Registered: 10/31/08
Posts: 43
Loc: Bloomington, IN, USA
After getting input from various people, I think I am going to get an alcohol stove, possibly the Etowah II Stove Kit. Now for the cooking pot:)
I'm looking for an ultralight cookpot for one person which hopefully will be inexpensive. What kind of cooking pot do you use? Do you use it for both cooking and eating from, including cereal in the morning?
Registered: 12/27/05
Posts: 931
Loc: East Texas Piney Woods
Darwin, Since you're new here, you might want to take advantage of the Search button in the upper right area of the screen. Search for pot or cookpot and set the time frame for 3-6 months. There are tons of threads on this topic.
You'll find that light and inexpensive have varying degrees, but will mostly be aluminum. For that, you can go to Walmart, Target, or Kmart and look for a grease pot. Kmart carries one that the lip rolls to the outside so you can use a special type pot lifter for it. Walmart has/had one that the lip rolls in and it is not as easy to use. You'll have to use something besides the pot lifter I mentioned. My local Walmart has one that has a handle (made by IMUSA I believe). Any of these would suffice. You could also use a #3 peach can (or green been can) and attach a piece of wire to it. Fairly light and very inexpensive.
I'm still debating this one myself. I've been getting by for years with a fairly standard stainless mug, plus a pot in winter. Kicked around some aluminum beercan pots but haven't made one rugged enough yet. I used to use Nalgene bottles alot, because I use really hot water from my Kelly Kettle, but have since abandoned them because of their weight and the BPA thing. So I am looking to carry two metal mug/pots with lids that can be used as a mug or as a pot but also as a water or hot beverage carriers. If I can get the lids tight enough I may trust them as hot water bottles also. I would like cozies for them also, and to fit in standard bottle carriers with the cozies on, but the cozies would be removeable, at least on the bottom, so I could heat them directly also. Perhaps a reinforcing band around the rim that also allows me to handle them when hot. Epoxied webbing maybe. I wouldn't mind if they were aluminum or titanium or even stainless steel as long as they were the right size. Something Nalegene bottle sized but only 800ml high would be about right. It's the lids I haven't quite figured out yet. Once I get something working out of aluminum I might look to titanium.
I will first see what I can do with Foster's Beer Cans. I am not sure how I can get them to slip in and out of a water bottle holder while wearing a cozy, and still be rugged enough when empty. They weigh less than an ounce though, so I could add 3 ounces in insulation and reinforcement and still have a light pot. 4 ounces per unit is my target, including cozy, rim, and lid. Perhaps the water bottle holders need to be on the front straps. I don't really like reaching back there anyway. I could use the back pouches for something else.
Another cheap option is to pick up a used Boy Scout, aluminum mess kit at a garage sale or thrift store. The pot is about a 3 cup, has a bail and a tight fitting lid, and is relatively light.
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If I wouldn't eat it at home, why would I want to eat it on the trail?
I don't know your price range, but if you're interested in titanium cookware, you might check out the REI TiWare (house brand.) It seems to be more reasonably priced than some, and looks like a copy of the Evernew pots everyone seems to like.
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