Modify an Esbit stove

[DKR]

and


Sometimes your pot or cup just doesn't fit on an Esbit stove- as you can see, smaller cup/pots don't fit well.



Modified as above, nearly everything will fit, canteen cup to small pots. The wire is a common bicycle spoke cut and bent to fit. The side wind screens are simple bits of sheet metal - you could use a bit of metal from a food tin, use your imagination.


cheers
Don

[pseudonym]

Nice Mod.

Thanks for sharing.

[Smudge]

Pretty cool thanks for sharing

[DKR]

Pretty cool thanks for sharing

Glad to. I'm really keen on the Esbits for a fast boil up for some tea or coffee. No matter the weather, I can count on hot water.

cheers,
Don

[Hamradioop]

Thanks for that Don.

[scorpio00x]

is there any difference in this that is better than the gelert version? also 20 mins to boil 900 ml of water on the gelert is that about average?

[ForgeCorvus]

Theres not a lot to choose between the various hexi/esbit stoves out there, after all they're just a platform to burn the tabs on and a potstand that also acts as a slightly ropey windbreak.
This is why inventive people like the OP mod the hell out of them.

Weight/gauge of metal is the important bit, lighter tend to be thinner and less robust.


Re: Your boil time.
Thats a lot of water, how many tabs are you using? Are they the big 'surplus' ones or the smaller camping shop ones? And how are you arranging them in your burner?

I've recently found out about the DDR issue esbit burners, because their standard pot is tall rather then wide like British mess tins the stove is very compact.... About the size of a fag packet or a deck of cards. Thinking of getting one (from Here) and
giving it a rattle.


I think the hexi/esbit stove is the perfect backup.
Fairly small and dense package
No moving parts (other then simple hinges)
No jets, tubes or pipes to get blocked
And the fuel lasts for decades (My Dad bought me a burner and a load of packs of tabs when I was a Cub-Scout, a few years ago we used the last of those tabs.)

[scorpio00x]

ForgeCorvus

On mine after about a minute i put back on it from the bottom of a can. improved it loads more after its first use its out of shape but still functional.

The fuel i used 21 camping shop ones which came with it which i have seen to be rubbish for my mug. i was putting 6 in a circle under the mug. its my 1l cheap Czech made mug that i use at home and camping and cos it can hold a litre i thought i'd try it out and see how long.

The DDR just ordered and can't wait to try it out. ok i know the 1l mug is large so l'll see about getting a smaller mug in the near future.

[DKR]

is there any difference in this that is better than the gelert version? also 20 mins to boil 900 ml of water on the gelert is that about average?

Water is funny - it's all about mass. If you put 1 cup (`230mL) in a wide bottom pot, one tab will boil the water and still keep going

2 cups (~470 mL) and you can bring the water to a boil just as the tab burns out a few min later....

Double the water to be heated and you triple the boil time. Burn time for commercial Esbit tabs is ~12 min.


The web site "Hike Thru" states:
"The maximum temperature observed when heating 1 liter of water with 1 large (0.5 ounce) Esbit tablet was 89 degrees Celsius. It is estimated that one large Esbit tablet can bring to a boil about 0.8-0.9 liters of water. A volume of 0.75 liters of water was brought to a boil in 9 minutes. These results are consistent with the manufacturers claims."

Factors such as temp of water, altitude, pot size and shape, any wind and so on can skew these result - a lot.



While this kind of stove (above) is lightweight, it doesn't work all that well in the real world. I have one and use it with my Beer can pot, just to show folks what is possible.


You may find this article of interest - height above the Esbit tab has an impact was well.
http://thru-hiker.com/articles/esbit_stove_height.php

[Jeggie]

Although it's not great for items of large weight, the Esbit is designed to half-open at 45° for smaller diameter containers - the inside-rear jaw of your 2nd photo shows this.
That said - I like your mod, OP and will spare a couple of tentpegs/nails to give it a try ^^

cheers

Jeggie.