Ultralight Ti Metho stoves

[Stew63]

Does anyone use one of these UL models of Ti metho stoves? I see Vargo make 2 models.
Any good for short, fast hikes instead of lugging an MSR or Reactor? Thoughts?

[PedroArvy]

If you are just boiling water, the Caldera Cone metho stoves are the lightest cooking system I am aware of. Note that you are buying a system here and the separate components or other metho stoves won't come close to the efficiency of this product. Typically I use 50ml of fuel a day for 2 cups of coffee, 1 noodle pack and boiled water for a freeze dried meal.

[Stew63]

Pedro - which pot do you use for this system?
How does the windshield fold or store for the backpack?
Thanks

I'm liking the look of that!

[Aushiker]

If you are just boiling water, the Caldera Cone metho stoves are the lightest cooking system I am aware of. Note that you are buying a system here and the separate components or other metho stoves won't come close to the efficiency of this product. Typically I use 50ml of fuel a day for 2 cups of coffee, 1 noodle pack and boiled water for a freeze dried meal.

This is the same system as I use ... I am pretty sure my fuel usage is probably a bit higher than yours now that I think about at around 60ml 84ml per day, but I do porridge and coffee at brekky, tea at lunch and a couple of hot drinks and boil water for dinner.

Mine is currently with a Evernew 0.9L pot but I am looking at downsizing to around 600ml mug.

[PedroArvy]

I was lucky enough to get the MLD Titanium Cup but they no longer sell it with the Caldera Cone. Maybe you can get the Caledra separately for it, not sure.Everything fits into the pot so it's a beautifully compact system. To this I add a pot cozy. Not sure if the pot cozy is really necessary but I am experimenting with it.

[Canberra Trekker]

Aluminium anodised pot 900mL from Kathmandu + 4 Dogs Ti windshield

pot and windshield.JPG (45.17 KiB) Viewed 15447 times

immediately after lighting

Vargo stove starting.JPG (37.98 KiB) Viewed 15447 times

Vargo stove (has fuel although difficult to see the fuel.

vargo stove 1.JPG (52.04 KiB) Viewed 15447 times

Vargo stove (has fuel although difficult to see the fuel.

vargo stove 1.JPG (52.04 KiB) Viewed 15447 times

Vargo stove (has fuel although difficult to see the fuel.

vargo stove 1.JPG (52.04 KiB) Viewed 15447 times

I have the Vargo titanium meths stove. It has 3 prongs on the base and 3 prongs which act as pot support on the top. I found the prongs on the bottom got in the way so I just glued them in the withdrawn position. When I use it, I just sit it on the ground and use something else to support the pot and act as windshield.

Pro
• lightweight approximately 34 g.
• Very strong. It would be difficult to destroy this stove. Whereas the 1210 burner in Caldera Cone would not survive stepping on it. The Vargo titanium stove certainly would.
• Easy to light.
• Good efficiency in right conditions. That is with windshield and burner at good height with respect to the pot.
• Can drain the methylated spirits out and back into the storage bottle using the top pot support as a guide.

Con

• Requires minimum field of at least 30 mL of metho each time it is lit. That is because the meths needs to reach the level of the small hole at the item of the well on top of the stove. Actually needs the meths to form a pool in the well. Then it will light and will bloom within about 20 seconds and the flames will come out with the holes around the circumference of the stove.
• It will burn for about 15 minutes maximum. Puts out a lot of heat. There is no way of simmering with this stove. It's either full power or off. If just boiling water for cup of coffee or tea, it still requires the 30 mL minimum. However the stove can be extinguished by simply blowing is out. Then the unburnt meths can be poured back into the storage container.

I have tested inside house and in the field.
1. In test inside house I boiled 700 mL of water from cold (out of tap in Canberra). I was using Vargo wood stove as pot support and Vargo 1.3L Ti pot. It took 21g of fuel. For comparison sake.
2. Trangia burner with same pot and support took 26g fuel. Reason for heat loss is that strong flame starts shooting up side of pot and lost. If I used Trangia with simmer ring to reduce flame height then only 18g of meths required to bring 700 mL of water to boil. This confirms that loss is due to flame shooting up sides.
3. If Trangia burner inside Optimus meths stove (similar to Trangia) in that pot sits snug inside windshield and any flame shooting up side is not lost. Then only 15g of meths required for same volume of water to boil. Twice as much metho required by weight than gas for same conditions.
4. If gas burner used then only 7g of gas used to bring same volume of water to boil.

I did a comparision with Caldera Cone on summit of Mt Taylor (800m altitude) in August. There was strong breeze blowing.

1. Vargo Ti stove with Ti wind shield (same as in photo) and Snowpeak 700 mL pot. Cooking regime was for 2 cups of coffee and rolled oats and warm water to wash up. At each step in process I extinguished stove ,then time delay followed by refill stove and next cooking step. Refill required because stove can only be lit when near full. Fuel requirement was 72g of metho. With wind which leaked through wind shield the flames were quite high and lot of loss up side of pot. The 700mL pot is small diameter so makes side loss problem worse.
2. Caldera cone with 1210 burner and same 700mL pot. Same cooking regime. Only 32 g of metho required. Caldera cone is way ahead in terms of efficiency when outside and there is wind.
However Caldera cone is fragile as my cone is the Aluminium version. It takes more space when packed because I store it in the plastic container that it is supplied with.

The titanium windshield rolls up and sits in the 700mL pot. It has 2 skewers to support pot. The Vargo burner can easily fit inside pot as well plus still room for other things in there as well. There the packed volume of this combination is smaller than for the Caldera cone. However total weight of the 2 setups is similar at about 400g. That is weight of burner, windshield, pot ,spoon and soap and cloth.

If cooking regime just boiling water the Vargo stove does good job. Of late, I have been cooking lentils , brown rice and dried beans. This requires simmering ability so on my recent trips I have been favouring the Caldera cone.

[Giddy_up]

Nice insight Aushiker, that flame loss has been an interest of mine for a while. I'm toying with the idea of turning a Ti mug into my pot stand and windshield all in one for my Trangia. This would avoid all flame loss. My only concern it that the Trangia will become super heated inside the mug and explode, guess I do it from a distance haha. I would also drill breather holes in the mug just above the burner so it can breath but no other holes.

Do you think this would work?


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[Aushiker]

I was lucky enough to get the MLD Titanium Cup but they no longer sell it with the Caldera Cone. Maybe you can get the Caledra separately for it, not sure.Everything fits into the pot so it's a beautifully compact system. To this I add a pot cozy. Not sure if the pot cozy is really necessary but I am experimenting with it.

It looks like they still offer the Caldera Cone for the MLD Titanium Cup, assuming that what Trail Designs have listed as the MLD 850ml Ti Pot is the same thing.

On the subject of pot cozies I gave up on them a few years ago. I find that I can boil my pasta meals, take them off the stove for the recommended cook time and that they are still warm enough to eat or if I really want a short application of flame gets them piping hot.

[PedroArvy]

My mate has the Vargo and we compared fuel usage on a recent NZ trip. The Caldera system is definitely ahead.

[Aushiker]

Nice insight Aushiker, that flame loss has been an interest of mine for a while. I'm toying with the idea of turning a Ti mug into my pot stand and windshield all in one for my Trangia. This would avoid all flame loss. My only concern it that the Trangia will become super heated inside the mug and explode, guess I do it from a distance haha. I would also drill breather holes in the mug just above the burner so it can breath but no other holes.

Do you think this would work?

Yes. Actually done something similar about 10 years ago now probably but with an enamel mug. I cut the bottom off the cup, drilled holes in around the bottom half to ventilate the stove and also made a sort of castle tower pattern (hope that makes sense) on the top half so the flame could escape around the pot if necessary. I used the Trangia stove with this setup. Actually worked quite well. There used to be a a few examples online but my Google fu is not finding them now.

I will search in my box of odds and ends to see if I still have it and take a photograph.

[Giddy_up]

Why did you cut those castle lugs at the top. I'm thinking don't do this and retain all the flame on the bottom of the pot.


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[Mark F]

Another stove to consider is the Evernew Ti DX stove. I take it with my 550ml mug as a brew kit on day walks. It fits nicely into the mug. It has a Ti burner for meths and can be used with Esbit tablets or wood. It seems to handle moderate wind with the built in wind shield. I found a little bottle that fits into the setup that holds 30ml of metho.
Burner 35g, windshield, base etc 55g. The whole kit with bottle and lighter is 160g.

Evernew Ti stove

[Aushiker]

Why did you cut those castle lugs at the top. I'm thinking don't do this and retain all the flame on the bottom of the pot.

At the time I was following what someone else had done; didn't question whether it was a good idea or not.

[RonK]

I have a Clickstand stove stand and windshield with Evernew burner. All fits into a 900ml Evernew pot.