Bushwalk Australia

I was just experimenting with my new Whisperlite International. It worked fantastically with shellite, but why would you ever, ever use kerosene. Neither a flint or lighter would ignite it to prime it, so i had to use metho. This got the kero going, but it was a massive flame, which blacked everything nearby with soot, even the windshield. When I finally got it going, the flame would intermittently go from a steady(ish) blue flame which smelt to a yellow fireball. I might stick with Shellite.

proskub wrote:I was just experimenting with my new Whisperlite International. It worked fantastically with shellite, but why would you ever, ever use kerosene. Neither a flint or lighter would ignite it to prime it, so i had to use metho. This got the kero going, but it was a massive flame, which blacked everything nearby with soot, even the windshield. When I finally got it going, the flame would intermittently go from a steady(ish) blue flame which smelt to a yellow fireball. I might stick with Shellite.

did you change the jet first?
why would you use kero? if it was available...the international is a great stove for expeditions as you'll always find something you can burn with one of these.

I looking for stoves at the moment and the MSR is one of them.
What is the best fuel to use with them?

Chief wrote:I looking for stoves at the moment and the MSR is one of them.
What is the best fuel to use with them?

i have a 15 year old international...I use petrol (cheapest) but it burns a little sooty...shellite is a bit cleaner.

I have a Whisperlite, I call it a Whispernot. That thing is sooooo loud.

I am not familiar with the whisperlite but kero generally needs to be vaporised before burning. Pressurised Kero lamps and stoves need to be preheated so as the kero vaporises, otherwise it will burn as a liquid not a gas. This will emit a yellow flame and heaps of soot. In lamps this causes the glass to go black and sometimes unburnt kero to leak down the side of the base

proskub

Check to see which jet is presently installed in your stove. The Whisperlite International comes with two jets, an IG jet for Shellite (white gas in the US) and unleaded petrol and a K jet for kerosene and diesel. The IG jet is always preinstalled in the stove. Instructions on how to change the jets comes with the stove. If you are trying to burn kerosene with the IG jet, you won't have much fun. In many parts of the world it is impossible to find white gas (Shellite to Australians), so you need a multi-fuel stove capable of burning kerosene or other available liquid fuels. Properly pre-heated, kerosene is fine and will burn clean (though that finally depends on the quality of the kerosene). Diesel is a fairly dirty fuel and not recommended unless that is all you can find. Your Whisperlite International should have no trouble burning Shellite using the IG jet and kerosene using the K jet.

rucksack

That's funny! A Whisperlite that doesn't whisper...
I have a Simmerlite, that doesn't simmer.
Go figure.

proskub wrote:why would you ever, ever use kerosene

Because nothing else is available where you are (hint: that's why they call it the "international"). That's the reason I've used it in the past.

tasadam wrote:That's funny! A Whisperlite that doesn't whisper...
I have a Simmerlite, that doesn't simmer.
Go figure.

Unreal huh! Well I have a jetboil that isnt a jet?

Phil Box wrote:I have a Whisperlite, I call it a Whispernot. That thing is sooooo loud.

lucky you didnt get the xgk. That thing *is* a jet. You actually cant have a conversation when its on. Comparatively, the whisperlight operates at a whisper.

Its all relative!

I was 80km west the border of vietnam-cambodia a few years back with my whisperlite when the only fuel i could get was diesel and metho.
got my kit out ready to change the jets when i couldnt find the jet!?!?! started it up anyway without the correct jet and the same thing happened with proscrub.
went back to trade my deisel for the metho. Ended up finding half a coke can and just used metho to cook.

Moved onto the Optimus nova after that since theres no jets to worry about.

Proscrub, If you bought the stove second hand without a 2nd jet, then the previous owner probally lost it and didnt tell you about it.

i have a 15 year old international...I use petrol (cheapest) but it burns a little sooty...shellite is a bit cleaner.

Don't use petrol in a stove, it will send you to an early grave. Those aromatic hydrocarbons they put in it to replace the lead are not real good for you.