Greetings, I'll post some photos of how mine turned out, and my thoughts on how you can do it yourself. Heading down the mountain right now, but be back later today. Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc
Nice package deal. I still like the original (pre shaker jet) Whisperlites since they simmer better than the Whisperlites that came after them. However, the newest versions of the Whisperlite (the redone Whisperlite Internationale and the new Whisperlite Universal) simmer pretty well. Check your PT's. That Gerry looks like it's been modified (the screws put through the pot supports) so that it can accommodate a small cup type "pot." I know that mod was fairly popular back in the day so that people who carried Sierra cups could use their Sierra cup on the stove. HJ
Morning, All, I've posted this before, but thought some new folks might like to see my original Firefly in action. I was testing out a silent cap, which came on a neat old Perfectus 100 that Brother Ian very kindly sent my way (Thanks, Ian!), and that cap worked like a champ on the FF. I have quite a few BernieDawg caps, now, too, and will be testing those with the FF, and comparing them to the Perfectus cap, in the future, maybe at the upcoming CASG6. In any case, here is my beloved Firefly, whispering away with that neat old Perfectus cap in place. Though the photos were taken at low rez, if you sharpen your eyeballs, you can see the new fuel line that MSR used to offer on those stoves. I'll post some thoughts on the DIY replacement of that fuel line soon. This old Firefly has worked for us for many years, offering faithful service, and great reliability for all that time. We've taken it snowshoe camping at 10,000+ feet, and many miles of regular backpacking in mountains, forests, and deserts, and it is a strong water boiler, as well as quite good at simmering your meals, which for us is very important. In any case, I know it had some "warts" in development and production, but luckily, none of the three FF stoves that we have has exhibited any such problems, and we're blessed to have them in our stove family. Sure, the windscreen is a tad "different" to pack up, but with tapered pots, such as those that come with the Trapper 81, and others, it packs up quite nicely, thank you! Great stove, as far as we're concerned, and that means that Sweet Bride loves and trusts it, too, which is very important to me! Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc
Doc, you're adding fuel to the fire, I may have to take mine out this weekend as one of my stoves. So the midi cap will fit this? I'll have to give it a try, would be great for conversation on group trips. What the heck are you using now Duane? Duane
What was the point of that particular windscreen with the Firefly rather than the standard foil windscreen as with the rest of the MSR lineup?
Teletim sez Awwwww. I passed off one of those just two weeks ago off Craigslist Next time I see one, I will PM you. It was selling for a bit of penny without the pump but had the windscreen. Next time buddy. Ron
Alan asked: "What was the point of that particular windscreen with the Firefly rather than the standard foil windscreen as with the rest of the MSR lineup? " Hey, Alan, Great to hear from you! I believe the proprietary windscreen served two purposes: One: As this stove was meant to keep up with, and even surpass the performance of the X-GK, but also offer delicate simmering, once it's owners learned how to use it, the Firefly had to have a fine adjustment right on the burner, instead of the regular pump-situated regulating knob on most other MSR stoves of the time. The normal foil windscreen did not allow for reaching underneath the stove to use the regulating device, whilst the new windscreen did just fine in that regard. Two: I also believe that the new windscreen helped to keep that regulating device cool to the touch, by blocking much of the heat that would have otherwise caused some havoc in that regard, with the old foil windscreens. A trade-off for all that performance is that the FF can only be used with Coleman fuel, having lost the X-GK's ability to burn almost anything, and in return, not only is the FF a screaming performer at boiling water very quickly, many times besting the X-GK by a good margin, it also allows easy access to the regulating device, and complete protection from any and all winds. Sweet Bride and I have used our original Firefly on many mountain adventures, and on a few, the winds were so high that we had to place a rock on top of the FF cook pot, to keep some weight on it!! But, it's never let us down, and has always worked exactly as designed, safely, and reliably. As we mostly cook home-dehydrated meals that require a good bit of simmering, the Firefly is an outstanding stove in doing just what we need. It is also the loudest stove of it's size that we've ever had!! But, that doesn't bother us one bit, especially when the wind is screaming, up on some high mountain ridge! And, with the addition of the Perfectus silent cap, you can also retain much of that performance, me thinks, and get the silence that so many folks seem to love these days!! Duane, I can't recall which BernieDawg cap fit the FF, but will check that out soon and let you know. Hopefully, I can do that tonight. But, posting some photos in the Events section took me a ton of time today, and now I have to get to my work demands. But, ONE of those caps fits the FF just fine. More later.... Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc P.S. Tim, if you are serious about getting a FF, and if I can suss one out for a good price, I would be happy to send it to you, just for fun. Don't know when that might happen, as I don't look for stoves as much as I once did. But, if you're game, I'm will sharpen an eye for a FF for you.
Thank you all. Just to let you know I am reading and absorbing. But, as I write .... I am imagining a design of a windscreen like the original, but will store like a new one. Hmmmm! A flat circle with cutouts for the burner and the pot stands would be one piece. That would protect everything below the burner level. Just like the old XGK reflector. The other piece would be like the new windscreen, a complete circle from the ground up, but have a cutout to access the fuel adjuster. These would have to be sized depending on the pot used. Ken in NC
Once you move toward a solid windscreen my brain screams KAP Arctic. Mount a silent burner inside a Trangia. I've got the bits, need to find the time.
Hi, Alan, I see your point, but think about total weight. I'll try to weigh such a system, and see what difference there is between a stock FF and the KAP setup. I'm betting the KAP will be far heavier, but I could be absolutely wrong, too. Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc
A midi cap does indeed work on a FireFly. I tested one of BernieDawg's midi caps at the first Mid Hills Stove Gathering (CASG3?). It worked quite well. I think Doc's got the right idea switching the fuel line over to the newer type. Yes, the cloth covered one is more authentic, but the newer woven metal type will allow you to run your FF safely for years. HJ
Firefly parts kit?? Those that have one .. what is in it? I mean as in what is different from other MSR kits? Ken in NC
Flame shot. I fired up the Firefly, shut it off, cooled it off, then lowered & evened the flame spreader, cleaned the jet, and flushed the line. Then I fired it up again. White gas, newer but not latest pump, 11 oz MSR fuel bottle, and it's open all the way. Ken in NC
Flame looks very good. I took my Everest XGK and my new to me Super Fly out Saturday night, did not bring the FF. I'll take a look in the kit, see what it has. Edit. Pricker, jet removal tool, allen wrench, N.S. pump spring?, pump cup, fuel tube o-ring, N.S. Pump control valve o-ring, 2 retainer rings, flame spreader, instruction sheet, rubber ball, O.S. Control valve o-ring, XG jet. Duane
This is the Firefly I posted about with 2 other stoves. This pan came with a Sigg Tourist kit. I looked at it today, and said "This will fit the Firefly" so I cut it up to fit. And a 1400 pot fits well in there. Ken
Good job Ken! I have done the same thing with an angel food cake pan and although it looks like it will work, I did my cuts with a hack saw and am having a hard time cutting the slots large enough for the pot supports without making it ugly.
