beginner multifuel stove advice

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Jan 15, 2012
467
0
essex
Just getting back in to camping ect and after i lent my petrel stove to someone years ago and not getting it back i got myself a new primus omnifuel. running it on paraffin it burns really good. It was not cheap but as i sold some old airgun parts on ebay and got good price for them i thought why not, it will last my live time if i dont lend it out lol. i like a lot of rice meals, rice takes about 12mins to cook when water is hot not counting cooking curry or chilly, stir fry and all the other things i like. if i was to use meths i would be filling it up a dozen times or so. why i picked my stove.
 

nunzionuk

Full Member
One really important tip with the Dragonfly (or Whisperlite for that matter) is to treat the plastic pump assembly with a lot of respect, regularly lube the brass on/off valve on the pump and never leave the valve cranked hard shut. I did that with mine, left it for a few months, found it seized in place and sheared it off trying to open the valve. Whole new pump. Expensive if it happens at home and a disaster if it happens on a trip. MSRs are very good but the fragility of the pump assembly lets them down.

Of the two I find the Whisperlite gets taken along more regularly as it is simpler and tougher, but I agree the simmer facility of the Dragonfly is very useful.


I found that out the hard way. Thank god for my trangia burner.
 

rik_uk3

Banned
Jun 10, 2006
13,320
24
69
south wales
Runs on gas too which has its uses and simmers very well on any fuel. Very easy to mount the burner in a Trangia too, fantastic performance in that configuration.
 
Jan 15, 2012
467
0
essex
A must for me, be able to turn the heat down and simmer. running on any fuel is good, never know were you mite be and need to refuel is a plus. lovely stove and very pleased with it.
 

Dave

Hill Dweller
Sep 17, 2003
6,019
9
Brigantia
Ive been using Coleman Gas cartridges with the Primus Omnifuel, but I've just got hold of some Aspen 4.
Im planning on taking the red Primus fuel bottle as a spare source of fuel.
The Bottle says the maximum filling is 18.7fl.oz.
Ive never used the liquid fuels before with the stove. How long can I expect that to last in comparison to say a Coleman C 500 butane gas cartridge?
 
Last edited:

ged

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jul 16, 2009
4,976
13
In the woods if possible.
Ive been using Coleman Gas cartridges with the Primus Omnifuel, but I've just got hold of some Aspen 4.
Im planning on taking the red Primus fuel bottle as a spare source of fuel.
The Bottle says the maximum filling is 18.7fl.oz.
Ive never used the liquid fuels before. How long can I expect that to last?

Think in terms of three to four grammes per minute at a fairly high output, 18.7 fluid ounces of fuel will weigh about 80% of that so about fifteen ounces or a little over two hours continuous at a moderately high output. You can turn it right down so at a very low output it could go nearly all day. :)
 

rik_uk3

Banned
Jun 10, 2006
13,320
24
69
south wales
You'll get a weekend of cooking proper food on that. If you've not used liquid fuel before please practise lighting it half a dozen times at home (out doors) first. I take a litre bottle with me and that will cook two full breakfasts, two full evening meals (stew/curry from scratch with all fresh ingredients), a dozen or more brews and always come home with plenty of fuel left.
 

Dave

Hill Dweller
Sep 17, 2003
6,019
9
Brigantia
You'll get a weekend of cooking proper food on that. If you've not used liquid fuel before please practise lighting it half a dozen times at home (out doors) first. I take a litre bottle with me and that will cook two full breakfasts, two full evening meals (stew/curry from scratch with all fresh ingredients), a dozen or more brews and always come home with plenty of fuel left.

Cheers Rik.
 

Pacman99uk

Member
Mar 9, 2011
24
0
Manchester
just a tip for those of you using unleaded petrol in their stoves... i had an msr simmerlite (before the awful plastic pump broke & not worth the £40 to replace) and i ran it on lighter fluid which i bought cheaply in a 6 pack of tins for about £3.00 from costco/makro. It burns just as nice but doesnt soot as much as petrol does.

also tried white spirits in mine which burns ok in a pinch but has a slight bluey-yellow flame rather than a pure blue flame which is best for heat. dont try meths in there, it doesnt burn at all.

-P
 

rik_uk3

Banned
Jun 10, 2006
13,320
24
69
south wales
Lighter fluid is good but expensive. Aspen is pure, Panel wipe is pure and Coleman fuel is down to a fiver a litre now so no excuse to burn petrol these days.

http://www.skyblueleisure.co.uk/acatalog/info_82511_Coleman_Liquid_Fuel_1ltr.html

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5L-Can-Te..._Body_Shop_Supplies_Paint&hash=item53eae8bcef

Pacman don't use white spirits mate, nasty stuff, bad for your stove, fumes are bad for your lungs too.

Go outdoors http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/coleman-liquid-fuel-p175327
 

ged

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jul 16, 2009
4,976
13
In the woods if possible.
Lighter fluid is good but expensive. [...] and Coleman fuel is down to a fiver a litre now so no excuse to burn petrol these days....

Well, Coleman Fuel is still four times the price of road fuel, and road fuel costs twice what it would cost without Road Fuel Duty:

http://www.petrolprices.com/the-price-of-fuel.html

So I reckon Coleman Fuel still costs about eight times the price of a reasonably priced hydrocarbon fuel. Even methanol is cheaper. :(

...[Aspen is pure, Panel wipe is pure]...

It might be pure, but pure what?

There are many different kinds of panel wipe, including some which are water based. At least the many different kinds of white spirit are more or less guaranteed to be hydrocarbon based. :)
The only way to know for sure what you're buying is to get the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS). In the UK at least, the law requires that it must be made available to you.

Panel wipe is for, er, wiping panels. Most panel wipe MSDSs will say that the product is only to be used as directed in the instructions, which will often stipulate forced air extraction and a maximum permissible concentration in the air breathed by the users. Most panel wipes will burn, but the combustion products might not be well known or they might even be dangerous. The instructions will not usually include instructions for burning. If you use any of these off-beat materials as a fuel, read the instructions and the MSDS and take extra care to have good ventilation.
 

rik_uk3

Banned
Jun 10, 2006
13,320
24
69
south wales
The panel wipe make/brand I listed is fine, I and other stovie types have used that brand and thats why I linked that particular panel wipe. As with any fuel always use in a ventilated area.

Coleman at @ a fiver a litre is cheap enough and less than the £14 a litre is used to be, cheaper than gas to use and works in any temperatures.

Car petrol is cheaper and OK if you don't mind the smell from any spillage lingering for hours and don't mind all the junk clogging up your stove and lantern so is it a cheap option if your paying out £12-£15 for new parts? No of course not.
 

Big Stu 12

Bushcrafter through and through
Jan 7, 2012
6,028
4
Ipswich
don't mind all the junk clogging up your stove and lantern so is it a cheap option if your paying out £12-£15 for new parts? No of course not.

How oftern would this happen, in comparason with using colman fuel all the time , i.e. how many ltrs of petol would you get thruogh before needing £15 of new parts.

Even at £5 p/ltr for colman and £1.50 p/ltr for Petrol that still £3.50p/ltr for 5 ltrs to start to make it cheeper the using Colman fuel,

I was just wondering how many litres of petrol it take to clog a colman so it requires new parts?
 

bigroomboy

Nomad
Jan 24, 2010
443
0
West Midlands
I would only use road fuel as a last resort. But a great option if on expedition as its every where. Standard panel wipe is just napha exactly the same as coleman fuel. Of course there is probably some other green stuff knocking about called panel wipe but the real stuff used by body shops is just napha used to remove grease and leave nothing behind. I burn 60 - 80 o petroleum ether which is again exactly the same stuff and works perfectly. Aspen 4T is again similar being like road fuel without all the additives. One thing to remember about road fuel is its actually designed with all those additives to retard combustion on contact with hot things.

Having said that if it burns with little smoke and soot then its probably fine and just roll with it.
 

rik_uk3

Banned
Jun 10, 2006
13,320
24
69
south wales
How oftern would this happen, in comparason with using colman fuel all the time , i.e. how many ltrs of petol would you get thruogh before needing £15 of new parts.

Even at £5 p/ltr for colman and £1.50 p/ltr for Petrol that still £3.50p/ltr for 5 ltrs to start to make it cheeper the using Colman fuel,

I was just wondering how many litres of petrol it take to clog a colman so it requires new parts?

"How long is a piece of string", can't say. We did run a Coleman lantern on petrol as a test and got about 7 nights out of it before all the junk in the petrol clogged up the works, other people say it can take years. The biggest issue for me is the smell of petrol, it smells when you burn it more than naptha and any spill and the smell is there for ages. If I had to I'd run something like an Optimus 111b petrol stove on car fuel as its construction is really simple and easy to keep running. I'd never use it in lanterns or more complex modern stoves. Choice is yours at the end of the day. A fivers worth of Coleman is a lot cooking time really, cheaper than liquid gas.
 

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