1.5 oz alcohol stove and pot combo

>I went down stairs to my work shop and started making the everyday average soda/beer can stove. But this time instead of using the bottoms of two cans I used the bottom of one and the top of another and pressed them together.

I haven’t seen any regular Pepsi can stoves designed this way (using the inner wall construction technique) but Fuzzy’s Lil’ Stove is made from a bottom and a top.

http://home.att.net/~ofuzzy1/alcohol.htm

It cranks, but it can also burn itself up if you don’t have a pot on top.

>What this allowed me to do was set another can on top of the stove and it would set in place.

A somewhat more stable match is a Pepsi can top and a 24 oz. Heieken ‘keg’ can bottom. The advantage of the Heineken cans is that they are fatter than a straight-side can, so you get better flame contact, and they can take a lot more abuse.

I built a Fuzzy stove from Red Bull cans, cut the bottom out of a 12 oz. Heineken ‘keg’ can for a pot, and glued the stove into the bottom cut from another Heineken can. Total stove + stand + pot + windscreen weight is 1.4 oz., and it all seals inside the fairly sturdy beer can with room for a few ounces of alcohol.

Now I’m going to go make one of your stoves and try it with a regular soda can…

The keg can Idea is something I didn’t think of but I suppose it would work well.
Let me know how it goes when you are done making the setup with the regular can.

I made a combination which weighs less than 3 oz. using a 24 oz. Heineken can, a windscreen of roof flashing as tall as the can which wraps around it with a rubber band for travel, a cut down 3oz. cat food can for a stove, and a ti. skewer stake used as a pot support when inserted through the windscreen where it overlaps and through the opposite side. The “pot” is supported about 1-1/2″ above the sides of the “stove” for fuel combustion, and there are airflow holes punched around the perimeter of the bottom of the windscreen. Brought 20 oz. of 50 degree water to a boil at 50 degrees in a light wind on 3/4 oz. of fuel. There is a gap of about 1/8″ around the pot for air flow and combustion. I merely pinched the top of the windscreen in at two points perpendicular to the stake to keep the Heineken can centered.

I hacked up a Pepsi-bottom/Pepsi-top can stove (inner wall design, no insulation), but I didn’t do a very good job. The can-top has a different diameter for the inner wall than the can-bottom, so the inner wall doesn’t fit as well as the typical can stove design. This is a case where glueing could help match the two diameters better than just shoving the stove together. Also, I should have taped the stove because flames came out the sides.
I’m sorry to say that the stove failed to bring 250ml of water to a boil with 20ml of denatured alcohol when the ‘pot’ was a 12oz soda can, a 12oz Heineken can or a 24oz Heineken can. However, it did bring the water to a boil (at 3 minutes) when used with my wide aluminum pot. The problem is that the cans are much taller and narrower than the aluminum pot so more heat is wasted.
If you’re going to carefully build a Pepsi Can Stove, then using a can top and properly gluing it together could make a stove that would be able to be used normally and as a pot stand (and with a can as a pot), but I wouldn’t typically choose to use a can pot with or without a stand or a regular pot without a stand, since the weight saved in the pot or stand would be lost by burning extra fuel.
As mentioned, however, it would give you the option of making a compatible pot if something were to happen to your pot and stand.

Douglas and everyone,

Backpacking Light now has a section editor for the MYOG section (make your own gear). Since we just finished reviewing most of the alcohol stoves available, I am writing a how-to article on making what we consider the best design. Stay tuned!

Jay Ham
MYOG Section Editor

can we get a picture of this it sounds realy nice.
thanks

Two problems that I see with that "a soda can/pot on top of a soda can/stove)
1) it isn't going to be very efficient because a lot of the heat is going to be lost up the sides.
2) it will be too fragile for most users on multi day trips.
Still maybe a very light and doable solution for a short trip.
Franco

I've been ordering and experimenting, with a few of the Caldera systems.

Ron from MLD turned me on to the idea of slightly larger pots(850-900ml)for doing single boils, giving one enough hot water for a meal and a hot drink at the same time.
I did use a BPL 550 ml mug with esbit and the BPL Ti wing stove, and I always found myself hurrying to refill the mug, before the esbit burned out.

Now, I have a MLD Ti 850 ml Mug, this will hold 24oz,which is plenty for morning oatmeal and a 12-14 oz cup of coffee too.

For 22-23oz cold tap water, with the Caldera cone, Gram Cracker stove/Esbit and the MLD 850ml Ti Mug, boil time was 12 mins with a total burn time of approx. 14 mins

With .6-1.0 Alcohol my boil time for 24oz was 8min with a total burn time of 10-12 mins