Any good suggestions on a good camping stove?

6 Comments

1. Taino Johnnie says:

   July 4, 2010 at 4:01 am

   Standby Coleman 2 burner propane stove. We have had one for nearly 10 years and we still find it to be reliable.
   If you want a larger stove with a greater cooking surface than the Coleman that allows you to cook more food for more people, then I would suggest something along the lines of a King Kooker Double or Triple Burner Outdoor Stove. I purchased a double burner stove for about $99.00 at a local sporting goods store. I have used it to cook food for 6 people and have also used it to cook for 2 and 3 people. Mine has a 4′ x 2′ cooking area, which is good for large pots and pans. It weighs about 30 lbs and folds up nicely. If size and weight are not something for you to bother with, then this will accommodate the amount of people you intend to feed.
2. watchmaybewatch says:

   July 4, 2010 at 4:01 am

   I have a Coleman stove with two burners. It uses propane and has worked great on several camping trips. There is the Coleman 2-Burner InstaStart PerfectFlow Propane Stove. It is worth looking into.
3. c_kayak_fun says:

   July 4, 2010 at 4:01 am

   I’ve owned 5 backpacking stoves and used at least a dozen others that belonged to friends. My favorites are still a couple of golden oldies that you can still buy almost anywhere: the Camping Gaz Bleuet butane stove from France and the Coleman Peak One backpacking stove. Both are compact, easy to start (turn the valve and light) and can boil water quickly. Also, unlike a lot of white gas stoves, you can control the flame output almost infinitely.

   It would be easier to give you advice if you would add comments about what you plan to use it for. Are you car camping? Backpacking? Is being ultra-light critical or not a factor? Cooking for only yourself or a bunch of people? Do you plan to travel overseas with it? Will you be in the backcountry for extended periods, like over a week?

   All these factors are important. I used to work in the outfitting business and sold hundreds of stoves to people. If I have more information I can give you better feedback on what type of fuel, size and features would work best for you and recommend models to check out.
4. Mr. T says:

   July 4, 2010 at 4:01 am

   I have an msr whisperlite. It works.
5. David Devoted says:

   July 4, 2010 at 4:01 am

   For liquid gas stoves, definitely just go with the old standby Coleman. I’ve never had a reliability issue with the dozens I’ve used since childhood, and I use the cheapest of 87 octane I can buy in my newer dual fuel Colemans without a hitch. I love the fact that my stove and lantern use the same fuel as my Cherokee.

   But since you will already need propane for your bbq, you may as well get a propane bottle "tree" that attaches to the 20gal tanks and stub both the stove and the bbq (and even a lantern) off that one tank. If that’s the case, I would go with a Camp Chef with the legs, like the Camp Chef Weekender. My brother-in-law owns one and we use a couple for our Scout-type organization to cook for the whole group, and neither have ever had reliability issues. They also have the benefit of not taking up table space while cooking. Sure, there are probably higher priced propane stoves out there, but from the ones I have experience with, they are a great stove for the money.
6. kill_yr_television says:

   July 4, 2010 at 4:01 am

   If you do a lot of heating up water, then JetBoil is great. It’s small, fast, self igniting, easy and safe to use. Yes, it only boils about 12 oz at a time, but since it can heat another 12 oz in about 90 seconds it is still pretty easy to have do it yourself hot drinks for a mob. It may not be your primary stove, but it is still awfully handy to have around the camp or to bring with you on picnics and hikes.

   http://www.rei.com/product/791308

   I do not recommend the larger ‘group cooking’ versions of this stove. This is based on one friend buying the big one and not liking it.