Good Morning, Gentlemen, Great discussion, and well done on the information on the KAP Arctic type stoves. I will have to try the Nova with all the goodies added to you. As for myself, however, whilst I agree with you that most MSR stoves are not up to what they should be, I dearly love the X-GK family of stoves!! I have found, over many years of owning and using them, and after having tried almost all of the different members of this particular stove, that they are one of the most reliable stoves ever developed!! Simply put, they work, all the time, no questions asked, in all environments! How can you not love a stove like that??!! 8) No, they do not simmer, like the Nova, or 111T or C series stoves, but with the addition of a simple simmering plate, they do just fine. I have never had a problem with them, when out and about, and that is something that I cannot say about many other stoves. So, for me, the X-GK family of stoves, and especially the older ones, are outstanding stoves. They do what they were designed to do, and they do it perfectly. If you actually want to cook, add a simple simmering plate, and you are done. Just my thoughts, and thanks for reading them. Take care, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc P.S. Right now, I put my Nova into a Trangia 27 kit, for the backpacking trip that I was going to go on today, but had to reschedule. I'll see how it works. I tried to put my #11 Explorer in the same kit, but could not get the nut off the bottom of it, and so gave up on that idea, for now. As the burners are not easy to find, I didn't want to snap off the post!!
Good Morning Doc. I very well know that there are many fans of the (older) XGK types. But I think it all depends on your personal application. I tried out a new Dragonfly once it came out. At just -17 deg the pump simply broke. I had one of the earlier XGK models (the one in the gold anodized housing with spark igniter unit) and a much more robust ( grey ) pump. But again, slightly below -30 deg the pump gave up, fuel was running out. At these temps the last thing you want is an extended repair session, fuel on your skin will lead to immediate frostbite. Besides that, I really need good simmering capabilities and after finally switching to a Trangia of course a stove that easily fits in. But I frankly admit that my applications are probably non-standard, so to speak All the best juergen
Hi, Juergen, I agree with your points, completely. In fact, I have long railed about the very poor pump designs from MSR, and have posted many comments about that. The earlier pumps (yellow), were the best, IMHO, and the newest ones are far better than anything else that MSR did in between those and the old yellow pumps. Even the gray ones will break once they age a bit. For my purposes, a good X-GK, with a decent pump, will do just fine, even for cooking. But, I've seldom used them in less than around -10°F, and so cannot speak of how they would hold up under that usage. I think that one of the very best burner designs is the old 111T burner, and it's earlier family members. Robust, capable, and easy to repair if something should go wrong, it's hard to beat that great burner. It's funny to me that almost all the stove manufacturers have tried to change what really worked well for countless years, and in so doing, they have, mostly, failed miserably. Interesting comment on the times in which we live, eh?! Good talking to you, Sir, and God Bless! Every Good Wish, Doc
Hi Doc. Couldn't agree more! It's a pity. But maybe we are just too old for the modern world of stoves All the best to you as well juergen
