[pct-l] Cheap solid fuel stove review

Dan Jacobs youroldpaldan at gmail.com
Wed Sep 26 15:28:46 CDT 2012


This is a review of the Stansport #236 solid fuel backpacking stove.
It is a folding stove made of thin stamped sheet metal painted black,
and comes with a fair amount of solid fuel tablets. I paid about $10
for it at my Local Bi-Mart store, a membership discount store in the
Oregon and South West Washington area. A box of 32 extra fuel tablets
was about $4. Both the stove and the fuel tablets are made in China.

These are Amazon.com page for the stove. The Amazon price is for a
three pack of stoves.
http://www.amazon.com/StanSport-236-Back-Pack-Stove/dp/B001CS7MU0/

The fuel tablets are the same composition as the Esbit tablets, but
smaller and round, and the characteristic fish-like odor. They light
after holding a flame to them for a few seconds. I was able to get 2
cups of cool water boiling in about 5 minutes in a twenty ounce pot
with a lid with two tablets using a wind screen during a seventy
degree day. The stove can be unfolded opened so the pot supports are
vertical like the picture from the Amazon page shows to support a
larger pot or pan, or at a forty five degree inward angle to support
smaller pots and pans. The tablets left almost no residue at all after
completely burning. Extra fuel tablets can be stored in the folded
stove for transport.

I would not trust this stove to last a thru hike or a long trip. I
only picked it up out of curiosity, and will be using it as an
emergency stove at home, or for very short backpacking trips where I
only need to heat water for freeze dried meals. For the price, if you
don't need a rugged stove, this one is small, light, easy to use, and
may be readily available where you live since many discount stores
carry the Coughlins or Stansport products. Depending on what you might
need it for, it wouldn't be expensive to wear one out in a year, throw
the banged up sheet metal in the recycle bin, and buy a new one in the
spring.

Dan Jacobs
Washougal
-- 
"Loud motorcycle stereos save lives"



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