Reviews by User: BEAN (2)

Well, I've only used the stove at home for testing but have good info for others considering this stove. First, the stove is like a blowtorch and it sounds like a jet taking off! There are basically two settings, On or Off. If you're very precise, you might be able to adjust the flame a bit, but the stove runs very HOT! Within 10 to 20 seconds after priming, the stove burner is cherry red! Don't plan on cooking any fancy dishes with this stove. The stove is designed to melt snow and boil water and to do it FAST! Also, the stove is designed for larger pots. I have both the Snow Peak 1400T and 900T pots which are a bit small for this stove. I found if I adjust the legs/pot holders in a tad, I can fit the 1400T pot. It also seems that the stove does not use the fuel sparingly. Just after 10 min. use, I could tell that the fuel bottle was lighter. Also, the stove uses a larger size fuel line to allow it to burn various types of fuel. I found that after you shut off the fuel valve, the stove continues to burn for at least another minute or two. I think this is because of the larger fuel line. Also, after the flame goes out, I found there would still be residual fuel in the line. You have to make sure that this fuel is out of the line before packing, otherwise you're pack will smell of fuel. My only two complaints are the pot supports not supporting smaller pots and the residual fuel in the fuel line after shutting down. Otherwise this is an awesome stove for what it was designed for, cold weather expeditions! I also own a Simmerlite which is definitely a better all-around stove for backpacking. I will use the Simmerlite for a 3-season stove and the XGK EX for winter outings. But to be honest, I think the Simmerlite would work just fine in the cold, maybe take a minute longer to boil water or melt snow. Hope this helps.

I got this bag for Denali. I wanted to test this out in the So. CA mountains. Let me just say, if it's not below zero, this thing is too hot! It got down to the low 20's F sleeping on snow. I was sweating. I then zip the bag down a bit to cool off, then I was freezing from the sweat. This thing is hard to regulate! It was a constant battle to keep comfortable. I'm confident that it would work perfectly in sub zero temps. I do like the fact that it has plenty of room around the upper body. This made it really nice to move around in the bag. I did notice it takes a bit longer to warm up due to this extra room. One downside is the bag only comes in long. I guess this is good if you need to sleep with your boots at the bottom. I also notice that feathers tend to come out of the seams quite frequently. So the long-term durability is questionable. I might just have a zero degree bag in a couple of years. It comes with a huge compression sack. Even with this compression sack (quite large), it would not fit in my sleeping compartment in my pack. I later purchased a granite air-lite compression sack (large) which worked a lot better. It takes more time to stuff, but it now fits in my sleeping bag compartment. The watch pocket is a silly gimmick that just adds weight. All in all this is a superb bag. Just make sure it's very cold were you intend to use it.