Cartridge stoves are nice for shorter trips, or when you don't want liquid fuel to leak in your storage hold. I have a SnoPeak model that is light, very small, very dependable, and it simmers as well as runs on full-tilt boogie. Cartridges can be UPS'd or such to destinations and the stove packs up so small as to pass in packed baggage w/o a hitch. Cartridges are not recyclable, which sucks, and if you don't clock usage, it can be somewhat dodgy predicting left-over burn time. They do detach and reattach w/o any fuss. My MSR Whisperlight is dependable, can be readily bodged in the field with the right tools and parts, can blow torch mounds of snow into water, doesn't simmer worth a damn. Their Dragonfly model has better simmer control. Better choice for longer trips. Multi-fuel models are worth considering if you go where Coleman isn't available. Travel via air is sometimes problematic and you may have to ship the stove, empty fuel bottles, and buy fuel at destination. White gas/ Coleman fuel is a pain when you have to buy it in larger amounts as unused fuel doesn't store well for extended time periods...it degrades and then gunks your stove more quickly than clean fuel. Kero and auto gas require adapters and you need to clean the stove frequently as these fuels burn dirty. I used the nesbit tab stoves, alcohol stoves, etc. and find these to have their own merits but not as adaptable, a bit too fussy, etc. It's worth noting that in some situations, stoves are very much a matter of personal survival and emergency kit. You can't give hyperthermic victims hot liquids if you've no source for reliable and fast flame. It's worth having one of each type stove for flexible trip planning. I tend to use the cartridge stove for shorter trips, the liquid fuel for longer journeys. Your mileage may vary, and the different makers of these stove types are worth a closer look. I think REI and MEC both have comparison pages on their web sites, and Backpacker Magazine has run field tests on both types, so you might check their archives. -Will *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Sat Jan 04 2003 - 15:03:01 PST
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