Greetings, I've never owned a modern stove but I'm thinking of purchasing a Primus Omnilite Ti. i like small stoves and a sucker for titanium so the Omnilite is calling me. I would like to know how it would compare to my Optimus 199 in terms of durability, ease of use etc.. I would be burning Kero and priming with alcohol. Thank you for your time!
That 199 is a cool stove! I'll never have one since the going rate is pretty high. I do have an Omnilite and I love it. It's my go to stove in the winter for sure. I'm not a fan of how many o-rings are on modern stoves, but they are easy enough to replace, and any required replacements are easily detectable with a test burn at the beginning of every season. The instructions for the Omnilite say not to use the silencer with Kero, but it works fine - it just takes a lot more preheating than if you use the roarer plate (doubling priming usually does it). When winter camping with Kero, I will swap to the roarer plate to save time and alcohol for priming. In the summer I can prime the silent cap OK to use with Kero. It is also really easy to bleed the pressure off the fuel bottle and empty the fuel line of any fuel so you can pack it up without dribbling fuel all over the place like MSR stoves do. Primus' customer server has been absolutely top notch in my experience as well. I asked their customer support of I could by a single o-ring instead of buying the repair kit and if I could buy a spare burner bell just to have. They sent me a new pump, burner bell and control valve for free!!! WOW!
You do see the irony in asking this question on a Classic Camp Stoves website, right? As said. One point is the (generally) simplicity of classis stoves. Replacement parts might be a problem. This forum tries very hard to help keep the old stoves working. Ken
I've had an Omnifuel (the heavier one with a few more BTU's) for about 10 years and an Omnilite for 7. Love them both, done many self supported 7-20 day trips with each. I've had to replace a few O-rings on each stove, but that's it. Never any catastrophic failures or something that I could not easily mend in the field with the maintenance kit. Super reliable stoves, but they just aren't as cool/fun as my old stoves. If it's not winter and I'm not going very remote, I'm probably going to use a 210/00 because they are just fun =) The least failure prone stoves I have are probably a homemade alcohol stove or my Svea123 just because there is so little that could possible go wrong with either. Neither of them score high marks for cold weather, in my opinion, though.
I’d like to have a 199,,, simply to have a 199,,, but they be not so common, and they be spendy... Already have a goodly pile of nice old brass kerosene stoves,,, can’t even imagine why I’d want a new Omnilite,,, at any price... Next fella follows his own stars I reckon...
Both myself and one of my best friends, Greg, use an Omnilite stove for hiking and they work amazingly well. Our other buddy, Jeremy, uses the Omnifuel with great results too. I do not own a 199 yet....At 3000' elevation on the side of a mountain with high winds the Omnilite works great with white gas. It also works well with kero at temps below 20°F. When using MSR All Season canister fuel in temps below freezing make sure to use the common tricks for canister use in cold climates or no boil for you. Kero at sub twenty degrees Fahrenheit MSR All Season Fuel at sub fifteen degrees Fahrenheit White gas at 3000' and high winds (up to 80mph that night). The winds were only about 10-20mph at the time of photo. I have more info as to the amount of fuel used to boil and cook etc if your interested. We use the omnilite because of it's versatility, weight, and reliability. If I had a 199 it might replace this stove. I would love to carry my 111, trangia 25, or 210 stoves but the weight is really an issue when I'm headed up. However it goes without saying that when I plan to be high up and in freezing cold I will only carry my trusty eleventy one...weight be damned.
I know that on my trips it's about the journey and not the destination most times hence why weight is important but I digress that part of that journey is made even more enjoyable when I can carry a classic stove. If it were not for the mighty yet humble cooking stove this picture of a dinner (chili) on a cold afternoon would not have been possible. The only thing that would have made it better was a warm classic stove next to me. Set a 199 and any new modern stove on the table at dinnertime and ask me to choose one...you'll go home with the shiny new stove
I own examples of both stoves, and each has its merits. The Optimus 199 has a retro 1970's look and is relatively heavy (900 grams), and is fun to use. The "X" cross section pot supports ensure a faster boil time, and greater stability of the pot. The Primus Omnilite is light weight, and can run on propane/butane mixtures, as well as naphtha-type liquid fuel. While the Omnilite can use a silent burner, such burners are prone to under burn on low settings (this includes the Optimus 199). The Omnilite has very good flame control, with fine control on the stove, and coarser control on the fuel bottle or gas canister. Cheers Simon Foxxx
Howdy, Nico (@Nico ), If I had to choose just one, or the other, I would most definitely choose the 199! It's very simple to use, and has far fewer o-rings, and such, with which to deal. In 50-60 more years, it will still be very easy to repair, as the parts are minimal, and you can make your own pips, gaskets and such, if needed, The Omnilite IS lighter, and has a much larger fuel capacity. BUT, in 50-60 years, what will you do for parts? Those will be pretty much non-existent, whilst the parts for the 199, as mentioned above, can easily be made by yourself. Servicing is more complex on the Primus stove, but pretty easy on the little Optimus. Just my 'tuppence, for what it's worth...! In the end, "Ya' pays yer money, and takes yer chances, eh"?!! Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc
Thank you all for your replies. 2 days ago I went ahead and purchased a new Omnilite and I'm really happy with it. I use alcohol to prime and burn kerosene. Here it is next to the 199.
Nice, I think you'll really like the new stove! That 199 is really cool though. Is it essentially a 99/8R with a bigger burner?
I bought several spare parts kits for the Nova(s) I have for the same reason @Doc Mark just mentioned. Even in a few years the parts may be no longer available.
If memories from the “Sixties” have survived intact,,, one of these was small, cramped, filled with odd smelling smoke, and hippies,,, the other was much cherished by fellas with “ducktails”, leather coats, and was usually not far from cases of empty brown bottles...
I am still chuckling at @Doc Mark asking a bunch of old men what they will do for stove parts in 50 or 60 years!
Indeed. Compared to carrying a 900g stove up and down the mountains, plus pots and extra fuel, I guess I must have a different take on the priorities of middle aged / elderly gentlemen... :-) But in keeping with the true spirit of this forum, it is @Tantra who has the right recommendation! For myself, I find a UL Trangia to be the max weight I'm prepared to carry these days, with the required number of pots.
