Anyone had any experience with the Trangia Multifuel burner?
I just invested, because my pocket rocket died.
I just invested, because my pocket rocket died.
Trangia Multifuel Burner
- Thread starter nicodiemus
- Start date
I think it's the standard Primus burner adapted to the Trangia. There is also a gas burner and that one works as a charm. There is also the Trangia adaptor for the Optimus Nova stove and I suggest this option because you will have a regular stand-alone stove plus the ' blast furnace' option if you use the adptor within the Trangia.
Anyway: meth, gas of petrol, you cant' fail with the good ol' Trangia
Anyway: meth, gas of petrol, you cant' fail with the good ol' Trangia
I looked at that option, but since i got the Trangia kit for under 60 courtesy of a friend getting me a discount... i think i found the nova a bit too expensive even by itself.
Before i came to this decision i considered MSR, Primus, and Optimus stoves but rejected all on either cost or convenience grounds.
Besides, i only own the Trangia cookpots at the moment, so i'm not really going to go without it
People knock seven bells out of the trangia, but i've never ever had a problem with mine*. They're bloody fantastic.
*That wasn't my fault.
Before i came to this decision i considered MSR, Primus, and Optimus stoves but rejected all on either cost or convenience grounds.
Besides, i only own the Trangia cookpots at the moment, so i'm not really going to go without it
People knock seven bells out of the trangia, but i've never ever had a problem with mine*. They're bloody fantastic.
*That wasn't my fault.
I have to say I've knocked "seven balls" out of trangias, they give the impression of being suitable for hillwalking, but we had real trouble getting water boiling in a brisk wind in temps of about 5C in july. Really not impressive at all. Never used it after that. The pans are fine though, I use them, but not the burner.
Yeah, the burner isn't up to much in the cold.., Hence purchase of the multifuel, since it will turn it into a primus like stove. It offers the seeming standard of 3 minute boil time for a litre of water.
Strange, the Trangia actually works better in a brisk wind? Have you cleaned out the holes in your burner with a paper clip?
You can fit the Primus Omnifuel/Varifuel/Himalya/Optimus Nova and the cheap £30 multifuel off eBay. They will also fit the Cheap Lidl cookset which should be on sale in the next few weeks.
I used the conversion kit from basecamp to fit one of the ebay MF stoves; the kits are about £6 or £7 quid I think, using here one of the Lidl sets
click on image
They do simmer, but it takes time to get the feel of the control valve
Here is the MF stove, he takes an "make me an offer" of $40, so with postage thats about £30 delivered and the stove burns cans of gas as well
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....40&_trksid=m37&satitle=+290195335356%09&fvi=1
Thanks for that Rik!
Bit late now, but i have another mate that's in the market and will no doubt kill to see one that cheap.
Its not the wind that's the problem, it's just the cold. Always seems to take a long time to get a brew going, and i've only got a 27, so if i'm making tea for 2, its a bit of a pain.
Besides, i'll have PPJD* now.
*Post Purchase Justification Disorder.
Bit late now, but i have another mate that's in the market and will no doubt kill to see one that cheap.
Its not the wind that's the problem, it's just the cold. Always seems to take a long time to get a brew going, and i've only got a 27, so if i'm making tea for 2, its a bit of a pain.
Besides, i'll have PPJD* now.
*Post Purchase Justification Disorder.
The holes in my trangia were, and still are, clean.
I have used a gas burner for the trangia once which was alright.
I have to say the cold is the problem with the trangia, you'd think once it got going the alcohol would heat up and it would burn fine, but it doesn't.
I have used a gas burner for the trangia once which was alright.
I have to say the cold is the problem with the trangia, you'd think once it got going the alcohol would heat up and it would burn fine, but it doesn't.
I've use trangia burners all year round now without too many issues, mainly since I gave up on gas - all systems I've tried, the gas bottle gets cold and then stove loses heat and I spend half the time warming the bottle up (and turning it upside down or shaking it...). Must admit though I'm seriously tempted to give that multifuel on ebay a go.
The only trangia that I usually avoid unless I need a long cook, time is the military as it takes a lot longer to heat up.
The only trangia that I usually avoid unless I need a long cook, time is the military as it takes a lot longer to heat up.
I hear mixed comments on the milly trangia. Some say it boils quicker but uses more fuel, some say it uses more fuel but boils slower.
Arg!
I like the look of it because of how compact it is, etc.
I will post up a review of the trangia MF burner once i've got it, since nobody seems to have ever written a review ever anywhere!
Arg!
I like the look of it because of how compact it is, etc.
I will post up a review of the trangia MF burner once i've got it, since nobody seems to have ever written a review ever anywhere!
the mili trangia is not a lot smaller than the 27 size trangia. it is a bit lighter, and a lot cheaper though. you will get mixed results with the mili one depending on who you ask as they dont always ship with the same burner. and sometimes the burner can be a bit knackered.
re; the trangia not running in the cold. yea, this can be a problem, but +5c it should be running fine. since my xmas trip in -5c i started keeping the burner in a ziploc bag in my inside jacket pocket. but i find lighters tend to give up in the cold a bit too, so that goes in the same pocket. they get gragged into my sleeping bag for a cuddle in the morning too. chilly as hell, but worth it for a morning cup a scald.
there are so many good cookers, and they are all so diverse, there really is something for everyone. i like the "pots and pan" thing with trangia, but its main selling point for me is its kettle. i dont like to be too far from a good cupa tea.
re; the trangia not running in the cold. yea, this can be a problem, but +5c it should be running fine. since my xmas trip in -5c i started keeping the burner in a ziploc bag in my inside jacket pocket. but i find lighters tend to give up in the cold a bit too, so that goes in the same pocket. they get gragged into my sleeping bag for a cuddle in the morning too. chilly as hell, but worth it for a morning cup a scald.
there are so many good cookers, and they are all so diverse, there really is something for everyone. i like the "pots and pan" thing with trangia, but its main selling point for me is its kettle. i dont like to be too far from a good cupa tea.
The pots and pan and kettle were the settling points for me. The original intent of buying the trangi many years ago (Reckon i've had my 27 over 10 years now) was because i wouldn't have to buy any further kit to go with it. I can still take the meths burner for longer treks or in case i think i will need a backup, but the multifuel means i can get a brew going or whatnot double quick. It's going to get its first proper use on saturday i think. Going to visit a mate and intend to walk a local route we know perhaps with his other half and kids.
Trangia Multifuel Burner Review
Just before i start, I'm not associated with Trangia in any way, other than a long-time user of their stoves. This is just to help anyone making a decision on a multifuel stove, I'm not a salesman.
First impressions
Straight out of the box, the Trangia Multifuel burner felt like a quality piece of hardware. The fuel bottle came with the pump pre-installed, and it all felt very well screwed together. The fuel pump has a very smooth solid stroke, and doesn't feel flimsy. There's a female quick-disconnect type connector anyone who works with air driven tools will be familiar with, again good quality. The bottle is a 600ml capacity metal bottle, with a reported maximum capacity of 450ml (15 fl. oz) with the pump installed.
The burner itself is well packaged in a thick plastic bag, and is further packed with a large and very thick nylon fabric bag. The burner would appear to be a slightly modified Optimus Nova burner, even bearing the "Optimus Nova" patent mark on the control handle. The burner is contained in a cup-like metal assembly, with a spring steel clip to hold it in the base of the stove's windshield, and a priming sponge. The burner is connected to the bottle by a tough braided steel hose with the male part of the quick disconnect at one end.
My burner was a bit rough looking when i got it out of the bag. Don't worry if yours is the same! They don't finish them nicely because to do so would be pointless. As soon as they come to temperature they'll be glowing red hot, so a fancy finish would burn or corrode away.
Also included were some manuals in various languages, and an ingenious multi-tool which can be used to strip and clean the stove. The nylon carry pouch has a cylindrical inner pouch to hold a fuel bottle safely, and there's a thick brass loop, presumably to be used to clipping the bag to something?
It's worth noting that the entire stove seems to have been built to be taken apart and maintained. Not something you will need to replace instead of repairing!
Clipping the windshield into the stove is somewhat fiddly. One must push the braided steel hose through a small circular port at the very base of the windshield, extend the fuel control handle, push that through the large aperture in the middle of the windshield, and push down to clip in place. It's fiddly, but not something that would be difficult to do after the first time. I must say it could be a challenge if your hands were chilled to the bone. I understand this is not a problem when using the larger 25 series stove.
Once the burner is clipped in place, it is very securely held by the clip and the steel hose. At this stage, it's worth mentioning the fuel bottle again. On the screw in pump the words "ON" and "OFF" are clearly etched into the metal.
With the pump in the "ON" position, opening the valve pushes fuel through the hose. To cut the fuel flow, simply flip the bottle over so "OFF" is facing up, and the fuel will no longer flow. Air will be pushed through the hose, so when the fuel in the hose has been burned off the stove will go out. This is supposed to aid in clearing out the jet nozzle, but i don't know how much truth there is to that.
To ignite the stove, for those of you that have never used a liquid fuel stove before, you pressurise the fuel with 20~ strokes of the pump handle, and attach it to the stove. You then open the valve 1.5 turns to allow fuel to drip onto the priming sponge, then close it again. Igniting the sponge will burn the fuel you released, and heat the burner. This is known as priming. Once the flames have died down somewhat, open the valve again. If the stove is hot enough, it will roar into life, if it isn't it will just flare up again. If you need to, close the valve and allow the stove to heat some more.
I chose to use Kerosene (Paraffin) for fuel, since it's not as explosive as petrol or naphtha, and its pretty cheap. 6 quid for 5 litres, as opposed to 12 quid for 5 litres of unadulterated petrol.
Field Use
First of all, i apologise here, my digital camera didn't work when we got out there, so no pics as yet.
I went on a quick day trip just off a local footpath to try out the stove, and the weather was obligingly very windy and overcast. Rain occurred later in the session. The quoted boil time for 1 litre of water was 3.5 minutes. The kettle boiled in little more than a minute, and a litre of water in the pot (dangerously full, don't try this at home!) boiled in about 2.5 - 3 minutes.
Boiling with the kettle slightly too full caused water to bubble out. Thanks to the curved underside of the smaller 27 series Trangia kettle caused the spillover to drip neatly into the burner, neatly extinguishing the jet. This was a pain in the wotsits to re-ignite, requiring the use of a rolled up bit of toilet paper (my lighter and hand wasn't going to that cloud of paraffin fumes!).
The problems with boil-over were easily mitigated by not overfilling the pots or kettle, and re-ignition would be trivial if I'd thought to bring a long handled lighter or even matches.
We brought with us a selection of wonderful tinned foods for convenience. Next time i do a longer excursion than a few hours i will cook something proper to show you all.
Simmering was absolutely trivial to control. I could go from a rolling boil to a verylight simmer with easy adjustments of the control handle. Keeping food warm without incinerating it would not be a problem here.
Packing up was easy, with the exception that it was nececary to wait for the burner to cool down. I wasn't going to put the red hot burner into a polymer fabric bag along with a canister of paraffin.
Cons: It doesn't pack down into the Trangia container itself, at least not with the 27 series unit. It requires cooling before packing away, and priming before use, though this is an issue with all liquid fuel stoves. Adding the fuel canister, burner, and bag to your kit is going to take a notable chunk of space in your pack. The pumping handle doesn't appear to have any sort of lock, and likes to slide about of its own free will. This could get damaged if you're travelling rough terrain. Can't be used seperately. Fuel is not immediately cut off as you would expect flipping the tank to the "OFF" position. It takes quite some time to expend the fuel in the hose, and if it isn't allowed to blow through then you're left with petrochemicals in the hose.
Pros: The versatility of a true multifuel burner. You can burn kerosene, diesel, naptha, ethanol, meths, or even automotive or aviation fuel in a pinch (not reccomended!). The fuel siphon in the tank contains a filter, and so does the hose where it mates to the stove. Absolutely bombproof build quality, easy to maintain with full tooling and instructions supplied. If you already have a Trangia this is a fantastic upgrade for your favorite stove.
On the whole, if you're not fussy about setup, and you're not needing to be able to pack up and be gone in seconds, the Trangia Multifuel is an excellent piece of kit. Though it may not be considered convenient, i would STRONGLY reccomend you carry your meths burner in the kettle and a small bottle of meths for priming and just-in-case purposes. Petrol flashes too easy, diesel not easily enough. Many campers, bushcrafters, and ex milly chaps i know carry hexy stoves as backup when they go out, you could use the traditional burner instead.
Oh, and don't use biodiesel. Bad idea, apparently.
Ramble done, happy camping!
Just before i start, I'm not associated with Trangia in any way, other than a long-time user of their stoves. This is just to help anyone making a decision on a multifuel stove, I'm not a salesman.
First impressions
Straight out of the box, the Trangia Multifuel burner felt like a quality piece of hardware. The fuel bottle came with the pump pre-installed, and it all felt very well screwed together. The fuel pump has a very smooth solid stroke, and doesn't feel flimsy. There's a female quick-disconnect type connector anyone who works with air driven tools will be familiar with, again good quality. The bottle is a 600ml capacity metal bottle, with a reported maximum capacity of 450ml (15 fl. oz) with the pump installed.
The burner itself is well packaged in a thick plastic bag, and is further packed with a large and very thick nylon fabric bag. The burner would appear to be a slightly modified Optimus Nova burner, even bearing the "Optimus Nova" patent mark on the control handle. The burner is contained in a cup-like metal assembly, with a spring steel clip to hold it in the base of the stove's windshield, and a priming sponge. The burner is connected to the bottle by a tough braided steel hose with the male part of the quick disconnect at one end.
My burner was a bit rough looking when i got it out of the bag. Don't worry if yours is the same! They don't finish them nicely because to do so would be pointless. As soon as they come to temperature they'll be glowing red hot, so a fancy finish would burn or corrode away.
Also included were some manuals in various languages, and an ingenious multi-tool which can be used to strip and clean the stove. The nylon carry pouch has a cylindrical inner pouch to hold a fuel bottle safely, and there's a thick brass loop, presumably to be used to clipping the bag to something?
It's worth noting that the entire stove seems to have been built to be taken apart and maintained. Not something you will need to replace instead of repairing!
Clipping the windshield into the stove is somewhat fiddly. One must push the braided steel hose through a small circular port at the very base of the windshield, extend the fuel control handle, push that through the large aperture in the middle of the windshield, and push down to clip in place. It's fiddly, but not something that would be difficult to do after the first time. I must say it could be a challenge if your hands were chilled to the bone. I understand this is not a problem when using the larger 25 series stove.
Once the burner is clipped in place, it is very securely held by the clip and the steel hose. At this stage, it's worth mentioning the fuel bottle again. On the screw in pump the words "ON" and "OFF" are clearly etched into the metal.
With the pump in the "ON" position, opening the valve pushes fuel through the hose. To cut the fuel flow, simply flip the bottle over so "OFF" is facing up, and the fuel will no longer flow. Air will be pushed through the hose, so when the fuel in the hose has been burned off the stove will go out. This is supposed to aid in clearing out the jet nozzle, but i don't know how much truth there is to that.
To ignite the stove, for those of you that have never used a liquid fuel stove before, you pressurise the fuel with 20~ strokes of the pump handle, and attach it to the stove. You then open the valve 1.5 turns to allow fuel to drip onto the priming sponge, then close it again. Igniting the sponge will burn the fuel you released, and heat the burner. This is known as priming. Once the flames have died down somewhat, open the valve again. If the stove is hot enough, it will roar into life, if it isn't it will just flare up again. If you need to, close the valve and allow the stove to heat some more.
I chose to use Kerosene (Paraffin) for fuel, since it's not as explosive as petrol or naphtha, and its pretty cheap. 6 quid for 5 litres, as opposed to 12 quid for 5 litres of unadulterated petrol.
Field Use
First of all, i apologise here, my digital camera didn't work when we got out there, so no pics as yet.
I went on a quick day trip just off a local footpath to try out the stove, and the weather was obligingly very windy and overcast. Rain occurred later in the session. The quoted boil time for 1 litre of water was 3.5 minutes. The kettle boiled in little more than a minute, and a litre of water in the pot (dangerously full, don't try this at home!) boiled in about 2.5 - 3 minutes.
Boiling with the kettle slightly too full caused water to bubble out. Thanks to the curved underside of the smaller 27 series Trangia kettle caused the spillover to drip neatly into the burner, neatly extinguishing the jet. This was a pain in the wotsits to re-ignite, requiring the use of a rolled up bit of toilet paper (my lighter and hand wasn't going to that cloud of paraffin fumes!).
The problems with boil-over were easily mitigated by not overfilling the pots or kettle, and re-ignition would be trivial if I'd thought to bring a long handled lighter or even matches.
We brought with us a selection of wonderful tinned foods for convenience. Next time i do a longer excursion than a few hours i will cook something proper to show you all.
Simmering was absolutely trivial to control. I could go from a rolling boil to a verylight simmer with easy adjustments of the control handle. Keeping food warm without incinerating it would not be a problem here.
Packing up was easy, with the exception that it was nececary to wait for the burner to cool down. I wasn't going to put the red hot burner into a polymer fabric bag along with a canister of paraffin.
Cons: It doesn't pack down into the Trangia container itself, at least not with the 27 series unit. It requires cooling before packing away, and priming before use, though this is an issue with all liquid fuel stoves. Adding the fuel canister, burner, and bag to your kit is going to take a notable chunk of space in your pack. The pumping handle doesn't appear to have any sort of lock, and likes to slide about of its own free will. This could get damaged if you're travelling rough terrain. Can't be used seperately. Fuel is not immediately cut off as you would expect flipping the tank to the "OFF" position. It takes quite some time to expend the fuel in the hose, and if it isn't allowed to blow through then you're left with petrochemicals in the hose.
Pros: The versatility of a true multifuel burner. You can burn kerosene, diesel, naptha, ethanol, meths, or even automotive or aviation fuel in a pinch (not reccomended!). The fuel siphon in the tank contains a filter, and so does the hose where it mates to the stove. Absolutely bombproof build quality, easy to maintain with full tooling and instructions supplied. If you already have a Trangia this is a fantastic upgrade for your favorite stove.
On the whole, if you're not fussy about setup, and you're not needing to be able to pack up and be gone in seconds, the Trangia Multifuel is an excellent piece of kit. Though it may not be considered convenient, i would STRONGLY reccomend you carry your meths burner in the kettle and a small bottle of meths for priming and just-in-case purposes. Petrol flashes too easy, diesel not easily enough. Many campers, bushcrafters, and ex milly chaps i know carry hexy stoves as backup when they go out, you could use the traditional burner instead.
Oh, and don't use biodiesel. Bad idea, apparently.
Ramble done, happy camping!
Few points on the Nova
Don't use diesel fuel, its messy stuff, not the best fuel, last resort to be honest. Paraffin is fine but use meths to prime it or the whole setup will get very sooty. The Nova won't burn meths without modification and even after that burns colder than panel wipe or paraffin and is fuel hungry in order to bang out the BTU's. Flipping the bottle and purging the fuel in the line takes about 45 seconds tops and it does clear the fuel.
One very important point, please keep the fuel to bottle connector greased with a bit of silicone or you WILL get a jammed valve and fuel leak (even Optimus admit this minor problem)
Trangia meths burner in very cold benefits from an underbuner dish to pre heat the fuel
Just got home from a night shift so need some sleep, if you have any questions please feel free to ask
PS, the mil Trangia is slower to boil than a real Trangia setup, several of us stovies have done the tests, the civvie version is better all round to be honest (apart from using over an open fire)
Sleep calls
Richard
Don't use diesel fuel, its messy stuff, not the best fuel, last resort to be honest. Paraffin is fine but use meths to prime it or the whole setup will get very sooty. The Nova won't burn meths without modification and even after that burns colder than panel wipe or paraffin and is fuel hungry in order to bang out the BTU's. Flipping the bottle and purging the fuel in the line takes about 45 seconds tops and it does clear the fuel.
One very important point, please keep the fuel to bottle connector greased with a bit of silicone or you WILL get a jammed valve and fuel leak (even Optimus admit this minor problem)
Trangia meths burner in very cold benefits from an underbuner dish to pre heat the fuel
Just got home from a night shift so need some sleep, if you have any questions please feel free to ask
PS, the mil Trangia is slower to boil than a real Trangia setup, several of us stovies have done the tests, the civvie version is better all round to be honest (apart from using over an open fire)
Sleep calls
Richard
Irish: Cheers mate! Will get pics as soon as i am able.
Rik:
Yeah, the Trangia manual states most emphatically to keep the female connector well greased. I'm pretty experienced with this kind of quick disconnect from my paintball days.
I was wondering about the fuel's effect on heat output. Out of the commonly available petrochemicals it seems that paraffin has the highest potential BTU, but that's lab conditions. What burns best for my stove? Something like the ulta-pure petrol mentioned earlier?
Rik:
Yeah, the Trangia manual states most emphatically to keep the female connector well greased. I'm pretty experienced with this kind of quick disconnect from my paintball days.
I was wondering about the fuel's effect on heat output. Out of the commonly available petrochemicals it seems that paraffin has the highest potential BTU, but that's lab conditions. What burns best for my stove? Something like the ulta-pure petrol mentioned earlier?
I think paraffin has the edge in the Nova, but by so little as to not worry about it. When I camp I take stoves and lanterns that use the same fuel makes life easier. I like paraffin though, its a childhood memory for me, so tends to be used the most.
If you want a meths/paraffin/naptha stove, the best you can get is the old Optimus model 111T silent burner, to heavy for solo backpacking but fine for two and you can cook for four with ease (as you can with a Nova).
I hope you realise that the Nova/Trangia combo is the best winter stove and pan setup going and know you will be one happy chappie using it, you've made a fine choice chap:You_Rock_
If you want a meths/paraffin/naptha stove, the best you can get is the old Optimus model 111T silent burner, to heavy for solo backpacking but fine for two and you can cook for four with ease (as you can with a Nova).
I hope you realise that the Nova/Trangia combo is the best winter stove and pan setup going
and know you will be one happy chappie using it, you've made a fine choice chap:You_Rock_Wahey! Glad someone likes it!
I tried to find a 111T on fleabay, but couldn't get hold of one. Not fussed. I saw a fake one in a shop that used to be in my town... sadly they only sell pine furniture now.
I have memories of my grandad's paraffin blowtorch, and fishing with me da' with an old paraffin lantern.
You can get hurricane lanterns pretty cheap these days right?
Good stuff!
I tried to find a 111T on fleabay, but couldn't get hold of one. Not fussed. I saw a fake one in a shop that used to be in my town... sadly they only sell pine furniture now.
I have memories of my grandad's paraffin blowtorch, and fishing with me da' with an old paraffin lantern.
You can get hurricane lanterns pretty cheap these days right?
Good stuff!
Mine cost me £5, bought it last week and am well impressed! Set it burning at 3pm and it was still going at 11pm and had used about 1/2 the fuel.
