Caldera Cones have peaked my interest for some time. With supposedly 5 minute 1/2 ounce alcohol burns achieving 2 cup boils, this is worth looking into. An issue with alcohol, is long distance trekking. A 1/2 ounce stove is nice , but after carrying 14 oz’s of fuel of fuel for a 7 day hike , your better off carrying an IsoButane canister and burner for the same weight. I’ve personally used Minibull design stoves , white box stoves, and made a few. I tested this stove this weekend but didn’t bring my camera. Test bed is my Weber Grill with well used pizza stone. 60 degree weather . 60 degree water. 9mph wind speed.
Total weight of kit is 4.2 ounces.
Kit comes with Fuel bottle , measuring cup, stove ( calibrated for cone) , plastic container(The plastic container also doubles as a cup), and the aluminum cone.
A 1/2 oz of Heet alcohol. The measuring cup comes in handy when measuring 1/2 oz’s.
Boil time was reached 5:30 , total time burned was 6:30.
My cone sticks to the pot when I lift it , I hear this can be remedied by slightly working the aluminum , but it doesn’t bother me. This will be my go-to stove , for more than an overnighter. Pick one up at antigravitygear.com.
Update 8/27/10
I picked up some 91% rubbing alcohol and tested with 8:30 full boil time and a total burn time of 14 minutes, with 1 oz. I’m guessing 3/4 oz would probably be the perfect amount. Rubbing alcohol also burns with a visible flame. This also creates a light layer of soot which washes off pretty easily. I may start carrying it instead of methanol because it double duties as an effective foot dryer/cleaner.
2 Comments
giniajim · April 18, 2010 at 11:23 pm
Is this better than a tin can stove with a wind screen?
Ray · April 19, 2010 at 5:15 am
It depends of the intended usage. It weighs a little more , is more expensive, and takes up more pack space. For a 1 or 2 day day trip , a tin can stove is preferable IMO. This stove really shines being miserly with the alcohol. The cone funnels enough heat to water for tea/coffee using 1/4 ounce of fuel. 1/2 ounce for a full boil. Most other tin can designs require a full ounce of alcohol to boil. Normally I’d use 2 oz per day with a tin can stove and windscreen. After 4 days and 8 oz of fuel , the Caldera cone would start having an advantage in weight savings.