View Full Version : cooking equipment
PurpleHeath
18-01-2005, 22:22
i was thinking recently about getting some new cooking stuff which is cheap, light, small and needs as little cleaning as possible!
could any of you point me in the right direction?
:?: :?: :?:
cheers :biggthump
Crusader mug is good ... cheap and no-fuss. Or you can try titanium stuff. As I tend to be messy and throw them on fires I tend to keep it cheap and cheerful!
I got on with the army surplus mess tins until they were stolen. They cost £2 so wont break the bank. Aluminium might be a bad thing to use a lot though. I may revert back to a large baked bean tin just becasue I can
PurpleHeath
18-01-2005, 22:43
i have 2 of them but they really annoy me becuase if your not careful they will tip your dinner on the ground :cry:. i have tried to make a clip that was suppose to keep the handle tipping food on the floor but i haven't succeed yet! :?:
you could fix a hook and eye type catch on them use araldite (epoxy resin) to hold a loop onto the body of the tin. Just have a bit of wire that fits into this suggly holding it open.
I haven't tried it but I've seen similar stuff used
SquirrelBoy
18-01-2005, 22:51
Theres a thread on Zebra Billy Cans (have a search) that are going cheap from a shop in Weymouth. Stockpots IIRC
They are stainless steel and come in two sizes 10cm & 12cm - about £4 & £6.
Might just get some myself at those prices !
I got on with the army surplus mess tins until they were stolen. They cost £2 so wont break the bank. Aluminium might be a bad thing to use a lot though. I may revert back to a large baked bean tin just becasue I can
Aluminium never harmed me :o): :aargh4: :bu: :red:
Aluminium never harmed me :o): :aargh4: :bu: :red:
Is there any proof that it contributes to the thing I can't spell? (begins with A)
dchinell
18-01-2005, 23:48
If you mean a complete kitchen, consider the Trangia model 28 - the MiniTrangia. Add a titanium mug to hold an aluminum windscreen and your bottle of alcohol (spirits for the stove) and you're all set.
http://www.boundarywaterscatalog.com/browse.cfm/4,2333.html
Or you could get a Trangia burner with a built-in windscreen and pot stand that fits inside any pot you choose.
http://www.clikstand.com/home.htm
If you want really light, inexpensive (but useful) stuff, check out this site:
http://www.antigravitygear.com/alcohol_stove_agreement.html
Bear
tk max stainless steel cannister (biscuit tin) about £1 - you need to put a bail on but cheap as chps and last forever!
Justin Time
19-01-2005, 08:01
Is there any proof that it contributes to the thing I can't spell? (begins with A)
The Alzheimer's Society in the UK have a Fact Sheet (http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/Facts_about_dementia/Risk_factors/info_aluminium.htm) which concludes:
"The overwhelming medical and scientific opinion is that the findings outlined above do not convincingly demonstrate a causal relationship between aluminium and Alzheimer's disease, and that no useful medical or public health recommendations can be made, at least at present"
So at the current state of knowledge there doesn't seem any reason to worry about using aluminium pots. It's estimated that the adult human body contains less aluminium than you'd find in an antacid tablet.
Paganwolf
19-01-2005, 08:24
I cant believe no ones mentioned it :shock: but how about a swedish army mess set from surplus and adventure, its a complete cooking-stove unit and for 9 quid something they throw a set of mess tins in :shock: you dont have to use the trangea stove if you dont want to as the billy it comes with weighs practically nothing :biggthump But as a cheap cooking unit it cant be beaten on value :naughty: :wink:
Paganwolf
19-01-2005, 08:28
OH and Top Tip, if you paint the bottom third with the heat proof paint used for engines and manifolds on cars when they soot up on the outside you can easily wipe it off :naughty:
A lot of 'camping' cookware sets are great with a stove, but not ideal with a fire - a short handle is not ideal and a bail or long handle is better.
I've got a Coleman s/steel outfitter set. Contains a small mug (which I don't use), a big mug that can be used as a small pot, and a large pot with a bail, the lid of which has a handle and can be used as a frying pan. Ray Mears pictures it in his first book.
The Swedish Army stove/cookset may be better yet though - the big pot has ahook on it and the frying pan/lid has a handle with rings so you can shove an improvised extension handle (ie, a stick!) into it. And it's very cheap (£10 delivered from ironclad), and you have the option of using with the meths burner if fires are not feasible.
tenbears10
19-01-2005, 09:17
If you want really light, inexpensive (but useful) stuff, check out this site:
http://www.antigravitygear.com/alcohol_stove_agreement.html
Bear
I had a look at this link and found their pot cozy
http://www.antigravitygear.com/products/msr_2_liter_pot.html#
That looks like a great idea to me light and saves loads of fuel by using the heat to continue cooking in the cozy. But customs and shipping from the usa will make it expensive so............ that material looks like stuff you can buy in DIY shops in the UK for pipe insulation and you can get foil tape to seal it. How difficult would it be to make your own?
Bill
OH and Top Tip, if you paint the bottom third with the heat proof paint used for engines and manifolds on cars when they soot up on the outside you can easily wipe it off :naughty:
Tart! :wink:
Aluminium never harmed me
Melting point's too low for my liking :o):
Araldite has even less tolerance for heat.
i`m birthday boy soon and people have ordered me a Potjie Three Legged Pot and a Bake Pot from http://www.cdcuk.net/acatalog/Cooking.html , not lightweight i know but full of character and great for comunal cooking ,which i love ,so it should be good for the little tribe ive got who have expressed an interest in going bush :)
tenbears10
19-01-2005, 14:18
OH and Top Tip, if you paint the bottom third with the heat proof paint used for engines and manifolds on cars when they soot up on the outside you can easily wipe it off :naughty:
If it is heat proof paint won't it stop the water in the pan boiling :naughty:
thats what i was thinking... isnt that going to mess up the thremal conductivity of the metal?
would be a problem with a small gas cooker, if you've got a heat source that covers the whole of the bottom of the pan your fine
bambodoggy
19-01-2005, 15:19
Guys......."Heat proof paint" is paint that isn't affected by heat, not paint that stops heat passing through it like "IRR Paint" does to IR light!!!! :o):
See what you've done now Bill!!!!! lol :naughty:
uumm.. ok i dont know a lot about pint i jus figured heat proof pains going to stop heat like a water proof sealant!.. but surly a heat resistant pain is not going to be hugly conductive..
tenbears10
19-01-2005, 15:51
That looked like I was laughing at tom and I wasn't so edited.
bambodoggy
19-01-2005, 15:55
Couldn't tell you mate....I'm no physicist but I'm sure that's what JP was talking about! :wave: and I'm fairly sure Bill was taking the mickey (in a nice way)! lol
Shouldn't effect the conductivity as the paint isn't "heat resistant"...it's just unaffected by heat....subtle difference. :-P
PW, were you never in the Scouts ,Just grease the billy on the outside with some washing up liquid, that way you can keep your pots nice and shiney (if you are inclined that way ) as the carbon etc just washes off
MartiniDave
19-01-2005, 16:48
Alternatively leave the carbon deposits on the outside of the pot. Being nice and black they will inprove heat transfer to the pot and whatever is in it :super:
Dave
i jus put mine in the dishwasher :oops:
bambodoggy
19-01-2005, 17:02
PW, were you never in the Scouts ,Just grease the billy on the outside with some washing up liquid, that way you can keep your pots nice and shiney (if you are inclined that way ) as the carbon etc just washes off
Tee hee hee....I'd forgotten about that...we used to do that in Scouts too...works a treat! :biggthump
Alternatively leave the carbon deposits on the outside of the pot. Being nice and black they will inprove heat transfer to the pot and whatever is in it :super:
Dave
I will not improve the heat transfer more the opposit, it will get more heat from radiations like the sun but when it come s to fire it´s all about transfering heat from flame to pot and that will take longer.
Clean pots on the outside makes your water boil a few seconds faster, but i pdon´t like shiny things so i keep my pots black =)
Bambodoggy, maybe you left a long time before me and just forgotten in the mist of time :nana:
bambodoggy
19-01-2005, 17:35
Yer....urm....cheers Steve, I hit 30 last month and wasn't feeling too old...but now..... :yikes: lol :o):
Oh well....you're as old as you feel Mate! :nana:
dchinell
19-01-2005, 20:02
Bill:
As far as I know, you're right about the cozy material. I believe it's called Reflectix. It's an insulating material sold here in rolls.
I know several ultralight backpackers who have made their own cozies, just as you propose.
Bear
Paganwolf
19-01-2005, 20:12
I like mine burnt n sooty so it doesn't bother me :lol: some one mentioned it to me and as some on here don't like there cook pans sooty, i thought id mention it ill keep quiet in future :puppy_dog :sulkoff: (and before you say it no its NOT a promise :rolmao: :nana: )
Squidders
19-01-2005, 20:21
Cooking equipment is not something I usually do... I find that most equipment tastes bad and has a very tough texture even after lots of cooking and seasoning.
I like my billy can and actual food... and I like to keep my stuff fairly clean, I managed to melt something on to one of my older frying pans and since then it smells bad and smokes, I think it was some kind of melted plastic. So, I now try and keep everything clean.
I have also found that I can cook a whole fry-up in the billy, or a stew or a cuppa so it's ideal for me.
I usually clean by billy/mug with a used teabag - it takes all the loose carbon off but leaves the billy with a very thin layer of baked carbon which builds up over time. I always clean my kit before leaving site and give it a thourough wash when I get home.
Cheers
JFW
greg2935
29-01-2005, 10:48
Poitjie (pronounced p-oi-k-ey) is Afrikaans, those pots are a what the voortrekkers used in the great trek, you fill them with anything, put them on the coals and eat poittjie kos (kos meaning food)! They are not cleaned after use as usually you just add more food to them (in a similar way to European cooking in the middle ages).
I once ate poitjie kos from a pot that hadn't been cleaned since 1942 when the old man was fighting in WWII in North africa, he still swore he got a little sand between his teeth now and again.
Greg
recieved my potjie and bake pot last week , really pleased with them and a top service from john muirden, baked a nice loaf of bread with dried onion flakes in the dough, lovely
BruceMc gave me a link to and extremely good value Swedish ArmyTrangia (http://www.surplusandadventure.com/ishop/800/shopscr521.html) which is being sold for sub £8.
I've been using a Swedish military Trangia quite a lot lately and it is really very good indeed.
Totally reliable and nothing to go wrong.
Works in high winds. No wonder Trangia call them storm cookers.
Aluminium pail and frypan have good capacity and very easy to clean.
Works very well with an open fire.
Meths is dirt cheap (I get 2 litre containers of colourless 'industrial methylated spirits')
Stable - doesn't get knocked over easily.
Discreet - very little flame and very quiet. And mine is green!
Compact, and you can store stuff inside it. Matches, brew kit, dehydrated grub and you have a self contained cooker/ration pack.
The supplied 300ml bottle gives you a long weekend's independence from civilisation.
The only downsides are 1) it is a bit slower than gas/petrol, but really this is not an issue for me - I like to slow down a bit in the woods. It is very quick to set up and boils 500ml in 6 minutes or so on a cold night.
And 2) It is definitely too heavy at about 1kg, by modern standards. I might choose something lighter if I was doing a lot of ascents and distance - though even then I'd think long and hard about leaving it behind, given its reliability. But for 90% of trips, it is superb.
Possibly the Zebra billy/trangia burner/clickstand/windshield combination is the best combination. Certainly lighter, but probably less bombproof.
The above link do the Swedish military Trangias for £8, but Ironclad do them for £10 delivered (actual post costs are about £4.50). I have seen them sold for £18. Even at that price they are good value for what they are.