Bicycle Funk

Check it out!

WalksOn2Wheels

Oh, goodness. I have a little collection of these. Good stuff.

82times

I've used one of these for years and have really enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing the video.

This video has me curious--what does the fiberglass do? Conserve fuel somehow?

The one I made had a slightly more complicated design with inner and outer walls.

fietsbob

Ah Beer can stoves ..

You put the ethanol in,
you take the ethanol out,
you put the ethanol in .
and you shake it all about...

to the tune of the 'Hokey Pokey' song..

MichaelW

Fibreglass is for a wick. Trangia burners wicks around the edge.

skyzo

Ive been using one similar to that for years, and I will never go back to a canister stove(at least for 3 season use, winter might requite canister), but its so simple and light. I just use the yellow heet stuff for fuel and it works great

dengidog

1. Wow! That's so simple even I can make it!

2. You just saved me about 30 bucks.

DW99

82times says, "This video has me curious--what does the fiberglass do? Conserve fuel somehow?"

I have wondered the same thing. I have made several of these but with the double chamber.

It looks like this one burns pretty well, does the fiberglass negate the necessity of the double wall? Looks like it doesn't have as much "jet action", so to speak, but may burn good for longer.

HandsomeRyan

Nice. I've seen several versions of this that were more complicated but I like the simplicity of this one.

gregw

Super cat stove, even simpler to make, and no pot stand needed. Performance is as good or better.

sam21fire

I tried making a "super cat stove"..... it's probably going take a week for the scratches to heal....

gregw

The cat stove is an alcohol stove, you have to get the cat a little drunk before attempting it and really wasted for a SUPER cat stove!

2Fer

+2 on the Supercat stove. Fits inside the Trangia tepot just fine, along with a tin of powdered cocoa mix, and a spoon. Boils 8oz. of water in under 4 min. Max burn time is about 12 minutes on one 1.5oz. filling. I have a silicone cupcake type mold that fits inside, so I can steam brownie and muffin mix for a treat. The 3 oz. size catfood can and a paper punch ........... can't get much simpler than that.........I carry a spare, and give 'it away at the campground. Other bike tourers always appreciate the simple/lightweight design, once they see it in use.
2fer.

robow

I've used that super cat stove for a long time but use a Vienna Sausage can with the same hole pattern instead because it can hold more fuel for a really long burn if you so want.

WalksOn2Wheels

My go to setup is the supercat with the heineken pot. I fit it all into a round ziploc tupperware type container, the bottom of which is marked for measuring water for boiling and also double as my food bowl and the top of which can serve as a cup. All this plus a foil windscreen and a large lightmyfire spork weighs in at 125 grams or .275 pounds for the whole kitchen before fuel.

This is what I have come down to in my backpacking experience at any rate. I will be hopefully trying it out on the bike very soon.

degan

Ha, I currently have three of these at different stages of completion sitting within arms reach of my right now. I'm testing out a few different sizes and types to see of PBR yields better results than Blue Sky.

truman

I used a SuperCat for several trips. Now I'm trying a beer can stove (the White Box design that needs no pot stand) to see if there's a big difference in performance.

It's purported to perform better at high altitude than the SuperCat, and I made it for a trip to the Rockies.

indyfabz

I'm curious. Let's say I want to make a big serving of pasta for dinner. How long does it take to boil 1.5 liters of water with one of these things assuming we're not talking super-cold water?

garethzbarker

wow...

texas2wheel

robow

Well 1.5 liter is a little more than 6 cups and I know you can boil 2 cups or more in about 4 minutes with my Vienna Sausage can stove so that may give you a clue. I had a hard time getting that length of burn using the cat food can but since the Vienna can is so much deeper, you can load more fuel.

WalksOn2Wheels

Others may be able to cook with this stove, but I've never tried it. For me, this is pretty much a boiling water stove. There are stoves like this that you can use in simmer mode for longer boiling times or keeping your food warm. With the right pot, you might be able to boil some pasta for the required 10-12 minutes, but I would imagine that would require a good bit more fuel.

I basically use mine to just boil water and then throw it into a dehydrated meal. They have become pretty tasty these days (come in more flavors than mac and cheese and beef stroganof) and they usually make 2 servings intended for 2 people who have been backpacking all day long. Plus, I don't want to spend 20-30 minutes cooking with any stove. I'd much rather boil water and let my food cook itself while I pitch my tent.

Enthusiast

I too am a big fan of the Super Cat stove. Mine is modified with a simmer ring (made from aluminum foil) which lets me adjust the burn time for 1.5 oz of fuel from 4min to 25 min and anywhere in between depending on what I'm preparing. I don't use dehydrated meals so I need the flexibility.

This stove went with me on my last 6 month, 8k mile trip of the Western USA and saw extensive use. The only time it failed me was at 8000ft in 15 degree temps on the continental divide. The alcohol simply wouldn't ignite.

In addition to the stove, my cook kit consists of a reflective base, windscreen, and pot lid (all made from thin aluminum flashing), a thin 30yo 1.5L aluminum pot, steel spoon, and Orikasu folding mug. I keep the spoon and mug separate for cold meals, but everything else fits in the pot with loads of room to spare for other stuff.