Potentially a great little stove for a bit of wild cooking, I just need to work out a safe way of using it in my tent porch! Any suggestions, please drop me a comment!
Aluminum foil wrapped carbon felt for welding, pickup in hardware store. U can use the carbon felt alone, but it's quite porous and any spills will flow straight thru. I used carbon felt for a homemade cat can alcohol stove, which has a built-in pot stand, but needs a windscreen, as all alcohol stove require
"Oh no, Kev, youre not going to light that on the footprint are you.. oh..." . Well I guess you tested one thing very well, the absorbent medium inside the stove is designed to stop the meths from slopping out if it moves. It certainly did that and saved you from a bigger incident as you chucked it clear of the tent. So thats a plus! Well done for including you warts and all review.
I can't always edit out the stupidity. I'd not have much content left if I did. I'd spent a couple of years searching for this tent as well, it's almost irreplaceable!
Never put anything that can burn under the alcohol stove! X-Boil is best lightway alcohol stove I've used. I think only Trangia can beat it, but is much heavier.
A few suggestions. The reason you used so much fuel is because the windshield doesn't surround the pan, with that setup and in wind you'll always get the same result. Standing the stove on aluminium foil is a good suggestion, soldering mats not so much. Those mats can absorb any spilled fuel and become a burner themselves. Even standing on foil, you are better off not standing the stove on your porch footprint.
I use a fiberglass cloth, not to protect my wife's precious plastic tablecloth (half kidding, happy wife, happy life) but in case of spillage of flaming fuel, to smother the fire. Paper towel to soak up the excess & take away from open flame. Wait while the rest evaporates. And try again 😄
Hope you persevered with the stove - a little alcohol burner is a very practical way to make a brew or cook up a small meal in the wild. I take my little stove out with me on day hikes and cycle rides and wouldn’t be without it. Thank you for the fireball bit - made me laugh as we’ve all had a moment with a camping stove, alcohol or gas 😂
Thanks for taking the time to comment. I keep meaning to use this more. I've done a lot of hiking this year and not really taken many breaks to make a hot drink or cook some food. Maybe I should make more time for this.
I’ve just got an x-boil too and was also an alcohol stove virgin. So before using I watched some UA-cam videos that confirmed it transfers heat downwards! I’ve got a folding metal sheet with heatproof backing from Speedster and I use that along with a bit of soldering mat as I really don’t want any fires! Probably overkill but makes me happier.
I’m glad you got that out of the tent quickly! No paper or flammables around the stove next time. Maybe a good piece of sturdy foil underneath, for safety.
Hi Kev, I use Bio ethanol (Fire Dragon Fire Lighter Fluid) it burns hotter so boils quicker and isn't toxic. When using Meths add 10% water, it'll lessen the soot and add more burn time. If you want a good table Novice Wildcamper sells corrugated plastic ones that weigh next to nothing.
Cheers Goose. I was also using bioethanol, no idea why I kept saying meths! I blame it being early on a Sunday morning! I've seen those tables, will have a think. I'm going to get a soldering iron mat to put underneath the burner thanks to advice on here.
Watched this in the middle of the night, had me chuckling and couldn't get the song out of my head.... you know the one , the crazy world of Kevin brown sauce "fire" 🤣
Bring a large round pie dish and put it in that. You can fold it up for carrying. Also, make a decent size wind shield from 2 large rectangular pie dishes, flattened and taped together with aluminium foil tape. Put some holes along each end and run some long steel skewers through it to anchor it to the ground. Works every time. It all folds flat for carrying and weighs almost nothing.
Plenty of ideas in the comments on how to not burn yourself & your tent while making breakfast luckily, you took me from absolute horror at seeing everything catching fire to laughter as you tried to cook your bacon. Thank you for the entertainment, glad you survived intact & look forward to seeing you use the stove properly next time! Little screw top plastic bottles intended for shampoo etc for travelling are fine for small quantities of cooking oil.
Hi Kev, Definitely try a trangia or even a cheap trangia-type stove. If you make sure it's filled up properly, you'll find it'll burn for about 20mins or so (enough to knock up a decent bacon butty and a brew too)! I got mine from The Bushcraft Store for about a tenner, Works an absolute treat.
Cheers, I'll have a look at one of these at some point as I've seen others use them with good results. It's definitely a totally different experience from cooking with a gas stove.
I have one and I use a solid fuel stove that the BCB stove is modeled after. The Coghlan emergency stove. I set the burner right in that and it doesn't transfer the heat Down and it is the perfect height for alcohol stove flame. For cooking on alcohol stoves, the trangia is better. Can simmer with practice and it holds a lot more fuel. They call it the xboil for a reason. It's good at boiling, not cooking.
I have yet to find an alcohol burner setup that does not suffer from thermal runaway once the methylated spirits reaches its boiling point of 70 degrees Celsius. This issue is evident even in the Trangia 27 and 25 models, where, within minutes of ignition, the flame becomes excessively high and uncontrollable. This intense flame results in the methylated spirits being consumed in less than half the time it would in a calm, wind-free setting. For example, an uncovered (i.e. no pot or pan above it) Trangia spirit burner filled to its maximum capacity of 80ml with methylated spirits will typically burn for about 40 minutes in a home kitchen environment, and this duration is observed even without using the flame control ring. However, the same quantity of methylated spirits will be depleted in just 15-20 minutes outdoors while trying to boil half a litre of water. What this means is that you need to take a LOT of methylated spirits if you intend on a multi-day trek. A 1 litre fuel bottle would likely only last 72 hours based on my own personal experience cooking three meals a day and three boil-ups a day. Compared to the 60-80 minute runtime of a Jetboil with a 230g gas bottle which will give you 20+ boil-ups or 10-12 cooking sessions, alcohol burners are terribly inefficient for the weight, and they leave black soot all over the bottom of your cooking gear if the pot or pan sits too high (in the yellow portion of the flame) above the burner.
I used to use a foil baking tray under my stove when using my table but now have a soldering mat. I've seen a couple do what you did so you're not alone 😂
I'll be sure to watch that video. I want to do a lot more outdoor cooking this year so it's always interesting seeing what others are using and cooking whilst out and about.
Hi Kev, The big and the medium size Trangia are both great: very stable, and thrive on wind. The tiny Trangia is a death-trap. I owned one briefly, but after it turned into a fireball for the second time I gave up on it, and it put me off cooking anywhere near my tent with any sort of cooker. If you re-fuel, better to risk a hot finger by checking there's no invisible flame than risk pouring more fuel on when it's still alight.
@@TheWalkingKev I went on a trek with a bunch of people once and saw the usual collection of tall, unstable gas-canister stoves with a big, heavy pan trying to tip over, and the wind playing all sorts of havoc with it. And there was this Swedish guy with a Trangia, who just plonked it down, lit it and sat contentedly while it did what it was meant to do. I looked and learned!
@@malledevarda that's a great story! I've always felt my Pocket Rocket 2 and pot stand was fairly stable. This X-Boil setup is very stable, I just need to put it on something flame retardant...
I suspect it's the wind, alcohol stoves are really prone to the wind, so you need to either cook behind the tent (but not near it) or have a larger windshield They really work best when the pot is inside the shield and one inch above the flame. Also I am glad you didn't burn your tent! And as others have said, good thing you were using the X-boil, throwing another type of alcohol stove out would have lead to a fireball as the burning alcohol went everywhere! I am tempted to get an alcohol stove cos it's quiet but you do use just as much or more fuel if you go for longer trips than gas canisters. Short trips it's fine, and you can easily restock (well not bioethanol, but alcohol of various sorts is easier to get in remote locales). But judging that makes me wary - and the safety aspect.
It's an interesting alternative to gas. Good for a casual hike where you have a spot in mind to sit and watch the world go by, the stove burning quietly. It's just finding the time to do that!
Another real nice video Kev, with a bit of mild peril thrown in for good measure 🔥⚠🤣 Glad you kept that in fella. Alcohol fuel stoves are my preferred choice over gas for a few reasons, the first being that they're silent, I find the sound of some of the gas stoves to be jet fighter loud. Annoying. Second being that they operate better in v low temps compared to gas - and thirdly - if one is careful! haha - I use my wee trangia stove almost like mini real fire in my porch in the winter... you'd be surprised how much one burn session can heat/dry out your tent inner space and warm yourself up. Max burn time is around 20 mins so no real CO danger either as it will just burn itself out. Keep the vids comin ma man. 👍
Cheers for the kind words. Yes, I have an MSR Pocket Rocket 2 and that is very loud! Something more relaxing with the alcohol stove. I'm going to make a little stand for it to rest on for future camps so I can use it safely in the porch. Hopefully we'll get some cold weather then...
I enjoyed this video but, as someone who uses an alcohol stove, I could see this was a disaster in the making with your original stove setup! I think the reason you got through so much method was the wind which probably made the fire burn too fiercely and dissipated the flames. Glad you got your bacon butty!
@@TheWalkingKevAs you were lighting it in your vestibule I was mentally shouting "No! Don't light it!!". But then I knocked mine over once and set fire to a field so who am I to talk? (Stamped the flames out fortunately.)
@@mac_mcguckin it's all a learning curve for me and I'm happy to show me making mistakes. I've only previously used gas stoves and I was going to test the alcohol stove in the garden but we just had weeks of rain!
I didn't cook in the evening. Was dark, foggy and windy and I don't eat much when out and about. I took a couple of small bottles of fuel that came with it. So not much really. Burned a lot quicker than I thought it would.
@@TheWalkingKev hahaha nah you handled it well I was shouting at the iPad don’t do it lol , keep up the good and safe work mate 😂. Atb Wullie ✊🏻🏴
@@wulliescottishoutdoors same to you. I've seen you on Facebook I think, so I've subbed and will have a nose during what seems to be the rainy season here!
Warts and all Kev, that's what I like about you, no cutting out the embarrassing bits. I'm on the fence with this burner, I sort of think it's overpriced for basically a shoe polish tin burner which you can make yourself for free or penny's, I made one and it performs great, but then part of me thinks if you can't be bothered then maybe not so bad as your getting windshield too, but I'm still leaning towards to expensive, did you not put it on the support Arms Kev ? Thing with those little burners is they're great as a back up if your gas fails especially in winter 👍
Cheers Mick. The support arms? Is that the pot stand things? I have seen people use the Triangia type things and making their own, lots of different ways of doing it. This setup is certainly light, I don't know the value of the fibre in the tin... I'll definitely use it a few more times to get a feel for how much fuel you need to cook with it. I don't think I took enough this time.
@TheWalkingKev yeh I think I got it wrong I thought the clip in support arms were to stand the burner on ? When I made my shoe polish tin burner I just user a piece of loft insulation 😉
I don’t think the burner at £9 is particularly expensive. You can buy a little pot and carbon felt off Amazon, but you get to the same price quite quickly building it yourself. I think for the design of the windshield and the weight of the system, it’s actually fairly priced, all in @ £45. Personal opinion obvs
You dealt with that incident quickly and calmly but, having seen the damage fire can do to a tent, I'd personally neve have a live flame inside a tent, even in the awning / vestibule. What about a soldering mat / Bunsen burner mat to stand it on? I think I'd probably favour a solid fuel (Hexamine tablet) stove. Not as compact or lightweight but the fuel source is more easily managed and you'd have got to cook more rashers! There's a good reason why the British army and NATO issue these as kit.
I'm going to get a soldering mat for it. I think then with the windshield it should be safe enough to use in the porch. I've not used a solid fuel burner, any that you recommend?
@@TheWalkingKev To be frank, at the cheaper end of the spectrum I imagine most are badge engineered, i.e. all Chinese products of the same factory with different names on the box. They are all pretty cheap, (£6-£8), and the solid fuel refill tablets won't break the bank either. If you want the weight advantage you can go Titanium.
Oh m8 I know I shouldn't but it did make me chuckle lol you where so luck when you noticed when it took light great video Kev that could have been a very expensive bacon bap, it had to be RED sauce lol 🤘🤘🏴🏴🏴
I was oblivious for a bit! Thankfully the groundsheet was wet so that stopped it burning too badly! But as for the red sauce comment... Don't know what to say, clearly your taste buds have been broken by too much coffee!
I've been thinking 🤔 about switching to an alcohol set up Kev but after watching this 🔥 I might just stick with my Fire Maple stove 🤣 very entertaining Kev atb Brian 👍
Cool video. I've never been tempted to buy an alcohol stove for exactly the same reason, how much liquid fuel would I need to carry??? And as you demonstrated, can be quite dangerous!! I have bought a Nature Hike lightweight metal camping table from AliExpress which I am very pleased with.
I've got a few ideas for things to put underneath it now, so that's good. It will be a bit of trial and error I think to work out how much fuel you need to do some cooking, so I'll definitely take it out again.
I use a 330ml fuel bottle in summer - that does me for an overnighter with let’s say six or seven boils of 500ml of water. I take a litre fuel bottle in winter so I can use the stove to heat the tent too. Take care 👌🏻
30ml/1oz is usually good for boiling 2 cups of water under ideal conditions, but colder & windier & no heat reflected may require more. Gotta extinguish 🧯 flame 🔥 b4 refueling, with lid or cup
ok i'm a bit late but if your still using it i find the steel lid of a paint tin a good platform to rest the stove on' a 2litre paint tin that is ! ) i needs to be paint free on both sides use ablow torch or stick it in a fire
When I saw that I thought I’ll stick with my old meths burner. It is tiny but unstable. A fray bentos pie tin or alloy plate would be a safer way to use it.
Put it in a Aliminium Cake tin slightly smaller or bigger than your frying pan so you can store together. Methylated spirits burns longer but not as hot.
LOL Kev, I can tell you don't have Bears or Mountain Lions where you live 🤣 here the last thing you want to go to sleep smelling of is food. Word to the wise about oil. Liquid oil leaks no matter what you do and can be very messy. Historically lard was your friend and for good reason. You can also pack coconut cream as a solid and use that to fry with as well. A very "chefy" thing to do is use a sausage like Chorizo or belly bacon, and cook out the fats in that first, and use those for frying. Alcohol is a learning curve, about 2.5 times difference between the heat output of meths vs the isobutane/propane systems, but that just means modifying your approaches to cooking and if you are out on a 3 or 6 month canoe trip (done here in Canada easy enough) you could even make your own alcohol for the stove, pretty hard to make butane by comparison 🛢
I thought reading up on it if things are given to you for free you need to add this to the video as paid promotion. I could be wrong though, I was thinking better safe than sorry!
Nice viddy bacon looked good ! I make a similar stove setup in the uk for a fraction of the price , check me out at Outdoor Gear Essentials also have the NWC tables can sort you out a little delivery 👍
@southcoastoutdoorsuk6301 hi just had a look, is that the 9.99 windshield, stove and pot stand ? If so is the burner a alcohol one or do you have to keep replacing with another puck ? If it's alcohol I'll order one next week 😉
Potentially a great little stove for a bit of wild cooking, I just need to work out a safe way of using it in my tent porch! Any suggestions, please drop me a comment!
rip a clumb of soil large enough to be used as placement !
Asbestos tent! 😉
@@MagnusMaximusinWales can you recommend one 😂
@@TheWalkingKev I think they're fairly bespoke!
Aluminum foil wrapped carbon felt for welding, pickup in hardware store. U can use the carbon felt alone, but it's quite porous and any spills will flow straight thru. I used carbon felt for a homemade cat can alcohol stove, which has a built-in pot stand, but needs a windscreen, as all alcohol stove require
"Oh no, Kev, youre not going to light that on the footprint are you.. oh..." . Well I guess you tested one thing very well, the absorbent medium inside the stove is designed to stop the meths from slopping out if it moves. It certainly did that and saved you from a bigger incident as you chucked it clear of the tent. So thats a plus! Well done for including you warts and all review.
I can't always edit out the stupidity. I'd not have much content left if I did.
I'd spent a couple of years searching for this tent as well, it's almost irreplaceable!
Never put anything that can burn under the alcohol stove! X-Boil is best lightway alcohol stove I've used. I think only Trangia can beat it, but is much heavier.
Yep, lesson learned! I still need to sort out what I'm going to use underneath it, but I'll be using it again at some point.
A few suggestions.
The reason you used so much fuel is because the windshield doesn't surround the pan, with that setup and in wind you'll always get the same result.
Standing the stove on aluminium foil is a good suggestion, soldering mats not so much. Those mats can absorb any spilled fuel and become a burner themselves.
Even standing on foil, you are better off not standing the stove on your porch footprint.
Cheers Gary. The maker recommends standing it on a little bit of plyboard or the like... I've not got around to using it again so far.
I use a fiberglass cloth, not to protect my wife's precious plastic tablecloth (half kidding, happy wife, happy life) but in case of spillage of flaming fuel, to smother the fire. Paper towel to soak up the excess & take away from open flame. Wait while the rest evaporates. And try again 😄
You redeemed yourself by having brown sauce on your bacon roll ☺️
Got to be!
I use a cheap soldering mat from Amazon about £7 or £8, seems to do the job quite well at stopping the heat 👍
Cheers Stuart, a couple of people have suggested that now, seems a great idea so I'll get one.
Hope you persevered with the stove - a little alcohol burner is a very practical way to make a brew or cook up a small meal in the wild. I take my little stove out with me on day hikes and cycle rides and wouldn’t be without it. Thank you for the fireball bit - made me laugh as we’ve all had a moment with a camping stove, alcohol or gas 😂
Thanks for taking the time to comment. I keep meaning to use this more. I've done a lot of hiking this year and not really taken many breaks to make a hot drink or cook some food. Maybe I should make more time for this.
I’ve just got an x-boil too and was also an alcohol stove virgin. So before using I watched some UA-cam videos that confirmed it transfers heat downwards! I’ve got a folding metal sheet with heatproof backing from Speedster and I use that along with a bit of soldering mat as I really don’t want any fires! Probably overkill but makes me happier.
Nice one, all sounds wise. I'll put something together for my next trip with it!
I would swop the oex frying pan for a jetboil skillet.
I'll have to upgrade the pan at some point, it's not the best!
One of those tin pans for oven cut sides off put on that
Morning thought so 😊
A glorious morning.
I’m glad you got that out of the tent quickly! No paper or flammables around the stove next time. Maybe a good piece of sturdy foil underneath, for safety.
Yes, I keep meaning to get something. Company recommends a small bit of wood.
Hi Kev, I use Bio ethanol (Fire Dragon Fire Lighter Fluid) it burns hotter so boils quicker and isn't toxic. When using Meths add 10% water, it'll lessen the soot and add more burn time. If you want a good table Novice Wildcamper sells corrugated plastic ones that weigh next to nothing.
Cheers Goose. I was also using bioethanol, no idea why I kept saying meths! I blame it being early on a Sunday morning! I've seen those tables, will have a think. I'm going to get a soldering iron mat to put underneath the burner thanks to advice on here.
Watched this in the middle of the night, had me chuckling and couldn't get the song out of my head.... you know the one , the crazy world of Kevin brown sauce "fire" 🤣
Glad it amused! I'm just thankful my beautiful green OEX tent survived!
I use a piece of welding blanket to put my stove on. Fire proof and light.
Yep. Or a piece of fire blanket.
Another great suggestion, thanks.
Bring a large round pie dish and put it in that. You can fold it up for carrying.
Also, make a decent size wind shield from 2 large rectangular pie dishes, flattened and taped together with aluminium foil tape. Put some holes along each end and run some long steel skewers through it to anchor it to the ground. Works every time. It all folds flat for carrying and weighs almost nothing.
That's a great idea, I'll definitely do that, thanks.
Plenty of ideas in the comments on how to not burn yourself & your tent while making breakfast luckily, you took me from absolute horror at seeing everything catching fire to laughter as you tried to cook your bacon. Thank you for the entertainment, glad you survived intact & look forward to seeing you use the stove properly next time!
Little screw top plastic bottles intended for shampoo etc for travelling are fine for small quantities of cooking oil.
That's a good idea, I've got a couple of those somewhere. Thanks for taking the time to comment as always, really appreciate it.
Where are Pugh, Pugh, Barney, McGrew. Cuthbert, Dibble and Crump when you need them ???
Not in the Brecon Beacons sadly!
I like HP Fruity on bacon rolls.....but I am kind of weird.
I just ordered an XBoil, and am going to get a lightweight soldering mat to go under it. 😊
I'll accept fruity HP as being acceptable!
I hope you enjoy the X Boil and the soldering mat sounds like a good idea!
Yikes! That was close. Glad it all ended well.
Only a small hole in the porch groundsheet! Could have been a lot worse.
Hi Kev, Definitely try a trangia or even a cheap trangia-type stove. If you make sure it's filled up properly, you'll find it'll burn for about 20mins or so (enough to knock up a decent bacon butty and a brew too)!
I got mine from The Bushcraft Store for about a tenner, Works an absolute treat.
Cheers, I'll have a look at one of these at some point as I've seen others use them with good results. It's definitely a totally different experience from cooking with a gas stove.
It happens, nice vid. You handled it well, like a champ. Keep looking forward brother!
@@JerryShaver-vb7nd thanks 👍
I have one and I use a solid fuel stove that the BCB stove is modeled after. The Coghlan emergency stove. I set the burner right in that and it doesn't transfer the heat Down and it is the perfect height for alcohol stove flame. For cooking on alcohol stoves, the trangia is better. Can simmer with practice and it holds a lot more fuel.
They call it the xboil for a reason. It's good at boiling, not cooking.
Thanks for the tips. I guess it'll be better at making hot water for pasta and other kind of meals.
@@TheWalkingKev In my opinion, that's why they call it the x boil, not the x cook.
I have yet to find an alcohol burner setup that does not suffer from thermal runaway once the methylated spirits reaches its boiling point of 70 degrees Celsius. This issue is evident even in the Trangia 27 and 25 models, where, within minutes of ignition, the flame becomes excessively high and uncontrollable. This intense flame results in the methylated spirits being consumed in less than half the time it would in a calm, wind-free setting. For example, an uncovered (i.e. no pot or pan above it) Trangia spirit burner filled to its maximum capacity of 80ml with methylated spirits will typically burn for about 40 minutes in a home kitchen environment, and this duration is observed even without using the flame control ring. However, the same quantity of methylated spirits will be depleted in just 15-20 minutes outdoors while trying to boil half a litre of water. What this means is that you need to take a LOT of methylated spirits if you intend on a multi-day trek. A 1 litre fuel bottle would likely only last 72 hours based on my own personal experience cooking three meals a day and three boil-ups a day. Compared to the 60-80 minute runtime of a Jetboil with a 230g gas bottle which will give you 20+ boil-ups or 10-12 cooking sessions, alcohol burners are terribly inefficient for the weight, and they leave black soot all over the bottom of your cooking gear if the pot or pan sits too high (in the yellow portion of the flame) above the burner.
I used to use a foil baking tray under my stove when using my table but now have a soldering mat. I've seen a couple do what you did so you're not alone 😂
The soldering mat seems to be the best suggestion I've had so far, seems the most popular solution.
I just ordered one of these looking to cook somnething tasty
I'll be interested to see how this is vs my trail designs sidewinder
I'll be sure to watch that video. I want to do a lot more outdoor cooking this year so it's always interesting seeing what others are using and cooking whilst out and about.
@@TheWalkingKev Tony's how not to cook channel lol looks good
My pan arrived waiting for 550 pot and stove separate orders 😆
Hi Kev, The big and the medium size Trangia are both great: very stable, and thrive on wind. The tiny Trangia is a death-trap. I owned one briefly, but after it turned into a fireball for the second time I gave up on it, and it put me off cooking anywhere near my tent with any sort of cooker. If you re-fuel, better to risk a hot finger by checking there's no invisible flame than risk pouring more fuel on when it's still alight.
Thanks for the tip. A lot of people seem to rate the Trangias, I may end up with one in future!
@@TheWalkingKev I went on a trek with a bunch of people once and saw the usual collection of tall, unstable gas-canister stoves with a big, heavy pan trying to tip over, and the wind playing all sorts of havoc with it. And there was this Swedish guy with a Trangia, who just plonked it down, lit it and sat contentedly while it did what it was meant to do. I looked and learned!
@@malledevarda that's a great story! I've always felt my Pocket Rocket 2 and pot stand was fairly stable. This X-Boil setup is very stable, I just need to put it on something flame retardant...
I suspect it's the wind, alcohol stoves are really prone to the wind, so you need to either cook behind the tent (but not near it) or have a larger windshield They really work best when the pot is inside the shield and one inch above the flame.
Also I am glad you didn't burn your tent! And as others have said, good thing you were using the X-boil, throwing another type of alcohol stove out would have lead to a fireball as the burning alcohol went everywhere!
I am tempted to get an alcohol stove cos it's quiet but you do use just as much or more fuel if you go for longer trips than gas canisters. Short trips it's fine, and you can easily restock (well not bioethanol, but alcohol of various sorts is easier to get in remote locales). But judging that makes me wary - and the safety aspect.
It's an interesting alternative to gas. Good for a casual hike where you have a spot in mind to sit and watch the world go by, the stove burning quietly. It's just finding the time to do that!
Another real nice video Kev, with a bit of mild peril thrown in for good measure 🔥⚠🤣 Glad you kept that in fella.
Alcohol fuel stoves are my preferred choice over gas for a few reasons, the first being that they're silent, I find the sound of some of the gas stoves to be jet fighter loud. Annoying. Second being that they operate better in v low temps compared to gas - and thirdly - if one is careful! haha - I use my wee trangia stove almost like mini real fire in my porch in the winter... you'd be surprised how much one burn session can heat/dry out your tent inner space and warm yourself up. Max burn time is around 20 mins so no real CO danger either as it will just burn itself out. Keep the vids comin ma man. 👍
Cheers for the kind words. Yes, I have an MSR Pocket Rocket 2 and that is very loud! Something more relaxing with the alcohol stove. I'm going to make a little stand for it to rest on for future camps so I can use it safely in the porch. Hopefully we'll get some cold weather then...
I enjoyed this video but, as someone who uses an alcohol stove, I could see this was a disaster in the making with your original stove setup! I think the reason you got through so much method was the wind which probably made the fire burn too fiercely and dissipated the flames. Glad you got your bacon butty!
Cheers Mac, I'm investing in a nice stand for next time!
@@TheWalkingKevAs you were lighting it in your vestibule I was mentally shouting "No! Don't light it!!". But then I knocked mine over once and set fire to a field so who am I to talk? (Stamped the flames out fortunately.)
@@mac_mcguckin it's all a learning curve for me and I'm happy to show me making mistakes. I've only previously used gas stoves and I was going to test the alcohol stove in the garden but we just had weeks of rain!
Glad all worked out well. I am a big fan of the trangia spirit stove. But you need to be on guard, last summer dry grass was a worry.
Yeah, certainly a bit livelier than gas! I'll sort out something to go underneath it before I use it in the porch again.
Was the review in morning
What did you use to cook or make drinks night before
How much fuel did you take ?
I didn't cook in the evening. Was dark, foggy and windy and I don't eat much when out and about. I took a couple of small bottles of fuel that came with it. So not much really. Burned a lot quicker than I thought it would.
@The Walking Kev OK thanks so maybe 60ml OK thanks 😊
Great video kev, I'm new to using my alcohol stove but absolutely love it. Game changer I reckon. All the best 👍
By the way, iv been using methylated spirit in mine, cooks like rocket fuel
Cheers, I was using bioethanol and it burnt well, but quickly!
I was mightily impressed how fast you moved into action, ninja fast 🙏
@@welshbikepackingadventures once I noticed it!
No words for this at all all I’m saying is OMG. Atb ✊🏻🏴
Thanks for managing to be polite, appreciate it!
@@TheWalkingKev hahaha nah you handled it well I was shouting at the iPad don’t do it lol , keep up the good and safe work mate 😂. Atb Wullie ✊🏻🏴
@@wulliescottishoutdoors cheers, hopefully 2024 will bring us both plenty of adventures.
@@TheWalkingKev have a good one when it comes mate I will give you a sub and keep an eye out for your adventures mate ✊🏻🏴
@@wulliescottishoutdoors same to you. I've seen you on Facebook I think, so I've subbed and will have a nose during what seems to be the rainy season here!
Warts and all Kev, that's what I like about you, no cutting out the embarrassing bits.
I'm on the fence with this burner, I sort of think it's overpriced for basically a shoe polish tin burner which you can make yourself for free or penny's, I made one and it performs great, but then part of me thinks if you can't be bothered then maybe not so bad as your getting windshield too, but I'm still leaning towards to expensive, did you not put it on the support Arms Kev ? Thing with those little burners is they're great as a back up if your gas fails especially in winter 👍
Cheers Mick. The support arms? Is that the pot stand things? I have seen people use the Triangia type things and making their own, lots of different ways of doing it. This setup is certainly light, I don't know the value of the fibre in the tin...
I'll definitely use it a few more times to get a feel for how much fuel you need to cook with it. I don't think I took enough this time.
@TheWalkingKev yeh I think I got it wrong I thought the clip in support arms were to stand the burner on ? When I made my shoe polish tin burner I just user a piece of loft insulation 😉
@@Mickoutdoors yeah, those are for the pot, the pot sits lower inside the wind shield, the pan sits on top of the windshield.
I don’t think the burner at £9 is particularly expensive. You can buy a little pot and carbon felt off Amazon, but you get to the same price quite quickly building it yourself.
I think for the design of the windshield and the weight of the system, it’s actually fairly priced, all in @ £45. Personal opinion obvs
You dealt with that incident quickly and calmly but, having seen the damage fire can do to a tent, I'd personally neve have a live flame inside a tent, even in the awning / vestibule. What about a soldering mat / Bunsen burner mat to stand it on?
I think I'd probably favour a solid fuel (Hexamine tablet) stove. Not as compact or lightweight but the fuel source is more easily managed and you'd have got to cook more rashers! There's a good reason why the British army and NATO issue these as kit.
I'm going to get a soldering mat for it. I think then with the windshield it should be safe enough to use in the porch.
I've not used a solid fuel burner, any that you recommend?
@@TheWalkingKev To be frank, at the cheaper end of the spectrum I imagine most are badge engineered, i.e. all Chinese products of the same factory with different names on the box. They are all pretty cheap, (£6-£8), and the solid fuel refill tablets won't break the bank either. If you want the weight advantage you can go Titanium.
Oh m8 I know I shouldn't but it did make me chuckle lol you where so luck when you noticed when it took light great video Kev that could have been a very expensive bacon bap, it had to be RED sauce lol 🤘🤘🏴🏴🏴
I was oblivious for a bit! Thankfully the groundsheet was wet so that stopped it burning too badly!
But as for the red sauce comment... Don't know what to say, clearly your taste buds have been broken by too much coffee!
@The Walking Kev hahaha yeah too much coffee awesome, wow really lucky it was wet m8. 🤘🤘🏴🏴🏴
Great stuff! A real world review.
Cheers, I try my best to take stuff out and use it as intended... Even when it shows me being a bit clueless!
I've been thinking 🤔 about switching to an alcohol set up Kev but after watching this 🔥 I might just stick with my Fire Maple stove 🤣 very entertaining Kev atb Brian 👍
I've got plenty of ideas for safe bases now, so I shall definitely be using it again, this time more safely!
Cool video. I've never been tempted to buy an alcohol stove for exactly the same reason, how much liquid fuel would I need to carry??? And as you demonstrated, can be quite dangerous!! I have bought a Nature Hike lightweight metal camping table from AliExpress which I am very pleased with.
I've got a few ideas for things to put underneath it now, so that's good. It will be a bit of trial and error I think to work out how much fuel you need to do some cooking, so I'll definitely take it out again.
I use a 330ml fuel bottle in summer - that does me for an overnighter with let’s say six or seven boils of 500ml of water. I take a litre fuel bottle in winter so I can use the stove to heat the tent too. Take care 👌🏻
@@campingcaledonia76 sounds good, I'll definitely take more fuel if I'm planning on cooking much.
30ml/1oz is usually good for boiling 2 cups of water under ideal conditions, but colder & windier & no heat reflected may require more. Gotta extinguish 🧯 flame 🔥 b4 refueling, with lid or cup
Good entertainment 🤣
And yes... HP sauce all the way!
This was HP sauce sachets nabbed from a local eatery.
ok i'm a bit late but if your still using it i find the steel lid of a paint tin a good platform to rest the stove on' a 2litre paint tin that is ! ) i needs to be paint free on both sides use ablow torch or stick it in a fire
That's a pretty good solution! I do have a few tins lying around. I'll possibly give it a go if I empty one.
@@TheWalkingKev check out speedster stoves as well , ask them nicely and they may send you a free one to review : )
@@MrWansty they do look good. I found a reviewer who just uses an old bit of foil leftover from a pie to put underneath the stove...
When I saw that I thought I’ll stick with my old meths burner. It is tiny but unstable. A fray bentos pie tin or alloy plate would be a safer way to use it.
Cheers George, a few people suggesting an alloy plate of some sort.
Put it in a Aliminium Cake tin slightly smaller or bigger than your frying pan so you can store together.
Methylated spirits burns longer but not as hot.
Thanks for the suggestion, that'd work for sure.
Worst nightmare when cooking in a tent 🤣😱
Especially a tent I've spent a few years tracking down! Didn't want this one going up in smoke.
Oh wow lol ops careful
I'll watch that lol nice bacon
I fried in my sidewinder twice lol not ideal hope this better
Fun video
Cheers Tony. It cooked the bacon and I'm hoping to learn from my mistakes for a better and longer cook next time!
Oh dear kev 🤣
It could have been worse I guess!
@@TheWalkingKev definitely mate! They can be pretty dangerous. Get a soldering mat for underneath 👌
Brown sauce YES! But toast the bread a bit.
Fair point, I'll need to get a little toast grill or something!
LOL Kev, I can tell you don't have Bears or Mountain Lions where you live 🤣 here the last thing you want to go to sleep smelling of is food. Word to the wise about oil. Liquid oil leaks no matter what you do and can be very messy. Historically lard was your friend and for good reason. You can also pack coconut cream as a solid and use that to fry with as well. A very "chefy" thing to do is use a sausage like Chorizo or belly bacon, and cook out the fats in that first, and use those for frying. Alcohol is a learning curve, about 2.5 times difference between the heat output of meths vs the isobutane/propane systems, but that just means modifying your approaches to cooking and if you are out on a 3 or 6 month canoe trip (done here in Canada easy enough) you could even make your own alcohol for the stove, pretty hard to make butane by comparison 🛢
Very true! Thankfully we just have sheep to deal with here! Coconut oil is a great shout. I can whack that in a small container easily.
I wondered why you sat it on a paper bag lol
It was the only thing I had to offer a modicum of protection against the groundsheet. But agree, in hindsight it was a baffling decision!
Hi Kev I could be wrong but no need to put paid promotion. They gave something to review they haven't paid you for it.
I thought reading up on it if things are given to you for free you need to add this to the video as paid promotion. I could be wrong though, I was thinking better safe than sorry!
@The Walking Kev no pretty sure only if paid or sponsored
No harm just not needed for reviews unless it's a paid review which it's not
Why would you have paper near the stove?
I neglected to take anything else to put underneath it! I packed late as usual.
Hmm! I think I would stick with gas Kev!
I've been given lots of sound advice for things to put underneath it so I'll be back out with it at some point!
Nice viddy bacon looked good ! I make a similar stove setup in the uk for a fraction of the price , check me out at Outdoor Gear Essentials also have the NWC tables can sort you out a little delivery 👍
I think I've ordered a Lanshan 2 Pro from that website at the start of this year. I'll have a nose.
@@TheWalkingKev perfect let me know 🙏
@southcoastoutdoorsuk6301 hi just had a look, is that the 9.99 windshield, stove and pot stand ? If so is the burner a alcohol one or do you have to keep replacing with another puck ? If it's alcohol I'll order one next week 😉
@@Mickoutdoors Hi Mick , yes it’s a alcohol stove just fill it up and reuse as many times as you like 👍
@southcoastoutdoorsuk6301 perfect I'll get one ordered next week, tbf the windshield alone is probably worth that alone 👍👍
Please don't light an alcohol stove on your plastic groundsheet. No. Mate. STAAAAAAHP. WTF!!!
@@Tom_Bee_ live and learn!
Whoops 😂
That's pretty much what I thought when I looked at my ground sheet after!