Doing without the caddy for a Caldera Cone?

Yeah, with that style of cone (which can’t fit in the pot), one of the main reasons for the Ziploc (or a Caddy) is to protect the cone.

BUT, I actually have found it useful. I’ve got an 850ml pot. I boil up enough water for both dinner and hot beverage at one time. Water for dinner goes into the Ziploc with cozy where it steeps for a while for full hydration. The pot is mug shaped and becomes my tea/coffee/hot chocolate cup. Works out pretty well, and it’s a bit more efficient to boil everything at once rather than doing separate boils.

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

Jim,

Yes I figured that is how you use it. I now put each meal in a Microwave bag and let it cook in that… then make coffee or hot chocolate in the Foster can to drink while waiting… similar to what you do. But then I am saving about a few ounces by doing it this way. But you do have a nice system there.

Nick,

You’ve definitely got a nice system there. And saving a few ounces is pretty nice. It’s nice to save grams, but when you start talking about saving ounces, my little ears perk up. :)

The one nice thing for me about the cozy is for higher altitudes (where boiling water isn’t quite as hot), I find the cozy does help in terms of rehydrating freeze dried cr@p, er, I mean “food.” (actually, today’s stuff isn’t that bad to what I first tried in the 70’s) Several times above 10,000′ I’ve had freeze dried stuff that was still crunchy when I tried to make it in the bag. I’ve either had to simmer a while, which uses fuel, or use a cozy. The cozy seems like the best way to go for me.

If you look closely at the first photo in my above post, you’ll see the dried remains of rain spatter. That was from a camp a few months ago in the San Gorgonio Wilderness. It was really windy and chilly. I camped at about 10,500 feet/3200m. I was quite happy to have a cozy.

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

Nick, you mention the Foster's can. Ah, another adventure right there. I had little success a few years ago with the couple cat food/potted meat stoves I made, I mostly did not tinker with them, but they will burn, just had other things to do. I picked up cheaply this Fall a version of the Penny stove, rigged up a hardware cloth pot stand and was able to use my Foster's pot with it all. That was all so easy and light, water boiled and had fuel left. I need to figure out now how to protect the Foster's pot now, maybe I'm trying too much to keep the can perfect without dents and it will get them anyway with normal use. One thing or another.
Duane

Hey, Duane,

I think I’ve found the answer for how to pack your cone without a Caddy:

Dude! Multi-use gear!

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

@Jim,

Yes nice system, have to give all the credit to Trail Desgins, although I ditched the caddy. I have used it a lot up above 9,000 feet and some above 10,000. Also have used in the 30's F. You are right about the effectiveness of a cozy. Since I use microwave bags, I really need an envelope type of cozy. I have the Reflectix to do this, just haven't gotten around to it. Also, I have gotten really good with the microwave bags and now don't get anything seeping out the vent hole, so when it is cold I just stick in in my quilt, which is usually wrapped around me when cooking in the cold. BTW, in warm weather, wrap your candy bars and M&Ms inside a down jacket in the back and they won't melt at all! Down is pretty efficient stuff!

@Mike,

The Fosters can holds up pretty well. When the Caldera Cone is nested inside, I unroll it against the circumference of the can, so it gets a little more support. Mostly on the top 1/2 of the can. Because of the shape of the cone, the bottom does not push against the side of the can. I used to use foil as a lid, but I found that the top of the can, which Trail Designs turned into a pot lid, gives it more support at the top too. I have gotten some small dents in the bottom, but they push pack out easily. I am not supper careful how I pack it, but then I am not putting it at the bottom of the back and stuffing everything on top of it either. The picture I posted earlier in this thread was when it was fairly new. Here is what it looks like today. Don't know if you can see the dents, but they are minor.

I love my caddy! I use it to mix drinks in, as a measuring cup, to haul more water up to the campsite.

Hey Hj, I do bring a cut off bottom to a bleach bottle for washing hair and laundry.
Duane

> I think I've found the answer for how to pack your cone without a Caddy

Here's a picture of Brawny and Lee Zandbergen at the 2007 Trail Days doing the annual cone head dance…. :-)

Thank you, put that on your website to show dual use for the cone. :)
Duane

Rand, also thank you for your willingness to work with me last summer on getting a CC before my trip. I went with AGG as I was able to combine food and the CC/stove to get free shipping, so your offer to work with me was not needed.

Now, that’s a good, cheap DIY idea. Thanks, Franco.

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

This gives a whole new meaning to the term “gear head.” ;)

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

Can we revisit this? Thanks to a forum member (thanks Chris!) I just got a Caldera Ti Tri and MSR Titan pot. I live the 12-10/cone set up – plan to sell the Aluminum come and caddy – but don't need the caddy. I will save it and buy a cozy for the lid and base for cold weather trips, but … I'd like to see storage options for the non sidewinder models. Right now, I am using a rubber band and have a full fuel bottle, measuring cup, and two Ti stakes inside for wood burning mode. That's as light as it gets. Should I just get a cuben sack from Z packs, or is there a better or more practical option available? All ideas welcome. Thanks in advance.

I started with a CC Keg-F system.

I cut the top off a large (1.5l I think) straight sided Glacier water bottle. The caddy is 80g, the Glacier bottle is 36g. The glacier bottle protects the cone and fosters can from dents and dings and provides a little protection from crushing.

I use a sturdy little Campbell's soup-at-hand with the metal top cut off as a cup. I eat from a freezer bag in a reflectrix cozy.

Cone rolls up and slips in cup, which then together drop into Foster's keg. Lighter drops inside, 12-10 upside down fits in top of cone. This whole mess slips into glacier bottle which sits in cozy. Long S2S spoon (12g) goes in next to glacier bottle. It all slips into 5g stuff (required, since the Glacier is topless).

All in weight with cup (25g), cozy (16g), spoon (12g), lighter (22g), stuff sack (5g), glacier (36g), cone (37g), fosters can (45g with two bands and lid) and 12-10 (15g) is 215g (7.6 oz) Total package is 1.65l (100 cu in) in volume. I'll probably try cutting both ends off a glacier bottle to yield just a protective tube and see how that works.

Jim

Ed- I know it has been a while since your post, but can you post a pic of the noodle container you use? That sounds like the perfect solution for those that don't want to use the caddy (the caddy does not fit in an SP600). Do you remember where you got it?

When I used the SP600 all the time I used a container from ArmorAll wipes. It fit in the pot with a little room around it and weighed just over an ounce.

Regarding the ULC, it takes around 50% more Esbit with my TI ULC (SP700) than my partner's AL full size cone (same pot). Just something to think about.

Tim – I could…but it might not be much help as I live in the UK and it was a local supermarket brand. It is just a 'King Size' pot noodle pot….I am sure the land of Supersize (assuming you are US-based) will have them :-)

Tim F wrote: > Regarding the ULC, it takes around 50% more Esbit with my TI ULC (SP700) than my partner’s AL full size cone (same pot). Just something to think about.

Really? 50% more? I’m surprised by that. 20% or maybe 30% wouldn’t surprise me too much I guess, but 50%?

Have others experienced this?

HJ
Adventures In Stoving