Black Packing Light
  • Sections
  • Today’s Features
  • Subscribe
  • Sign In
  • Subscribe
  • Home
  • Email Newsletter
  • Membership Info
  • Articles
    • Recent Features
    • Gear Reviews
    • State of the Market Reports
    • Gear Guides
    • Gear Lists
    • Skills & Techniques
    • MYOG
    • Science, Technology & Testing
    • Stories
    • Calendar
  • Education
    • Podcast
    • Webinars
    • Masterclasses
    • Online Courses
    • Guided Treks
    • Education Portal
  • Forums
    • Forum Index
    • Recent Forum Posts
    • Gear Forums
    • Gear Swap (Buy/Sell)
  • Gear Recommendations
  • Gear Deals

Backpacking Light

Pack less. Be more.

You are here: Home / New Features / DIY Backpacking Stove: An Ultralight Vortex Burner (Part 3: Mechanical Design)

DIY Backpacking Stove: An Ultralight Vortex Burner (Part 3: Mechanical Design)

by Roger Caffin on July 8, 2016 Make Your Own Gear (MYOG), New Features

Enjoy this free preview of Members-only content.
Login or Subscribe to see it all.

In part 1 of this series I outlined what might be called my dream for a remote-canister Vortex Burner Stove - my solution for an ultralight winter stove. In Part 2 I covered the design and manufacture of the titanium vortex burner chamber. In this Part 3 we go into the mechanical design of the stove body and the needle valve, and then we delve deeply into the flame shape and the fuel/air requirements of a vortex burner. If you haven't read Part 1 and Part 2, do so first, because all the background to this article is given in those Parts, and is assumed here.

Stove Body

By "stove body" I mean the bar-like lump of aluminum which goes between the hose from the canister and the jet inside the burner chamber. You will have seen several versions of this in Parts 1 and 2. This has to provide some services listed below.

  • It has to support the jet in the middle of the base plate, at the bottom (this is pretty simple).
  • It has to be the connection point for the hose.
  • It has to have the valve seat right near the jet, in the gas flow.
  • It has to hold the screw thread for the needle valve somewhere far from the jet.
  • It has to act as a heat exchanger for the liquid fuel coming out of the hose and the inverted canister.
  • It has to get warm, but not so hot that the two Viton O-rings at the outer end get damaged.

A complication in the design was that I found I needed to machine all six sides of the bar, plus bore out the insides. This is not simple router-style machining like cutting out a pattern in 3-ply - but that is part of the fun with CNCs. The secret is to design suitable machining jigs and feasible machining sequences.

Needle Valve and Heat Exchanger: Theory

As you can see from all the photos, the hose connects to the stove body some distance from the jet, so the fuel has to go up the inside of the stove body, through a needle valve for control, and out through the jet. Following on from my success with the internal heat exchanger in the previous Winter Stove, I could see no reason not to do this again. That is, there will be a central bore down which the fuel will flow, but that bore will be largely filled up by the needle valve, so the fuel travels as a thin film. This is good for heat transfer and fuel vaporisation.

Long Needle Valve, Stove Body, 50 mm Between Thread, Needle Tip, Roger Caffin MYOG Vortex Burner Ultralight Winter Stove System Part 3

Read on to hear the whole story!

Article Outline

  • Introduction
  • Stove Body
  • All About The Flames
  • Fuel/Air Mixture Flammability
  • Lighting the Stove
  • Field Servicing and Accessing the Jet
  • O-Rings and Safety
  • Field Testing
  • Summary so far

# of Photos: 11; Word Count: 5500

--- end of free preview ---

To read the rest of the article, please Login or Subscribe.

Access to the rest of the content on this page
requires either a Premium or Unlimited Membership.

Subscribe

Your membership fees have helped sustain the creation and curation of quality information, education, and community at backpackinglight.com since 2001.

canister stoves, vortex burner, winter backpacking

Get ultralight backpacking skills, gear info, philosophy, news, and more.


Want outdoor gear and skills info you can really trust?

Get our Handbook - the resource you need to make intelligent decisions about gear, safety, comfort, and pack weight.


Today's Gear Deals

Guide’s Gear Recommendations

Find out what gear our guides recommend if you want lightweight gear that is durable and versatile.

guide's gear logo

Gear Recommendations

  • Publisher’s Gear Guide
  • Staff Picks
  • Guide’s Gear Recommendations
  • Our Lightweight Gear Recommendations for REI Members
  • Today’s Gear Deals
  • Search for Gear on Sale

Subscribe Right Now

Receive new Members-only content, gain access to 2,000+ articles in the archives, and become a part of the most passionate community of backpacking experts in the world.
Subscribe Now
  • Backpacking Gear Reviews
  • Backpacking Skills
  • Backpacking Trips
  • Backpacking & Outdoor News
  • Outdoor Recreation Science & Technology
  • Backpacking Courses, Webinars & Other Events

Follow Us

Get outdoor skills and gear info you can trust.

Download the Backpacking Light Handbook to help you make intelligent decisions about gear, skills, ultralight philosophy, and reducing your pack weight.

Join Now: Support fair and objective product reviews.

Something for everyone: Basic, Premium, and Unlimited Membership options available.

View Subscription Options

More @ Backpacking Light

  • About Us
  • Jobs
  • Advertise with Us
  • Write for Us
  • Submit a Product for Review
  • Diversity Grants
  • Help / Support / Contact
  • Terms & Policies

Call Us

Membership Sales & Support: 406-640-HIKE (406-640-4453) | About

© Copyright 2001-2021 BEARTOOTH MEDIA GROUP, INC. | U.S. Library of Congress Serial Registration ISSN 1537-0364
BACKPACKING LIGHT® and the FEATHER/MOUNTAIN icon are registered trademarks granted for exclusive use to Beartooth Media Group, Inc. Subscribe here.

  • Subscribe
  • Log In
  • My Account
  • Forum Profile
  • Private Messages
  • Newsletters
  • My Course Enrollments
  • Unlimited Membership Portal
  • Help / Support / Contact