For the alkies amongst us....

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Andy BB

Full Member
Apr 19, 2010
3,290
1
Hampshire
I love playing with alcohol stoves (if nothing else, the're less dangerous than making a mistake with a pressurised paraffin/petrol jobbie!)

Came across a couple of ads on ebay which I thought were novel and very well-priced, particularly when you see what's included. So much so that I decided to get one of each to try out! I'll let you know how I get on when they arrive.

See what you think. And, no, I am not the seller, or know them, for the cynical amongst you:)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Twin-Alco...amping_CookingSupplies_ET&hash=item2ebc77f685


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Stove-Can...amping_CookingSupplies_ET&hash=item2ebca84561
 

mousey

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jun 15, 2010
2,210
254
42
NE Scotland
OOOOOooooooooo

They look brilliant, and yes good price for the amount of stuff you get, that bloke really looks like he's put some thought into that.

looking forward to your review...
 

Andy BB

Full Member
Apr 19, 2010
3,290
1
Hampshire
I was impressed by the number of novel ideas - in particular, the use of a simmer ring on a penny stove, and windshields made out of fosters can bodies to fit round both the cylindrical burner set-up and the rectagonal mess-kit set-up. And the thoughtfulness of providing a thick elastic "band" for the mess-tin/holder. Lets hope I'm not disappointed by the reality!
 

Andy BB

Full Member
Apr 19, 2010
3,290
1
Hampshire
I have received both sets now, and had a quick play with the single set-up tonight. The kit is as described in the ad, and comes with two-page instructions in colour - very comprehensive.

So, what was it like? The burner itself is a twin-walled open body sideburner, and works very well indeed. The enamel mug boils its 500ml quickly when its just rested on top of the burner. The windshield is very effective, and a brilliant use of foster tin bodies. Comes with loads of sheets (well, 4!) and is enough to go around any pans you're likely to carry. The pan support - made of chicken-wire, or somesuch, works well and easily supported a pan with 1.5 litres in it. The fuel bottle is, I'm guessing, a Shoot fruit-juice bottle - and again has been labelled as fuel. I've used these before for meths storage, and never had any problems with them. The alcohol measuring cup looks like a recycled medicine measuring cup, and does its job. The tin can that acts as a container and pot is a tin-can, and the handles hold the mug and other contents firmly in place.

Downsides? Well, the paperclips you use to hold the windshield together could be larger. And the windshield itself has sharp edges, so beware. (Although to be fair, the instructions warn you about that). Everything else does what it says on the can, and is as fast of any of my other alcohol cookers to boil 500cc of water. Surprisingly, if you put the windshield close to the burner where the cut-out for the mug handle is, the handle doesn't get red-hot and I found I could pick it up quite easily after it had boiled.

Conclusions? Well, they must be doing this for the fun of putting together nice little cook-sets, because there must be precious little profit in it for them, even ignoring the time they spend on it. It would work with much bigger pans too, as the windshield is expandable and the pan-stand is quite wide (and could be opened out wider if necessary). Even the postage is reasonable, and they gave me a postage discount as I bought the mess-tin set as well (more on this kit when I get a chance to try it out)

For the back-packer, or novice, it would be a really good piece of kit, especially considering the price and the completeness of the kit. For anyone else, its worth 6 quid just to have a play! It lacks the solidity and flexibility of the Swedish Army Trangia set - surely the best bargain in the camping/bushcrafting world at around 10 pounds delivered, but then again, its much lighter, and for many that's important.
 

Andy BB

Full Member
Apr 19, 2010
3,290
1
Hampshire
I had a play with the mess-kit set today. Bit of a big wind blowing in the garden, but still managed to boil 500cc of water in about 10 minutes. I then moved one of the sets into a greenhouse as the wind really got up! Found some old bacon in the fridge so gave it a go in one of the mess-kit pans. Piccies below:

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Initially, I thought the burners in this kit would be a bit underpowered, even before using the "simmer ring" supplied. However, one burner did boil the water in the mess-tin, despite the considerable wind. Once in the greenhouse, it cooked 6 rashers of bacon - two lots of three rashers, without running out of fuel (circa 40ml), so brekkie bacon and eggs would work! Mess-tin cleaned up ok as well. The burners (two complete sets provided in the kit, along with two windshield sets, pan stands, primer plates and measuring cup, all nicely fitted into the two-pan mess-tins) have an unusual jet arrangement, being concentrated on two sides rather than all round the burner. surprisingly this seemed to work quite well, spreading the heat along the length of the mess-tin instead of concentrating it in one spot. The simmer rings are probably a bit of a gimmick, as they reduce the heat considerably (effectively only 4 small jets actually produce flame, although again to be fair I haven't tried them in anger yet.)

The windshields actually provide a fair bit of space, so if you don't "hard-fold" the end opposite the pan-handle cut-out, you could fit a decent sized circular frying pan in there as well. I'll try that sometime.

Again, for the price, a nice little set.

ps - you might have noticed if you look at the piccies in order, the pan of cooked bacon seems to be getting emptier and emptier - the dog and I enjoyed a nibble during cooking the second batch of bacon:)
 
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