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Jetboil Sol Ti Pots – ever had problems?
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Home › Forums › Gear Forums › Gear (General) › Jetboil Sol Ti Pots – ever had problems?
- This topic has 32 replies, 15 voices, and was last updated 7 years ago by Benjamin Kelley.
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Feb 27, 2017 at 2:25 pm #3453191
The Sol Ti is my go to stove for backpacking. That said, in a recent email conversation, a person shared their negative experience with a Sol Ti pot:
“Basically, the welds between the corrugated fins and bottom of the pot failed, then the fins themselves couldn’t dissipate heat correctly and melted apart. My husband burned his hand pretty badly when one of the melted pieces fell on him. We tried to get Jetboil to do something about it, but they basically said it was too old to warranty and they didn’t care. We’re sticking to Primus from now on.”
Feb 27, 2017 at 2:30 pm #3453194You can only boil water. Try to boil with snow or food and the fins will melt.
Feb 27, 2017 at 2:33 pm #3453196Good advice – I’ve only ever boiled water with mine. Sounds like the MSR Windburner would be best for winter camping.
Feb 27, 2017 at 2:34 pm #3453197Some models of the Jetboil pots were made of titanium with a welded aluminium heat exchanger. Jetboil thought they had mastered the technical requirements of doing such a complex weld, but user experiences show that to be a mistake. The aluminium fins separated and melted in too many cases. Since then I believe Jetboil have taken that technology back off the market. This may be why Jetboil does not wish to even discuss the warranty issue: they cannot replace.
In some cases I believe users may have sent their pots back to Jetboil for repair or replacement, only to have Jetboil ‘confiscate’ them and not return them. The legality of this was an interesting question as it appeared to be simple theft.
A search of the Forum will produce a number of streams about this, with some very unhappy owners.
Cheers
Feb 27, 2017 at 2:38 pm #3453198I eschew ALL ti cookware due to the fact that ti does not distribute heat well on a pan or pot bottom, thus creating a center hot spot. After a rotten experience with a Japanese ti skillet (I sold it) I will never buy ti utensils. That includes drinking cups.
Anodized or non-stick coated aluminum is my cookware. Lighter, less expensive and distributes heat well.
Also my utensils are not metal except for a small lock blade Gerber knife. Lexan (spoon and mini spatula), and plastic (measuring/drinking cup and bowl).
Feb 27, 2017 at 2:40 pm #3453199I have one of the first production units and have not had any problems with mine but only boil water and occasionally melt snow with ample water in the pot.
Feb 27, 2017 at 3:45 pm #3453216Having climbed Denali, Rainer, and numerous smaller mountains in AK, I’ve got the snow melting technique down cold. (Pun intended). Lots of water in pot, add snow slowly, etc.
Feb 27, 2017 at 5:43 pm #3453259Like this?
My Ti which melted down. Al is a better material for all around use, ounces be damned.
Feb 27, 2017 at 5:55 pm #3453261Yikes! Care to share the circumstances?
Feb 27, 2017 at 6:29 pm #3453271Run them dry and they will all burn up.
Sol Ti might be the first to go — and most likely also suffers an additional problem created by welding dissimilar metals, per R Caffin — but the others won’t be far behind if abused this way. But it appears Sol Ti fins would not survive a good macaroni burning… Ti being not nearly conductive as Al.
Obviously not an issue JB is keen to discuss openly. :-/
Feb 27, 2017 at 7:49 pm #3453293Eric – Totally with you on the cookware, but why no ti on utensils? Is it cost or something functional?
Feb 27, 2017 at 9:18 pm #3453310Ti knives are NEVER sharp. NEVER. The metal can’t do it.
Ti spoons and forks: why burn your mouth?
CheersFeb 27, 2017 at 11:53 pm #3453335It’s not an uncommon problem. When I talked to some guys that worked at REI a few years back, they mentioned that they had processed a lot of returns.
I documented this a bit on my blog: Titanium Jetboil – Caution!
HJ
Feb 28, 2017 at 4:19 am #3453345HJ, I remember your excellent and thorough blog discussion about the Sol Ti.
And also IIRC you had a photo someone sent you of a Reactor with the bottom burned completely through.
IMO best just to use these stoves as what they are, water boilers, and not try to do anything even remotely resembling cooking with them.
One thing I have pondered: Is still possible with the Sol Ti to use the pot after the flux ring has burned off? I’m guessing Yes — just pull off any remnants of aluminum and it would likely still be useful as a Ti pot but without the efficiency of the heat exchanger. In a pinch I would definitely try that.
Feb 28, 2017 at 5:40 am #3453349Ti makes fair utensils. It is not very conductive of heat, generally and due to it’s low mass doesn’t absorb a lot either. I never find it to hot to eat with. However, the liquids and solids can still be hot. Not as light as a 1/4oz plastic spoon, it is FAR more durable and considerably lighter than SS. ‘Corse, I only carry a single spoon and a general purpose pocket knife.
Feb 28, 2017 at 9:45 am #3453387So many comments and threads on this subject. I am really surprised that Michael missed those.
Feb 28, 2017 at 10:27 am #3453395Michael has never had any problems with his Sol Ti and thus, had no reason to look for threads and comments related to this topic. Clearly, he was uninformed.
Feb 28, 2017 at 11:04 am #3453399ive got an aluminum jetboil that has been used over and over again to cook chili and other fooods in … still going strong …
sometimes marginal weight savings arent really worth the loss in functionality or durability
;)
Feb 28, 2017 at 11:52 am #3453407Busy bumping Massdrop, lol.
Feb 28, 2017 at 12:23 pm #3453411Yikes! Care to share the circumstances?
I bought my Sol Ti in 2010 or 11 IIRC. There was no information provided with the stove warning not to “cook” with it. I used it for several years, and only boiled water with no problems. Then, in the summer of 2015, I happened to pack all-dehydrated “Outdoor Herbivore” meals on a weeklong trip. I used the stove at the lowest possible setting and constantly stirred. The result is what you see. I hadn’t heard of this happening at the time, and only subsequently found it was an issue. It certainly is “operator error” on my part, but Jetboil was kind enough to send me a new stove even though I explained what I did.
Since then, I use an Aluminum Sol for “cooking” dehydrated meals like the Outdoor Herbivore, with zero problems. I only pack the Sol Ti when I know I’m only going to boil water.
Feb 28, 2017 at 1:32 pm #3453480Hi Bob
Is still possible with the Sol Ti to use the pot after the flux ring has burned off?
Of course yes.
CheersFeb 28, 2017 at 4:31 pm #3453512Gosh Ken, one might think you are stalking me.
Mar 1, 2017 at 5:32 am #3453623s still possible with the Sol Ti to use the pot after the flux ring has burned off?
Of course yes.Thanks. Just trying to confirm that the combustion of Al doesn’t burn a hole in the Ti at the spot welds.
I was reading a report somewhere that a trip was ruined because the flux ring burned off and my immediate thought was Why?… IF the bottom of the pot was not breached.
Mar 1, 2017 at 1:31 pm #3453695I was reading a report somewhere that a trip was ruined because the flux ring burned off and my immediate thought was Why?… IF the bottom of the pot was not breached.
That’s nonsense. Mine continued to work, just at a lesser efficiency, for the rest of a weeklong trip.
Mar 1, 2017 at 2:00 pm #3453702Just trying to confirm that the combustion of Al doesn’t burn a hole in the Ti at the spot welds.
Give that the weld was so poor the Al fell off ti Ti, I can’t see any problems at all. The Al did not ‘burn’ off anyhow: it just melted, which happens around 660 C. Ti melts around 1,670 C.
The Al might corrode off a bit more, but there probably isn’t any left there (at the weld site) anyhow. The Ti will not corrode.
Cheers -
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