Yeah, these old ones are hard to justify… preheating, jet cleaning, smell, soot… the modern ones are WAY more practical. I just like the way the old ones work, and repairing them has something relaxing to me. Anyway, they are cheaper and smaller than old motorcycles 
hear ya. what do you got for a vintage torch? first, im kind of a pyro, like flamey things… i like camping so stoves is justifiable. the torch, i have worked with metal my whole life so its cool as a vintage tool, and flamey thingy too. someday.
there was one on ebay, a clayton lambert, i had my eye on. they said it was mint condition. you could tell it was polished to hell, all the stampings were faded out and all. ruins it i think. id polish it up some, but not to the point of ruining the stamping
well got the optimus 8r today, rust wasnt as bad as what it looked like in the pictures. still going to take it apart, strip the case and either put about 20 coats of flat black stove paint, or use some of that ceramic brake caliper paint on it. take apart and re freshen it all, and she should be a champ for another 30 years
the guy i got it from said he had bought it new about 30 years ago and got alot of use out of it, but him and his wife cant go camping like they used to. seemed like a nice guy
right now its burning kind of orange, but it had some old nasty fuel in it that looked like it was sitting a long time. i drained it out and flushed it with a few oz of fuel an drained that. but im sure some is stuck in the wick still
the coleman i got runs great, as it should… but wouldnt get a decent flame and ran like crap on the pump gas i put in it… probably watered down s#!T, gas aint what it used to be. so ill only burn white gas, unless something comes up and i cant get it
edit: the optimus 8r was $26 shipped, and the coleman was $35 + $20 gas to go to freeport and get it, but i wanted to go to llbean anyways, so lets say $10 gas. it was new in box still taped up and all
just for the sake of talking to myself…
this optimus 8r is freaking cool. ive probably almost burned through the first tank of fuel. now camp stoves are nothing new, ive had my 425E since i was 12 probably… maybe thats why it wasnt as exciting getting the new 424… but this is cool…
just scored a primus multi-fuel-ex omnifuel (edited, looked at the pics closer and realized it had the control on the burner) and two fuel bottles for $45. just need to pick it up tomorrow or this weekend.
id rather have the optimus nova+ or optimus hiker+, but ill play with this a little and then maybe try to flip it to get something else im interested in. really would like a svea and the evernew dx system too…
well picked up the primus omnifuel. this thing roars. i bet it puts out more heat than my coleman stove… but it is covered in soot. it needs a new priming pad, the different nozzles for different fuels, and the cleaning/repair tool.
the pump did not work when i picked it up, so i took it apart and cleaned it and lubed the leather and gave a squirt down the tube too. shes up and running.
the cleaning tool and case it came in was from an optimus nova. it wont fit in the case, and the tool wont work with it. i emailed the girl i bought it off and asked if she had an optimus nova stove also, because the case and tool are for it… lol
ill get some parts, clean all the soot off, and ill have a stove that retails for $182 according to the primus site, but can be had for like $120 on ebay. didnt do as good on this one as i thought i did. thought the cheapest i found on ebay was $160… but i didnt get raped on the deal either. ill have another $30 into it for a spare parts kit and the tool. so in all… decent deal
decided to run a test tonight on my newest DIY alcohol stove. its the bottom of two redbull cans cut about an inch tall. 8 jets the size of a thumb tack on the inside of the bottom ring. its just a homemade sealed pressure jet stove.
ill be comparing it to just a regular run of the mill civilian trangia burner. test was done with the trangia mini pot stand, pot and lid. two cups of water, half an oz of yellow heet
| Burner | Boil time | Burn time |
| Trangia | 5:56 | 6:47 |
| Redbull 12oz | 5:26 | 6:31 |
i was kind of surprised by the results. i did not think 0.5oz in the trangia would actually bring it to a boil.
but the redbull pressure jet did beat it in time to boil and time boiling.
also, when my fiance saw what i was doing she said "having fun?" and i was like "yeah, why?" and she goes "looser" 
not sure if im talking to myself at this point of the thread, but oh well... ill keep on posting
edit: this is also optimal conditions. inside on my stove and room temp water
That's pretty neat that you beat out the Trangia with what amounts to recyclables...
I have made some "penny stoves" powered by Everclear, since the stuff has, um, multiple uses... ;)
When i tested my regular penny stove and the redbull one i noticed the smaller one ran much faster, probably because of the smaller size it gets warmer and builds up more pressure (flames were slightly different size and colour).
I played with them again this week, when I got a pot with heat exchange ring that i got on ebay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280762067955&ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:US:1123
Man, that thing reallly works… :heart_eyes: i know it was in almost “in vitro” conditions, but it was around 30 % faster. I’ll try to post a review this week.
I think if I added a few more jets it would bring the flame hieght down a little and be a little quicker.
To be honest, I have yet to cook anything with an alcohol stove. Like you said Wayne, I think it’s pretty cool to use everyday, worthless items to produce enough heat to cook with. Two cans and an extra thumb screw from my computer can’t cost much more than 50c. I use the thumb screw to seal the fill hole. Make the fill hole just a hair small for the screw, and it will self tap itself in the hole.
I was looking at those heat exchange pots wondering how much more eficient they would be. 30% is a very big difference.
Very cool! I’d like to see some pictures of your DIY stove, Pulsar.
I’m going to move this thread into the Gear for Flashlight Carriers category, this is a fascinating reference into another fun hobby.
I had no idea that there are new high tech wood burning portable stoves. Can any of them use alcohol too as a backup in case there’s no (dry) twigs to be found?
i know of the evernew dx kit. its expensive ($100+) and read in reviews it is slow cooking with wood. the bushcooker lt comes with a burn cup, but it looks just like a pan, i think its just to place the alcohol burner on top of it. then theres the solo stove and BushBuddy. im pretty sure with a little creativity you could use a alcohol burner in either
i have an ebay gift card i was going to use to get a gil hibben alaskan, but not sure now that it uses a cheap blade steel. i think it will end up going to a solo stove as its half the price of a BushBuddy
the stoves are fascinating and addictive like flashlights. all i really need is one double burner (my coleman dual fuel) and a compact stove… but theres something about them thats got me wanting more. ive got two coleman dual fuel two burners, an optimus 8r, primus omnifuel, and a trangia mini kit so far… not including the various soda can burners i have made. and i still want more!
not a very good pic, but you can get the basic design out of it
edit: the solo stove site sells a trangia style burner for it, and theres lots of discussion on using a alcohol burner inside the BushBuddy
More jets = less pressure. Pros: better simmering, maybe beter efficiency. Cons: probably not so efficient with wind. Playing with the wind shield and the distance to the pot you can adjust the flames sizes without modifying the jets setup (because you change the way heat which is radiated back to the burner)
I only cooked with them a couple times, i prefer using the stoves to cook water and then re-hydrate the food, prepare coffee, etc. UL riding/backpacking requires it and i do like it.
I was shocked by the difference too, but if you think about it, it makes sense: larger surface exposed to the heat, better distribution of that heat, and smaller loss of the flames which normally escape towards the sides of the pot. It makes me think that maybe the difference would be bigger in worse conditions.
im using the trangia pot stand for testing, but i will eventually make a pot stand for the soda can burners.
i did make a windscreen/pot stand out of a larger bean can. cut the bottom and top off with a side cutter can opener, made some breather holes at top and bottom. used one of the lids cut off for a primer plate and the can section sat pretty sturdy on it. but the burner turned into a blow torch. i was actually worried the burner was going to blow apart. thats when i realized how much other parts of the cook kit will actually effect how well the burner will work. the bean can kept too much heat around the burner, evaporating the alcohol way too quick.
also, doing just a burn time test with the redbull burner above, i got something like 8:45. more than two mins more than having a pot stand and pot on it.
i forgot to mention, if i depended on everclear for my stove fuel… id probably end up lost in the woods, and no fuel for my stove 8)
https://www.minibulldesign.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=74&idcategory=2
i guess my twist on the stove with the thumb screw for fill port and jets inside the rim is not an original idea… oh well lol
its not stupid, its actually quite smart. that and if your stove gets damaged beyond useable, you can go to any store, grab a couple cans of beverages, and make a new one.
i actually had a problem finding heet yesterday. only one out of 5 gas stations still had some, so i grabbed 3 bottles. i got to go on the search for some kleenstrip green, its 90-100% ethanol, while slx is only 40-50%. may need to dilute it, but id rather have purer alcohol diluted with water than something else diluted with other stuff
That’s funny. Last summer in Iceland, a lot of folks used to look weird at me and my stove (well, i want to believe that the stove was the reason :bigsmile: ) until i got it running. Then faces changed, even more when i grabbed a couple cans lying around and started making a new one with the multi tool…
And for the fuel, my personal choice is bioethanol. Easier to find than other spirits, but mostly because it burns with less odour and leaves less soot. I find it a little bit more stable and efficient than the other stuff as well.
I’ve actually came close to buying that pot you linked a few times. already have a gsi pinnicle base camp large for car camping, but been wanting something smaller.
I found another one on amazon, it’s smaller but the lid is plastic…
i just did a boil with the klean strip green, undiluted, using my redbull burner. it burned more yellow and sooty, and a noticeable smell unlike yellow heet. but i also read online that it may burn too rich and need to be diluted with water. thus you can carry more fuel, and dilute out in the field
anyway, same test… half ounce of fuel, two cups water
boil: 5:22
burn time 6:42
so in all not a big difference. but i also did not do another heet burn today, variables could be different. also, if i dilute it to burn a clean blue flame it could also make a big difference i would think
at about $7.50 a quart, and 90-100% ethanol, i think it is a good fuel choice. just need to play with diluting a little bit to find the sweet spot