Doing the thru-hike in 2005 and trying some stoves to see which may work the best. On just a few twigs and a small chunk of a starter, I got some water to boil in 3 1/2 to 4 minutes. This seems like a gem. I understand on wet days wood and such may be tough to find, but the blower on this thing would seem to get anything lighted. Also not having to worry about fuel seems like a big plus. Anybody else have any experience with this stove or comments???
Gary
You will not be very popular on the trail if you camp at shelters as these things put off tons of smoke.
papa john
I had one. It had some advantages: No worry about fuel, easy to simmer or cook for extended times. You can carry cheaper foods like rice or beans, soup mixes, or raw veggies that need longer cooking times. You can heat water to take a sponge bath anytime, you could even boil all your drinking water if you had to. Wet wood wasn’t a problem, it’s always easy to find dry enough wood. Dry fuel sources ranged from a few dead lower branches snapped off trees to wood chips and twigs scrounged from under picnic tables or shelters.
The problems were: the smoke and the way all my clothes soon smelt like woodsmoke, the soot on the pot which transferred to everything it touched, the stove needs constant tending, and it is kinda heavy.
Once I tried an alcohol stove, the Sierra never got used again. Alcohol is clean & I like the light it and forget it ease of use. A homemade stove and a plastic bottle of alcohol with fuel for a week is about the same weight as the Sierra.
Don’t put the battery into the Sierra backwards. That causes the fan to run backwards, putting out the fire and sucking embers and ash into the stove body. Don’t ask me how I know.
Ray
If you’re into to LNT (or it’s the law in some parks), wood must be dead AND down to use it for firewood. So even if it snaps right off the tree (dead), if it’s not on the ground - or the tree isn’t laying on the ground (down) - you’re still not allowed to pick it. Though I’ve never seen anybody get in trouble for it.
Anyway, you can almost ALWAYS find dry wood. If there isn’t any laying around, find a stump or dead stick about the size of your forearm. Use a bolt knife to break it in half lengthwise (about 6-8" worth) - the inside will be dry, with a section of the outside staying wet from the rain. Use a bolt knife and a pocket knife to split/shave the size of pieces you need for your fire - from tinder to kindling and on up. Soon, the fire will be big enough to dry out forearm sized wood before it burns, and you’ll have a smokin fire in the rain!
For your stove, since you probably won’t be carrying a bolt knife on a thru-hike, just find a piece of wood and use a pocket knife to shave off the wet layers. When you get to the dry part, shave and cut out the size of chunks you need and you’ll have all the dry wood you want, even in the rain.
Jeff
Jeff
and sent it home in Monson, switched to alcohol and never looked back. i ditched it because everything about it is filthy… the soot, how much more filthy ya get from scrounging for fuel, the eye watering smoke, the fact that ya cant use it anywhere near your tent or tarp, gotta stand out in the rain cooking while everyone else is cooking dry in the shelter, also its very “tippy” due to its small base and tall height
on the plus side:
i do love the wood fire smell, and i would rather everything i own smell like a wood fire then smell like my “nads” or “pits”
i say if all ya do is mostly boil water then go with a homemade pressurized alcohol stove w soda bottle fuel bottle- total weight 3oz dry for stove,pot stand,pre heat tray,windscreen and fuel bottle
if ya like to actually slo cook food then i say go with a duel fuel gas stove since ya can find gasoline or coleman fuel most anywhere - about 1lb dry weight
as for pupularity… the barefoot sisters used one and they were very popular on the trail;)
FreightTrain
freighty hit it on the head…i used one in 2000…sent it home in hiawassee…you get grungy enough just doing the hike…soot everywhere!!! i still use my whisper-lite, but next time will use the freighttrain alcohol special…freighty makes a great stove…
fausa:pimp :cheers :smokin
fausa