IMUSA mug, hot handle, heat shield tape

Found Oatey felt heat shield at Home Depot today, in the soldering section. $15. Tempted to make a potholder/windscreen of it. Made of Zoltek Pyron fibers…what the heck is that?? Carbon fiber, I think.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Oatey-9-in-x-12-in-Hands-Free-Heat-Shield-314002/100345508?keyword=oatey+heat#.UsNUPiiWUbA

http://www.zoltek.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Information-Sheet-Pyron.pdf

My tests we conducted using a 10cm Imusa Mug. Results may vary using the 12cm.

Rodger, is yours 12cm?

Using a large pot diameter and small flame heat source might be an answer also to cool handles. Backside to that is slower/longer boil times. I'm not in a hurry:-)

I like the tape you found: simple, looks clean. People here could buy and share to cut the cost.

But I always have my bandana. Low tech, handy, aesthetically pleasing and in this case, truly cool :)

I just tried some of this stuff:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00029KC2K/ref=oh_details_o01_s01_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

one layer only on a cut down Fosters can. Poured boiling water in. I could pick up the "pot" without scalding my hands immediately, so the heat transfer was diminished, but it was not comfortable holding it for an arbitrary time. It was fine a few minutes later with water still steaming and bare aluminum still scalding. Coffee would be as hot or hotter than I like at that point, so not a total failure I guess.

In this case I was shooting for a "success" defined as being able to pick it up and hold it right after pouring the boiling water, plus being lighter than the alternative. extra point for cool looking DIY mug. This is possibility an extreme case as I don't like drinking the coffee that hot (I assume this is also the case for most people) but the fuss factor of waiting and guessing when it will be ok to pick up and hold in your hand as you stare at the scenery is not too satisfying. I'm guessing that another layer andt it would be fine right after boiling.

As an additional note the stuff above turned out NOT to be a sheet version of the stuff Roger apparently used. Not corrugated, and has some kind of fibers covering the inside layer. This is one of the down sides to buying from amazon without being able to see exactly what it is – this stuff looks more like protection FROM heat than shielding of heat sources. Shiniest side out, no corrugation and pretty flush and thin. I have no doubt it wiould be satisfactory for a lot of people who don't mind fussiness in the pursuit of lightweight, and also that most people would be happy with one more layer, which begins to defeats the purpose,in my book, through it would still be lighter than my current standard I think.

I have a nice snow peak Ti mug about 14 oz capacity with coated heat-proof folding handles that weighs 1.7 oz, is the perfect size, and also fit perfectly over the heat exchanger on my Jetboil SolTi in place of the crappy plastic thing that come with it – so that is my standard. Cut down Forsters can of the same volume plus minibull ring and shielding – 1.2 oz. It would have to go inside the SolTi displacing the gas canister, or somewhere else. It would be fragile even in the best case scenario. So there is a space penalty. The Neo-Hobo stylings of the DIY mug would be a plus however :-).

So somewhat close, but not a win from my point of view. Maybe some of you folks can do testa with other versions of the shielding and so on. I think I may have exhausted this month's research budget for hopeless experiments. *sigh* And the month has barely started. I will probably salvage the ring and make at least one decent one using the fiberglass "wick" they sell on minibull designs. They look pretty cool as well and might only be a tiny bit heavier.

Now if we can only figure out what he is protecting that hand from – or maybe when he performed he needed to protect us ) or the microphone)from melting.

Someone purchased a mug from me today and they asked if I could apply the tape. I told them I would check locally for it and then do as they asked. They provided a photo from this thread.

I hope I can find it so I can see for myself how well it works.

Onward for stove science :-))))

After contemplating this for awhile, here is where I disconnect:

If the liquid in an Aluminum mug is hot enough that the mug's handle will burn my fingers, then the liquid inside will burn my mouth. When I can hold the handle, the contents are cool enough for me to eat. (With a titanium mug, the rule doesn't apply, because the heat dissipates from Ti and/or wire handles much faster.)

My wife mocks me for having "tender mouth;" she can handle much higher temps than I can. So I realize there are plenty of people who need an insulated handle. Not me…that uninsulated handle serves as a warning system. When I can hold it, I can eat it. If I can't hold it, I'm a fool to try eating it.

I think most need insulation when you pour boiling (or near boiling) water into something else (coffee mug/filter, bag of dehydrated food, etc).

Yes, that makes sense. I'm a in-one-pot guy, so don't pour much.

Ok, the 3rd automotive store that I went to had a roll of the tape. At the cash register I quickly relieved my self of $22.17 15 feet of tape in the roll.

I’m going to use the entire roll to insulate handles on 10cm Imusa Mugs and offer them to BPL members only. It’s going to be interesting to get feedback from users of the mugs. According to hoyle it’s supposed to allow us to pick up the mug once the water comes to a boil so we can pour it into our freezer bag meals.

"Ok, the 3rd automotive store that I went to had a roll of the tape. At the cash register I quickly relieved my self of $22.17 15 feet of tape in the roll."

Would this tape adhere, and stay adhered, to a Starlyte at the temperatures the body of the stove reaches?

I lean strongly to one-pot too, not much of a FBC kinda guy. Guess I still like the backwoods feel of stirring a simmering pot over the open flame of a twig stove.

UL bushbuddy on the way to replace my grossly overweight SoloStove, but gear obsessions are in another thread ;)

Anyway, I just drilled a hole in the handle. Simple enough, since I won't leave home without some kind of Leatherman. I carry the 2 oz Squirt Ps4 when I go out adventuring and have found uses for every tool on it, potgrabber being the one on topic.

I think i figured out photobucket, so a pic of hole placement and how easily it handles the weight of a full pot of water. (Edit: Added a size parameter to pic tags so they weren't so huge!)

Tom, I'll try the tape on a StarLyte and let you know. Are you interested in having it on the side or bottom?

Glen, I like your solution….very nice!!!! Great photos!!!!

Since my 10cm IMUSA no longer has a handle, I had to come up with an alternative. Harbor Freight dipped gloves (the grey and tan ones) for less than $2 a pair work for me and they are multi purpose.

Nice solution.

Long time friend over at Whiteblaze (Skidsteer) used a wool military glove for picking up hot pots. Wool resists burning…stinks a little when scorched :-)))

Saw silicone finger tip protectors today, called "thermal thimbles," for use when ironing. Was interested, but just don't want to carry any more specialized gear. I'm back to the bandana, even though it easily drops into the flame or into the soup, if you're not careful.

I like the hole-in-handle idea, if you happen to carry a multitool.

> That is why I lined my lips and esophagus with the foil heat shield. :)

Brilliant! Next step, just place your stove directly in your stomach. Your body acts as wind screen and cozy combined!

Regards your final observation about hot aluminum and drinkable liquid, this MUST be because most people's mouths can handle higher temps than their external skin can. Remember the woman who sued McDonald's because she spilled her coffee and burned her thighs? She was drinking that coffee!

I applied the tape to a dozen. Got the hang of it!!!

I went one step further and covered the head of the top rivet. I suspected that my fingers would touch it when lifting the mug. The photos are of the 10cm mug. Roger Dodger shows his as being the 12cm mug.

So, if the tape works for Roger it should work for everyone. Follow his lead and all should go well.

Had to end my sale early.

Bahhhh Humbug!!!!

This tape isn't worth a damn on 10cm Imusa Mugs

Whatever do you mean, Dan?

I'm so pi$$ed I could spit nails. :-)))))

I made time to test the tape this evening.

Did 3 tests on my kitchen stove. Low low heat. No flames over the edge of the pot.

The handle got so damn hot I could not touch it for more than a second.

This tape is not worth the powder to blow it to hell when used on a 10cm mug.

I vented, now I feel better……..thanks Bolster for the opportunity ;-)

Being the nice guy that I am I will give Rodger the Dodger the benefit of the doubt and do 3 tests with my 12cm Imusa mug wrapped with the tape. :-)

You could use some ordinary aluminum foil to wrap around the tape, to protect the tape from the cup. That's gilding the lily.

–B.G.–

"Tom, I'll try the tape on a StarLyte and let you know. Are you interested in having it on the side or bottom?"

The sides. I'm thinking of using it to attach my 1/2" shim to the stove. My current plan is to use 1/4" of carbon fiber felt next to the bottom of the stove and 1/4" of cardboard on the bottom for rigidity when applying the tape.

> The handle got so damn hot I could not touch it for more than a second.

Well I'll be darned. I didn't see that one coming.

Viva empiricism, though! Thanks for taking the bullet on this one.

So I started thinking… What if…

Then I grabbed my drill, made one more hole, and double dutied my Lawson stake as a lifter. Obviously you can't pour with it, but as a lifter it worked great for removing a pot from a flame, or in my case, just holding the pot so I could stir my food in it.

I was concerned about wiggling the hook through the holes on a precariously balanced stove setup, so I left it on for an entire boil. As you can see, I was able to grab the stake right up to the handle, it didn't even warm up. It easily bore the weight of a very full 12 cm mug.