+1 for Whisperlite & liquid fuel. Why? 1 - the stove is bomb proof. 2 - I can pump more pressure into the fuel bottle - better performance. During my 7 years in the infantry, I had my own whisperlite with zero failures. Even if the weight difference was a full pound more for a whisperlite and fuel, I’m voting for certainty. Having said that, you have two others joining you and you mentioned consideration for common cook systems… I get that. I’d make my friends bring the whisperlite 😂. Have fun!
I heard the pumps can be a bit dodgy especially the newer ones, I suppose a lot could be user error over pumping and not lubricating them, I am currently deciding over these two and the dragonfly which I have already ordered. The optimus Polaris was another option but is nearly double the price of what I paid for the dragonfly new.
Your closing statement on group redundancy is the clencher, match the group. But if the group can be steered, liquid fuel. I love my Primus multi fuel, the og gravity MF, quirks and all.
Whisperlite. No issues with cold weather/freezing fuel, jets, etc. I have had mine for 20 years - used it literally hundreds of times and it's worked every single time.
@@KaneDoesOutdoors Have you had a chance to test it with the Coleman Xtreme Gas - 27 C ? I've seen people using that canister in Norway ski touring in extreme temps and works no problem. I think they used it with a Primus stove. Here in BC average temp is - 15 to - 20 in the winter. It's just fine for me. Not sure how it performs below 30 or so.
Definitely the whisperlite because of the temperature. I stay away from canisters below-15. My information says it’s going down to -25 or-30 for Friday. Stay warm.
The only reason that canisters do poorly in -14 degrees F and lower is that the canister fuel liquifies at this temperature (and that’s a good reason). The windpro though has a loop of the fuel line that is heated and turned back to gas by the flame, (which is not dissimilar to the wisperlite in that bothnwoild need to be primed in order to gasify the respective fuels). I’d go with the windpro, because it needs less maintenance, and is marginally lighter weight.
Considering the forecast and that you will be melting snow for water, I would go with the Whisperlite. A bit more finicky to light but not a big deal since your stove will be burning for many hours at a time to melt enough snow for 3 people. Regarding redundancy and efficiency, a well maintained Whisperlite with a basic repair kit and knowledge how to fix it is all you need for 3 people. Taking one large pot (largest base area possible) is far more efficient for melting snow than 3 small pots. Stay safe, warm and have fun!
Alcohol stoves are the best in very cold temps, in my opinion. Yes I know that white gas has a higher energy density than alcohol, but white gas stoves waste a lot of their fuel with those rocket engine blowtorch burners - they boil water fast at the cost of using lots of gas. Alcohol stoves don't need special fuel bottles that weigh a half pound empty, pumps, hoses, valves, etc, and spare parts kits for when something breaks. They're silent. Alcohol isn't nasty and toxic and super volatile like gasoline - you can put it in a soda bottle and if it spills on your gear it will just evaporate. Many alcohol stoves can double as twig stoves, so you don't need to bring lots of spare fuel just in case. I have screw-top burners like Trangia and Kojin, and I just put them in my pocket while setting up the tent to warm them (alternatively, a match held to the alcohol for several seconds will do the trick).
Whisperlite. It’s what I use in the snow/cold. Prefer it for reliable performance in the cold, only one bottle to deal with, don’t need to simmer, and pump/preheat routine is trivial when you get used to it IMO.
Keep in mind during extreme cold the cans may stop working when the fuel gets low perhaps? Are you chancing not being able to use all you need, Will the liquid go to zero? I’ve used the big cans before in winter and was happy.
If you are using whisperlite universal, then definitely go that way. If your company brings gas, you still can convert the stove if anything happens. But anyway, I have never tried gas in this LOW temperature, so my guts will say go with the liquid fuel option. And to be honest, the liquid fuel bottle also saves some space in your pack (even it is not that much). BTW how does this MSR gas perform in the cold winter? I have never tried it (I do not quite believe it in the cold), so not sure if it can perform well in the cold? Or just struggling? Or do you need some special procedures to keep the canister warm in this environment?
From my experience in -30c Optimus 99 Gasoline with a pressure pump Used without fail up to -30C Bomb proof Also MSR Dragonfly for the simmer But it is more complicated with failable moving parts
I have a Dragonfly from ~1999. The first piece of outdoor gear that I bought myself. Still works and I use it sometimes, but I’d like to change the fuel line. I feel like the tubing material must be getting brittle at 25 years old. Unfortunately the shipping costs to MSR and back to Canada + repair are about the same as buying new.
The lid handle of my MSR pot broke off a week ago (2nd time) and I believe the extreme cold expansion/contraction may have had something to do with it. Made a video where I repaired it with rivets. Good Luck. Extreme cold is hard on gear!
Ive been having issues in the past with the whispertlite pump when its very cold. Not sure if its the rubber seal thats become rigid and strugle to add pressure in the bottle. I was pumping and pumping and couldn't get the bottle to pressurized.. I bought the windpro 2 because of that and because of you're previous video with you saying it was working really good in the cold. Hope you take windpro 2 so i can see how well it does! Haha
It’s the steel canisters that add up quickly vs aluminum fuel bottles. For short trips a canister stove wins when you need 8 oz / 225 g of fuel or less. At 16 -24 oz it’s pretty much even, and then beyond that the liquid fuel is a clear winner. I’d like it if a company would make a good minimal, lightweight LF stove (like the old simmerlite). But honestly, if you’re out for long enough to really gain from LF in terms of weight savings, saving 5 oz on your stove won’t change much if you’re dragging 10+ lbs of fuel and 40 lbs of food in a pulk.
How did you estimate fuel consumption? That sounds really interesting. And is the fuel consumption comparable between the two types? Like can you boil the same amount of water with x ml of gasoline as x ml of gas.
I weigh the can or fuel bottle before and after. Fuel consumption is surprisingly comparable when you control all of the other factors: volume, ambient temperature, container dimensoins, wind etc. Something like a dragonfly with a bell burner will have higher output than a whisperlite, but overall pretty similar performance. Whisperlite vs WindPro are almost identical in terms of fuel consumption.
Are you talking farenheight or Celsius? Edit: you should have bought the whisperlight universal so you wouldn't have to choose between two stoves. I would definitely take the whisper light though.
That's from experience. Generally I use around 6 oz (by weight) or ~175g per full day in the winter but round up to 8 oz. That's melting snow for all my water, and boiling water for my dinner, morning coffee, and hot water bottle at night. 1 oz is about 10 minutes for a stove at max output. Longer trips I just count the number of full days, plus the equivalent of one more full day for the first and last day. For the 4 day trip we just did, all three of us brought a large 30 oz bottle of fuel (~24 oz by weight). I brought an extra 10 oz bottle (8 oz fuel by weight) as backup for the team.
This Polar Vortex weekend in YYC is the perfect opportunity to test out my WindPro and see how it does in REAL cold! Thanks for the idea Kane - it will kill some time and get me outside at least (even if it’s just out on the back deck!)
At -32°c, it took about 15 minutes just to melt enough snow to get 2 litres water, using a near-empty super old Jetboil canister. Didn’t have enough juice left to get it to a boil. I’m thinking liquid fuel WhisperLite!
@@KaneDoesOutdoors Just watched it! No - the old (probably 5-10 years old I’m guessing) partial JetBoil 4 Season mix can was in our unheated garage which would have been around -10°/ -15°c. I left the can outside on the deck for about 5 minutes before kicking off the test. I’ll try again tomorrow with a full can of MSR juice and see how it does. Army winter warfare training in Shilo would say go WhisperLite though!
The Whisperlite seems to have the edge based on all the comments!
+1 for Whisperlite & liquid fuel. Why? 1 - the stove is bomb proof. 2 - I can pump more pressure into the fuel bottle - better performance. During my 7 years in the infantry, I had my own whisperlite with zero failures. Even if the weight difference was a full pound more for a whisperlite and fuel, I’m voting for certainty. Having said that, you have two others joining you and you mentioned consideration for common cook systems… I get that. I’d make my friends bring the whisperlite 😂. Have fun!
I heard the pumps can be a bit dodgy especially the newer ones, I suppose a lot could be user error over pumping and not lubricating them, I am currently deciding over these two and the dragonfly which I have already ordered. The optimus Polaris was another option but is nearly double the price of what I paid for the dragonfly new.
Whisperlite for the win. Conditions considered.
Your closing statement on group redundancy is the clencher, match the group. But if the group can be steered, liquid fuel. I love my Primus multi fuel, the og gravity MF, quirks and all.
Agreed. It’s best to have redundant stoves so all of the fuel is useful, if one stove stops working or is otherwise taken out of the equation.
Whisperlite. No issues with cold weather/freezing fuel, jets, etc. I have had mine for 20 years - used it literally hundreds of times and it's worked every single time.
My vote is the whisperlight.
I have the Msr Windpro 2. Had it for over ten years and had no issues with it so far. Amazing stove.
I’m on my 4th winter with it - zero issues and haven’t found the low temp limit yet.
@@KaneDoesOutdoors Have you had a chance to test it with the Coleman Xtreme Gas - 27 C ? I've seen people using that canister in Norway ski touring in extreme temps and works no problem. I think they used it with a Primus stove. Here in BC average temp is - 15 to - 20 in the winter. It's just fine for me. Not sure how it performs below 30 or so.
Multifuel all the way :) Happy Camping 👍👍
Definitely the whisperlite because of the temperature. I stay away from canisters below-15. My information says it’s going down to -25 or-30 for Friday. Stay warm.
The only reason that canisters do poorly in -14 degrees F and lower is that the canister fuel liquifies at this temperature (and that’s a good reason). The windpro though has a loop of the fuel line that is heated and turned back to gas by the flame, (which is not dissimilar to the wisperlite in that bothnwoild need to be primed in order to gasify the respective fuels). I’d go with the windpro, because it needs less maintenance, and is marginally lighter weight.
Definitely the Whisperlite and liquid fuel given the temps. The liquid fuel option seems like it would use slightly less volume in your pack.
Those cans definitely take up space! But once they're empty you can puncture & crush them.
The Whisperlite because of the forecasted temps, and also fuel bottle taking up slightly less pack volume over the isopro cans.
Volume is a huge factor but I agree that at those temps I'm inclined to go with LF.
Take the Windpro, Isopro, is a lot hard to spill the fuel! Big can and small can, have a great trip look forward to seeing/hearing all about it
Whisperlight
As someone who owns both id for sure take the liquid fuel one. In super cold temps even with the canister upside down Iv had issues in the past.
I haven't had any issues yet but good to know. LF is definitely reliable.
Considering the forecast and that you will be melting snow for water, I would go with the Whisperlite. A bit more finicky to light but not a big deal since your stove will be burning for many hours at a time to melt enough snow for 3 people. Regarding redundancy and efficiency, a well maintained Whisperlite with a basic repair kit and knowledge how to fix it is all you need for 3 people. Taking one large pot (largest base area possible) is far more efficient for melting snow than 3 small pots. Stay safe, warm and have fun!
Alcohol stoves are the best in very cold temps, in my opinion. Yes I know that white gas has a higher energy density than alcohol, but white gas stoves waste a lot of their fuel with those rocket engine blowtorch burners - they boil water fast at the cost of using lots of gas. Alcohol stoves don't need special fuel bottles that weigh a half pound empty, pumps, hoses, valves, etc, and spare parts kits for when something breaks. They're silent. Alcohol isn't nasty and toxic and super volatile like gasoline - you can put it in a soda bottle and if it spills on your gear it will just evaporate. Many alcohol stoves can double as twig stoves, so you don't need to bring lots of spare fuel just in case. I have screw-top burners like Trangia and Kojin, and I just put them in my pocket while setting up the tent to warm them (alternatively, a match held to the alcohol for several seconds will do the trick).
Whisperlite. It’s what I use in the snow/cold. Prefer it for reliable performance in the cold, only one bottle to deal with, don’t need to simmer, and pump/preheat routine is trivial when you get used to it IMO.
Keep in mind during extreme cold the cans may stop working when the fuel gets low perhaps? Are you chancing not being able to use all you need, Will the liquid go to zero? I’ve used the big cans before in winter and was happy.
I'm leaning liquid but the temps are predicted to go up. I haven't had any issues using the cans inverted, they seem to run until empty.
Whisper lite , liquide fuel for sure regarding the temperature . Its alway's colder then what they say when your out in the mountains ...
True, I haven't looked at the temperatures at elevation yet though. Sometimes there's an inversion and it's actually warmer up high.
If you are using whisperlite universal, then definitely go that way. If your company brings gas, you still can convert the stove if anything happens. But anyway, I have never tried gas in this LOW temperature, so my guts will say go with the liquid fuel option. And to be honest, the liquid fuel bottle also saves some space in your pack (even it is not that much). BTW how does this MSR gas perform in the cold winter? I have never tried it (I do not quite believe it in the cold), so not sure if it can perform well in the cold? Or just struggling? Or do you need some special procedures to keep the canister warm in this environment?
My stove to go is "cold soaking" 😂 Because works effortlessly when is cold 😂
🤣
MSR XGK is the way to go for winter snow melting.
From my experience in -30c
Optimus 99
Gasoline with a pressure pump
Used without fail up to -30C
Bomb proof
Also MSR Dragonfly for the simmer
But it is more complicated with failable moving parts
I have a Dragonfly from ~1999. The first piece of outdoor gear that I bought myself. Still works and I use it sometimes, but I’d like to change the fuel line. I feel like the tubing material must be getting brittle at 25 years old. Unfortunately the shipping costs to MSR and back to Canada + repair are about the same as buying new.
The lid handle of my MSR pot broke off a week ago (2nd time) and I believe the extreme cold expansion/contraction may have had something to do with it. Made a video where I repaired it with rivets. Good Luck. Extreme cold is hard on gear!
th-cam.com/video/xmzo5QAw0fQ/w-d-xo.html
Ive been having issues in the past with the whispertlite pump when its very cold. Not sure if its the rubber seal thats become rigid and strugle to add pressure in the bottle. I was pumping and pumping and couldn't get the bottle to pressurized..
I bought the windpro 2 because of that and because of you're previous video with you saying it was working really good in the cold.
Hope you take windpro 2 so i can see how well it does! Haha
Interesting - I hadn't heard about that before. Maybe the pump cup was a bit old?
I really like the WindPro for shorter trips. It's a great stove.
those temperatures easy call for liquid fuel
Have a whisperlite and was wondering if any of the canister stove would be a lighter setup... so pretty darn close or whisperlite for the win.
It’s the steel canisters that add up quickly vs aluminum fuel bottles. For short trips a canister stove wins when you need 8 oz / 225 g of fuel or less. At 16 -24 oz it’s pretty much even, and then beyond that the liquid fuel is a clear winner. I’d like it if a company would make a good minimal, lightweight LF stove (like the old simmerlite). But honestly, if you’re out for long enough to really gain from LF in terms of weight savings, saving 5 oz on your stove won’t change much if you’re dragging 10+ lbs of fuel and 40 lbs of food in a pulk.
Gas doesn't work too well at that temp. I've used it down to -10f and while it goes, it doesn't go well or for long.
Was this video made for me!?! 🤣 I have a negative bias towards liquid fuel stoves so would pack my WindPro 2
Ha it’s for me! You’re supposed to put your opinion! The forecasted temps are definitely a bit lower now so the Whisperlite has the edge.
Whisperlite. So you don't have to sleep with all those canisters in your bag. Also bomb proof.
I am all liquid fuel all the time
Isn't whiter gas better in extreme cold? And certainly seems more environmentally friendly without all those disposable fuel canisters.
Yes I prefer liquid fuel when it's cold.
How did you estimate fuel consumption? That sounds really interesting. And is the fuel consumption comparable between the two types? Like can you boil the same amount of water with x ml of gasoline as x ml of gas.
I weigh the can or fuel bottle before and after. Fuel consumption is surprisingly comparable when you control all of the other factors: volume, ambient temperature, container dimensoins, wind etc. Something like a dragonfly with a bell burner will have higher output than a whisperlite, but overall pretty similar performance. Whisperlite vs WindPro are almost identical in terms of fuel consumption.
Are you talking farenheight or Celsius? Edit: you should have bought the whisperlight universal so you wouldn't have to choose between two stoves. I would definitely take the whisper light though.
Celsius
How do you determine the amount of fuel required per day?
That's from experience. Generally I use around 6 oz (by weight) or ~175g per full day in the winter but round up to 8 oz. That's melting snow for all my water, and boiling water for my dinner, morning coffee, and hot water bottle at night. 1 oz is about 10 minutes for a stove at max output. Longer trips I just count the number of full days, plus the equivalent of one more full day for the first and last day. For the 4 day trip we just did, all three of us brought a large 30 oz bottle of fuel (~24 oz by weight). I brought an extra 10 oz bottle (8 oz fuel by weight) as backup for the team.
With those temps. White gas all the way.
This Polar Vortex weekend in YYC is the perfect opportunity to test out my WindPro and see how it does in REAL cold! Thanks for the idea Kane - it will kill some time and get me outside at least (even if it’s just out on the back deck!)
At -32°c, it took about 15 minutes just to melt enough snow to get 2 litres water, using a near-empty super old Jetboil canister. Didn’t have enough juice left to get it to a boil. I’m thinking liquid fuel WhisperLite!
@dave_ben Haha ya I had about the same results when I tested it today - mentioned you in the video! Did you chill the cans?
@@KaneDoesOutdoors Just watched it! No - the old (probably 5-10 years old I’m guessing) partial JetBoil 4 Season mix can was in our unheated garage which would have been around -10°/ -15°c. I left the can outside on the deck for about 5 minutes before kicking off the test. I’ll try again tomorrow with a full can of MSR juice and see how it does. Army winter warfare training in Shilo would say go WhisperLite though!
Liquid fuel stove…Have fun stay safe.