A guy at a campsite outside Flagstaff handed me his $12 stove after mine died, and it made me rethink the whole $200 setup in my trunk | Camping Gear Reviews - The Design Community Hub
A guy at a campsite outside Flagstaff handed me his $12 stove after mine died, and it made me rethink the whole $200 setup in my trunk
Two years back I was at a site off FR 151 near Flagstaff, second morning, and my fancy canister stove just would not light. Cold, maybe 28 degrees. I'm sitting there with my $200 setup spread out on the tailgate feeling like an idiot while everyone else is making coffee.
Guy two sites over walks up with this tiny beat up pocket rocket looking thing, maybe 3 ounces, hands it to me and says "yours is froze, this one don't care." Had it lit in like ten seconds. He said he'd been using that same stove for 9 seasons, never cleaned it, never had a problem, and the fancy one he bought first had a busted piezo by year two.
I still bring my big stove for car camping because I like the wider pot support, your mileage may vary on that. But I stopped assuming price equals reliability after that trip.
Anyone else got a cheap piece of gear that outlasted the expensive one? Specifically stoves, curious if that's a fluke or a pattern.