Primus or Msr petrol stove or other ?

[hornet]

Camping is now something that missus hornet is happy to do as she now has a helinox cot one and a really warm bag and pillow she is happy with. Hurray so now rather than carry or find gas when it runs out. I'd like a multi fuel stove and primus and Msr look like the best made but put me right on that if I'm wrong please.

Does anybody know of a reason to favour one of these or another. Our trips are getting longer and more frequent as well as more remote so reliability is important to me. It would be nice to just cook on an open fire but not possible.

I know both products are not cheap but I'm happy to buy once and buy right

Thanks for any helpful input

Regards
Hornet

[byewayrider]

I have a coleman multifuel petrol thingy....now in the unused box...a prefer a small gas head and canister...lasts me 10 days, but when i unscrew each morning if its getting empty..less liquid inside i stop at a supermarket ( europe) or camping shop on days travels for a new one...

Both similar size and you need to carry fuel...the gas option is ace when your cold and wet and find a.cheap hotel with no food..out comes the gas and brew and soup in the room....no alarms set off yet...

Each to there own bit ljke tyres lol...

[jonny675]

I've had both just sold my MSR whisperlite the reason I got tired of faffing around when I just wanted a cup of tea.i like my tea when camping and it took ages to set up.I just went back to my pocket rocket msr.if your in more remote places ideal I suppose but gas cannister are readily available now plus I didn't find it really fuel efficient the gas cannister lasted just as long.if you have space take a small gas one for coffee and tea and use the fuel one for cooking.
the msr had no issues with it has a jet cleaner you just shake it but practice priming it.lve seen people with flames as high as there tents.

[Peirre]

It depends on what you intend to heat up/cook.
For a simple brew in a morning anything simple will do, which is about as much as most do on a campsite before heading to a cafe for a full breakfast, but if you want to cook more complex dishes in remote places then a multi fuel stove is a must.
I have a similar setup as this
http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread ... oves/page4
I also have a dozen or so gas stoves, an MSR dragonfly and several alcohol stoves

[Paul-S]

I've had a Coleman since 2007 and run it on unleaded off the bike fuel tank. Last ages and burns hot so quick to boil or cook full pans, use a shield with it ti keep the heat in the atomiser and pan warm.

Petrol is great for the fast intense heat but I've found it's not great for simmering

[Nyxlexica]

I lived off a Biolite woodburning stove for about four months, cooking all three meals and boiling up enough water for a few non-mealtime teas with it each day. It meant we didn't have to cart around or pay for gas canisters. We never risked running out of gas in the middle of nowhere, too.

That said, I'd say alternative fuel stoves are an acquired taste. It took me a solid three weeks of cooking to get to grips with the Biolite. Certain fuels produce different flames; lighting it can be a bugger; and it generally took me a while to realise that, yes, a bundle of four sticks at a time added in as soon as the flame ebbed meant my water would boil in under five minutes, while one stick at a time added every now and again could drag things out to a quarter of a bloody hour.

Rain was an issue, too. I ended up carting around a reserve stash of dry sticks, just in case, which halfway negated the pros of being canister-free. We had a handful of occasions where we just wanted a quick cuppa, and the stove's ramp-up time generally involved traipsing around gathering forest debris if my stick-bag was low, so it wasn't always up to the task.

Still, an overall endorsement for non-gas cooking from me.

[AustinW]

I tried a multi fuel adapter (petrol etc) for my Trangia and have more or less given up with it and use the gas adapter I also have for it instead. (Meths is way too slow and you need loads of it). The screw on/off gas canisters are available just about everywhere in the western world and probably in most of the developing and third world too (you can probably get them refilled in those places too).

Gas is easier and safer to use, easier to carry, less smelly and dirty, no chance of a leak, and a lot lot easier to light. If your wife is anything like mine she will happily use the gas but won't go near the petrol due to the faff and complexity of pressurising, priming, pre-heating, timing the main light to the dying pre-heat flame, keeping the jet clean, the smell, the noise, and the excessive heat. The only time I use the petrol stove is if its going be very cold or if I don't think I will be able to get a replacement gas cylinder (so never really).

Nevertheless a petrol stove has a certain appeal and I do like mine.

[Big Yellow Tractor]

For a few days away I take a Vango folding stove with a tube to a gas canister and a Trangia cookset if I'm actually going to cook stuff or the Alpkit Brukit just for a brew.

Longer trips or cold weather, Coleman Feather petrol stove.

Gas is cleaner to store but my "kitchen" all lives in a Kriega US10 (I think) which is strapped on the rack above the headlight so not really an issue for me. I like the idea of always having fuel; I use a bit of clear hose to siphon from the tank.

With the gas ones, I use the larger canister with the stove but have a small one stashed away as a spare. I try to get a replacement large asap and put the partially used spare back away.

[hornet]

Thanks for your thoughts and insight it's helped to highlight a few issues. Yup I get the issue of time to set up and get it going being a dirtyer way of cooking and it being harder to use for simmering, been using gas with different outlets for 10 ish years and for a quick brew I agree hard to beat but for proper cooking I still think petrol is the way to go for me even though the bio fuel does sound cool.

Anymore thoughts are welcome

Thanks again
Hornet

[boatman]

When I am "long hauling" I carry an MSR which I fuel from the bike and a jetboil compact gas type
Brekkie coffee , lunch coffee / cup soup use the jetboil ,quick easy (thumbs)
Dinner time ,I use the MSR for proper heat to cook a proper meal . (thumbs)