MSR Windpro Canister remote stove

[LittleSkink]

Seem to be becoming a bit of a stove collector, so before explaining about the MSR will explain the others we use and why

got a CampingGaz Bluet thing (well, 2 actually) where the pan sits on top of the stove. Great to stuff in your pack and for shorter trips but a bit wobbly. Cheap to run (C206 pierceable 190gm canisters can eaily be had for less than a £1) and great for kettle duty but not so sensitive/powerful it can be used for proper cooking unless solo. The stoves can still be had for about £15 I think

Other stove is a CampingGaz Bistro and thats our prefered stove for longer trips with car and proper cooking - ideal for a bigger pan/kettle. Much safer to use around kids as it is so stable. Also the canisters self seal so theoretically safer when not in use, again c200gm canisters can be had for about £1 each if you buy carefully (B&Q end of season 2010 we got 16 for a tenner)

So why the MSR? Well, I needed a stove that can do kettle duty on winter day walks (or summer day paddles, being a canoeist). Also planning some longer canoe trips where meal cooking duties would be needed. The Bluet is not stable enough to boil a kettle safely on a shingle beach so a remote canister stove was a no brainer in principle - but with so many to choose from it was a hard choice. £20 or less will get you a basic remote canister stove like a Webtex or Sunncamp - the MSR is rrp £80 ! so what do you get for that extra money ?

Well if you google them, these stove are solid bits of kit that last many, many years. The build quality is solid (though being US made a little lacking in finese). The canister fitting is a machined block of aluminium, the hose is aerospace style stainless steel and the main components are all decent quality stainless steel or brass. You also get a set of heat reflectors to enhance efficiency and stop the fierce heat from damaging the surface it is put on - I use mine mostly on rock so this isnt an issue. Packs away tiny into a little stuff sack

The bits I dont like are the heat shields seem a bit Heath Robinson and I dont know how long they would last in proper use - £15 to replace them! If they fail I will get a folding screen. The adjustor for the flame is on the canister fitting and made from a bent piece of wire - like I said, no finesse. Canisters are well pricey (compared to what I am used to) £4.50 for a 220gm £6 for a 450gm. Bought a couple of each but reckon I will get an Edelrid adaptor for £18 and go over to pierceable canisters if it sees a lot of use this year. One thing to be aware of the box says it comes with a service kit but that is a typo, MSR confirmed to me that they do not recommend user servicing of gas appliances

In use it is awesome (a word I have never used in a review before) you can have the gentlist simmer or the most fierce flame with lots of easy adjustment in between. Kettle can be boiled as quick as at home, but full on it has the potential to melt/damage stuff if you arent careful. For the power it is very quiet.

Having a preheater tube and remote canister hose means it will work well below zero, just light up and put the canister upside down to create a liquid feed, the preheater tube does all the work - amazing. The flame adjustment becomes awkward though

So is it worth £80 ? Well you will have to decide that. You can get similar functionality for a lot less, though I dont know how many of the cheaper stoves have a preheater - if you dont make tea at -7C you wont care. It is still the lightest stove of its kind - at under 200gm, but the gas weighs more than that, for back packing weight might be an issue to you

I love its jewel like quality and its fab capabilities, dont so keen on its ineligent design. If it lasts me 20 years of tea drinking in the wild then it will have been worth the money

[stillnotallhere]

Hey there,

Looking at grabbing one of these for myself, but the ability to get canisters (According to the interwebs) seems to be in question- Are you finding that to be a problem, or has my google-fu just failed me?

Many thanks,

-stillnotallhere

[LittleSkink]

. . . the ability to get canisters (According to the interwebs) seems to be in question . . .
-stillnotallhere

stillnotallthere

as far as I can tell screw fit canisters are easy to get, certainly in the UK. I dont know if the pierceable ones will fade away on safety grounds but the MSR is designed for EN417 threaded canisters and the pierce ones need an adaptor

I mostly get my canisters from Yeomans as they are handy for me, they also stock the 3 main sizes. A 250gm will last me a little over a dozen brew ups depending on how cold/windy it is. The 500gm I find a bit bulky but have one somewhere in case I go camping from the car and need to take the little stove. The 125gm is plain too small for my needs (and poor value for money too) but good for back packing and weight nuts

if you google "threaded gas cartridge" or maybe EN417 you should see a good range of choices/prices

There are a couple of other cartridge fittings that wont work - the CampingGaz "Clic" ones are different and I also believe the biggish Coleman Propane canisters are not the same fitting. The ones that are shaped like an aerosol spray (tall skinny) wont fit either

[stillnotallhere]

You are a *STAR*. Many, many options now- not something I need to worry about. Thankyou!