Jetboil Vs Optimus Crux and Stove Confusion

[Burnsy]

I currently use a Gaz Instaflam Bluet style gas cooker and am looking to upgrade to one of the new smaller and lighter offerings on the market that use a screw on canister.

I own up a Jetboil 1.5 litre cooking pot and whatever I get needs to work with this as we need it for the family/group cooking.

I really like the look of the Optimus Crux and Terra weekend cookset and at $119 it seems a solid well made unit with good functionality, Does anyone see any reason the Jetboil pot would not work with this stove? The weekend cookset has the heat exchange ring the same as the Jetboil pot so my thinking is it should work fine?

The other option is a Jetboil, now the big orange shed that sells garbage and has crappy customer relations has these on special at the moment, $131 for the flash, $93 for the zip no mention of the sol. I checked the jetboil site and it also does not mention the sol, has it been superseded? The zip has a knob and not a wire hoop for flame adjustment which would be a nightmare with gloves on or fat fingers so I am not interested in that. The Jetboils also require a pot support (purchased separately) to use the cooking pot on them and are considerably heavier than the Optimus system. Also interesting to see that the Jetboil units are listed as made in China, the origin of the Optimus although Swedish I am unsure of.

Reading through the above the Optimus would seem to be a stand out winner but I just need to know if the cooking pot will work with it and am I missing something, the Jetboils seem very popular and there is not alot of info around on the Optimus, although what is out there is positive. Anyone got one, owned both or used an Optimus and would care to enlighten me?

Thanks,
Mike

[Burnsy]

Does anyone own an Optimus Crux who would like to weigh in with what they think?

[Bubbalouie]

I have one (a crux lite specifically I think) it works pretty well. Though it's a tad heavier than the name would imply. I can't comment on whether it'll fit the bottom of the jetboil pot though.

If you don't want to gamble the full cost of a crux I can ship mine (it's been sitting in the cupboard unused for over a year now) for postage. Just send a PM with your info if you're keen.

[Burnsy]

Thanks for the offer and info. I have sent you a pm.

[Strider]

The Crux folds to fit under a 230g canister. So will almost certainly fit in any pot with a larger diameter than that.

[Burnsy]

The Crux folds to fit under a 230g canister. So will almost certainly fit in any pot with a larger diameter than that.

Thanks for the response Strider, I may have not explained to well. I was looking to see whether it would fit under a Jetboil heat exchange ring when operational rather than in it to store. I have visions of the Jetboil ring being a smaller diameter than the optimus or something so it wont fit over the pot stands.

[Strider]

Sorry i understand now.

That particular set is quite heavy - it was discussed here recently that the weight given on the website is not the total weight of all components.

I assume since you're looking at canister top stoves that saving weight is of primary concern?

[Burnsy]

Weight but I also want to get away from the bluet style puncture cans. Bubbalouie has kindly offered his Optimus lite so I will try that with the jetboil cookpot and see how it goes. I will need to get a small set though to boil water so will loo at the terra weekend set in person before I commit to one.

[corvus]

I have a Crux great stove 90gm till I found a Kovea Camp 3 Titan 84 gm both now relegated to including a FMS-300T 45g none of which fit in my MSR Titan Kettle with a 230 gas can however they do fit into my pot of choice now FMC XKS 6 which at 218 gm which is only 92 gm heavier than my previous MSR Titan Kettle however my to go stove 200gm FMS 100t more than makes up for it's ability to share a pot with a gas can with perfomance, so I believe ability to stack both stove gas can in a pot is nice but not essential IMHO

[Burnsy]

Thanks corvus, I had to google all those things to see what was what and the flame maple pot test done by someone on here impressed me so i just ordered one for $30 delivered as my water pot, I would never use the fry pan lid on the terra weekend set anyway so the xks6 is a good option, pitty they don't have a pouring lip.

[ahmondjai]

I have both the Crux Lite and a Jetboil Flash, they both have their advantages and disadvantages. I love the Crux Lite for it's size, and versatility, I've used it on my hiking cooking pots to big fry pans, and I had used it on home size cooking pots. As for the Jetboil, you can still achieve the same with the pot support supplied with it, but I think it's been designed with boiling water mainly for cooking and consuming dehydrated meals.

The Crux Lite has a higher output and bigger head when compared with the Jetboil, but would need to be protected with a wind screen if there are anything more than a gentle breeze.

For your subsequent question, I don't think the Optimus would work under the Jetboil heat exchange ring, at least not without any modifications or sacrificing the stability of the locking mechinism Jetboil has.

P.S. I found the Optimus has a easier to adjust output than the Jetboil, both are made from a folding wire hoop.

[Strider]

I love the Crux Lite for it's size, and versatility, I've used it on my hiking cooking pots to big fry pans.

Be careful, larger pans can reflect a lot of heat back onto the canister.

[Burnsy]

For your subsequent question, I don't think the Optimus would work under the Jetboil heat exchange ring, at least not without any modifications or sacrificing the stability of the locking mechinism Jetboil has.

Bit of a timely reminder for me as I had it all packed up for tonight and hadn't checked However, Jetboil pot fits fine on an Optimus Lite

[ahmondjai]

I love the Crux Lite for it's size, and versatility, I've used it on my hiking cooking pots to big fry pans.

Be careful, larger pans can reflect a lot of heat back onto the canister.

Thanks, Strider, will keep that in mind, as long as it's not for prolonged period of cooking, it should be ok I guess~

For your subsequent question, I don't think the Optimus would work under the Jetboil heat exchange ring, at least not without any modifications or sacrificing the stability of the locking mechinism Jetboil has.

Bit of a timely reminder for me as I had it all packed up for tonight and hadn't checked However, Jetboil pot fits fine on an Optimus Lite

It's good to hear that it's working for you, this is my version of jetboil on a Optimus Crux.

The space between the flame to the base of the pot seems a bit distanced. It might be hot enough to boil the content in the Jetboil, but I'm suspecting it will take a lot of time and fuel.



A comparison when used on a Jetboil head.

[Aidan]

Would one of those Kovea Spiders be more stable

http://www.amazon.com/Kovea-Spider-Stov ... B00CFPIPKA

What is width of the grill when outstretched.

The pot supports extend out 6.5cm from the center of the burner.

HJ

P.S. I added a table listing all of the radii of the stoves shown in my blog post. Thank you for the question.

(viewtopic.php?f=15&t=12677)

I don't have one, preferring my Trangia but felt some of the reviews were very positive.

I have a backup MSR Pocket Rocket, though Im not impressed with its precariousness, which I was reminded of by one of the above photos.
I did grab a canister stand but the stove had already fallen from my favour
https://www.bike24.de/1.php?content=8;n ... 81;mid=567

[Franco]

Ahmondjai
Your version would be too inefficient , losing the advantage of the JetBoil design.
Those pot foldable holders can be fitted through the mouth of the JetBoil base so they sit inside the fins (I posted a photo of either my Kovea or a Fire Maple version sometime ago) but it isn't safe .
If you are really keen to get it to work you could cut some slots in the base so that the stove head is closer but you still risk of weakening that base so that it may not work with the JetBoil base again.

[Burnsy]

So is that lower shroud on the jetboil cup which goes around the heat exchanger fixed to it and non removable? I am glad the jetboil pot does not have it.

[ahmondjai]

Ahmondjai
Your version would be too inefficient , losing the advantage of the JetBoil design.
Those pot foldable holders can be fitted through the mouth of the JetBoil base so they sit inside the fins (I posted a photo of either my Kovea or a Fire Maple version sometime ago) but it isn't safe .
If you are really keen to get it to work you could cut some slots in the base so that the stove head is closer but you still risk of weakening that base so that it may not work with the JetBoil base again.

Hi Franco,

I did not intend to use the Jetboil Cup on the Optimus, it was just for the purpose of illustration for Burnsy. I still prefer the versatility of the Optimus with another cookware. The Jetboil was more for the missus' desire for her boiling hot drinks whenever she feel like it (pretty much always).