KAP-Arctic This article is based on material from Peter Ask from Sweden. In around 2001 he created a KAP-Arctic web page. The site is no longer available on the web, but Peter has kindly given permission to publish the information on Classic Camp Stoves. The KAP-Arctic consists of a Trangia stove with a built-in kerosene burner. The pump is located in the fuel bottle, and is connected to the burner by a flexible fuel hose. The flame adjuster valve is situated on the burner, and the flame can be regulated with high precision. Turning the valve beyond maximum will bring up a small needle that cleans the jet from debris. When the stove is packed up the burner and the flame adjuster knob fits into the Trangia cookset. The fuel bottle is stored separately with the fuel hose winded around the pump. Included in the stove is also an insulated stove base and a small bottle for the alcohol used for the priming. Specifications - (According to the manufacturer) Fuel: Kerosene or diesel. Maximum output: Approx. 3000 W Cleaning of jet: Built-in needle. Weight (fuel bottle included): With Trangia 25-3 1660 g (3 lb 10 oz) With Trangia 25-7 1950 g (4 lb 5 oz) Kerosene kit only* 670 g (1 lb 8 oz) (* Burner, flame adjuster knob, pump, fuel bottle SIGG 1, insulated stove base, alcohol bottle) History In 1953 Gunnar Finn and Sten Brander carried out the first ascent of the north wall of Kaskasapakte, a Swedish mountain. As a climber and outdoorsman Gunnar felt the need of a robust and efficient stove for winter use, and had already started to experiment with embedding paraffin burners in stoves of the Trangia type. At that time he tried to combine the Optimus model 00 with Meta 50 which was the first stove model of this type on the market. The idea evolved, and in the early 1980's Gunnar invented the prototype of the Arctic. He started from the best of both worlds: the well proven Trangia windshields and pans combined with Optimus’ highly efficient kerosene burner. The choice to use a fuel bottle as a tank and connect it to the burner via a hose, resulted in a lighter and more flexible stove. This made, along with some other inventions, the Arctic an easy to use and highly efficient stove. In 1982 Gunnar Finn started the Kiruna Arctic Products (KAP) company, and began selling his stove. In the beginning the stove was fitted with burners from Optimus, and he called it Trangia Arctic. Gunnar had problems with the delivery of burners from Optimus. This made him switch to burners from Patria, a Portuguese brand which over the years has proven to be excellent. Trangia found the name Trangia Arctic unacceptable because it was not Trangia themselves that made the entire stove. As a response to this Gunnar changed the stove’s name to KAP Arctic. Except for a short period when it was called Finn-Arctic, the stove has been called KAP Arctic since then. When Peter Ask first wrote this text, around 2000, almost 20 years had passed since the first stove was produced. Over those years it had steadily developed and been refined. At that time, approximately 5-6000 Arctic stoves had been sold, and it had gained recognition as one of the best year-round stoves on the market. Unfortunately, there was problems getting burners for the stove and therefore production ceased. Some pictures The pump is made of metal and is very robust. The piston is threaded so that it can be secured when the stove is stowed. The fuel hose can be wound around the pump when not in use. The pump of Arctic to the left and the pump of Optimus Explorer to the right. KAP designed their pump more than 10 years before Optimus. Is it a coincidence that they look so similar..? The burner with its holder, ignition groove and fuel pipe at the bottom. The holder for the burner has an ignition groove provided with a wick. The holder makes the burner fit nicely into the lower Trangia windshield. In the ignition groove to the right it is easy to poor a small volume of alcohol, and thanks to the wick it is also possible to ignite it here. The end of the fuel pipe snaps to the upper edge of the hole, and fixes the burner firmly to the lower Trangia windshield. A really powerful stove, the KAP-Arctic at full throttle. Peter’s stove mounted and fired up. More than ten years old, but it still works excellently. Arne Kåre
mmmm Meta 50 Kap Arctic now that has got to rock btw thanks for the great post pity they didn't copyright the pump and get a royalty from optimus and it's a pity optimus don't use the threaded retainer for the pump knob when stowed and the longer fuel pick up
With the help of The Wayback Machine one may now access old and long gone web pages. Not much to see since many pics are missing, but I think they are already copied and are on this forum.
Greetings, All, What fine information about the KAP stove history!! Outstanding stuff, and many thanks for sharing this with us!! Well done!!!! VERY interesting that the original KAP pump looks to have been copied, almost exactly, by Optimus for their later pumps! Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc
Thank you for keeping this information available. I’m sure a bunch of us have a new stove on our must have list. Great looking stove and flame shot. BTM
I know this is an old subject but the link in BBM's post no longer works. I have found a link that works here: Google Translate (this is an English translation of the original Swedish site, which has more information than the official English version of the site (I hope that makes sense)!
