I have a Jetboil and know that it is far from a UL cooking item but I use it for a mug and bowl as well. See my food prep is very simple, I take foods that just needs boiled water added and 'viola'....food is ready. I chose the jetboil as it is extremely efficient at boiling water, very good wind resistant, has a convenient neoprene shell that stops your hand getting burned and that I can use it for my mug and bowl as well.

Thoughts anyone???

Alcohol stoves are lighter weight but unless you are doing a long thru hike I love the convenience and efficiency of a jetboil. You don't say which model you have since I know the lightest models are around 10oz

the .8L aluminium one. I took out all the bits I do not need and am at bare minimum weight of 329g (11.6 ounces).

If you like it, thats all that matters.

Sometimes convenience out weighs weight.

That is a jacked up sentence

There is a Jetboil Sol Ti available now at 9.9oz. You can find the titanium pot separately. It's a pricy way to drop about 2.4oz. They appear to be compilable, but I haven't confirmed this.

stove/pot set:
http://www.rei.com/product/813621/jetboil-sol-titanium-stove

pot only:
http://www.rei.com/product/813624/jetboil-sol-titanium-companion-cup-08-liter


edit: BPL has a review here too:
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/sotm11_jetboil_sol_advanced_review.html

Edited by maeglin on 12/24/2012 01:30:56 MST.

Depending on your hike, you may need to pack extra canisters as well.
They are hard to find at most resupply points on long distance trails.

I know the reason I switched to alcohol was that I was able to find fuel alcohol at almost every resupply point. So I only needed to bring the bare minimum amount of fuel.

I actually don't find a Jetboil that much easier to use than an alcohol stove/pot combo. It does take a couple minutes longer to boil water, but since I tend to cook while on break, time is not an issue with me.

Its cheap, easy, and fun to try a simple alky setup. I don't find it to be a hassle at all.

I know people love the jet boil but I never quite got it. That isn't to say it doesn't have its place. It might work best on long trips without resupply or larger groups. I have a gigapower but haven't used it in a few years. If you do decide to give alcohol a try, I recomend the Caldera Cone. I LOVE mine. Of course if it works for you and you like it then don't worry about it, but I had used alcohol stoves long ago and found them fiddly and they used a lot of fuel. Then I tried the Caldera, it is truely an amazing stove.

Not sure what's not to get about a Jetboil, it's a convenience/performance vs weight tradeoff.

it boils much faster, no priming the stove and no measuring of fuel. If you are car camping or taking a short trip (e.g. less concerned of weight) I use the JetBoil. For long thru hikes where weight and fuel re-supply matters go with Alcohol. Alcohol stoves are so cheap it's not like you have to decide one or the other.

if you suddenly replaced our jetboil with a lighter stove ... would you feel the difference in yr pack ... will it allow you to go stronger and longer and do crazier things ?

what % of your total weight is the difference between the jetboil and something else?

if you like it and its not stopping you from doing what you want ... thats all that matters

;)

When you find yourself trying to justify gear weight then it is far past the time to close up the spreadsheets and hit a trail.

I have always used a Snowpeak Gigapower with the little Snowpeak 0.6L solo pot. I was super psyched when I first learned of the cat stove so I made one. It took so long to boil that I figured the extra ounces of alcohol offset the extra ounces of the Gigapower. Not 1-for-1, but the net difference just wasn't super duper enough for me to ditch the convenience of the Gigapower. And they both suffer in cold weather so I think I'm headed towards a remote canister setup anyway.

Maybe I did something wrong with the alky setup.

I'm a boil-only chef as well. I've found that using a good windscreen allows my little canister stove to go for a very long time. I use the smallest canister (I forget if they're 4 or 6 oz.s) with my pocket rocket and cook for six days easy, breakfast and dinner. But it all depends on that wind screen! With a small titanium pot, this set up has to be lighter than a jetboil. (My windscreen weighs about 2 oz.s.)

Bradford,

What does your Caldera Cone set up weigh? I mean the cone your pot....every that you need to make water boil? Oh and what size is the pot used for these Cones?

Many thanks.

Mik.

My pot is evernew 550ml pot and lid is 2.6oz. The Caldera Cone, stove, fuel bottle, and measuring cup is 2oz. I can boil 12oz of water with 15ml of fuel.

I find other alchy stoves use an ounce of fuel and are very slow, but the Caldera Cone is so much better.

If im going to be using a canister stove, I WILL find the lightest one imaginable.

"When you find yourself trying to justify gear weight then it is far past the time to close up the spreadsheets and hit a trail."

+1. Greg hit it on the nail.

So your stove AND pot/lid tally is 4.6 ounce (130grams)???? That's a third of the jet boil. I can't see your system being so much less efficient that the fuel needed would outweigh the Jetboil set up!!! Where do I buy?

Edited by mikmik on 12/25/2012 02:02:43 MST.

"When you find yourself trying to justify gear weight then it is far past the time to close up the spreadsheets and hit a trail."

+1. Greg hit it on the nail.

Hahahaa I do agree but this is what I do in between every trip. It was only this year I got my pack to a resonable weight so every trip I come home from there has been a slight change or alteration to what I am taking the next time!!