Recently found quite a decent (though Chicom) alcohol (alky) stove, so here's an utterly unpaid mini review.
For those who have never heard of or used one, alky stoves can be easily handmade out of a catfood can or really any can; there's no limit to creativity. What I like is that they use an inexpensive and non-explosive fuel, the alcohol can you can get at the paint department of any big box store. They are popular on sailboats and in other applications where avoiding explosive fuels is a good idea .... meaning always/anywhere!
Since I mostly dayhike and only cook one meal, I just need to boil one pot of water one time, usually for a Mountain House meal, although I have cooked rice and other stuff from scratch using them. There are two drawbacks to the class: One, the blue flame is invisible during the day. However, the "pop" of ignition and waving your hand over it lets you know when lit ... the other is the (sometimes) need for a wind shield. Heat is easily stolen on a windy day with one of these or really, any small stove. Anyways. On to the pix!
This particular one is much more durable than most of the ultralight aluminum stoves. And a lot of the handmade ones too – crush a soda-can stove and you have no lunch, I guess. The trade off is weight, but I'm not through-hiking the Rockies or Santiago de Campostela with it. Takes up little room in your pack - the stove in its zipper bag can fit into whatever pot you bring to boil water in, too.
I prefer to use One Hour Energy bottles for fuel, as they don't leak and hold exactly the right amount for one boil. And as I recently discovered, an half-empty can of alky oxidizes or degrades with time, turning a slight yellow color and giving you residue when burned. So little bottles store better and are ready for use.
Lighting one of these stoves is akin to the space shuttle - once lit, there's no turning back! Usually. This one has an extinguishing lid - several of them do, actually, but not all. Bottom line, this one is decent, especially for $14. The stand is excellent, very durable. No moving parts on the stove to break. And the gas canisters for better Jetboil etc stoves can get pricy. Alky stoves definitely have a place, if only as a backup for a better Jetboil. "Two is one, and one is none."
AA
For those who have never heard of or used one, alky stoves can be easily handmade out of a catfood can or really any can; there's no limit to creativity. What I like is that they use an inexpensive and non-explosive fuel, the alcohol can you can get at the paint department of any big box store. They are popular on sailboats and in other applications where avoiding explosive fuels is a good idea .... meaning always/anywhere!
Since I mostly dayhike and only cook one meal, I just need to boil one pot of water one time, usually for a Mountain House meal, although I have cooked rice and other stuff from scratch using them. There are two drawbacks to the class: One, the blue flame is invisible during the day. However, the "pop" of ignition and waving your hand over it lets you know when lit ... the other is the (sometimes) need for a wind shield. Heat is easily stolen on a windy day with one of these or really, any small stove. Anyways. On to the pix!
This particular one is much more durable than most of the ultralight aluminum stoves. And a lot of the handmade ones too – crush a soda-can stove and you have no lunch, I guess. The trade off is weight, but I'm not through-hiking the Rockies or Santiago de Campostela with it. Takes up little room in your pack - the stove in its zipper bag can fit into whatever pot you bring to boil water in, too.
I prefer to use One Hour Energy bottles for fuel, as they don't leak and hold exactly the right amount for one boil. And as I recently discovered, an half-empty can of alky oxidizes or degrades with time, turning a slight yellow color and giving you residue when burned. So little bottles store better and are ready for use.
Lighting one of these stoves is akin to the space shuttle - once lit, there's no turning back! Usually. This one has an extinguishing lid - several of them do, actually, but not all. Bottom line, this one is decent, especially for $14. The stand is excellent, very durable. No moving parts on the stove to break. And the gas canisters for better Jetboil etc stoves can get pricy. Alky stoves definitely have a place, if only as a backup for a better Jetboil. "Two is one, and one is none."
AA
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Do have a Trangia, and a White Box Stove too. These things are fun to play with. 
