests nicely in the new style cup and, obviously, the original plastic cup still fits that. -But you will now have the option of putting the original stainless steel cup over the canteen bottle rather than the plastic one so you have the flexibility of having a cup you can shove into fire embers without worry which you can also use to scald your lips with if you forget to let your tea cool before drinking.
The transparent BCB Crusader cup lid is a slightly loose fit in the new cup, good for retaining heat during heating but not for drinking through. Use the plastic lid on the old style cup and it will still melt in a fire. Only the expensive -and heavy!!- Heavy Metal brand stainless steel cup lid/strainer can stand that sort of use. This lid is an OK but loose fit in the new cup and really doesn't offer many advantages over the plastic lid to offset the weight disadvantage.
Apart from mentioning that the original Crusader pouch is too short for Crusader 2 and even the third party 'Crusader 2' pouch touted as being good for the job is a bit of a tight squeeze, there's little to add.
Crusader 2, lighter than the original, offers the big advantage of working with a Trangia burner. Get the anodised cup and cooker, team with a Trangia burner and you're fixed.
The new version, Crusader 2, is of hard anodised aluminium and noticeably lighter. The cooker base is taller, offers much better wind protection and has ample ventilation holes to provide more efficient air and heat flow. I wouldn't willingly stick a nice anodised cup in the embers of a fire unless the situation dictated that, however. This cup has 250ml & 500ml markings, which is useful.
Crucially, the fuel saucer in the cooker base will take a Trangia meths burner. It is a lovely sliding fit. Coincidence? I wonder. The Esbit burner is a slightly looser fit, as is the Aloc (?) burner which appears to be the same animal, bar the 'Esbit' or 'Aloc' lasered onto the shiny flame limiter. The Tatonka burner does not fit. The advantage of the taller cooker unit becomes clear when you slot in one of the meths burners which fit. There is around 2cm clearance between the burner top and the cup base when it is sitting on its support. 2cm is very close to the 'sweet spot' separation distance for Trangia type burners, which are therefore very usable.
The cup does not slide all the way down the cooker base when the cup support is swung out for transport so there is headroom between nested cup and cooker to store the burner inside the cooker along with maybe a small fire starter and a baggie of circular hexi fuel tabs. This will leave the cup free to hold your brew kit makings and maybe a small extra bottle of meths/bio ehtanol.
The cup and burner, nested, makes a satisfyingly lightweight, small setup in a home made nylon carry bag which will fit in many rucksack side pockets.
If you want to upgrade to Crusader 2 from Crusader original, all you need to buy are cooker base and cup. The original canteen nests nicely in the new style cup and, obviously, the original plastic cup still fits that. -But you will now have the option of putting the original stainless steel cup over the canteen bottle rather than the plastic one so you have the flexibility of having a cup you can shove into fire embers without worry which you can also use to scald your lips with if you forget to let your tea cool before drinking.
The transparent BCB Crusader cup lid is a slightly loose fit in the new cup, good for retaining heat during heating but not for drinking through. Use the plastic lid on the old style cup and it will still melt in a fire. Only the expensive -and heavy!!- Heavy Metal brand stainless steel cup lid/strainer can stand that sort of use. This lid is an OK but loose fit in the new cup and really doesn't offer many advantages over the plastic lid to offset the weight disadvantage.
Apart from mentioning that the original Crusader pouch is too short for Crusader 2 and even the third party 'Crusader 2' pouch touted as being good for the job is a bit of a tight squeeze, there's little to add.
Crusader 2, lighter than the original, offers the big advantage of working with a Trangia burner. Get the anodised cup and cooker, team with a Trangia burner and you're fixed.
