Great video! FireDragon and liquid ethanol releases it's energy very quickly so you may see shorter overall burn times, but it reaches temperature quickly which is great for a quick brew or cooking ration packs. Our tests aim for boiling point at 6-7 minutes and total burn time of 8-9 minutes. Thanks for the video and test Luke - I'll pass the feedback to the rest of the team so we can work on improving FireDragon.
are you the maker of these fuel? why don't you make the container for the fuel blocks from a material who can be burnt too ? maybe something like hardened, impregnated paper or carton what can hold the melting fuel in place? i think this can work much better.
If the product could be burnt in the packaging, then I find it would be much more controllable, and give a much better burntime. If a big burn surface (and much shorter burntime) is needed, it can just be removed from the packaging.
IMO this was a very bad comparison test. First was used in a stove that really isn't meant for this type of fuel. Second, test was in a pan for boiling which I would never use. Third, no lid was used so burn times will be off dramatically. Fourth, while the esbit may have "burned" little heat was put off. Lastly, the whole Cyanide thing is a definite draw back for the esbit.
Greetings from Norway. I mentioned this in another post before, but I used the Firedragon tablets and the bottle on my three weeks hike in the north of Norway this summer. It performed great. The greatest plus for me, and totally necessary, I can use it inside the tent as well. Another plus is that if it gets wet, it still light up perfect. Lastly, it's more environment friendly. A lid will also make the water boil a bit faster. Esbit? No thanks, the smell, and it's dangerous to inhale, and, am not in a hurry.
Fresh air ventilation is free. I'm happy to trade off the inconvenience of providing ventilation for the many conveniences and advantages of hexamine. It's not like I'm going to be roasting a damn chicken in my tent! Just 10-15m of cooking... yea, I can handle that for the advantages of a genuinely solid fuel, the longer burn-time, the higher BTU/Oz, the smell and supposed toxicity.
I like both but tend to use Dragon fuel more these days. As you say, if you contain it in a smaller receptacle, it burns for longer and you will get a boil if you use a lid on your pot. And getting the optimum position in relation to the pot is crucial as with most stoves/fuels. It's far easier to light, a lot less toxic, better for the environment and nicer to pack in. Bit expensive though. They are both good in different ways. As always, a great honest review. All the best from the UK for the festive season, Andy
Thanks for that very interesting test mate...I have an Esbit stove and have never used the FireDragon (though seen them for sale) but now I know I made the right choice. That said, I used to use a Trangia more than anything until I started using Primus Winter Gas with my MSR Pocket Rocket (I cooked up my porrdge at minus 19C last Tuesday morning) and they work great, better than great actually. That Winter Gas has been a complete game changer for me as I have to camp between school days in the city, year round. Thank you again for all your cool and honest testing mate. Respect.
My main use for the solid fuel tabs I keep in my pack is for getting campfires started when all I have is damp wood. Put a fuel tab at the base of the wood pile, and just about anything will catch.
I have some round tabs similar to hexy but the thing I like with solid blocks is if you powder a small bit, it will light off a ferro instead of a flame.
I get better results in a simple folding stove that has a well that contains the gel. As you demonstrated, but both take ages compared to alcohol or gas. The blocks are better, but for safety and no fumes I prefer the Fire Dragon product. I like to be able to heat water in my closed tent porch without worrying. You need to use two and pop another one on before it runs out. They are very expensive though as a result. I prefer alcohol or gas in most situations but it was fun to experiment.
Thank you Luke, another year of really useful (,and entertaining) reviews. I'm sure its been mentioned, but the best way I've found to clean up firedragon fuel residue is to add water. This works really well in the bcb stove, fill the tray with water, and you soon get a syrupy goop that's easy to remove. Just pour it out, and even a leaf will ease out the remaining goop. Happy Christmas everyone!
I love this channel......he covers just about everything from harsh weather conditions on the wild camps, to survival tips and reviews. ...a nice guy too ...this channel (although has big sub numbers ) should have way more subs imo...all the best from the UK ✌
I recently switched from hexamine to the fire dragon, mostly because of the smell. Fortunately I'm in the UK and fire dragon products are much better value. Thanks Luke 👍
Like you said, circumstances would determine what was appropriate. If you're in a situation where outdoor cooking is not possible with limited access to fresh air, it would be a no brainer to use Fire Dragon. I think I'm going to get some of each and for my, JIC supplies. Great video Luke!
THANK YOU! I've been wanting to see someone do this. The 27g Esbit (which is based on hexamine, not trioxaine- very, very different) is hard to find, but with the melt and spread of the Fire Dragon I think it is worth the effort. And I'd rather have to ventilate a shelter for hexi than risk everything burning down as Fire Dragon's goo runs. If you're using these without a stove, just on a rock, or a piece of flat metal, or a hole in the ground, the goo is going to spread. I literally put Esbits on what used to be the end of a can. And my German military surplus pocket cooker will hold a pair of 27g Esbits rather than 4 14g tablets or none of the goo packs, plus a ferro rod, scraper, a foil wind screen, and it all fits in a coat pocket or under a GI canteen. The smell is easily dealt with by using two freezer bags or one alkosak. So not a big deal. Since it an jelled alchohol, I'd like to see Dragon Fire vs an equal mass of Sterno. I really do wonder if Dragon Fire just using ethanol rather than methanol, which Sterno uses.
Thanks for this comparison. Nice job. I've been using Esbit stoves and fuel for years and they've always worked well for me. I'm glad that you mentioned using a lid because they make a big difference, even if improvised from some heavy duty aluminum foil.
I can sort of agree. I was in a couple of units where we got some of the best toys ever to play with. In other units the gear we got was what I thought of as hand-me-downs.
Esbit always! The idea of a non toxic cube is great but the crazy flames doesn't seem like the safest option if you're using it in a particularly dry area like southern Arizona. Great video!
Great comparison video. I have the Fire Dragon fuel because it doesn't smell or is as toxic as the hexamin tablet. I carry it with a BCB stove when out hiking. But I will get some Hexamine just to try it out.
Interesting test, never had an issue boiling water with FireDragon in the Crusader stove. It boils within 6 or 7 mins which is significantly faster than the Esbitt fuel. Horses for courses of course and thanks for the content
My stove has been and will always be my Colman one burner. Running on (get it anywhere) unleaded gas it will boil my canteen cup of water in no time. Yes, its weight is a little high, but the usages are immense. Still have the first one and it is now 40 yr's old and works great.
I typically use the Coghlan’s hexamine tabs when I use fuel tabs, but lately use my Pathfinder alcohol stove. Coghlan’s tabs are inexpensive at local store, and two tabs are usually enough to heat water for a meal.
Which one would I get? The 14g Esbit tabs cause they can often be had waaaayyyy cheaper per gram than the 27s. It is often cheaper to use two 14s than one 27 and there is more versatility since the 27 is usually too much and you gotta save it. The 14s are often just right and you can just let the last bit burn out without waste!
I have both, and like both, obviously for different situations. Thanks for the great review! I hope you and your family have a very Merry Christmas!! :-)
Thanks Luke. Was just thinking about trying out the Fire Dragon. Have an Esbit now that I carry on my small day hikes, and plan to carry on an upcoming overnighter in the national forest. Now I know I need not bother buying the Fire Dragon. Thanks again, and Merry Christmas!
Good test, and thank-you for not driving to the highest elevation you could find to decrease the boiling point of the water to make the products seem more dramatic.
I used hexamine "hexy" stoves for a few years but switched to alcohol stoves because the latter were easier to light and the water had better flavour. The trick with hexamine with ferro rods is to use a cotton wool ball to catch the spark, and the flame lights the block.
First, let me say that this type of stove (Both Esbit and BCB) is not my go-to emergency preparedness solution. That said, I have tested both but I used 1 cup of water. I want 1 cup of hot water quickly in a dire situation. Although the BCB fuel is more expensive I have chosen the Fire Dragon as my shirt pocket tertiary backup solution. I like the idea of non-toxicity and the fact that Fire Dragon can be used as a hand sanitizer. My preferred method is a canister stove but I always have a Trangia in my bag. As someone else mentioned, we were never issued these types of stoves. However, way back in the day we did receive a canteen and cup along with a stove stand that was part of the nesting configuration. We were issued triox tabs. But, that was back in the day of C-Rats. I was in long enough to see the transition from C-Rats to, and through, a couple of versions of MRE's. When the transition happened the canteen cup stove stand and triox tabs began to disappear from the supply rooms and issue points.
We always used Hexamine in the Australian Army, in a very similar stove to the firedragon stove. In all the years I used them, I never used the whole thing before either my water, or food was ready. And we would have broken that in half and only used one portion. Dixie pan over the top of the cup to boil (to use as a lid), only took 3 or 4 minutes to boil water. Never had 36 minutes to spare for that sort of thing.
Great Review Luke,,,, That’s why, if I didn’t want to use a canister or wood stove,, I’ld bring my Trangia,,,, I’ve put Sterno Gel in a Trangia solid fuel burner(to the top). It’s lasted 45min, and I’ve gotten 2 , four cup pots to a rolling boil,,,,
I use Utility Flame gel in my emergency kit with the small Esbit cookset. I put it into a tea light cup to focus the flame to the pot. Hot, safe and when it is done burning silica is the only remaining residue.
I like and use both. I use the Dragon in the summer because the stove loses too much heat through the bottom in the winter since it is flat and in direct contact with the frozen ground (design flaw compared to esbit stoves). But I like Dragon because it’s non toxic, and better packaged and better shelf life because of the packaging. I carry it all year long in my “just in case” kit as a fire-starter since it takes only a spark to ignite, and as hand sanitizer. But it’s performance is more comparable to a 17g esbit cube. I would cook real meals on sn esbit but not on Dragon.
Being in the UK, as a military cadet as a teen we always used hexamine military stoves. Which were essentially a firedragon stove that used a esbit fuel tab. They worked great but as you said they absolutely stink. As an adult I have the firedargon version now. They are not as effective and are really only good for boiling water for a cup of tea in a british army crusader cup. As most of the time army rations are self heating or eaten cold. But the firedragon is multipurpose as you can use as handsanitiser (useful in today's world). You can also light it while it's still in its plastic packet. Just remove the film lid and light. Burns slightly longer then. And not much more residue.
We used Esbit quite often in the German Bundeswehr in the eighties. It was standard equipment in the backpack with a little folding stove. Nobody told us the fumes were dangerous back then.
Thanks for the review! I'm researching these emergency stoves and can get a firedragon stove for $3.30 and 6pack of the 27g fuels for $2.50. The esbit 8 pack of fuel is $16 so I think i'll go with the firedragons and just pop another one in if I need more cook time. Its good to know that using their folding stove extends the duration of the burn time by nearly 3 times also.
One easy cheat to save clean up on the residue, pop a bit of foil underneath it, job done. Can build a small chamber for it too. Got loads of the firedragon cubes but you can get 12 for about £3 here in the UK. On the Crusader cook kit system and a lid on I've never had a problem getting that volume of water to boil with one cube. With two you can heat up an MRE and have the water for tea. They even do a mini firedragon fuel cube now and a really tiny stove to use, one cube of that is good for 200ml of water so perfect for a brew kit.
Looks like you'd need a small metal container, maybe 2 x 1 x 0.5 inches, to prevent the fire dragon 'tablet' from melting into a big burning puddle! But once you carry that, you might as well bring some fuel gel in a small plastic bottle. Fuel Gel costs ~5$ for 1Liter here in Switzerland . At a weight of 850 grams per liter that is the equivalent of 30 tablets! I will not buy esbit since I can't use it in a tent, and knowing myself, I will forget!
People have been using Esbit in tents, in bunkers, in caves and in houses since WW2 and I doubt that anyone died from inhaling the fumes. I'm not saying you should do it, but I think people often prioritize the wrong threats to their health. I know people who are paranoid about "dangerous chemicals" and passive smoking, but at the same time eat themselves into an early grave with processed junk food. When I studied chemical process engineering, a buddy of mine got a "between semesters" job with a company that produced paint, mostly for painting walls and rooms. The EU had just implemented new guidelines for how much toluol/toluene (a hydrocarbon that can cause cancer, nerve- and liver damage when inhaled at high concentrations) was allowed in room paints and that company had to change the recipes for their paints, which was a huge hassle and investment and everybody who knew a thing or two about industrial chemistry was rolling their eyes, because the new limit was ridiculously low. Of course, you could say "Why not make the limit for how much of a carcinogen and nerve damaging agent is allowed in household items very low?" and out of context that would seem reasonable. The problem is toluene is everywhere because trees produce it. Yes, our dear friends the trees are pumping a cancerous nerve gas into the air. Especially freshly cut wood extrudes large amounts of toluene. Hardly anyone knows that, but people who work with freshly cut wood, like lumberjacks, carpenters, people who work in saw mills or woodworking shops, people selling Christmas trees and so on, have a very high likelyhood to develop cancer or neural disabilities like Parkinson's disease. Most people who hear of that are totally baffled, because we think the air in forests is pretty much the healthiest thing in existence, but that really isn't the case. It just never mattered, because nothing that lives in a forest gets old enough to have the time to develop cancer or Parkinson's. We humans are the first ones and only so in the last 100 to 200 years. What made the EU guidelines and limits for toluene in paint so ridiculous was that they were like 1000 times lower than the levels you get just from putting a new piece of wooden furniture into your room, let alone the amounts of it you inhale when taking a stroll through a forest or burning a log in a fire place. You can basically sniff a can of paint for hours and don't get as much toluene as when you take a stroll in a forest. So you can imagine how annoyed everyone in the paint business was about having to spend millions on getting the toluene levels that low. My point being that it is usually pointless to get worked up about every bit of "dangerous chemical".
Trangia makes a small round covered aluminum container , a Gel Burner for that. I have forgotten it a few times and just made a container out of aluminum foil. Alexander, what do you use in Switzerland? Take care, would really like to correspond with you if you don’t mind talking to someone probably old enough to be your father! (LOL)
I agree with Josh Lloyd. The useful burn time is more significant than the total burn time (for any fuel). When the heat loss from the ensemble exceeds the heat input from the fuel, clearly better to remove the pot and use the liquid, else you are losing ground (heat). I use Esbit regularly, and if it is burning well (most times, shielded from the wind) I find little residue on the pot, which easily wipes off with a wet wipe. Solid fuels also have the considerable advantage of low need for care - low hassle.
Greetings …this was great as I have been wavering on what to get for cooking light/quick meals. Between your review of alcohol stoves and this one it will be an Esbit. Many thanks.
Cheers for this vid. I'll now pack two parts of foil. One the cooker to sit on the ground with and one to cover the boiling vessel. I don't want to rule out hexi but I have long term storage concerns in the UK
Good review. I think you summed it up when you said there is a time and a place for both. I've tested both and have got 2 cups to boil with a lid on with the fire dragon and the 14grm esbit tablet. I think what I take from your test most is that the esbit cooker you used isn't fit for this purpose where as the BCB cooker and the original esbit one it was copied off are. Keep up the great work. Cheers Stu NZ
👍.. I still have my Esbit Folder, issued to me in the SADF (South African Defence Force) in 1968. Now living in Switzerland, my fuel choice is 'Sicherheitsbrennpaste' in the 850g plastic bottles. Esbit Tablets are not an option as they are quite expensive here and unlike the Fuel Gel, are not freely available at almost any Grocery and Convenience Store. Good choice your Plans A and B .. and the Trangia Stove 😊. I am fortunate to still have an Optimus 8R Hunter (bought new in the mid-70's) and still in regular use.
I hate the smell of esbit and the fact that it gives off a toxic fume, but in a survival situation esbit wins the day as long as you use the proper precautions so that is what I use as one of my ready stoves for packing and day trips. Thanks for the video and keep on trekking.
Interesting test. In a similar situation I'll stick with my Trangia system. Yellow Heet is super cheap and I can get a boil in less than 10 minutes. I'd really like to see you do a review of a full Trangia kit. I know you aquired a partial system at a good price several years ago but that set is lacking a few components.
Yellow HEET is methanol which burns super clean, is super cheap and super reliable. After some survival buddies turned me on to it, I burn pretty much just HEET. The lack of sooty residue is also greatly appreciated.
@D.E.R.P. -Speaking of Trangia, my Trangia Model 28T “Trangia Mini” arrived today! Washed it and got it ready to use! Add it to my Trangia collection! All I need now is the Trangia Triangle!
Squirt a few drops of hand sanitiser onto the esbit and it will light from a firestick. If it is windy it works a little better if you put the stuff on a piece of cloth, paper or dry leaves.
I keep several boxes of hexamine tablets small medium and large because I've found that they're the best quick and easy fuel source to save time and trouble on the trail or at the camp sites. Controlled consistent and dependable. And you can buy the smaller generic tablets for dirt cheap and really stretch your supply budget. How you have your stove or cooking device setup really does make a difference but with hexamine it's not as crucial as other types of ready to use fuels...
Esbit or similar. I have several folding surplus stoves salted in through various gear/packs. Plus the Trangia 4 of them in my gear and one in my truck with 2gallons of fuel.
I use the yellow bottle HEET gasoline additive to keep the gas lines from freezing in a cat food tin with two rows of off set holes around the top via a hole punch. I am now testing a Esbit stove using the waxed compressed fire starter squares that you pick up at the dollar store.
I run Esbit all the time. I actually use an Emberlit titanium fireant as my main stove. I burn wood most of the time, but I always carry the included esbit tray with the stove, along with 3 esbit cubes as my backup cooking fuel.
I've used both in Australia, can't get either here these days. I can find hexamine in round form & military large blocks. Fire Dragon was easy to light but hexamine round 7grams burns for 8 to 9 minutes. 1 cup water will boil & continue for 1.5 minutes. Hexamine is more versatile for my needs.
For camping/ backpacking Fire Dragon. But for extreme emergency situations where you may have to have more fire making capabilities other than heating up food or water for one person the hexamine. Can you store it in an air tight container to reduce/ control the smell? Would you be using these products as your only source of heat for cooking or just to heat up filtered/ bottled water; or for fire starting capabilities to cook meals?
After having spent several hours cleaning up my old esbit style stoves, from now on Im packing foil with them to form a cup under and around the stove. The charcoal gack is a nightmare to clean off.
I used the fuel tabs when I was in boy scouts. Hated them then, and still do. My little butane stove boils water in about 2 minutes. The ONLY thing I use the fuel tabs for, are fire starters in my fire starting kit!! IMHO, that is all they are really good for. Starting charcoal grills and camp fires.
been using Esbit for decades. bought a case for $40 some years back. still over half full. cheap as dirt and reliable. I am interested in the Dragon Fire, but will want a bit better cost-to-performance out of it before I swap from good ol' Sterno gel.
I have some Fire Dragon cubes I ordered a few months ago, so figured I'd try one. I have a little burner I made using a juice can top and bottom. I cut a 1" hole in the top, then fit it over the bottom. I had to cut up the cube to fit it all inside the 1-1/4" tall burner. The pot stand held the pot about 3/8" above the burner. My 2 cups H2O boiled in 14:27, and kept it boiling until 26:43, then burned out at 27:22. Unfortunately, now the bottom of my little burner has this waxy residue about 1mm deep. *EDIT:* I redid this test with another cube and a taller pot stand - 7/8" above burner. The 2 cups H20 boiled in 8:22, burned for another 6:27, (total 14:49) keeping the water boiling right up until burn out.
The BCB stove was in 24hr rat packs that the uk military issued (Without that wind block extra that the new kinds have)... when i was in it came with the hexi solid fuel blocks and it was absolutely hated by myself and my oppos....
I wonder how the Dragon would've done if you'd dropped it into an old tuna can first. Any time the flames come out from under a pan, their heat is wasted.
A few things. 1. The Fire Dragon is designed to be non-toxic so it can be used in confined areas, unlike the hexy. 2. Use either a mess tin or Crusader cup to boil water. The small cup here allows too much heat to be lost. 3. Those folding stoves are meant for backup use. For everyday use, the Crusader 2 cooking system is best.
I have hexamine because of the price and availability here in Australia. Don't see many people use it. Very occasionally I get out esbit stove for a brew but mostly use alcohol stove.
Ive been using a homemade cat can alcohol stove and an MSR 850ml kettle. 3/4 oz denatured alcohol and I can usually boil 750 ml in less than 10 min. Even in 17 deg f (1.5 oz alcohol ). I like a wider flat kettle that catches all of that heat. Dragon stove works pretty well, and you won't die......
I use the Esbit in the BCB stove as a backup to my canister stove. Also will bring up to a boil with the canister stove and then transfer to the BCB stove for a long simmer time if needed. Works great with the 20min + burn time for food with a long simmer. Not burning up my canister.
I keep some Esbit cubes in their little stove, and I've used it, but outside of emergency/survival I don't like to use them with pots/pans as it leaves a nasty film. Sure I can prevent using the usual soap trick, but I'll stick to keeping it as my backup.
keep the tea bag you made your drink with and wipe the pan clean of soot with it, old British army trick, But the residue does build up long term and you'll need to use a scrubber pad to really get your pan/cup clean after a few weeks of use
GREAT REVIEW! I will not be buying the fire dragon! In an emergency situation you want a fire! Thank you again for the time and effort you put in your reviews, it is GREATLY APPRECIATED! Hey Susie!🥰
It was obvious that the Fire Dragon needed a very different type of stove than the Esbit. It didn't even like the second stove. It wants a narrow and tall chamber to burn from, something I've never seen from a camp stove. I think that makes it a hard fail. It works great as a campfire starter, and I wouldn't think twice about using it for that purpose on a car camping trip, but for that same purpose, I can use 100 other things that are at least as good, and aren't as much of a pain to use.
I never could convince myself to carry these types of fuels. A small canister of gas and an MSR pocket rocket ( I can't be the only one that thinks that sounds naughty lol) stove is my go to for something quick and easy. But after this video, I'm tempted to try them just for giggles.
My 'go to' is also gas. I have several: 1 alpine stove for more than 1-2 people, my original PCS Jetboil (which I love - so quick and easy) and a 40g burner which I just on most trips. In all cases I also carry a titanium Esbit stand and some cubes. These are great for backup and light. If I drop my gear down to the stand, some cubes, steel cup, spare lighter/matches (I always carry other fire lighters in pockets and other gear - just like compasses and lamps :) ) and some BBQ aluminium foil as a wind shield, the whole set weighs just under 200g. That is
On short weekend trips, I carry hexamine fuel or liquid alcohol to save the bulk, weight and cost of cannisters. My liquid alcohol stove weighs less than an ounce, and the weight of fuel is very low for a weekend backpacking trip.
You can light a normal fire in these stoves or top up your fuel tablets with little twigs when needed. Gast stoves are COMPLETELY useless when you have no gas.
@@SidneyTurnerOfficial you don't need the stove to light a fire which in reality makes your argument close to redundant anyway. There are also many circumstances where wood burning is not possible, safe or legal. The wise thing is not to take a 'this is thw best attitude' but more 'this suits this circumstance' and opt appropriately.
Hexamine with a little British military hexi stove is always in my pack for emergency use. The Hexamine packets fit nicely inside the stove for easy storage. I'll always prefer an open fire or gas, but these blocks are great when you run out of gas and can't have an open fire
the fire dragon is made of an alcohol-diatomite-mix, which turns it into jelly. When burnt, the diatomite forms residue, interesting to see it's paper-shape. I never used the fire dragon, but chafing dish fuel, it's much cheaper and leaves much less residue, but always has to be kept contained. Even in the dragon stove the flames went quite strong, so I would suggest to put it into something fireproof with a smaller opening, e.g. a stainless shot glass. If one is not enough for boiling water, you can prepare a second one and switch them (with pliers!). I used Esbit too, but find the residue very annoying - removing it is not possible without scratching the surface, and it will start to rust immediately in coastal areas where I live. In any wooded area my go-to is a hobo-stove and the small Esbit-blocks come in handy when starting an upside-down fire in it, lit with a torch lighter. Merry X-mas and stay safe.
If you scrape the top of an Esbit cube (any size), with the tip of a knife and create a very small pile of Esbit dust it becomes easy to light with either a match or ferro rod. No need to complain about it being hard to light. If you store it in a double ziplock the smell is insignicant to none. Try it! You’ll like it.
Love Esbit fuel. I recently used a 14g tablet to bake a large cornbread muffin. I placed the batter in a 3x3-inch Fat Daddio aluminum pot/pan and placed that in a 750 Snow Peak titanium pot. I used the Brien Green Esbit fuel tray to slow the burn. I cooked the muffin on the Bushcraft Essentials Outdoor Micro Pocket Stove. I used the stove's crossbar as a spacer between the titanium pot and the aluminum pot to prevent burning. I got an 18-minute burn time and a large perfectly cooked muffin.
Luke, have you ever done a review of the Sterno stove? It takes a little while to boil water but it will boil it. I never go into the woods without mine. I thought about getting a backpacking stove with the gas canister but where I hunt in North Central Pa. It can get really cold and from what I've seen the gas canister works best when it's warm. The Sterno stove has been very dependable for me. I would really value your opinion of it. You have a great channel. Keep up the good work. 👍👍👍The hexamine would definitely be my choice.
I’ve seen people use something similar to the fire dragon, but they light the wrapper too. Esbit is the more reliable, I would use that over the other.
I would use the Dragon Fire in a fire pit. The melting won't matter too much there. Esbit, I would cook with it, as that is what I mainly use, unless I'm trying out something new. Great comparison!!! Thanks!!! Merry Christmas too!!
looks like I better look up different solid fuel tabs for my own outdoor trip for a few hours. I am using a similar hexamine cooker to the Nesbit, but the solid fuel tab that I have, they did not state the burn time on the packaging.. will order different solid fuels and test them out soon.
I love the idea of BCB, but if it doesn't boil water on a mild day even using its designed stove, it seems to me it would be useless for winter conditions even with a lidded pot. For alcohol fuel, I'm more inclined to go with a Trangia spirit burner, which is massively easier and cheaper to keep fed anyway.
Esbit (Hexamine)has been the choice for more army's and Sportsman then any other solid fuel for camping since 1936. It always works and works well when used as attended for individual cooking for one person. Also great fire starter.
Luke, seeing as though hexamine gives off cyanide gas. Would you recommend it for starting a hot tent stove? Once you light it, it will be in an enclosed stove. Let me know your thoughts, because I did not know that hexamine gave off cyanide gas or fumes. I personally would not use it to cook inside of a tent, but I am asking about in a hot tent stove.
Hi, great Video! The Esbit did a little too well on you in my opinion. I love the firedragon. They are clean and non-toxic. They leave very little dust on the cup and the residue in the brazier is super easy to remove. you can make a shell out of aluminum paper for the Firedragon, then they will be even more efficient. I always squeeze them into an aluminum can, that works great. Greetings
For a boil test, not having a lid on the pot really affects it and i have had good success with both of these fuels on the trail with a lid and windscreen. The burn time is definitely different and i have yet to try the 27g esbit, usually use the smaller cubes. I will be trying those, but i definitely do not like the smell from esbit.
Great video! FireDragon and liquid ethanol releases it's energy very quickly so you may see shorter overall burn times, but it reaches temperature quickly which is great for a quick brew or cooking ration packs. Our tests aim for boiling point at 6-7 minutes and total burn time of 8-9 minutes. Thanks for the video and test Luke - I'll pass the feedback to the rest of the team so we can work on improving FireDragon.
Great to see a company stand behind the product. Fair play to you FireDragon.
are you the maker of these fuel? why don't you make the container for the fuel blocks from a material who can be burnt too ? maybe something like hardened, impregnated paper or carton what can hold the melting fuel in place? i think this can work much better.
If the product could be burnt in the packaging, then I find it would be much more controllable, and give a much better burntime.
If a big burn surface (and much shorter burntime) is needed, it can just be removed from the packaging.
@@iberiksoderblom yes, that's what i thought
IMO this was a very bad comparison test. First was used in a stove that really isn't meant for this type of fuel. Second, test was in a pan for boiling which I would never use. Third, no lid was used so burn times will be off dramatically. Fourth, while the esbit may have "burned" little heat was put off. Lastly, the whole Cyanide thing is a definite draw back for the esbit.
Greetings from Norway. I mentioned this in another post before, but I used the Firedragon tablets and the bottle on my three weeks hike in the north of Norway this summer. It performed great. The greatest plus for me, and totally necessary, I can use it inside the tent as well. Another plus is that if it gets wet, it still light up perfect. Lastly, it's more environment friendly. A lid will also make the water boil a bit faster. Esbit? No thanks, the smell, and it's dangerous to inhale, and, am not in a hurry.
I totally agree with you. It is sensible to be cooking nontoxic in a snowy shelter.
Fresh air ventilation is free.
I'm happy to trade off the inconvenience of providing ventilation for the many conveniences and advantages of hexamine.
It's not like I'm going to be roasting a damn chicken in my tent! Just 10-15m of cooking... yea, I can handle that for the advantages of a genuinely solid fuel, the longer burn-time, the higher BTU/Oz, the smell and supposed toxicity.
Way back when in the military in Alaska we used our fold out stove on top of our snow shovel blade helps get it off snow and makes a platform
I like both but tend to use Dragon fuel more these days. As you say, if you contain it in a smaller receptacle, it burns for longer and you will get a boil if you use a lid on your pot. And getting the optimum position in relation to the pot is crucial as with most stoves/fuels. It's far easier to light, a lot less toxic, better for the environment and nicer to pack in. Bit expensive though. They are both good in different ways. As always, a great honest review. All the best from the UK for the festive season, Andy
Thanks for that very interesting test mate...I have an Esbit stove and have never used the FireDragon (though seen them for sale) but now I know I made the right choice. That said, I used to use a Trangia more than anything until I started using Primus Winter Gas with my MSR Pocket Rocket (I cooked up my porrdge at minus 19C last Tuesday morning) and they work great, better than great actually. That Winter Gas has been a complete game changer for me as I have to camp between school days in the city, year round.
Thank you again for all your cool and honest testing mate. Respect.
I think the FD residue is Calcium from the Calcium Acetate used to gel the alcohol.
My main use for the solid fuel tabs I keep in my pack is for getting campfires started when all I have is damp wood. Put a fuel tab at the base of the wood pile, and just about anything will catch.
I have some round tabs similar to hexy but the thing I like with solid blocks is if you powder a small bit, it will light off a ferro instead of a flame.
I get better results in a simple folding stove that has a well that contains the gel. As you demonstrated, but both take ages compared to alcohol or gas. The blocks are better, but for safety and no fumes I prefer the Fire Dragon product. I like to be able to heat water in my closed tent porch without worrying. You need to use two and pop another one on before it runs out. They are very expensive though as a result. I prefer alcohol or gas in most situations but it was fun to experiment.
Thank you Luke, another year of really useful (,and entertaining) reviews. I'm sure its been mentioned, but the best way I've found to clean up firedragon fuel residue is to add water. This works really well in the bcb stove, fill the tray with water, and you soon get a syrupy goop that's easy to remove. Just pour it out, and even a leaf will ease out the remaining goop.
Happy Christmas everyone!
It would have been interesting to have a thermometer to see just how far off boiling the first firedragon test was.
I was thinking a laser thermometer would be a goid addition for this test, to measure water temp and fire chamber temp at different points.
Yes.
I love this channel......he covers just about everything from harsh weather conditions on the wild camps, to survival tips and reviews. ...a nice guy too ...this channel (although has big sub numbers ) should have way more subs imo...all the best from the UK ✌
I recently switched from hexamine to the fire dragon, mostly because of the smell. Fortunately I'm in the UK and fire dragon products are much better value. Thanks Luke 👍
Like you said, circumstances would determine what was appropriate. If you're in a situation where outdoor cooking is not possible with limited access to fresh air, it would be a no brainer to use Fire Dragon. I think I'm going to get some of each and for my, JIC supplies. Great video Luke!
THANK YOU! I've been wanting to see someone do this. The 27g Esbit (which is based on hexamine, not trioxaine- very, very different) is hard to find, but with the melt and spread of the Fire Dragon I think it is worth the effort. And I'd rather have to ventilate a shelter for hexi than risk everything burning down as Fire Dragon's goo runs. If you're using these without a stove, just on a rock, or a piece of flat metal, or a hole in the ground, the goo is going to spread. I literally put Esbits on what used to be the end of a can. And my German military surplus pocket cooker will hold a pair of 27g Esbits rather than 4 14g tablets or none of the goo packs, plus a ferro rod, scraper, a foil wind screen, and it all fits in a coat pocket or under a GI canteen. The smell is easily dealt with by using two freezer bags or one alkosak. So not a big deal.
Since it an jelled alchohol, I'd like to see Dragon Fire vs an equal mass of Sterno. I really do wonder if Dragon Fire just using ethanol rather than methanol, which Sterno uses.
Thanks for this comparison. Nice job. I've been using Esbit stoves and fuel for years and they've always worked well for me. I'm glad that you mentioned using a lid because they make a big difference, even if improvised from some heavy duty aluminum foil.
I really wish people would stop using the term "military grade." I served in the military and our gear sucked.
I can sort of agree. I was in a couple of units where we got some of the best toys ever to play with. In other units the gear we got was what I thought of as hand-me-downs.
Esbit always! The idea of a non toxic cube is great but the crazy flames doesn't seem like the safest option if you're using it in a particularly dry area like southern Arizona. Great video!
Great comparison video. I have the Fire Dragon fuel because it doesn't smell or is as toxic as the hexamin tablet. I carry it with a BCB stove when out hiking. But I will get some Hexamine just to try it out.
I'm glad you mentioned putting a lid on the pot. I was watching this and thinking to myself have you ever boiled water in your life :))
Interesting test, never had an issue boiling water with FireDragon in the Crusader stove. It boils within 6 or 7 mins which is significantly faster than the Esbitt fuel. Horses for courses of course and thanks for the content
My stove has been and will always be my Colman one burner. Running on (get it anywhere) unleaded gas it will boil my canteen cup of water in no time. Yes, its weight is a little high, but the usages are immense. Still have the first one and it is now 40 yr's old and works great.
I typically use the Coghlan’s hexamine tabs when I use fuel tabs, but lately use my Pathfinder alcohol stove. Coghlan’s tabs are inexpensive at local store, and two tabs are usually enough to heat water for a meal.
I like them too,very neat size and inexpensive.
Which one would I get? The 14g Esbit tabs cause they can often be had waaaayyyy cheaper per gram than the 27s. It is often cheaper to use two 14s than one 27 and there is more versatility since the 27 is usually too much and you gotta save it. The 14s are often just right and you can just let the last bit burn out without waste!
Thanks for taking teh time to always put out great videos like this! Its crazy how well the esbit did
I have both, and like both, obviously for different situations. Thanks for the great review! I hope you and your family have a very Merry Christmas!! :-)
Thanks Luke. Was just thinking about trying out the Fire Dragon. Have an Esbit now that I carry on my small day hikes, and plan to carry on an upcoming overnighter in the national forest. Now I know I need not bother buying the Fire Dragon. Thanks again, and Merry Christmas!
Good test, and thank-you for not driving to the highest elevation you could find to decrease the boiling point of the water to make the products seem more dramatic.
I used hexamine "hexy" stoves for a few years but switched to alcohol stoves because the latter were easier to light and the water had better flavour. The trick with hexamine with ferro rods is to use a cotton wool ball to catch the spark, and the flame lights the block.
First, let me say that this type of stove (Both Esbit and BCB) is not my go-to emergency preparedness solution.
That said, I have tested both but I used 1 cup of water. I want 1 cup of hot water quickly in a dire situation. Although the BCB fuel is more expensive I have chosen the Fire Dragon as my shirt pocket tertiary backup solution. I like the idea of non-toxicity and the fact that Fire Dragon can be used as a hand sanitizer. My preferred method is a canister stove but I always have a Trangia in my bag.
As someone else mentioned, we were never issued these types of stoves. However, way back in the day we did receive a canteen and cup along with a stove stand that was part of the nesting configuration. We were issued triox tabs. But, that was back in the day of C-Rats. I was in long enough to see the transition from C-Rats to, and through, a couple of versions of MRE's. When the transition happened the canteen cup stove stand and triox tabs began to disappear from the supply rooms and issue points.
Yes, mind blowing! Wow, what a great demonstration you did for us. Very interesting! Thanks 🙂
We always used Hexamine in the Australian Army, in a very similar stove to the firedragon stove. In all the years I used them, I never used the whole thing before either my water, or food was ready. And we would have broken that in half and only used one portion. Dixie pan over the top of the cup to boil (to use as a lid), only took 3 or 4 minutes to boil water. Never had 36 minutes to spare for that sort of thing.
Great Review Luke,,,,
That’s why, if I didn’t want to use a canister or wood stove,, I’ld bring my Trangia,,,,
I’ve put Sterno Gel in a Trangia solid fuel burner(to the top). It’s lasted 45min, and I’ve gotten 2 , four cup pots to a rolling boil,,,,
I use Utility Flame gel in my emergency kit with the small Esbit cookset.
I put it into a tea light cup to focus the flame to the pot.
Hot, safe and when it is done burning silica is the only remaining residue.
I like and use both. I use the Dragon in the summer because the stove loses too much heat through the bottom in the winter since it is flat and in direct contact with the frozen ground (design flaw compared to esbit stoves). But I like Dragon because it’s non toxic, and better packaged and better shelf life because of the packaging. I carry it all year long in my “just in case” kit as a fire-starter since it takes only a spark to ignite, and as hand sanitizer. But it’s performance is more comparable to a 17g esbit cube. I would cook real meals on sn esbit but not on Dragon.
Being in the UK, as a military cadet as a teen we always used hexamine military stoves. Which were essentially a firedragon stove that used a esbit fuel tab. They worked great but as you said they absolutely stink. As an adult I have the firedargon version now. They are not as effective and are really only good for boiling water for a cup of tea in a british army crusader cup. As most of the time army rations are self heating or eaten cold. But the firedragon is multipurpose as you can use as handsanitiser (useful in today's world). You can also light it while it's still in its plastic packet. Just remove the film lid and light. Burns slightly longer then. And not much more residue.
Hi Luke.
I think you missed a quality of the Fire Dragon. We were taught to use it as a hand sanitiser before lighting it to cook food.
Great video. I was in the British Army who went from Hexamine to Fire Dragon.
We used Esbit quite often in the German Bundeswehr in the eighties. It was standard equipment in the backpack with a little folding stove. Nobody told us the fumes were dangerous back then.
Thanks for the review! I'm researching these emergency stoves and can get a firedragon stove for $3.30 and 6pack of the 27g fuels for $2.50. The esbit 8 pack of fuel is $16 so I think i'll go with the firedragons and just pop another one in if I need more cook time. Its good to know that using their folding stove extends the duration of the burn time by nearly 3 times also.
I've used esbit for years try true tested outstanding review. Thanks Luke marry Christmas.
If I don't use the entire tablet of esbit is there any way to extinguish for later use? Thanks
One easy cheat to save clean up on the residue, pop a bit of foil underneath it, job done. Can build a small chamber for it too. Got loads of the firedragon cubes but you can get 12 for about £3 here in the UK. On the Crusader cook kit system and a lid on I've never had a problem getting that volume of water to boil with one cube. With two you can heat up an MRE and have the water for tea. They even do a mini firedragon fuel cube now and a really tiny stove to use, one cube of that is good for 200ml of water so perfect for a brew kit.
Looks like you'd need a small metal container, maybe 2 x 1 x 0.5 inches, to prevent the fire dragon 'tablet' from melting into a big burning puddle!
But once you carry that, you might as well bring some fuel gel in a small plastic bottle. Fuel Gel costs ~5$ for 1Liter here in Switzerland . At a weight of 850 grams per liter that is the equivalent of 30 tablets!
I will not buy esbit since I can't use it in a tent, and knowing myself, I will forget!
People have been using Esbit in tents, in bunkers, in caves and in houses since WW2 and I doubt that anyone died from inhaling the fumes.
I'm not saying you should do it, but I think people often prioritize the wrong threats to their health. I know people who are paranoid about "dangerous chemicals" and passive smoking, but at the same time eat themselves into an early grave with processed junk food.
When I studied chemical process engineering, a buddy of mine got a "between semesters" job with a company that produced paint, mostly for painting walls and rooms.
The EU had just implemented new guidelines for how much toluol/toluene (a hydrocarbon that can cause cancer, nerve- and liver damage when inhaled at high concentrations) was allowed in room paints and that company had to change the recipes for their paints, which was a huge hassle and investment and everybody who knew a thing or two about industrial chemistry was rolling their eyes, because the new limit was ridiculously low.
Of course, you could say "Why not make the limit for how much of a carcinogen and nerve damaging agent is allowed in household items very low?" and out of context that would seem reasonable.
The problem is toluene is everywhere because trees produce it.
Yes, our dear friends the trees are pumping a cancerous nerve gas into the air.
Especially freshly cut wood extrudes large amounts of toluene.
Hardly anyone knows that, but people who work with freshly cut wood, like lumberjacks, carpenters, people who work in saw mills or woodworking shops, people selling Christmas trees and so on, have a very high likelyhood to develop cancer or neural disabilities like Parkinson's disease.
Most people who hear of that are totally baffled, because we think the air in forests is pretty much the healthiest thing in existence, but that really isn't the case.
It just never mattered, because nothing that lives in a forest gets old enough to have the time to develop cancer or Parkinson's. We humans are the first ones and only so in the last 100 to 200 years.
What made the EU guidelines and limits for toluene in paint so ridiculous was that they were like 1000 times lower than the levels you get just from putting a new piece of wooden furniture into your room, let alone the amounts of it you inhale when taking a stroll through a forest or burning a log in a fire place.
You can basically sniff a can of paint for hours and don't get as much toluene as when you take a stroll in a forest. So you can imagine how annoyed everyone in the paint business was about having to spend millions on getting the toluene levels that low.
My point being that it is usually pointless to get worked up about every bit of "dangerous chemical".
I use the bottom of a tin can sawn off about 1/2 inch. Gives plenty of room for pooling, light as anything and costs pretty much nothing.
@@TrangleC And also, do you really want something in a tent that spreads out as easily as the fire dragon?
@@linedwell Just pour it into an Altoids tin.
Trangia makes a small round covered aluminum container , a Gel Burner for that. I have forgotten it a few times and just made a container out of aluminum foil. Alexander, what do you use in Switzerland? Take care, would really like to correspond with you if you don’t mind talking to someone probably old enough to be your father! (LOL)
I agree with Josh Lloyd. The useful burn time is more significant than the total burn time (for any fuel). When the heat loss from the ensemble exceeds the heat input from the fuel, clearly better to remove the pot and use the liquid, else you are losing ground (heat). I use Esbit regularly, and if it is burning well (most times, shielded from the wind) I find little residue on the pot, which easily wipes off with a wet wipe. Solid fuels also have the considerable advantage of low need for care - low hassle.
Greetings …this was great as I have been wavering on what to get for cooking light/quick meals. Between your review of alcohol stoves and this one it will be an Esbit. Many thanks.
Cheers for this vid. I'll now pack two parts of foil. One the cooker to sit on the ground with and one to cover the boiling vessel. I don't want to rule out hexi but I have long term storage concerns in the UK
Good review. I think you summed it up when you said there is a time and a place for both. I've tested both and have got 2 cups to boil with a lid on with the fire dragon and the 14grm esbit tablet. I think what I take from your test most is that the esbit cooker you used isn't fit for this purpose where as the BCB cooker and the original esbit one it was copied off are. Keep up the great work. Cheers Stu NZ
👍.. I still have my Esbit Folder, issued to me in the SADF (South African Defence Force) in 1968. Now living in Switzerland, my fuel choice is 'Sicherheitsbrennpaste' in the 850g plastic bottles. Esbit Tablets are not an option as they are quite expensive here and unlike the Fuel Gel, are not freely available at almost any Grocery and Convenience Store.
Good choice your Plans A and B .. and the Trangia Stove 😊.
I am fortunate to still have an Optimus 8R Hunter (bought new in the mid-70's) and still in regular use.
I hate the smell of esbit and the fact that it gives off a toxic fume, but in a survival situation esbit wins the day as long as you use the proper precautions so that is what I use as one of my ready stoves for packing and day trips. Thanks for the video and keep on trekking.
Interesting test. In a similar situation I'll stick with my Trangia system. Yellow Heet is super cheap and I can get a boil in less than 10 minutes. I'd really like to see you do a review of a full Trangia kit. I know you aquired a partial system at a good price several years ago but that set is lacking a few components.
Yellow HEET is methanol which burns super clean, is super cheap and super reliable. After some survival buddies turned me on to it, I burn pretty much just HEET. The lack of sooty residue is also greatly appreciated.
@D.E.R.P. -Speaking of Trangia, my Trangia Model 28T “Trangia Mini” arrived today! Washed it and got it ready to use! Add it to my Trangia collection! All I need now is the Trangia Triangle!
Squirt a few drops of hand sanitiser onto the esbit and it will light from a firestick. If it is windy it works a little better if you put the stuff on a piece of cloth, paper or dry leaves.
I keep several boxes of hexamine tablets small medium and large because I've found that they're the best quick and easy fuel source to save time and trouble on the trail or at the camp sites.
Controlled consistent and dependable.
And you can buy the smaller generic tablets for dirt cheap and really stretch your supply budget.
How you have your stove or cooking device setup really does make a difference but with hexamine it's not as crucial as other types of ready to use fuels...
Keep up these great reviews Luke as they are very appreciated!
Great format, presentation, and information!
Esbit or similar. I have several folding surplus stoves salted in through various gear/packs.
Plus the Trangia 4 of them in my gear and one in my truck with 2gallons of fuel.
I use the yellow bottle HEET gasoline additive to keep the gas lines from freezing in a cat food tin with two rows of off set holes around the top via a hole punch. I am now testing a Esbit stove using the waxed compressed fire starter squares that you pick up at the dollar store.
I run Esbit all the time. I actually use an Emberlit titanium fireant as my main stove. I burn wood most of the time, but I always carry the included esbit tray with the stove, along with 3 esbit cubes as my backup cooking fuel.
I really enjoy your videos and how honest you are. Thanks!
I've used both in Australia, can't get either here these days. I can find hexamine in round form & military large blocks. Fire Dragon was easy to light but hexamine round 7grams burns for 8 to 9 minutes. 1 cup water will boil & continue for 1.5 minutes. Hexamine is more versatile for my needs.
For camping/ backpacking Fire Dragon. But for extreme emergency situations where you may have to have more fire making capabilities other than heating up food or water for one person the hexamine. Can you store it in an air tight container to reduce/ control the smell?
Would you be using these products as your only source of heat for cooking or just to heat up filtered/ bottled water; or for fire starting capabilities to cook meals?
After having spent several hours cleaning up my old esbit style stoves, from now on Im packing foil with them to form a cup under and around the stove. The charcoal gack is a nightmare to clean off.
do not keep the hexamine near your boots in any enclosed space. It will destroy the rubber.
The Fire Dragon on it's designated stove would have boiled if a lid was on the pot. Always use a lid Thanks for the comparison. Love the content.
Ernie at Palio Hiker MD gave you a shout out on your reviews on military surplus gear.
I used the fuel tabs when I was in boy scouts. Hated them then, and still do. My little butane stove boils water in about 2 minutes. The ONLY thing I use the fuel tabs for, are fire starters in my fire starting kit!! IMHO, that is all they are really good for. Starting charcoal grills and camp fires.
been using Esbit for decades. bought a case for $40 some years back. still over half full. cheap as dirt and reliable. I am interested in the Dragon Fire, but will want a bit better cost-to-performance out of it before I swap from good ol' Sterno gel.
I have some Fire Dragon cubes I ordered a few months ago, so figured I'd try one. I have a little burner I made using a juice can top and bottom. I cut a 1" hole in the top, then fit it over the bottom. I had to cut up the cube to fit it all inside the 1-1/4" tall burner. The pot stand held the pot about 3/8" above the burner. My 2 cups H2O boiled in 14:27, and kept it boiling until 26:43, then burned out at 27:22.
Unfortunately, now the bottom of my little burner has this waxy residue about 1mm deep.
*EDIT:* I redid this test with another cube and a taller pot stand - 7/8" above burner. The 2 cups H20 boiled in 8:22, burned for another 6:27, (total 14:49) keeping the water boiling right up until burn out.
The BCB stove was in 24hr rat packs that the uk military issued (Without that wind block extra that the new kinds have)... when i was in it came with the hexi solid fuel blocks and it was absolutely hated by myself and my oppos....
I wonder how the Dragon would've done if you'd dropped it into an old tuna can first. Any time the flames come out from under a pan, their heat is wasted.
I was going to say the same thing.
i was wondering about dropping it in a spirit burner..??..
A few things.
1. The Fire Dragon is designed to be non-toxic so it can be used in confined areas, unlike the hexy.
2. Use either a mess tin or Crusader cup to boil water. The small cup here allows too much heat to be lost.
3. Those folding stoves are meant for backup use. For everyday use, the Crusader 2 cooking system is best.
I have hexamine because of the price and availability here in Australia.
Don't see many people use it.
Very occasionally I get out esbit stove for a brew but mostly use alcohol stove.
Ive been using a homemade cat can alcohol stove and an MSR 850ml kettle. 3/4 oz denatured alcohol and I can usually boil 750 ml in less than 10 min. Even in 17 deg f (1.5 oz alcohol ). I like a wider flat kettle that catches all of that heat. Dragon stove works pretty well, and you won't die......
I use the Esbit in the BCB stove as a backup to my canister stove. Also will bring up to a boil with the canister stove and then transfer to the BCB stove for a long simmer time if needed. Works great with the 20min + burn time for food with a long simmer. Not burning up my canister.
I keep some Esbit cubes in their little stove, and I've used it, but outside of emergency/survival I don't like to use them with pots/pans as it leaves a nasty film. Sure I can prevent using the usual soap trick, but I'll stick to keeping it as my backup.
keep the tea bag you made your drink with and wipe the pan clean of soot with it, old British army trick, But the residue does build up long term and you'll need to use a scrubber pad to really get your pan/cup clean after a few weeks of use
@@BlesamaSoul interesting tip! But it only works if you drink tea, which I don't, lol.
GREAT REVIEW! I will not be buying the fire dragon! In an emergency situation you want a fire! Thank you again for the time and effort you put in your reviews, it is GREATLY APPRECIATED! Hey Susie!🥰
It was obvious that the Fire Dragon needed a very different type of stove than the Esbit. It didn't even like the second stove. It wants a narrow and tall chamber to burn from, something I've never seen from a camp stove. I think that makes it a hard fail. It works great as a campfire starter, and I wouldn't think twice about using it for that purpose on a car camping trip, but for that same purpose, I can use 100 other things that are at least as good, and aren't as much of a pain to use.
The second style stove was the firedragon branded stove, or folding cooker as they call it.
I never could convince myself to carry these types of fuels. A small canister of gas and an MSR pocket rocket ( I can't be the only one that thinks that sounds naughty lol) stove is my go to for something quick and easy. But after this video, I'm tempted to try them just for giggles.
My 'go to' is also gas. I have several: 1 alpine stove for more than 1-2 people, my original PCS Jetboil (which I love - so quick and easy) and a 40g burner which I just on most trips. In all cases I also carry a titanium Esbit stand and some cubes. These are great for backup and light. If I drop my gear down to the stand, some cubes, steel cup, spare lighter/matches (I always carry other fire lighters in pockets and other gear - just like compasses and lamps :) ) and some BBQ aluminium foil as a wind shield, the whole set weighs just under 200g. That is
On short weekend trips, I carry hexamine fuel or liquid alcohol to save the bulk, weight and cost of cannisters. My liquid alcohol stove weighs less than an ounce, and the weight of fuel is very low for a weekend backpacking trip.
I will never try anything liquid inside the home. Outside I love alcohol. Fast, hot and really cheap
You can light a normal fire in these stoves or top up your fuel tablets with little twigs when needed. Gast stoves are COMPLETELY useless when you have no gas.
@@SidneyTurnerOfficial you don't need the stove to light a fire which in reality makes your argument close to redundant anyway. There are also many circumstances where wood burning is not possible, safe or legal.
The wise thing is not to take a 'this is thw best attitude' but more 'this suits this circumstance' and opt appropriately.
Hexamine with a little British military hexi stove is always in my pack for emergency use. The Hexamine packets fit nicely inside the stove for easy storage. I'll always prefer an open fire or gas, but these blocks are great when you run out of gas and can't have an open fire
the fire dragon is made of an alcohol-diatomite-mix, which turns it into jelly. When burnt, the diatomite forms residue, interesting to see it's paper-shape. I never used the fire dragon, but chafing dish fuel, it's much cheaper and leaves much less residue, but always has to be kept contained. Even in the dragon stove the flames went quite strong, so I would suggest to put it into something fireproof with a smaller opening, e.g. a stainless shot glass. If one is not enough for boiling water, you can prepare a second one and switch them (with pliers!).
I used Esbit too, but find the residue very annoying - removing it is not possible without scratching the surface, and it will start to rust immediately in coastal areas where I live.
In any wooded area my go-to is a hobo-stove and the small Esbit-blocks come in handy when starting an upside-down fire in it, lit with a torch lighter.
Merry X-mas and stay safe.
Great review. I agree, both have their strengths. In general I will go with the esbit but might have spare dragon for use in a snow cave…
MERRY CHRISTMAS
to you & yours Luke!!
Great video my friend
If you scrape the top of an Esbit cube (any size), with the tip of a knife and create a very small pile of Esbit dust it becomes easy to light with either a match or ferro rod. No need to complain about it being hard to light. If you store it in a double ziplock the smell is insignicant to none. Try it! You’ll like it.
Gotta love this content
Love Esbit fuel. I recently used a 14g tablet to bake a large cornbread muffin. I placed the batter in a 3x3-inch Fat Daddio aluminum pot/pan and placed that in a 750 Snow Peak titanium pot. I used the Brien Green Esbit fuel tray to slow the burn. I cooked the muffin on the Bushcraft Essentials Outdoor Micro Pocket Stove. I used the stove's crossbar as a spacer between the titanium pot and the aluminum pot to prevent burning. I got an 18-minute burn time and a large perfectly cooked muffin.
I really appreciated the side~by~side with a variety of burners.
Great Video!👍
🎄🎅MERRY CHRISTMAS🎅🎄
🎄✌🎁❤🎁🤘🎄
In Admiral Byrd's book, "Alone"- a must-read btw- he mentions using "meta" alcohol tabs for this sort of thing. Have to wonder what was in them...
Luke, have you ever done a review of the Sterno stove? It takes a little while to boil water but it will boil it. I never go into the woods without mine. I thought about getting a backpacking stove with the gas canister but where I hunt in North Central Pa. It can get really cold and from what I've seen the gas canister works best when it's warm. The Sterno stove has been very dependable for me. I would really value your opinion of it. You have a great channel. Keep up the good work. 👍👍👍The hexamine would definitely be my choice.
I’ve seen people use something similar to the fire dragon, but they light the wrapper too. Esbit is the more reliable, I would use that over the other.
I would use the Dragon Fire in a fire pit. The melting won't matter too much there. Esbit, I would cook with it, as that is what I mainly use, unless I'm trying out something new.
Great comparison!!! Thanks!!!
Merry Christmas too!!
looks like I better look up different solid fuel tabs for my own outdoor trip for a few hours. I am using a similar hexamine cooker to the Nesbit, but the solid fuel tab that I have, they did not state the burn time on the packaging.. will order different solid fuels and test them out soon.
I love the idea of BCB, but if it doesn't boil water on a mild day even using its designed stove, it seems to me it would be useless for winter conditions even with a lidded pot. For alcohol fuel, I'm more inclined to go with a Trangia spirit burner, which is massively easier and cheaper to keep fed anyway.
Esbit (Hexamine)has been the choice for more army's and Sportsman then any other solid
fuel for camping since 1936. It always works and works well when used as attended for individual cooking for one person. Also great fire starter.
Luke, seeing as though hexamine gives off cyanide gas. Would you recommend it for starting a hot tent stove? Once you light it, it will be in an enclosed stove. Let me know your thoughts, because I did not know that hexamine gave off cyanide gas or fumes. I personally would not use it to cook inside of a tent, but I am asking about in a hot tent stove.
I have some Esbit since over 30 years ... still working ....and in germany they are also cheaper than in the US ....
Boiled water multiple times and yet never made coffee. 🤔 Who are you and what have you done with the real Luke?
Thanks for the video, that was really helpful
Cool video, only a little shudder when you cleaned the bottom of the stove with the knife 😂
Hi, great Video!
The Esbit did a little too well on you in my opinion. I love the firedragon. They are clean and non-toxic. They leave very little dust on the cup and the residue in the brazier is super easy to remove. you can make a shell out of aluminum paper for the Firedragon, then they will be even more efficient.
I always squeeze them into an aluminum can, that works great.
Greetings
For a boil test, not having a lid on the pot really affects it and i have had good success with both of these fuels on the trail with a lid and windscreen. The burn time is definitely different and i have yet to try the 27g esbit, usually use the smaller cubes. I will be trying those, but i definitely do not like the smell from esbit.