Kerosene

[Hugo]

I have an Optimus Hunter that runs on petrol, it has been a great little burner but let me down recently.
When I went to use it last I could not turn it on, so after playing around with it and lighting it it flared up on me from the turn screw, so it looks like I need to get a service pack for it.
As for kerosene I was a tanker driver for 30 years delivering the stuff to houses all over Sussex. When I started the price was 7 pence a litre, probably 42 now.

 

[rik_uk3]

I have an Optimus Hunter that runs on petrol, it has been a great little burner but let me down recently.
When I went to use it last I could not turn it on, so after playing around with it and lighting it it flared up on me from the turn screw, so it looks like I need to get a service pack for it.
As for kerosene I was a tanker driver for 30 years delivering the stuff to houses all over Sussex. When I started the price was 7 pence a litre, probably 42 now.

Graphite packing from www.base-camp.co.uk should fix the problem. Your internal wick may have become charred over time, so if your going to strip the stove anyway, replace the wick. PM me your address and I'll send you one.

 

[Hugo]

Graphite packing from www.base-camp.co.uk should fix the problem. Your internal wick may have become charred over time, so if your going to strip the stove anyway, replace the wick. PM me your address and I'll send you one.

Thanks for the link Rik, they are not far from me in Littlehampton.
I thank you for the offer of a wick, If I need one I'll ask later if I may.

Many thanks.

 

[Paul_B]

Go-gas also do a kero burner but I'd stick to the Primus, Optimus and MSR range. However some of the multifuel burners choose not to list Kerosene (aviation fuel) as a suitable fuel at least for some in their range. Look at the MSR site for their multi fuel burners. I do know ppl who use MSR and rate them highly. I like Primus gas stoves so reckon they must also make good mulit-fuel stoves.

The original poster had a free source of Kero. I am like that but haven't taken advantage as these burners are heavier than gas or meths burners you can get and only become weight efficient on long (over a month) trips backpacking. Of course in altitude or very cold conditions for melting snow then I think these multifuels have to be used as they are best suited in these conditions. My source of kero is from work where they use it to fire their furnaces. The stuff leaks more than the older diesel too hence the free stuff I could always siphon off larger quantities as noone really cares about security and you can get away with a lot.

 

[rik_uk3]

Paul_B wrote (snipped)
"I am like that but haven't taken advantage as these burners are heavier than gas or meths burners you can get and only become weight efficient on long (over a month) trips backpacking."

Really? A Nova or Omnifuel with half a litre of fuel don't weigh that much and thats enough fuel for a weekend trip easy. I've a Nova packed into an ETA pot, good combo.

 

[Martyn]

Paul_B wrote (snipped)
"I am like that but haven't taken advantage as these burners are heavier than gas or meths burners you can get and only become weight efficient on long (over a month) trips backpacking."

Really? A Nova or Omnifuel with half a litre of fuel don't weigh that much and thats enough fuel for a weekend trip easy. I've a Nova packed into an ETA pot, good combo.

This got me wondering.

An Optimus Crux Lite puts out 10,000 BTU's for 120 minutes on 440g of propane/butane mix at sea level.

The crux weighs: 72 g
The 500 size cylinder weighs: 598 g
Total 670g for 120mins at 10,000 BTU's.

The optimus nova+ puts out about the same at just under 10,000 BTU's, and can burn for 120minutes on 400mls of fuel.

The nova weighs: 425g
The fuel weighs: 400g
The bottle (0.4l) & pump weigh: Approx 200g
Total 1025g for 120mins at 10,000 BTU's.

Just the empty bottle (no fuel), the pump and the stove weigh the same as the crux/gas combo.

If you include 400mls of fuel at 400g for the nova, then for the same weight penalty you can also carry a primus micron lantern and a 220g cannister to fuel it, which will put out 70 watts of light (and 240 BTU's of heat) for 12 hours continuously on full power.

I have to agree, gas is definitely more weight and bulk efficient at low altitude for short trips.

 

[Martyn]

Or to put it another way, for the same weight penalty of carrying a nova, plus half a litre of fuel, which will give you 2 hours of cooking, you can have a gas stove, a gas lantern and 3x 220 cannisters, which will give you 3 hours of cooking or 36 hours of light/heat or 2 hours of cooking and 12 hours of light/heat or any other combination.

There are other factors too. The weight of meths for priming if you want to burn paraffin, or the hazards of petrol if you dont want the weight of a priming fluid. Also, gas costs more, but that isn't a big deal IMO.

 

[Paul_B]

Martyn - So right there. I'm more from the backpacking side of things so to me a stove must be less than 100g and a pot that is over 150g is too heavy. I use a pot cosy system where I bring water to the boil with dehydrated food in then stuff it in an insulating cosy with no further use of the fuel to cook. It takes a bit longer (say 20 minutes instead of 10 mins) but you can do other stuff while waiting and you get food that is ready to eat without having to wait while it gets to a temp that is comfortable to eat.

I have a stove that is 6g, windshield made from a foil baking tray (a few grammes at most), a lightweight fuel bottle for the meths (maybe 20g at most), a 100g pot with a 50g cosy (a heavy cosy that will be replaced with something lighter one day) and a measuring cup. By measuring out your meths carefully it makes for a more efficient cooking system for a weekend. Certainly makes the nova system look positively heavy.

I know what you're thinking, I don't really fit in here.

 

[rik_uk3]

Or to put it another way, for the same weight penalty of carrying a nova, plus half a litre of fuel, which will give you 2 hours of cooking, you can have a gas stove, a gas lantern and 3x 220 cannisters, which will give you 3 hours of cooking or 36 hours of light/heat or 2 hours of cooking and 12 hours of light/heat or any other combination.

There are other factors too. The weight of meths for priming if you want to burn paraffin, or the hazards of petrol if you dont want the weight of a priming fluid. Also, gas costs more, but that isn't a big deal IMO.

Two hours burn? what flat out all the time? I tend to bring to the boil and simmer food, the half litre fuel bottle will last me for at least a weekend of cooking good food and not just boiling dried food like the UL hikers.. In the Nova I can use panel wipe, no need for meths, the ETA pot is super efficient too.

It depends on what you want out of camp cooking, for me weight does not count as I only car camp and with far to many stoves to pick from I can afford to indulge in whatever cooking system takes my fancy, be it gas, naptha, paraffin, methanol etc. Quality food is far more important to me these days than counting grammes of fuel and looking upon food only as a means of keeping you going.

Use whatever system works for you, I'm getting a Caldera cone, doubt I'll ever take it camping but I fancy playing with one, I've got (or had might have given it away) a Vargo Triad, I think its crap but others love them. I like the joy of using different stoves on different camps, they are all different and I still get a buzz from them.

So if a cooking system floats your boat then go for it.

I hate to admit it, but I am putting my beloved Bulldog billy cans into semi retirement after 40+ years of sterling service and switching over to things like the ETA, Tatonka and big stainless steel pots (a couple of bloody great catering pans)

 

[Martyn]

Two hours burn? what flat out all the time? I tend to bring to the boil and simmer food, the half litre fuel bottle will last me for at least a weekend of cooking good food and not just boiling dried food like the UL hikers.. In the Nova I can use panel wipe, no need for meths, the ETA pot is super efficient too.

Yeah, flat out burn, it was the only data I could find for comparison. Absolutely it should last longer by turning it down, but in fairness you can do the same with a gas stove too. However you stack it up, gas stoves are lighter.

It depends on what you want out of camp cooking, for me weight does not count as I only car camp and with far to many stoves to pick from I can afford to indulge in whatever cooking system takes my fancy, be it gas, naptha, paraffin, methanol etc. Quality food is far more important to me these days than counting grammes of fuel and looking upon food only as a means of keeping you going.

Use whatever system works for you, I'm getting a Caldera cone, doubt I'll ever take it camping but I fancy playing with one, I've got (or had might have given it away) a Vargo Triad, I think its crap but others love them. I like the joy of using different stoves on different camps, they are all different and I still get a buzz from them.

So if a cooking system floats your boat then go for it.

I hate to admit it, but I am putting my beloved Bulldog billy cans into semi retirement after 40+ years of sterling service and switching over to things like the ETA, Tatonka and big stainless steel pots (a couple of bloody great catering pans)

Yeah, I hear you. There is more to this than just kilogrammes in your rucksack. But I find myself considering that more important these days. Most of my camping is done close to my landy, so I can take whatever I want pretty much and to that end, I do like paraffin powered kit very much. If you have a car for transport, then it is a superb fuel and most of the kit is very robust which I like too. But for carrying on my back, to be honest, these days I just want as little weight as possible and for short stuff, I think liquid fuel stoves are just too heavy.

 

[johnboy]

I tend to use a Jet Boil for short solo trips eating Dehydrated food or warming up retort pouches and brews a really good stove that gets bagged because it is so good at what it does IMHO...

Optimus Crux for short solo trip eating proper food but the short pot supports make for interesting cooking.

Optimus Explorer for multi day trips or group trips as it has good flame control and is nice and quiet when running...

MSR XGK for mountaineering trips above the snowline as it melts snow like nothing else and the fixed fuel line is a boon in a snow cave.

I think for low level multi day trips a highly efficient gas stove would be a good choice and there seem to be lots of new ones around like the JB Helios and the Primus Eta Power...

Gas has it's place but so does liquid fuel...

 

[rik_uk3]

I tend to use a Jet Boil for short solo trips eating Dehydrated food or warming up retort pouches and brews a really good stove that gets bagged because it is so good at what it does IMHO...

Optimus Crux for short solo trip eating proper food but the short pot supports make for interesting cooking.

Optimus Explorer for multi day trips or group trips as it has good flame control and is nice and quiet when running...

MSR XGK for mountaineering trips above the snowline as it melts snow like nothing else and the fixed fuel line is a boon in a snow cave.

I think for low level multi day trips a highly efficient gas stove would be a good choice and there seem to be lots of new ones around like the JB Helios and the Primus Eta Power...

Gas has it's place but so does liquid fuel...

I'm looking out for an XGK myself, don't really need one but I'd like to play with one.

Martyn, don't forget running costs, gas is a lot more expensive to use than paraffin. Did you ever get one of these
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Camping-Stove...amping_CookingSupplies_ET?hash=item1c0c1d6f6c He is or was taking offers of £25. Not a bad deal and if using gas you can invert the can in cold weather to boost performance.

 

[Martyn]

I never did Rich. It says "oil/gas" does that mean it'll run on paraffin or is it a petrol & gas stove?

 

[rik_uk3]

Not a bad stove, I've used paraffin in mine no problem.

A mate posted this vid on youtube, he's not a 'bushcrafter' although he's a good friend of Mors Kochanski.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9GbW2MOyIc perhaps my overall favourite stove.