I thought I'd present a review that might be of interest here, a review of a remote canister stove that can handle running with the canister upside down.

Why might anyone care about which way the canister points? Well, running with the canister upside down gives one about a 20 Fahrenheit degree cold weather advantage over conventional upright canister stoves (when using an isobutane/propane mix).

So, if you like canister gas stoves but want something that can handle a little bit colder weather, the Kovea Spider is worth checking out.

Inverted canister stoves are a lightweight alternative to liquid fueled (gasoline or kerosene) stoves in cold weather. Not only are they lighter, but they're more mechanically reliable. In my latest blog post, I review a good one, the Kovea Spider.

I've found it to be a really nice, compact stove.

The Monatauk Gnat (left) and the Kovea Spider (right)

For the future, I'd like to see Kovea do more to lighten the 5.9oz/168g Spider stove. I'd like to see a good remote canister stove down in the four ounce range, but this is such a nice little stove that it's hard to complain.

The diminutive Kovea Spider

There is a lighter, by about 3/4 ounce, stove on the market, the FMS-118 Volcano, but there have been some complaints about the Volcano sputtering when in inverted canister mode, and I don't think the Volcano packs down anywhere near as small. I can get the Kovea Spider and a 110g canister of gas into either my 780ml Snow Peak pot or my MSR Titan kettle.

A Kovea Spider inside an MSR Titan Kettle

If this sounds interesting, here's the full review: The Kovea Spider (KB-1109) Remote Canister Stove. Have a look if you like.

HJ