why billy/mess it ver stoves

[OhCanada]

Hello all, over here in North America the thing of the moment is fuel/canister stoves but you blokes seem to be happy with billy set ups.

What's the deal with them? Why do you use them?

I too have an alchol burner but no stand, now that I saw the Zebra billy thread I'm looking for something like that candle burner as a pot support.

Are your billy set-ups heaver than stoves?

 

[Dingo]

you have to cook/eat in or out of somthing, so the the billy does the job, whats heavier, stove and cannister or a fire steel or fire piston?
and when the cannister is empty you have to carry the stove for ballast!
but when all is said and done, its down to personal preference.

 

[Motorbike Man]

Hello all, over here in North America the thing of the moment is fuel/canister stoves but you blokes seem to be happy with billy set ups.

What's the deal with them? Why do you use them?

I too have an alchol burner but no stand, now that I saw the Zebra billy thread I'm looking for something like that candle burner as a pot support.

Are your billy set-ups heaver than stoves?

If you like, pm me your email address and I have a scan of a pattern for a billy stand Jason01 passed to me which I can email to you and then you could make your own.

 

[ChrisKavanaugh]

Kit often as not reflects social fad and value as practicallity. Many of our wild areas have restrictions on open fires because of the obvious danger and eventual denuding of vegetation.We are even seeing outright bans on some types of stoves. The downside of canister stoves is the horiffic waste. They may help keep Camp Runamuck picture postcard perfect, but somewhere across the globe is a torn up piece of nature where the raw materials and fuel were extracted, transported, produced and ultimately used to receive the spent and unrecycled materials. The other consideration is simple logistics. If I plan x hours/days of adventure I must somehow portage x supplies. Should anything extend my adventure through misfortune X runs out and I must either improvise or go without. If I can legally and ethically use a billy and local fuel all of these issues are eliminated. Self contained emergency supplies are appropriate for emergencies. If I have hypothermic victims a self contained stove to immediately brew up hot chocolate is obviously preferable over recreating Jack London's TO BUILD A FIRE.

 

[OhCanada]

Motorbike Man, thanks for the offer but I've gone with the AT stove by Minibull. It has turned me on to side holed stoves that do not need a stand. Just set your pot directly on the stove.

 

[Brian]

Another consideration is your budget, a billy cost its initial price and thats it, no fuel costs. A cooker costs its price, then you have the fuel every time you use it and then you still have to get the pot to cook in. The price of a good stove in the UK in comparisson to the US or Canada is quite high, got my stove in Canada and paid about half as much as I would have if I'd got it in the UK. I have both, stoves with pots and a billycan, the stove I have to have for work, but if I go out in the woods I like a fire to sit around and cook on.

Brian

 

[Gripper]

Here in Western Australia we have fire bans for much of the year so a selection of stoves is usually the go. I'll take a billy if I know i'll be able to light a fire or will be on the coast etc otherwise it's an MSR or Propane Stove if it's an overnighter. I did a week long trip a few weeks back with a billy and a canteen stove for brewing tea or noodles for lunch (similar to the Crusader i've read about here but just replaces the hexistove)

Mark