Snow Peak Lite Max Overheating?

The pot diameter is OK.

It would not be uncommon for the stove itself to get significantly hotter than you can touch.

If the stove is very hot the top of the canister will also get hot, or at least very warm. That is the bit you have to watch: the bulk of the canister MUST remain touchable. See:
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/exploding_gas_canisters_the_hazard_of_overheating.html
for more info.

In extreme cases you can use a 'radiation shield', a disk of very light Aluminium foil placed over the canister to block radiation from the flames to the canister. I do this sometimes in the heat of summer. Certainly< I always carry the radiation shield with me on trips.

Chers

Good response Roger, and thanks for the link. I pondered the aluminum shield, as I always have a bit of extra foil with me on trips in case I need to make another lid in one gets damaged.

I did feel the canister and the bulk didn't feel as though it was becoming too hot. Even the top part, directly exposed to the heat of the flame wasn't too hot. I'll monitor it and see how this changes as the weather cools.

Some heat getting back to the canister seems a good thing for cool temperatures. I read Roger's pages on canister stoves with great interest.

My first concern would be the temperature rating of the O-ring in the stove and the rubber valve in the canister. How hot can they get before damage or melting? Does the gas keep them much cooler than the metal bits adjacent?

> My first concern would be the temperature rating of the O-ring in the stove and the rubber valve in the canister. How hot can they get before damage or melting? Does the gas keep them much cooler than the metal bits adjacent?

EXCELLENT question!

Yes, this is of theoretical concern. However, the O-rings are made (SHOULD be made) of either Neoprene or Viton.
The name Viton belongs to DuPont, and there are other brand names for it. It is a fluoropolymer and rated to 437 F (225 C), so it is going to handle a fair bit.
Neoprene is rated to 302 F (150 C), which is not so good, but it does go slightly lower at the cold end.

In general I would not expect that a properly-used stove should ever endanger the integrity of the O-rings. I suspect that you would have troubles from the canister over-pressuring before the O-rings gave out. That said, I ALWAYS carry a light radiation shield with my stove stuff, and ALWAYS monitor the temperature of the canister when cooking.

I am sure that it is possible to blow anything up by misusing it severely. Just take the normal precautions mentioned here.

Cheers