Well, fourth dimension to go out of the darned house. About fourth dimension I got outside. Where to?
One of my favorite local venues: Winter Creek.
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| Along the lower Winter Creek Trail |
And, of course, piece we're out, let's direct keep along a stove or two, shall we? Today, I'd similar to direct keep a expect at the FeatherFire alcohol stove, and, inward particular, how it does with a Caldera Cone.
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| A FeatherFire alcohol stove (with the cap on) |
I direct keep a diversity of cones at my disposal, in addition to thus let's direct keep a look.
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Various Caldera Cone laid ups.
L to R: "Classic" Caldera Cone with 850ml Titan kettle, Sidewinder Ti-Tri with 1300ml Evernew pt, in addition to "classic" Caldera Cone with 550ml BPL Firelite 550 pot. |
Now, ane of the reasons I similar Winter Creek in addition to thus much is non exactly that it's a lovely sylvan spot, but every bit good because of this:
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| The hearth of an old, abandoned cabin |
The hearth of this old, abandoned cabin is perfect for stove testing. And, non solely that, nearby Winter Creek provides all the H2O ane could e'er want.
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| A minor falls on Winter Creek |
Now, let's direct keep a ameliorate expect at today's laid ups.
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| "Classic" Cones on either end. Sidewinder Cone inward the middle. |
Note that the Sidewinder Cone inward the middle of the to a higher house photograph is shorter than either of the classic cones. Why powerfulness this be? Well, its cite tells us a lot: You wind it up, prevarication it on its side, in addition to into the pot it goes. "Side winder," larn it? A rattling prissy pick for packing up.
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| A Sidewinder cone, injure up, lying on its side. |
And what is to live on used within our cones? A FeatherFire stove, hither shown amongst 2 12-10 stoves. A 12-10 stove comes measure with a Caldera Cone.
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| A FeatherFire stove (left) in addition to 2 12-10 stoves. |
Now, direct keep a unopen expect at the to a higher house photo. Note the cable extending downwardly from the FeatherFire stove. This cable is the simmer command of the FeatherFire stove. Indeed, this is the characteristic that sets the FeatherFire apart: The FeatherFire simmers easily in addition to well. See my before post
The FeatherFire Alcohol Stove for farther information.
It simmers well, that's good, but is it compatible with something similar a Caldera Cone? Let's see.
First, volition the command knob agree through the vents of a Caldera Cone?
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| The simmer command of a FeatherFire alcohol stove extended through a vent inward a Caldera Cone |
Well, sort of. I hateful it will, but it doesn't quite fit. You direct keep to force in addition to pull. You direct keep to tweak the cone a bit. And afterward doing it a few times, your vent hole is going to expect a combat similar this:
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| Deformations inward a ventilation port of a Caldera Cone caused yesteryear repeated insertion in addition to removal of a FeatherFire command knob |
Not rattling pretty, but unlikely to behavior upon your stove inward whatever functional way. But, there's a to a greater extent than of import upshot here. Those cones agree their respective pots pretty tightly. Pick upwards the pot, in addition to you'll to a greater extent than than probable pick upwards the windscreen. Pick upwards the windscreen, in addition to y'all
pick upwards the stove and non inward whatever controlled fashion.
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| The FeatherFire, all the same connected to the Cone fifty-fifty though the cone has been removed. |
Yes, that's right, you'll direct keep an open vessel dripping flaming alcohol hanging yesteryear a thread. Might I advise that this could live on a problem?
Actually, I mean value passing the command cable under the border of the windscreen is the ameliorate protocol. YMMV. It's a piddling fiddly, but non bad, in addition to now, if y'all bump the windscreen or pick upwards the pot, the flaming, open stove is non probable to follow.
All right, security briefing out of the way, how does it simmer?
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| A nice, depression boil on a Caldera Cone using a FeatherFire alcohol stove |
Quite good actually. The FeatherFire is the best commercial simmering laid for a Caldera Cone that I've yet seen. Yes, I know in that location are a lot of DIY rigs out there, in addition to we'll larn to those inward due course, but of the commercially available simmering laid ups, the FeatherFire is the best that I know of. Now, could y'all job a Trangia burner? Well, yes, y'all could, but piece the FeatherFire is of the same full general shape of stove every bit usually comes with a Caldera Cone (a chimney type stove), the Trangia is of a different shape of burner (a semi pressurized or opened upwards jet type). My sense is that the chimney type is the best type for job inward a Caldera Cone in addition to that other types endure inward damage of efficiency.
While the FeatherFire simmers pretty well, it's all the same a combat of a force a fast ane on to larn a proficient simmer inward a Caldera Cone. Why? Because those darned cones are
so efficient. The rut transfer is in addition to thus proficient inward a Caldera Cone, it's hard to
not larn into a roiling boil, fifty-fifty with the depression flame of a FeatherFire. In my testing, I noticed that it was easier to simmer with my BPL Firelite 550 pot which sits a piddling farther away from the flame than with my Titan kettle.
Speaking of distance from the flame, I noticed that the Titan kettle did
not fit all the agency downwardly into the cone in addition to instead rested on the pot supports of the FeatherFire.
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| A Titan kettle does non agree all the agency downwardly into a Cone when used with a FeatherFire |
By Contrast, the Firelite 550, agree usually into its Cone. Fit or lack thereof caused no operational difficulties, but every bit I say, it was harder to simmer with the Titan kettle which sits closer to the flame.
How close efficiency?
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| Measured amounts of HEET (methanol) |
I ran some boil tests with measured amounts of alcohol.
On high, the FeatherFire is less efficient than the 12-10 stove. With the measured total of alcohol (about 25ml of HEET), a FeatherFire was non able to concord a boil every bit long. That was on high. Want greater efficiency? Turn it down. There's no argue that the FeatherFire can't live on exactly every bit efficient every bit a 12-10. Just don't run it on high. With the FeatherFire, you've got a genuinely nice, adjustable stove. So adapt it. Make job of all that proficient functionality.
H5N1 duet of other notes: The snuffer cap (2g inward weight), is worth bringing along.
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| The snuffer cap of a FeatherFire alcohol stove |
For simmering tests, I added nearly the maximum total the stove would concord in addition to fired it up. When the examination was complete, I closed the vents using the simmer command in addition to placed the simmer cap on top of the stove. Job done.
The simmer cap has a prissy characteristic -- it has a piddling security grip. Even if the cap is hot, it's unlikely that you'll give notice your fingers because of the grip. It's little things similar the travelling steal that exhibit the sort of attending to item that is the hallmark of PackaFeather. They've genuinely lay together a prissy alcohol stove here.
Of course of education in that location are ways to snuff a 12-10 stove, albeit non quite every bit convenient or every bit lightweight every bit the 2g snuffer cap of the FeatherFire.
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| Snuffing a 12-10 stove with a Ti Sierra Cup |
After my simmering tests were done, I merely vacuumed upwards all the excess alcohol with the fantabulous
PackaFeather cap, some other prissy production from PackaFeather. The vacuum characteristic of the PackaFeather cap industrial plant good with the 12-10 stove, non exactly the FeatherFire. I imagine the cap would piece of work with most alcohol stoves, although it in all probability wouldn't piece of work good with stoves that soak upwards alcohol with some type of wicking material.
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| A PackaFeather cap. Highly recommended. |
Another fun experiment was to endeavor out the novel MSR (made yesteryear Kovea) piezoelectric lighter on alcohol.
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| The MSR piezoelectric ignition |
It genuinely worked pretty well, but my tests in addition to thus far quest that it volition solely piece of work when it's relatively warm, when the alcohol is vaporizing well. In colder weather, when the alcohol isn't vaporizing well, the igniter struggles.
Well, in that location y'all direct keep it, a farther expect at the FeatherFire stove in addition to its powerfulness to piece of work with a Caldera Cone. I promise y'all enjoyed it.
Thanks for joining me on some other Adventure inward Stoving,
HJ
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