hi Mike, after my lengthy reply you may be sorry you asked, I have both the m~44 (aluminium) & the M~40 (stainless steel) as to which is better, its Horses for courses, there are many different versions of both these sets, I recently bought an m~44 aluminium military mess kit from military Mart (aka Hoods) as advertised:~ "Super Grade unissued."
I chose green. inc postage it was £25 A bit steep I thought, still it's brand new so, OK... When it comes to these wee stoves I am bit of a purist. Setting the standard, I already have a complete 1968 aluminium m~44 kit in green ie:~ the Genuine army issue Kuksa, windshield, burner, mess tins, & even the fuel bottle are all stamped NC68, (& I use it alot) I bought it 2-3 years ago. "Super grade" (not from Hoods) it cost me around £10 I was Hoping for a matching pair....
Anyway my new stove had arrived from Hoods, Here's what they sent....
My initial reaction, I was disappointed.
there were a number of reasons for me to be disappointed....
#1} they had sent me a "not a green one".... ok I could repaint it...
#2} the bottom leading edge of the large pot was slightly deformed probably from being dropped onto a hard surface from a reasonable height, as the damage was not mirrored in the wind shield it had to be pre shipping damage... ok being aluminium I can probably bash the crap out of it & rework its shape back to true. (which I did)
#3} it's not of identical shape, weight or quality of craftsmanship to the one I already have.
#4} the kuksa they sent is a poor modern reproduction & does not compare to the genuine original article, they are not the same size shape or quality & are too small so don't fit properly with the kit as intended.
#5} (being a purist) the stamps that prove that it's the genuine article... the burner & the wind shield are both suitably stamped 3 crowns Svea NC70 I was hoping for a 1960's stove but I can live with 1970 40 plus years old
as for the mess tins they are both stamped with matching numbers:~ 3 crowns & 5294..... hmm.... I am guessing perhaps made in week 52 of 1994 maybe?... my knowledge is flawed at this point, I don't know enough about the markings on these stoves to accurately date these mess tins, they seem to be of a lesser quality compared to my 68 Model but still reasonably good but with poorer workmanship if it were a car it would probably be an Austin Rover I've actually weighed them and there is a discrepancy of 14 grams with my 1968 M~44 being the lighter & it's way more crafted the brackets which hold the bail are more aesthetically pleasing finished to a higher standard with smooth rounded of corners the whole stove has a more rounded look, like a classic car. My 1968 M~44 (The older of the 2 stoves) has more of a feel that it's been hand crafted by a skilled tradesman with high personal standards. Maybe it's just me but for me its the little things that are really big when it comes to quality....
As I said earlier I already have a 1968 green aluminium m~44 & was looking for a matching pair ....
So after carefully scrutinizing pictures on fleaBay, I bought another used m~44 stove, as I was the only bidder excluding postage I got it for £12.99. It was scruffy with chipped paint & was sooty from use but it is of identical shape, weight & quality of craftsmanship to my 1968 m~44, from the pictures I could easily see the three crowns but couldn't make out the date stamps, so paint chips aside no dents or damage it has scrubbed up realy well, but it turns out thats it's actually made up of parts from 3 different kits... so stove & burner are a matching pair both stamped NC70 Svea (1970) perfectly acceptable, The frying pan/lid is stamped HP80(1980) & the large billy is stamped HP83 (1983) Although it's not a perfect example it's an acceptable Match for what I was looking for, & still way better than the hoods heavy metal version M~44 so all in all I'm only a little bit disappointed about the date stamps on the mess tins, but all things considered I'm now 98% happy with this wee stove.... & I have made my money back on the one I got from Hoods by selling it on to a happy chappy on fleaBay, ....
These wee stoves are pretty tough & both the m~44 (aluminium) & the M~40 (stainless steel) remain popular holding their value in the used market....
In answer to your second question I personally don't like the shape of the bail arm on My M~40 & stainless steel is a good bit heavier than aluminium, on the plus side for stainless it's supposed to be easier to clean, that being said my aluminium M~44 has never been difficult to clean & I've never had any issue with stuff sticking, & as I am not likely to be using it over an open fire or as a Dutch oven.... so for my money its aluminium all the way & I say:~ use it
get a stuff sack to keep it & and any other useful related stuff in an S10 gas mask bag, don't abuse it, look after it love it, never pack it away wet or dirty, always drain off the burner light & burnout each time after use before packing away & it will serve you well, money wise it will never be worth or equal to the pleasure you will get from using it.... I run mine on B&Q bio-ethanol, sure the pot will get a bit sooty n blackened, but a quick wipe & light wash, no need to scrub leave the black on as it doesn't transfer to kit its not a problem...
Alan