My first alcohol stove

Nice job Brad! I\'ll bet I\'ve made a couple dozen stoves out of different aluminum containers. They all seem to work about the same. I will turn around in the highway to pick up someone\'s discarded alum beer bottle...of course, it\'s a good time just draining a fresh one yourself...
 
I\'ve made a bunch of them as well. Sure is nice to have a hot cup of Joe or soup on a cool mornings hunt. But this year I\'m switching to the little Trangia alcohol stove for a couple of reasons.

1) it stores it\'s own fuel so I don\'t need a fuel bottle for day hunts, I can get several burns out of mine.

2) it has a simmer ring so you can choke it down to keep things warm without boiling all the time. Also it can be snuffed out to save fuel.

But the little beer bottle stoves are probable a couple of ounces lighter and the burn time is great. And I enjoy the heck out of making them.
 
Looks great Brad. Nice job. Now I can see how everything is done by your pics. The only thing missing is how far apart are the holes and what diamater drill bit did you use? Add this info and I\'m going to make one. I dont like the thin wall cans either.
 
Terry
The holes are 1/2 inch apart.
I used a .054 drill bit, only because that\'s the smallest I had. ;)

I also got a couple containers for fuel.
They hold 4 oz each. I marked them so I can use the appropriate amount.
So since I have 8 oz available, that will give me 4 burns.
I plan on stashing this setup in my spike camp, along with a gallon of water, and some MREs
 

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Thanks guys!
After doing several burns, Im thinking that the hole spacing should be 1\" instead 1/2\".
If you have a smaller drill bit, I would try that too.

It would probably burn a bit longer and be more efficient
 
I made a couple more modifications/additions.
In order for everything to fit in the pot, I had to bend the corners of the pot stand. I also took part of the remaining wall of the bottle, drilled holes in it and made it a wind screen.
 

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So as you were making this Brad, was your mind on hearing a bugle on your first morning?

I really enjoy making things for for my outdoor hobbies as well. Currently making a silnylon tarp for use in spike camp. Not only does it save money but it puts me in contact with what I love doing more days out of the year. I enjoy making calls, stands, stabilizers, targets, feeders, etc. Good to see others enjoy it as well!
 
Tim
My mind is always thinking about bugles :)

UPDATE
I used the stove to make lunch today while my son and I were up scouting and goofing off.
I did find out that with a bit of wind, the stove doesnt heat the water like it does in my shop :)

But we had a hot lunch and continued on our expedition
 

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I noticed the pot holder keeps the pot off the center and allows air to get to middle of burner. What changes if the pot is directly on the unit without the center exposed?
would it would pressurize and burn faster, or maybe evaporate in the center?
I was tempted to make one called a riff stove which is similar to yours but has many slits and grooves on the inner can which with a quick blow to the center starts capillary action requiring no preheating and it\'s open center like yours.
 
On all of them I have ever made, I found that about 1/2\" spacing was about right for the burner holes. that equated to about 17 holes on a Bud Lite aluminum bottle. I drilled mine with a 1/16th bit. I also set my pot directly on top of the stove. That seemed to work fairly well.

On my Trangia alcohol stove I found that it worked best if I kept the pot about 1\" or so above the stove for the best boil time. It\'s just something you have to play around with to find out what works best.

I\'ll try to attach a photo of my setup.
 

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conversed with the buddy about these alcohol stoves. i think we are going to bring a couple this year and save some weight. now i am researching those mtn house meals. i like everything except the price....
 
made my first stove from a coors light aluminum bottle today. unfortunately I grabbed the wrong bottle of heet. I got the iso instead of methyl alcohol.... I determined to screw mtn house meals and will make meals based from knorr sides and added foil packed chicken and tuna. I will try to find dried vegetables and maybe even meat to add as filler...
 
Thought I\'d bring this thread back up to the top since these are great little stoves and easy to build. I wanted to discuss fuel containers also.

The little energy drink bottles are just about the right size for a good burn. And if you are into the vacuum sealing of you daily rations, you can put one of these little fuel bottles in each packet.

Also, When you go to McDonalds the next time, get a milk with your meal. The little plastic milk bottles hold 8 ounces. (enough for 4-6 good burns)

Another thing I almost forgot. WallyWorld has some little plastic thermos thingys that make a great cozy. And they are just about the right size to store you stove in. I think they run about $1.69 or so.
 
I ended up also buying the rucas stove. the aluminum is a lot thicker and it boils my water even faster. cant wait to try it out next week in altitude next week!
 
Bringing this thread back to the top.

This thread is a couple years old, but I thought maybe someone would still benefit
 
Thanks. I\'m still tempted to try that. Not sure I trust my craftsmanship to feed my fat butt on a mountain though :D
 
I picked up a new aluminum water bottle like the one Brad used at Good Will for 88 cents. I planned on trying this project. I just have not found the time.
 
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