So I've decided that I would like to invest in a wood burning stove. I've been researching and comparing my options. What I have narrowed it down to is the Bushcooker Lt I (Fourdog.com) or a Ti-Tri Caldera. I have a Snow Peak 600 that I plan to use with the stove I end up with. But I also own the SP 900 as well and like the idea of being able to use either pot. This would lead me to the Bushcooker. But I also like the idea of being able to use the Caldera cone in alcohol mode, also if I get the Ti-Tri I would want the inferno insert which is another $40. As you can see, I'm a little torn between the two. If anyone has any input or experience that could help me out here I would greatly appreciate the help.

Thanks

have you concidered the qi wiz fire fly wood shove?

Bushbuddy
can be set up for alcohol too.

I own and love the Emberlit Mini UL - 4.5 oz, makes a great little fire where fire pits are not allowed, and boils water for dinner in under 5 minutes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOTgRChXvgM

Good luck with the search!

Thanks for the suggestions guys. But I've brought my search down to these 2 systems after much research. I'm just looking for input specifically for either the Bushcooker lt from FOURDOG, or the Ti-Tri Caldera. I prefer the wood gasifying systems, but don't much care for the Bush Buddy.

Sean,

Just a comment that might influence your decision.

The Ti-Tri is very flexible in that it gives you multiple fuel options, but when using it as a wood burner leaves you a very dirty, soot covered mess when you have to break it down and to put it in your gear.

My friend, Jeremy, took it with us on the JMT and it did come in very handy when we found that we could not buy esbit fuel on the trail. Burning wood one night helped conserve what esbit tabs we had left.

However,the soot was all over the cone and left his hands a mess after breaking it down.

Having a plastic back or placing in the included caddy would be a must to avoid getting soot all over your gear in your pack.

In my case, I do have the Bushbuddy and find that though limited to burning wood....it is a cleaner option for me.

I have a feeling that the Bushcooker Lt will be the same vs. the Ti-Tri.

I am sure you know this, but the Bushcooker is a specialized product as as such is likely to be a better wood burner than the Ti-Tri.

The option for you going with the Ti-Tri is your deciding if you value the flexibility to use different fuels on your trips vs. only being limited to wood. The negative with the Ti-Tri being less efficient and messy/dirty when burning wood.

Again, I know that you can rig the Bushcooker to burn alcohol, but I would you actually bring an alcohol stove or esbit with you "just in case"???

I think the choice for you is going to reflect your philosophy and approach to UL.

Highly specialized that does one thing really well (Bushcooker Lt) or having/owning one system that CAN cover all of the possibilities...though more specialized for Esbit & Alcohol.

Anyway, hope this helps.

-Tony

I find that the Ti-Tri wood burner will soot things up if I use damp wood or green wood or cold wood. It never gets hot enough to totally vaporize the gooey saps, so soot ends up on the metal surfaces. However, if you get everything hot enough, it will minimize the soot. To get that, either you need to be burning a hardwood (maybe unlikely) or else a softwood that has been broken into small dry pieces so that it can burn hot. Pine needles tend to make more soot.

--B.G.--

I appreciate the comments, I'm quite positive I'm going to go withe the Bushcooker Lt 1 from Fourdog. Only problem now is that I placed a kind of test order for a titanium lid for my SP900 from Fourdog.com and I have yet to receive it after 2 weeks of waiting. I'm worried that if I order a stove from him I'll be waiting a while before I see it. Needless to say, I absolutely dislike waiting. All the reviews I've read have been positive, and no mention of shipping delays....so we'll see.

I have the LT1 and it works really well w/ the 600 for solo use, I found it didn't work near as well w/ my 900 for two person use- boils took a long time (much to the chagrin of my wife), the LT2 is probably a much better choice for boiling larger volumes of water

I also have the Bushcooker LT1. Here are some things to think about...

Definitely get a good wind screen. The stove performance is pretty bad without it.

As mentioned by Mike above, this is not a 2-person stove. 2 cups of water is about the most you should expect to boil at a time.

My LT1 nests very nicely in my small evernew pasta pot.

The stove comes with a small flat cup to use with the stove for alcohol burning. As for esbit, you can just put the esbit tab down on the finned bottom of the stove and light it.

I don't have any experience with the Bushcooker LT but I do have the Ti-Tri Sidewinder.

I don't see what the big deal is with a little soot on it. I pop it apart and roll it up handling the outside of the main cone and stick it in my pot. I might get a little soot on my hands but I can rinse or wash my hands. I never considered getting my hands a little dirty when backpacking much of an issue. My hands get a little slimy when releasing a fish but that doesn't stop me from fishing. And when you're using wood, your pot will get dirty and sooty anyway so you still have to protect your gear from soot. The pictures I've seen of the Bushcooker LT sure make it look like it gets sooty as well. The pot sure will. This is from a review of the LT:

"If you are a clean freak who is bothered by black pots, and “eau-de-smoke” cologne, then you’ll be challenged by a Bushcooker relationship."

Some soot from a fire is inevitable. Maybe the LT has less but it's just not a big deal to me.

The Ti-Tri seems very efficient to me. When the fire is done, all that is left is ash. So it burns very efficiently.

I'm very happy with the Ti-Tri. I just hope that we get enough rain taht we'll be able to use wood stoves again this year.