ok I made a pop can stove, utilizing 2 coke cans and drilled 8 holes in the upper ring all symmetrical and decided to go with a closed top so drilled 3 holes in the lid for the denatured alcohol to seep in, how do I light it, I just spent like 45 minutes trying to get it to even light a little
Mr. peppers
Your close. You also need a can, a cat food can cut down to 1/4" high, a cup made from foil, the bottom of a larger can about the same height. Set the stove in the cup. Fill it with an ounce of fuel. Dribble a bit over the stove and into the cup. Light and watch. The outer flame heats the fuel and soon you have a lit stove.
Bushwhack
Check out my ebay store. Lots of stoves at a fair price. Go Green!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5563490518#ebayphotohosting
Underhill
Mr. Peppers, Try making the open top style of stove. I have made both types and prefer the open top because it easier to use( no priming cup or anything, just light and go). I found that the time to heat a pint of water was similar once you took into account the time needed to prime. Plus I found it fun to make and experiment with the stoves.
Big B
Speaking of open top stoves, here’s what I came up with and will be using in a few weeks when I head out to the AT. I modified the Triad varga to be an open stove. If you’re interested, here’s a video of my stove working (less the windscreen). (windows media)
http://www.asthmastory.com/media/stove.wmv
Simple, lightweight and functional.
Hotfoot
Peppers,
The use of the closed top variety requires the addition of a “saucer” at the bottom to use in the priming function. It significantly hampers the lighting process.
You are better off with the open top design like Big B suggests. Extensive instructions are at www.pcthiker.com with the Pepsi stove link right on the front page.
See you at Dot’s Bar and Grill.
Sidetrack
Sidetrack
I also built the open top design and it works great, however if you are going to use it, you will need to build a pot holder or use tent stakes to hold the pot off of the top of the burner, otherwise you starve the flame of oxygen and lose your fire, It doesnt have to be fancy. BTW, when you light the center of the burner, you will need to wait a few minutes for the alcohol to warm up and start burning from the holes around the outside. Good luck.
LightSeeker
LightSeeker
Hi there,
I just wanted to respond to this post because someone (your IP is known), impersonated me in the above post with my name on it. As anyone who reads hiking forums already knows, the spirit of comraderie and fellowship that abounds on the AT does not carry over to the on-line forums for everyone.
Mr. Peppers, I actually do make and sell these, but since it sounds like you are the do-it-yourself type, feel free to contact me with any questions that you may have, I’m always willing to help other hikers!
Underhill
Mr. Peppers,
Sorry, I got sidetracked writing about the flamers and I didn’t answer your question! I agree with the others who posted about the open cup stoves working better, but either type can be made without the need for a seperate stand. Simply place your jet holes on the side of the
stove (about 1/4 inch down below the rim) instead of the top. Now you can place your pot right on top of the stove without the need for a seperate stand.
For the jets, you will need way more than 8 holes, try 18-24 pin sized jets, my stoves use 24 jets drilled with a needle size (#73) drill bit, but you can use a thumb tack or push pin to make the jet holes as well. Use a single larger diameter hole in the top (if making the closed type stove) for the fuel inlet. Try using a 1/8 in. drill bit,
but don’t make it too big or you defeat the purpose of the closed top stove (if the hole is too large you don’t get any significant pressure build-up).
Also, I don’t advise gluing or otherwise attaching a priming pan to the bottom of the closed top stoves, it makes them bulky and can easily be damaged. Instead, fashion a foldable priming pan out of heavy gauge aluminum foil, it’ll be much more packable.
For a mini-article and comparison test of closed and open-top stove designs, as well as pictures that should give you a pretty good idea of how to build one, visit my website:
and scroll to the bottom. Good luck!
-Underhill
Underhill