Gentlemen, First of all happy new year. Secondly I hear time and again that people are missing the pot-grip / pot-lifter from their stove and cooking-tin sets. Many speak of a "Bulldog" brand of these as being highly useful, but unless I misremember these are said to be out of production. Is this the item that's sought after? : http://www.hampton-works.co.uk/accessories.htm
Hi, The item posted in the link is the newer pattern, the older generations (Myself included) remember the older type which fitted inside the Bulldog cook set, this type is of lightweight aluminium with pliers type handles, no doubt it's always the older type which is sought after as well as the cookset which is no longer made. Good hunting for those who are searching. Best wishes=John. -------------------- If in doubt, brew up.
When I was a wee sprog in the late 1950's we called these things "Bulldogs" because that brand was the commonest around here (Seattle area) and were sold in quantity by The Mountaineers Co-op, now REI, for forty or fifty cents. I and most of my partners in crime couldnt afford even the cheapest of cook pots to say anything of the nesting billy sets displayed in their shining alumin(i)um glory at the store and in the catalog, but we could sometimes afford a Bulldog with which to impress our friends. Over the years I've accumulated half a dozen or so in pot sets at garage sales and flea markets. The Buldog made tin cans into quite good cooking vessels and still does. My favorite is the one in my Optimus 99. Oh, to have had it in my misspent youth. My generation grew up camping with mostly war surplus equipment. I sliced my spam with a bayonet for decades and did a large part of cooking in a canteen cup, a US Army issue mess kit and a selection of tin cans with coat hanger wire bails. I slept in a war surplus pup tent using a rubberized poncho for a ground sheet/rain cover. We had no idea we were either poor or under equipped. If it was good enough for combat troops, it was bloody well fine for us. My first year of Scouts I used a "Cella-Cloud insulated sleeping bag. The second and later years I used the military issue forty below chicken down bag my favoite (insane) Uncle brought back from the Pacific Theater when he mustered out of the Third Marine Division. That evil bit of paraphernalia reeked of a flood in a chicken coop by morning and was like sleeping in a bag of nails. The filling was 90% crushed chicken feathers and 10% rusty 8D nails. It was wonderful compared to the Cella-cloud bag insulated with shredded cellophane cigarette wrappers. Duck or goose down was so far out of my league as to be in outer space and poly fiber insulation was yet but a ghost of an idea in some blessed chemist's mind. Oops, sorry! I forgot this was a screed about the wondrous Bulldog. Mea Maxima Culpa. Bulldogs are available at moderate cost in shiny skin packs hanging in the Coghlan's display in most retail establishments catering to the outdoor crows on a budget. At least in N. America. Hoppend, yes, exactly like those. Gerry
until CCS i never heard of any Bulldog cooking gear. i may have seen that style lifter but stuck to the Coleman style which seemed simpler....... now that this has been brought up my fading brain cells are telling me i may have a Bulldog deep in the camping heap!!!..back later if i do--
The fine story Grogan's War Surplus, from the Book A Fine & pleasant Misery by Patrick F. McManus (which is available online) goes into some detail concerning a camping youth spent with "real" Army Surplus.
Howdy, Gents, Here is the small pot from my Bulldog set. The larger pot is here "someplace", but goodness knows where! The photos shows the lifter, too, along with the Bulldog markings on both pot and lifter, and the country of origin, England. If, and when, I can find the larger pot, I can post a photo of the complete set. Great little compact and usable cooking set, to be sure. Light enough to make carrying easy, and sturdy enough to offer robust service for many years!! Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc
i dug this out of the cooking gear box. not a Bulldog i guess but its the only non Coleman lifter i happen to have.no idea of where it came from,a yard sale kit i got years ago maybe. or a stove of some sort it drifted away from.
Hi, Johan, Welcome to CCS. The Bulldog brand that most of us Old Timers own and love, are, I believe, long out of production. Maybe some company is now making a pot set they called “Bulldog”, but the original ones were made in England. With patience, you might run across one the excellent original Bulldog pot sets and the original pot-lifter. Good luck and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc
Looking about for the pot lifter that might have came with the Optimus 88 set I just acquired, I found this thread, and the post from Gerry. :-( I had read recently of his passing. I never met Gerry in person, but my life would have been a bit poorer had I not met him here on CCS. I'd have never known of "Gronicles" or "spondonicles"! I've got 5 spondonicles in easy grasp and everyone of them is too big for the 88... RIP Gerry, and thank you for the light hearted ribbing and education. :-(
@Nordicthug, I almost wet my pants laughing about scout camping back in the "50s! And @JohanFromRSA, I have a set of 3 Bulldog billies I am willing to offload if you are interested. PM me or reply to this post. All the best, Tom
@Greeley , Sadly, Gerry (aka NordicThug, or Thuggy, for short) passed away a few years ago. He was always thinking about gathering all his wonderful stories into a book by, and for Stovies, who would be the only ones that would understand his brand of humor, in some ways. But, in truth, is stories were wonderful for one and all, IMHO!! I'm wondering if some of us Old Timers here at CCS, shoudn't gather together all the stories we have on file, and make a stab at putting them, as Gerry always wanted to do? What say you, @Spiritburner ,@shagratork , @Ed Winskill , @kerophile , and all others who knew and loved Gerry's stories? I know that I can dig up quite a few of them. Anyone else think this might be a good idea? I'd be willing to do some digging to find as many as come to hand, IF there is interest in such a thing. Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc Rest in Peace, Thuggy, and know that you will never be forgotten!!
Some of my Bulldog pots, in the BWCA, waiting for a smoky fire to burn down to manageable. I have several Bulldog pots sets, as well as a complete nonstick set, and a couple of Boyscout type mess kits. I’m always on watch of another set of Bulldog Brand billy pots...
Dave Gibson; If memory serves me, your lifter was part of the BSA patrol cook kit. Kit consisted of a four or six quart pot without a bail; a matching two inch deep, 8 or 10" frying pan/lid, both with rolled rims as the outer case. Inside were four or was it six, shallow dished aluminum plates; the classic plastic, graduated one cup, stacking drinking cups; a second Billy with bail and flat recessed lid; and I believe a boiler "coffee" pot with bail and folding handles. Oh, and that monster of a pot gripper was needed for man handling the big pot, never a good idea to fill it to capacity. ;-) Thinking these were made by Mirro or Wear-Ever.
