All winter I've been testing(playing with) and tinkering with my new Asia production 123R and a "vintage" Primus 71. I read in a previous post that the P-71/O-80's type stoves burned with much more power than any Svea's with the pricker or not. While I couldn't actually measure BTU's the 80 does make a lot more noise have a bluer flame and boil water a minute or two faster. The 123R, is quieter, with a taller flame but with red/purple tips to the flame. Edit: Did not actually scientifically measure boil time between my two stoves yet. It could just be my bias the 71 boils faster. My first question is why? These two stoves work the same way and have very similar designs, why does one work better? I have also come to learn that the Primus 71 also holds slightly more fuel than a 123. I have yet to figure what is the maximum burn time on this stove because of fear of scorching the wick. Does anyone know what is the maximum burn time on a P71 before refueling or blackening the cotton? Thanks, -Arson.
Impressive flame shots! I think you can run the stove dry many times before the wick is burned. I know my 123 has run dry while I was doing a big boil, it was low to start, and it seems to burn fine.
I think the comparison would be the same if the 71 was compared to a Svea of similar vintage or non-R type 123. The jet size and design would be similar or very much the same. Now, the jet on the 123R is quite a bit different but the size of the jet should be the same, you just have a cleaning needle and rack in the way of fuel flow, which may make it burn differently or less efficient. I like the convenience of the cleaning needle, but I like the operation of the older design of the 123 much better. With clean fuel, you rarely have to clean the jet. I haven't cleaned any of mine for years, since I only use Coleman Fuel in mine. sam
Arson, while I can't speak with any sort of authority since I do not own a P-71; I would suppose there are very slight differences between the design and manufacture of your two stoves. The "Asiana" stove is likely a clone made with little more thought than what it takes to mimick an already proven design. As with anything; use and age causes a stove to become broken in much like an old favorite pair of jeans. From personal experience I have learned 123r's dont take well to being dropped from a ledge while still inside a backpack. As a nipple or a face widens with use and cleaning it causes the flame to become more orange to yellow. A stove is also influenced by temperature, altitude, humidity, moisture conCamaraderietent and age of the fuel. One important thing is to keep your stove gaskets and seals in top shape. For myself, I am still learning and still continue to do so. The camaraderie here is what keeps me coming back 8)
Regarding the red / purple tips to the flame, try it with a cooking pot - it generally changes things. Norm
I can't go on without a ditto for Norm. When placing a pot or kettle on the stove it creates a catalytic effect on the burner causing more effective combustion of the fuel and a more uniform blue appearance to the flame.
What ever the pot does, there is absolutely no red or purple when a kettle is put on top of the Svea. I never noticed that. The Primus is clean pure blue kettle on or off. Oddly enough I just tested the boil times of both, and the Svea beats the Primus by 10 seconds. They were 9:20, and 9:30 respectively. Both stoves and fuel were kept outside overnight, at 15*F. I conducted the test at 2pm Mountain time. It is 35*f outside, protected from the wind at 10,200 ft. EDIT: Water was cold tap water from the sink of unknown but cold-cool temp. Very poor performance numbers, but I just tested a Snowpeak Gigapower as a control, mounted on a full Gigapower canister which was left out in the same conditions, and it scored 9:35. On top of that I tested my newly rebuilt Optimus 00 alongside the rest of them, and it got 9:35. I'll have to make another post to discuss these issues.
Like we've posted on other threads, your times are just about right! They are probably very fast for your altitude and temperature. Here's a paragraph I found out in the InnerTubes via Google search: sam
fairly typical figures for hiking style burners. Its only the modern MSR style stoves and heavier coleman 502 etc that do better in a package small enough for hiking. Hiking stoves tend to be less powerful than the bigger stoves as most hikers dont need raw power but do need efficiencies of weight and fuel use.
