Stove Of The Week: Msr Reactor

Sometimes, applied scientific discipline tin give the axe go brought to behaviour inwards ways that alter the really game.  So it is alongside the applied scientific discipline of the MSR Reactor.

Hail the inferno; this is the hottest stove out there.  It boils H2O faster than anything else I've always seen.  It's non light, it's non cheap, but dang is it effective.

Let's accept a look.  Here's a Reactor all packed for travel. The grip locks across the clear lid asset everything securely.

Inside you lot tin give the axe gibe an 8oz/230g canister of gas, the burner, together with a picayune fighting more.  I've got it wrapped hither inwards a launder stuff precisely to forestall rattling.  It could easily adjust a spoon together with a lighter.  One pushes the "ball" on the left side of the handle.  The grip springs up.  One thence unfolds the handle, similar so:

I similar the fact that the grip locks down, asset everything inwards place, but herein lies a vulnerability.  The small-scale slice of metallic shown below is all that holds that grip inwards place.

Every fourth dimension that grip is folded or unfolded, that small-scale slice of metallic has to bend.  Repetitive bending of a metallic = metallic fatigue = failure.  I've non heard of failures of this point, but they inevitably volition come.  How soon?  I can't say, but I intend this is a weakness inwards the design.  Note:  I don't hateful to audio alarmist here.  I don't intend the grip volition neglect immediately. I intend we're talking nigh years hither non days or months. 

Another prissy feature, the burner nestles upward within a 8oz/230g sized gas canister.

OK, thence it packs upward nicely.  Fine.  But what the Dickens is all the buzz about?  I'll tell you.  HEAT, baby, heat.
The MSR Reactor is all nigh putting oestrus into whatever is inwards your pot.  How does it produce it?  First, alongside a radiant oestrus burner.  It burns fuel, but non inwards an opened upward open fire similar a normal burner.  Instead, the burner caput is heated past times the burning of gas together with thence oestrus is radiated into the pot.  The radiant oestrus burner:

Heat is transferred kickoff past times a fairly tight nesting of the burner underneath the pot.

And thence past times an integral oestrus exchanger

Wind?  Not a problem.  When the pot is mounted on the burner, you lot can't fifty-fifty reckon the burner.

Heat flows from the burner to the oestrus exchanger into the pot.  Any exhaust oestrus is forced upward along the sides of the pot until it reaches the vents seen inwards the higher upward photo, a procedure transferring yet fifty-fifty to a greater extent than oestrus to the contents of your pot piece even thence beingness almost totally protected from the wind.  In a 100 mph gale on exceed of an exposed plateau at 15,000' (4500m), this is the stove to have.  Note too that I'm asset the burner at a steep angle.  The pot doesn't budge. If you lot jostle your pot inwards tight quarters, no problem.  Your pot -- together with your supper -- are staying correct where you lot seat them.  No tippy, slidey activeness here.  Still, non a bad watch to seat a prepare of "legs" nether your canister if you've got 'em.  The Brunton CanStand, Primus Foot Rest, together with JetBoil tripod stabilizer all should gibe an 8oz/230g sized canister.  The JetBoil version is shown here.

Another prissy feature?  How nigh liquid criterion lines on the within of the pot?

And don't forget the picayune pack towel they give you.  I utilization it to protect the bottom of the burner -- together with the bottom of the pot.

One caution:  This is a seriously hot stove.  Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 friend of mine walked away for a infinitesimal together with got distracted.  When he got back, the pot had non entirely boiled dry, it had melted.  It's a dang expert affair that his canister didn't overheat together with explode.  As it was, he lost his pot.  He could stimulate got lost a whole lot more.  This is a stove that you lot desire to expire along an optic on.

Well how nigh at the other goal of the temperature range?  What nigh simmering? Well, the Reactor quite frankly has a bad reputation inwards the simmering department.  But lack of simmering is not a given alongside the Reactor.  There are a lot of private variations Reactor to Reactor, together with some of them produce simmer if you're patient together with willing to fiddle alongside them.  Here's a Reactor on depression flame.

For a fighting to a greater extent than on how to simmer, I'll refer you lot to this YouTube video that I seat together.

Now, the interrogation that is in all probability on every serious mountaineer's heed is, "how is it at melting snow?"  It's great.  It's super hot; it's current of air proof; what to a greater extent than could you lot want?

Ah, but high tech though it is, it is even thence constrained past times the laws of physics together with therein the employment lies.  This is an upright canister stove.  On an upright canister stove, vaporized gas is fed to the burner where it is combusted, producing heat. In mutual depression temperature weather, gas doesn't vaporize really well.  There are a lot of factors that command whether or non a given upright canister type stove volition piece of work good inwards mutual depression temperature conditions (you tin give the axe reckon some of my other spider web log posts for to a greater extent than nigh this) together with a Reactor volition produce ameliorate than some, but high tech or no, there's a indicate at which your fuel but volition no longer vaporize.  There are tricks you lot tin give the axe utilise similar sleeping alongside the canister at black or carrying the canister within your jacket past times twenty-four hr menstruum together with thence using the kickoff gas inwards the warm canister to oestrus upward some H2O which is thence placed inwards a spare pan into which you lot identify the canister, but tricks similar that tin give the axe entirely accept you lot thence far.  My working release is 20F/-7C.  Below that, you lot get down to force your luck alongside an upright canister stove.  For all its technology, the Reactor cannot escape the constraints of physics.  Is it a expert snowfall melter?  Sure.  Down to nigh 20F, peradventure fifty-fifty a picayune lower.  But somewhere around that temperature 20F, you lot come across a difficult stop, a difficult halt that the Reactor's applied scientific discipline but cannot overcome.

Note:  if you're a serious mountaineer together with you're ascending to really high altitudes, you lot tin give the axe operate a Reactor at lower temperatures than 20F.  Gas volition vaporize at a lower temperature at higher altitudes.  But you'd ameliorate produce your homework together with empathise precisely what the Reactor's temperature limitations volition go for the height you'll go at.  Guess incorrect together with you've got no stove.  No stove = no H2O = dehydration which tin give the axe Pb to hypothermia which tin give the axe Pb to death.

Bottom line?  This is a groovy stove, but inwards mutual depression temperature conditions you'd ameliorate darn good know it's limitations.

Thanks for joining me on some other lead a opportunity inwards stoving,

HJ

The MSR Reactor

What's expert nigh it
Hot
Wind proof
Stable
Hot
Well watch out
Extremely functional
Hot
Packable
Reasonably Efficient (if you lot don't run it on high)
Hot
Can nest an 8oz/230g gas canister within the pot.
Liquid measures delineated on within of pot
Did I cite hot?

What's bad nigh it
Expensive 
Heavy 
Bulky
Can swallow a lot of fuel if you lot run it on high
Limited past times it's upright canister type to temperatures of nigh 20F.
Can go tough to simmer.

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