Re: [Paddlewise] Wood burning Stove (was Carrying Stoves)

I have been asked back channel and on Paddlewise about the wood burning
stove I mentioned that is made in Israel.

I got mine from Gander Mtn. but I don't have their catalog any more and
I heard it had been dropped.  I see in Cabela's latest catalog that they
have it now.  Called the Pocket Cooker.  Item CA-51-2000, $17.95. 
1-800-237-4444.  Website is http://www.cabelas.com but I have not
checked if the item is listed there.

FYI, here is the review of the stove from Folding Kayaker Nov/Dec 1994.

BEGIN REVIEW---------
Wood Burning Camping Stove
	I first saw something like this on a weekend camping paddling trip with
a local club.  One individual had this small pyramid shaped steel stove
that collapsed down to a small bag (hmm, shades of a folding kayak).  It
was fueled with small twigs and any other handy combustible material. 
She had found hers in a small shop in upper New York’s Adirondack
Mountains.
	I thought it was just ideal, particularly as a back-up stove to your
regular butane or gas backpacking stove.  Hers had seen use for several
seasons.  Some of the metal fittings had been mishapen by numerous
fires, and some pieces had pretty much burned away.  I tried finding one
in every camping catalog and shop I could find.  No luck.  Now, I’ve
discovered a different version that strikes me a lot more practical and
useful than hers.
	It’s sold by Gander Mountain of Wisconsin through its camping catalog
as the Pocket Cooker.  It is made in Israel and goes for $15.99 as item
order number 499-M-0850 (Gander Mountain phone: for Canada and the US,
800-558-9410; international orders, 414-862-3516; address: Box 248,
Highway W, Wilmot, WI 53192).
	It weighs just a little over a pound and fits into a tough cordura
nylon case that is included.  It has several advantages.  First, unlike
the one my friend had, the Pocket Cooker can be fed through a side door
that also acts as control of sorts for the amount of air getting  to the
fire; it can be kept fully closed (if no wood is sticking out; or
propped open at various settings).  Hers fed only from the top, limiting
the lengths of twigs and kindling you could use since these would get in
the way of the pot. She could only use a small sierra cup to heat
water.  With the Pocket Cooker you can feed longish pieces of  wood
through the side and push the pieces further in as their flamed ends
burn up.  And, you have little limit in pot size.
	This is no toy or gimmick.  The stated time to boil water is 3 cups of
water in 10 minutes, but that clearly depends on the wood and the amount
you use.  I was able to bring that amount to an overboil in just 5
minutes using kindling shavings.  So you can extrapolate boiling time
for a quart in under 7 minutes!  That compares most favorably with gas
and butane stoves.  The best of these, the MSR-XGK, supposedly will
bring a quart to boil in about 5 to 6 minutes.
	The great advantage of the Pocket Cooker is no worry about running out
of fuel and the total weight of your cooking setup.  The lightest gas
stove comes in at about a pound with some weighing as much as a pound
and half.  Then there’s the fuel.  Fuel for four to five days of cooking
(if used gingerly) weighs about two pounds.  With the Pocket Cooker, you
will not run out of fuel.  What you should do for emergencies when you
can’t find anything dry is carry fire starters, the kind  for starting
fires in woodburning fireplaces.  Carry about a half a pound of these,
or stock up on small twigs and pieces of dry wood.  You can also carry a
tube of Fire Ribbon, which weighs about half a pound.  Smear this on any
kind of wood, even wet, and you’ll get a roaring blaze.
	Another advantage of the Pocket Cooker is that it is a controlled
fire.  The last thing you want to be caught doing while commando camping
is to have an open fire.  It is certain to get you kicked out or
arrested in many areas.  With a fire contained in a closed environment,
you are more likely to get some admiring remarks than a “get the hell
out of here” condemnation.
	One or two warnings.  Like any wood fire it will blacken pots (which
many old timers say is great since a black bottom tends to draw more
heat for cooking or boiling a pot’s contents), more so than the gas and
butane does.  Another, of course, you will have more smoke.  But, the
Pocket Cooker is quite cozy to snuggle your hands up near for warmth. 
And, there is something about a wood fire that brings out the caveperson
in all of us.  Buy a couple to give to your friends as gifts.  It’s a
good emergency stove during hurricanes, earthquakes and all of those
other ways nature seems to be telling us who’s boss.
-----END REVIEW

What I could have added in the review was what we are talking about now,
not one worry about airline very valid safety regulations.

best,

ralph


-- 
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Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter
PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024
Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com
"Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag."
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