Most efficient/lightest current pocket canister stoves

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My GS-100 (REI-purchased Snow Peak "Gigapower" upright canister stove with auto-ignitor) works significantly better than my MSR Pocket Rocket. The pot supports are much more stable and a LOT sturdier – and the stove is slightly (but noticeably) less wind sensitive. Also, my auto-ignitor is still working fine – and suprisingly convenient (especially if a gust blows out the flame when it's simmering), and saves a tiny bit of fuel since the stove isn't burning while I'm putting the pot on top, and then re-arranging the wind-screen. I always use the MSR fuel, and have never had problems above 25* F (and haven't tested it below that), but I warm the canister in my jacket prior to cooking when it's cold.

Caveat: I use a 1.5L MSR pot, so the bottom is wide (~6 inches). I imagine the pocket rocket flame pattern would be better for narrow (cup-sized) pots than the GS-100.

Bet you those 2 stoves (Real pocket rocket and knockoff) both came from the same Chinese factory, before MSR rebranded it. This is pretty commonplace in the industry (remember tibetan titanium? the esbit wingstove sold by everyone under different names?) Optimus and Brunton already do it. The optimus crux and the brunton crux are the same stove. MSR is known for rebranding and selling their stuff for tons more. Does this look familiar to anyone???
http://www.specialteas.com/Tea-Preparation/Permanent-Tea-Filter-for-Mugs-Sm-Pots.html

Same exact quality, but a lot lighter on the wallet.

I can't make any promises, but there's a good chance the pocket rocket knockoff is same as the one MSR sells

Hi Konrad

> Same exact quality, but a lot lighter on the wallet.
Not quite 'exact'!

You are right that the big brand names get most of their stoves made in China – I can even tell you which factories make some of them, and quote the Chinese part numbers. But when the Chinese company sells a similar stove (ie a copy) under their own brand name, or lets someone else sell it under their brand name, there is always a couple of small differences from the original brand name version. Minor differences, I grant you, but sometimes those differences are enough to make you pause. (I have yet to find an 'identical' clone.)

Let us take for instance the Whisperlite stove. I can show you a Chinese factory version of this which looks mostly identical. Well, the factory did make one small change to make the stove easier to reassemble. No problems there?

Ahem. The change is enough to make the stove self-destruct. It pretty well causes flash-back to put the flame inside the burner. Yes, I tested the Chinese stove, and yes, it was a disaster. Yes, they have been told.

So yes, we will be seeing more and more Chinese clones from the same factories that made the brand-name versions. And the Chinese clones will look similar. But be careful: some of them are not quite up to scratch! On the other hand, some are OK, where a middle-man has stepped in and done the necessary QC.

I have tested some of the stoves from DE-Maritime (a middleman in Shanghai), and the small uprights seem OK. I had better add that as a result of my testing I now know the owner of DE-Maritime, but I have no commercial involvement with the company.

Cheers

The Brunton Optimus Crux is light and efficient.