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Pocket Rocket or SnowPeak GigaPower?


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Home Forums General Forums General Lightweight Backpacking Discussion Pocket Rocket or SnowPeak GigaPower?

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  • #1237271
    Tim Testa
    Member

    @michaelredbeard

    Simple question, which do you think is better and why? I stuggle between the two for many reasons.

    – MSR name and reputation.

    – Snowpeak has four stands which makes it more sturdy.

    – Snowpeak has a package that comes with a titanium pot and spork which is pretty light and can fit two fuel canisters in and on top of it. The pot can also be used a a strainer.

    – MSR has the Titanium Titan Tea Kettle that you could buy on the side and supposedly have a fuel canister (maybe two) fit into it with the pocket rocket.

    And well, im sure you know all the rest so Ill just stop here.

    #1509820
    Robert Bryant
    Member

    @kg4fam

    Locale: Upstate

    The titan kettle nesting thing is a joke. You have to set it some exact way that is impossible to get it to work. I don't think they even market this supposed nesting ability anymore.

    I put together a Evernew .9L pot with a Snow Peak LiteMax and a canister and it gives enough room to pack everything easily without being huge. If you want good nesting this works well and unless something has come out recently that I am not aware of I believe the litemax is the lightest commercially available canister stove.

    #1509879
    Brad Rogers
    BPL Member

    @mocs123

    Locale: Southeast Tennessee

    I have both, and much prefer the Gigapower. The Pocket Rocket pot supports are flimsy and pointy. It is harder to pack than the Gigapower, though both work fine as stoves. As for the MSR name, the Pocket Rocket isn't made by MSR in the states, it is made in Korea like many Canister Stoves (like the Snowpeak LiteMax). The Gigapower is made by Snowpeak in Japan.

    #1509881
    Boozer
    BPL Member

    @anywayoutside

    Locale: South East

    Another vote for the GigaPower stove. Great reliable stove. I couldn't stand the pocket rocket for the same reasons Brad pointed out – pointy and lack of stability.

    #1509882
    W I S N E R !
    Spectator

    @xnomanx

    I think the MSR is junk. I returned it in in hour because the supports are so flimsy.
    I have the manual Ti Gigapower. I've used it for at least 3 years now. Awesome little stove.

    #1509885
    Mark Verber
    BPL Member

    @verber

    Locale: San Francisco Bay Area

    I would go with the gigapower. More stable pot pot supports, slightly more fuel efficiency, generates less carbon monoxide.

    As to pots… the Ti pot / spork is cute, but I would skip it. The evernew .9l wide bottom pot is around 20% more fuel efficent and a great size. Stove, fuel canister, utensils, and small cup fit into the evernew pot.

    I personally rather use lexan utensils so I don't scratch up my pot.

    –Mark

    #1509890
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    Hi Timothy

    The Pocket Rocket has four deficiencies compared to the Gigapower:

    The PR pot supports are prone to bending
    The PR is much higher and less stable
    The PR focuses the flame to a small area, giving a greater risk of burning your dinner
    The PR emits a lot of carbon monoxide

    We do have some (lots of) good articles on these stoves for subscribers.

    Cheers

    #1509895
    Matt Lutz
    Member

    @citystuckhiker

    Locale: Midwest

    Caffin +1 for the subscription plug!

    And go with the Gigapower. If I ever replace my PR, I'm going with something from SnowPeak.

    #1509925
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    Thanks Matt :-)

    Can I just add that the Vargo Jet-Ti stove (which is available from BPL) is almost the same as the SP Gigapower in performance, robustness and CO emission?
    I have both, and use both.

    Cheers

    #1509945
    Justin Chaussee
    Member

    @judach

    Locale: Earth

    I have a PR… Wish I bought a snowpeak instead.

    I think MSR hit a homerun with the Whisperlite series, but that's about it. I love my whisperlite international, hate my PR. Another downside to the PR that I didn't see anyone write yet is it's efficiency in the wind. Even in a light breeze, your boil time gets trippled with the PR. They claim it has a built in windscreen like system, but it doesn't work that well at all. My biggest pet peeve with the PR is the pot stands are too tall. Get the Snowpeak.

    #1509997
    Robert Bryant
    Member

    @kg4fam

    Locale: Upstate

    "Thanks Matt :-)

    Can I just add that the Vargo Jet-Ti stove (which is available from BPL) is almost the same as the SP Gigapower in performance, robustness and CO emission?
    I have both, and use both.

    Cheers"

    why buy the vargo? the litemax is the same price with more weight savings. it says it can also output more btus if that is your thing. it is all kovea so it seems like a question of if you want last years model or this years at the same price.

    #1510479
    Monty Montana
    BPL Member

    @tarasbulba

    Locale: Rocky Mountains

    My Snow Peak Lite Max is tops!

    Robert, I pair the Lite Max with a MSR Titan and find the nesting easily achieved. To do this you place the burner in the pot first – I wrap mine in a piece of paper towel so it doesn't rattle around and scratch the inside – and then put the fuel canister on top of that with room to spare. Since the canister has a concaved bottom it accommodates much of the mass of the burner; if you load the Titan in reverse order, then the lid won't snap down because a little bit of the burner projects above the rim. Happy trails.

    #1518501
    Stephen Petschulat
    Member

    @spetschu

    > The PR is much higher and less stable

    This is the biggest deficiency based on my usage of it. It makes it difficult to use a lightweight aluminum foil windscreen with it. Roger's articles on CO2 emission also indicate it is on the poorer end of the scale, so I may end up relegating it to the car camping kit (no in-vestibule cooking) and get the Snow Peak.

    #1518893
    Matthew Swierkowski
    Member

    @berserker

    Locale: Southeast

    I have both and prefer the Giga. The main reason is what Roger mentioned in that the flame gets focused into a small area with the PR. Not an issue for boiling water, but if you want to simmer anything you better stir it constantly. The Giga is also a little more stable, and packs up into a nice little box instead of the triangular shaped container that the PR goes in.

    #1518897
    Aaron Lastname
    Member

    @cloudveil9

    Careful…That Giga case weighs .85oz …. ;)

    #1898802
    Latham Farley
    Member

    @lathamfarley

    Locale: Midwest

    This thread may be 3+ years old but I was just wondering the same. Thanks for the great comments. I'm definately going to go with the GP.

    Latham

    #1898803
    USA Duane Hall
    BPL Member

    @hikerduane

    Locale: Extreme northern Sierra Nevada

    The PR is still out there, MSR came out with the Micro Rocket which I have yet to buy to replace my sold PR. I have only used my used GP once, it worked quickly for soup last winter on a short, snow lunch trip.
    Duane

    #1898806
    Link .
    BPL Member

    @annapurna

    #1905008
    Hikin’ Jim
    BPL Member

    @hikin_jim

    Locale: Orange County, CA, USA

    Nice link. :) And as the author of the above linked blog, please let me comment: I'd definitely go with a SP Gigapower over a PocketRocket.

    The MicroRocket and the GigaPower are a bit more closely matched, but the GigaPower is $40 whereas the MicroRocket is $60. I think you would do well with either the MicroRocket or the GigaPower, but I would definitely not pick the PocketRocket. Despite the PocketRocket's popularity (why?!), I really don't think it's the best stove. There are certainly a lot of others out there of that general type (SnowPeak LiteMax, Kovea SupaLite, MSR MicroRocket, SnowPeak GigaPower, etc.) that I would pick before considering the PocketRocket.

    I like the Vargo JetTi (bought one for my little sister), but I think in retrospect that I prefer some of the others listed just above. The JetTi's pot supports are just a tad short in my opinion. Besides that, I think the JetTi may now be out of production.

    The MSR Titan Kettle is a good product, and I've gotten a lot of good use out of mine although I typically use it with a Caldera Cone from Trail Designs which is an alcohol set up.

    HJ
    Adventures in Stoving

    #1905017
    Elliott Wolin
    BPL Member

    @ewolin

    Locale: Hampton Roads, Virginia

    Heretic here, I have no problems with the Pocket Rocket, but I haven't tried that many upright canister stoves.

    Maybe I just don't know any better. The PR has worked fine for me on a number of trips. I always use a windscreen. It's never tipped over, and the supports seem to work fine, even with relatively large pots (when there's three or more of us I take a Coleman F1 Powerboost).

    My opinion may be influenced by the fact that I got it real cheap.

    #1905206
    German Tourist
    BPL Member

    @germantourist

    Locale: in my tent

    As a long term user there is another topic I want to point out:
    I have used both stoves for months on end. After several months of use the PR thread will wear out and you will not be able any more to screw down the stoves onto the canister basically rendering it useless. This has happened with two PR and to make things worse MSR refused to take them back under warranty. I would never use a PR again!
    I have changed to a Snow Peak now and have been continually using it for 2 years without any problem. I can definitely recommend the Snow Peak. It has far exceeded my expectations.

    #2065811
    Robert Samsot
    Spectator

    @scurdatum

    Locale: Northern Virginia

    Apologies for the rookie question on an ancient post, but can you clarify what you mean by the stove you mention being available from BPL? I just recently became a member, so perhaps there was a commerce section back in the day that no longer exists, or perhaps I'm missing something rather obvious.

    Thank you!

    #2065814
    Paul McLaughlin
    BPL Member

    @paul-1

    yeah, BPL used to sell gear but no longer.

    #2065871
    Dena Kelley
    BPL Member

    @eagleriverdee

    Locale: Eagle River, Alaska

    I can't offer commentary on the GigaPower, but I'm another satisfied Pocket Rocket user. I've got two seasons on mine and I have not had any problems with it. It's never tipped on me, the pot stand has never bent, and I don't cook indoors or in a tent so the CO emissions don't matter to me. It's probable that I'm more in the ideal for what Pocket Rocket's were intended for- I use a small 800mL pot and primarily use it to boil water for hot drinks and rehydrating food. So the focused flame is also not a problem for me. I can definitely see that if I were cooking food rather than simply rehydrating that the PR might not be ideal, although frankly I don't know that any canister stove would truly be ideal for that purpose.

    #2065885
    Ryan Smith
    BPL Member

    @violentgreen

    Locale: East TN

    The only thing I liked better about the PR was its fire starting ability. Had a few instances where we tipped one on its side and started a fire with wet tender, whereas the Gigapower always sputtered and tried to create a fireball. Warning: Don't try that at home kids.

    Ryan

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