[pct-l] CatStove

[ROYROBIN@aol.com (ROYROBIN@aol.com)]

<< I was having trouble getting my church key holes to come out as clean as
 yours, so I tried drilling the holes for the inner can.   I found that the
 tabs from the outer can are enough to hold the inner can up.  Also, by
 drilling I was able to add more fuel without it leaking.  >>

Hi Rick.  Thanks for the tip!  As long as the drilled holes are big enough to 
get the required air flow, this sounds like an easy alternative.  You 
mentioned "holding the inner can up".  The tabs certainly keep it centered, 
but the inner can should be pushed down so that, on a flat surface, the 
bottom of the inner can is even with the rim of the air jacket.  This way, 
air is able to enter the burner (inner can) over the top as well as through 
the tabs, or your drilled holes.  

However, the important thing is that it works well.  If you can get a pint of 
water to a rolling boil in four to five minutes with two Tbsp of fuel, and 
the fuel burns out shortly after that, you've got a "cookin' " stove!  If it 
doesn't quite measure up to that, then tinker with it.  

I've also cooked for two by adding more fuel, but the CatStove was designed 
to be a one-person stove.  Your variation should allow you to put a bit more 
fuel into the burner.  Good idea!  (With four or five Tbsp of fuel, the stove 
will burn for 10 minutes or more.)  

When my son and I were on the trail, we each carried our own CatStove.  While 
one of us was setting up camp, the other would sometimes boil a quart of 
water for our two Ramens.  It wasn't as efficient (the stove is designed to 
heat one pint with minimum fuel), but if we had the extra fuel, and we always 
carried a little extra, it got the first course on the table faster.