bugout bag stove recommendations?

[karlsgunbunker]

Some great ideas, any toughts on a SHTF oven for baking? Like bread or biscuts?

Walmart.com: Coleman Portable Camp Oven: Camping

 

[Bill of Rights]

Well to start with on the Coke/Pepsi can stove did you try to light it on the cold ground? Cold is denatured alcohol enemy for it.

Do the soda can stoves have to be denatured alcohol or will rubbing (or other kinds of) alcohol work?

Blessings,
B

 

[indyjoe]

Do the soda can stoves have to be denatured alcohol or will rubbing (or other kinds of) alcohol work?

Rubbing alcohol is not very high concentration of alcohol. So it doesn't work or works very poorly. Denatured is best. In a jam, you can get Heet or other fuel water remover, because these are usually just Denatured alcohol. The alcohol will join with the water in the fuel and allow it to burn through.

Tangent: This is also a method of telling if fuel has ethanol in it. For a plane I flew in high school, we had an auto gas STC (standard type certificate). Because the plane was designed to run on 80 octane, 87 octane auto fuel was fine (and much cheaper than 100LL aviation gas). However, ethanol (alcohol) in the fuel was not. To determine if it has alcohol, put some fuel in a tube with a little water. Mark the water line. If the "water" grows, it is really alcohol and water mix and the fuel has ethanol.

 

[Gritch]

Do the soda can stoves have to be denatured alcohol or will rubbing (or other kinds of) alcohol work?

Blessings,
B

I found this website Zen and the Art of the Alcohol Stove a few years ago. It has all the information on soda can stoves you could ever want. I keep one with a bottle of denatured alcohol in each of my vehicles incase I get stranded in the snow for the night. I also take a few with me when I go camping. They work great if you build them right.

 

[fg12351]

I fired up my pepsi can stove tonight and got it boiling water. Did it inside this time. It went out on me twice with plenty of alcohol left inside. Why would that be? I had it sitting on a couple of sheets of tin foil with the top piece not being much larger than the can and shaped like a bowl to use as a priming dish. Worked well though. I will make a few more to keep as backup stoves.

 

[cosermann]

Hmm. I never thought I needed a stove in my BOB. Takes up weight and space needed by other necessary things. The key to putting together a BOB is knowing what NOT to put in it.

 

[USMC_0311]

One iron skillet and you can cook any thing. People went in to the wilderness for months or even years with nothing to cook on but an iron skilled and wood fire. I think I could bake an apple pie in a clay flower pot with a fire in a hole in the ground if I wanted one bad enough to try it.

This whole SHTF thing, I think you are going to find that buying something is not going to substitute well for knowing something. What you know is a whole lot easier to carry than all the crap you'd have to buy to make up for not knowing.

While we're on the topic, where the heck is it people think they are going to "bug out" TO? Where are you going that you are going to be taking stoves, and ovens and bags full of all different knives for each individual occasion, one for combat, a skinning knive, pocket knives, combat rifles and full complement of ammo, small game rifle and full complement of ammo.... on and on and on.

Either ya'll are not really GOING ANY WHERE or yer going to be going in your full bore SHTF U Haul. Winter survival 8 mile hikes, and back to the hotel room by sun down. Brunch and cookies waiting half way through.

I'm 54 years old in a few days. I'm as bugged out as I'm gonna get SHTF or the ground either one. I ain't going no where. SHTF and no one better show their self after dark around my place because I'll already have a couple holes dug for mistakes. And I better know 'em real good and recognise 'em pretty quick even in the day light.

Until the TV starts working again, SHTF means Shoot Holes'n Them First.

Check the bodies for badges.

This is a great post with some valuable insight and reps to you. I love this line

This whole SHTF thing, I think you are going to find that buying something is not going to substitute well for knowing something. What you know is a whole lot easier to carry than all the crap you'd have to buy to make up for not knowing.

You can't take everything but you do take all your knowledge with you.

I don't plan on bugging out either in SHTF scenario. I prefer to make a stand but I may not have that option so I got a BOB. Its standard 782 gear “battle load” like I was issued in the Marines. I know its old school (I am 44) but it’s what I know. The A.L.I.C.E. Pack weights at least 90lbs but I can hump it at least 5 miles a day if I got to walk. It will sustain my wife, son, and me for minimum 2 weeks if I can’t hunt or fish. I do have a plan as to where I am going and it’s not your house after dark unless I am invited.
Iron skillet could be worn as body armor another good idea. I said I wanted it for bread and biscuits but really I wanted apple pie and of course bacon.
This part is way too funny.

Until the TV starts working again, SHTF means Shoot Holes'n Them First.

Check the bodies for badges.

 

[GhostofWinter]

Walmart.com: Coleman Portable Camp Oven: Camping

How about this instead?? no stove required.

https://secure.lodgemfg.com/storefront/product1_new.asp?menu=prologic&idProduct=3969

Greg

 

[IndyBeerman]

How about this instead?? no stove required.

https://secure.lodgemfg.com/storefront/product1_new.asp?menu=prologic&idProduct=3969

Greg

Remember the main thing of a Bug out Bag is versatility and weight, aluminum pans heat more quickly require less fuel and the weight difference is enormous. I'd rather have the extra 2 pounds of supplies with a aluminum pan rather than lugging around a tank of a frying pan, or try consider using it as body armor as a secondary use.

My use of a Bug out Bag would to get home asap, that's where I'll make my stand unless home is destroyed, that's when I start moving to backup plans.

 

[Jack Ryan]

Remember the main thing of a Bug out Bag is versatility and weight, aluminum pans heat more quickly require less fuel and the weight difference is enormous. I'd rather have the extra 2 pounds of supplies with a aluminum pan rather than lugging around a tank of a frying pan, or try consider using it as body armor as a secondary use.

My use of a Bug out Bag would to get home asap, that's where I'll make my stand unless home is destroyed, that's when I start moving to backup plans.

Ever try to cook breakfast over a camp fire in an aluminum frying pan? Sour dough, corn bread, acorn bread, dear steaks, squirrel, gravy, cobbler all in the same pan one after the other, forget about it.

Try smashing up or grinding acorns or other wild grains and nuts with an aluminum frying pay to make bread or dough. It's just as well you won't be able to cook it because you'll never get it made.

I like the body armour idea to. That is outstanding. Any thing you have to carry, the more jobs it does the more it's worth carrying.

 

[Ashkelon]

Multi Use

I am with Jack Ryan and others re: plan for multi-use items. Versatility equals value. I have pounded many a tent stake with my skillet. Besides my big cast iron skillet may come in quite handy if I run out of ammo. I am willing to bet my wife can throw it faster than a 9 mm can travel

 

[IndyBeerman]

I'm in the process of building a bugout bag for my fiancee and myself. I'm looking at food supplies and I'm thinking MRE'sdehydrated Mountain House foodFreezer bag cooking. So in terms of a stove I am looking at just something to boil water.

Let's not forget the original op was looking for something to boil water quickly with ease.

Ever try to cook breakfast over a camp fire in an aluminum frying pan? Sour dough, corn bread, acorn bread, dear steaks, squirrel, gravy, cobbler all in the same pan one after the other, forget about it.

Try smashing up or grinding acorns or other wild grains and nuts with an aluminum frying pay to make bread or dough. It's just as well you won't be able to cook it because you'll never get it made.

That's what a small hatchet is for, it's got that flat spot on the back for beat'n things.

I'm looking at a 24-48 hour max on a b.o.b. Just to get me from where I'm at to back home. Granted it would have to be fairly drastic terms for it to take that long to get home. Got a 4x4 that's fairly nimble so going off road won't bother me. If it's running and moving, nothing short of a nuclear blast with the EMP disabling vehicles is preventing me from driving home. If that happens we got more things to worry about.

Water, mre's or dehydrated food just like fg12351, with a heavy wool blanket, survival foil blanket, 10x20 plastic tarp for shelter, small hatchet coke stove and esbit stove and some other essentials. This would be just to get me home. Then if needed to leave the shelter of my house that would be another story.

 

[flagtag]

How about this instead?? no stove required.

https://secure.lodgemfg.com/storefront/product1_new.asp?menu=prologic&idProduct=3969

Greg

LOVE cast iron! But, if you are hiking home (from work/school, etc) it would be awfully heavy. I guess it would depend on what you intended to do and how long you would have to stay "out".

 

[Jack Ryan]

I'm looking at a 24-48 hour max on a b.o.b. Just to get me from where I'm at to back home. Granted it would have to be fairly drastic terms for it to take that long to get home. Got a 4x4 that's fairly nimble so going off road won't bother me. If it's running and moving, nothing short of a nuclear blast with the EMP disabling vehicles is preventing me from driving home. If that happens we got more things to worry about.

For that lenght of time a couple cans of pork and beans would get me through. If I couldn't make a fire, I'd just eat it straight out of the can. A propane torch is a super duper luxury. You can take all but the valve off it, light it and lay it on it's side and you have little smokeless fire to heat beans just the right size for one can at a time, and the fire can be hidden easy at night. Put the torch back on and I bet you could tie a mantle on it and have a lantern. The flame from the torch can get a camp fire going in no time out of just about any thing laying around.

Duct tape a clip to it from the surplus store and you don't even need a bag to carry it. Just clip it to your pistol belt. I've carried them a lot of miles through caves that way.

 

[fg12351]

Wow, lost of good input here. I appreciate it.

I'm going to go with a White Box Alcohol Stove and Pop can stove backup and will add a Coleman Multifuel later on. Combine that with just starting a fire and I think I handle what I need.

Thanks for the help guys.

 

[JByer323]

First off, I work at an outdoor retailer, we sell about five different brands of stoves. I've taken dealer clinics from pretty much all the manufactures, and I own more camping crap then I'd like to admit.

There are more or less three types of stoves. You have canister stoves, liquid fuel stoves, and alcohol stoves.

Alcohol stoves are the lightest, and usually the most inexpensive if you make your own and don't buy some fancy titanium one. You can also go to any hardwear store and buy something to put into it that will burn. Downsides? They take time to use, are finicky, and offer no flame control whatsoever. The other downside is that you can kiss using big pots goodbye. I've used a homemade one (PBR Can) to hike about 2/3 of the AT.

Canister stoves have mixed blessings. They are usually very small, and there are models out there (Snowpeak, for one) that make the Pocket Rocket by MSR look downright big and heavy. One problem is that the canisters are not refillable, so if you're looking at long term situations, you're gonna have to pack abunch of canisters. Most of them also hate cold weather, anything below 30 or so, and they struggle. The problem is that unlike liquid fuel stoves, you can't pump up the canister, so as the temps drop, less of the liquid is converted to gas. They have varying flame controls, and varying levels of stability. They are usually very efficient though, when the weather and altitude aren't a factor. In a real SHTF situation, good luck trying to find canisters, though all manufactueres are threaded the same.

Liquid fuel stoves are heavier then both canister and alcohol stoves, but almost always have a higher BTU. The biggest advantages are weather makes no difference, and some of them are multi fuel. When I say ,multi-fuel, I mean if it burns, the MSR Wisperlite International will burn it, though auto fuel is dirty as hell.

If you're just looking for something to put in your car, and not use long term, just overnight, yeah, I'd probably go with a canister stove. The Jetboil PCSs are cool, but I like the MSR Reactor better, even though they are alittle pricier. The Jetboil pot twists to lock onto the stove, and in cold weather, with tired hands and gloves on (after climbing all day), I struggle with it. The Reactor has a 1.7 liter pot instead of a 1 liter pot, is more fuel effecient, boils quicker, and is designed for high altitude mountaineering. Which means cold. As far as canisters go, it's pretty much the bomb.

If you guys have questions on individual ones, let me know, seriously, I talk this **** for a (qausi) living.

 

[jeremy]

I am looking into buying a MSR Whisperlite International. Appears to be quite an impressive little stove. I've seen it can burn quite a list of fuels. What types of fuel should be avoided with this stove?

 

[Richard]

I have 3 different stoves, a Coleman white gas 2 burner camping stove, a Swedish Trangia alcohol stove & a homemade "ultra-lightweight" vegetable oil stove made from an empty Altoids tin & an oil lantern wick, coupled with a perforated coffee can windbreak (I actually wrote up an instructional on how to make one of these on GT survival forum).

Anyway the Coleman is the nicest of the bunch, but it's also the heaviest and most cumbersome, adjustable and large enough to cook either multiple items or for multiple people all at once..it'll bring a cup of water to boil in about 3 minutes.

The Trianga is a whole alot lighter and way, way more compact than the Coleman but does consume fuel fairly quick, so pack extra, and is only good for cooking up single meal servings at a time, it too will bring a cup of water to a boil in about 3 minutes.

The homemade vegetable oil stove is the lightest of the bunch, even with an entire weeks worth of fuel it only wieghs in at 260 grams, but it's a sooty & slow, it takes anywhere from between 8-10 minutes to bring a cup of water to a boil.

If I were forced to pick only one, it'd probably be the Trianga, as it's a nice middleground compromise between the extremes of the other two stoves that I have.

 

[6birds]

My Whisper Lite International has been in use for 9 years, never had a problem, even above 11,000 feet in CO. Change o-rings every two years, titanium nesting cookware, keep a tube of gel close for cold weather starting. Golden!!

 

[Richard]

I went and made an account at photo bucket so I could upload photos, here is one of that ultra-light vegetable oil backpack stove.