• Primer Pan
  • This is a great accessory for your alcohol stove. It provides a secure base for the stove and allows the stove to attain full temp for cooking in only 15 seconds instead of 90. A good item for cold weather starting. To use: -Place stove on Primer Pan and add desired amount of fuel to stove. -Put 1/4 teaspoon or about 15 drops of denatured alcohol in the primer pan. -Place cooking pot on the UNLIT stove. -Light the alcohol in the Primer Pan. That's all there is to it! Why it works so well: In normal light-up and operation, you light the fuel in the stove and wait for it to reach full temperature before setting the pot on the stove. This is because the stove is heating the alcohol in the outer chamber of the stove from the center outward. It takes about 90 seconds this way and you should hold the pot about 2 inches above the stove to avoid wasting the BTUs. With the Primer Pan, the fuel in the outer chamber heats up from the outside inward thus reaching operating temperatures much faster. You will have a hotter and larger than normal flame at first but it will settle down when the Primer Pan alcohol is consumed.
• Fuel bottle
  • Perfect companion for the alcohol stove. This fuel bottle has a flip-up pour spout and is just about perfect for a 3 day/2 night solo hike.
• MSR-style windscreen
  • This is a definite improvement and upgrade for your stove. Made of the same material as the MSR Whisperlight type of screen yet only 4 inches high to make it more suited to alcohol stove use. The edges are rolled to make it safer to use and it's only half the cost! The windscreen will fold flat for storage or you can wrap it around the fuel bottle.

Description [return to top] AGG has some of the best, most detailed photos of gear I have seen on a website. Any details I may have missed in the descriptions from my Initial Report should be readily answered by simply visiting their site. Primer pan: The pan is constructed of uncoated aluminum, which is slightly heavier than that used in soda cans. It includes lips along the inside and outside edges, as well as three ‘feet’ pressed into the bottom. The instructions include placing 15-20 drops of alcohol in the pan after setting the stove in place.

Fuel bottle: The fuel bottle, which has an 8 oz (240 ml) capacity, is made of fairly rigid plastic. The screw-on/off cap has a flip-up spout. The bottle has enough flex in it to allow squirting – or dripping – of the alcohol in a fairly controlled manner.

Windscreen: The windscreen is constructed of uncoated aluminum sheet, which is slightly heavier than that used in soda cans. Both ends of the windscreen are folded over and can be slipped together to form it into a ring. When the ends are not connected, the windscreen can be coiled to fit inside a pot or cozy, or wrapped around the fuel bottle.

Measuring cup: A clear plastic cup is included in the set. It is sized nicely to fit over the cap of the fuel bottle, and is marked in English, metric, and pharmaceutical scales.

Stove: The Tin Man stove is of a relatively standard design. It is unpressurized, with an inner wall and a series of small holes drilled around the perimeter of the stove, and a strip of foil tape sealing the entire joint. The bottom of the stove is engraved with Tin Man’s signature, “AntiGravityGear”, and the model and serial number of the stove. The stove also comes with a measuring cup, which I find to be a nice touch.

Field Testing [return to top] Our Boy Scout troop camps monthly, generally in the wooded areas of southeastern Pennsylvania and the Pocono Mountains. Almost all of these outings include a minimum of 2 nights of camping, with temperatures expected to be from lows around 25 ºF (-4 ºC) to highs around 80 ºF (27 ºC) during the 4-month test period. Elevations will range from sea level to approximately 1,500’ (457 m). Our new Scoutmaster has added monthly hikes to our schedule as well. My fiancée and I, who between us have 3 First Class boy scouts (ages 14, 15 and 16), have scheduled additional camping/hiking without the scouts, and there are possibilities of more AT section hikes (two down [see below], many to go!) in Pennsylvania – aka Rocksylvania – and New Jersey with my son as he works towards the Hiking Merit Badge. Over the weekend of October 28-30, 2005, we took 6 Boy Scouts to Blue Rocks Campground near Hamburg, Pennsylvania. Saturday’s agenda included hiking up a blue-blazed trail from the campground to the Appalachian Trail (AT) just south of Pulpit Rock. Once arriving at Pulpit Rock (elev. 1,582 ft/482 m), and getting snowed on at 1:00 pm (brrrrr. . .), the Scoutmaster took 3 of the boys back the way we came while I took the other 3 and continued on to the Pinnacle (elev. ~1,635 ft/498 m), where we enjoyed a lunch of sandwiches and Ramen Noodles. I pulled out my cookset and the accessory kit, fueled up the stove, and heated water for all 4 of us. I estimate the temperature of both the air and the water to be only around 38-40 °F (3-4 °C) before I started, and fairly windy (we were still up on the Pinnacle), so lighting the stove was a challenge. Not only was the strong wind nearly blowing out the pre-heat fuel, the large quantity of cold water in the pot was acting as a heat sink and keeping the stove from warming up to operating temperature before the pre-heat ran out. I re-fueled the pan (a bit more fuel this time), held the windscreen just above the pot, and tried again. This time was successful, with the water coming not quite to a rolling boil, but certainly hot enough for our needs. After lunch I re-packed everything in a bit over a minute, and we headed back to rejoin the others. Over the weekend of November 11-13, 2005, I met up with a fellow BGT gear tester and a few other hammockers along the AT near Dingman’s Ferry in New Jersey. While out on the 15-mile (24 km) hike I was successful lighting the stove the first time, but both the air and water were much warmer (~70 °F/21 °C), the wind was negligible, and I was only heating enough water for me.

Things I am/will be looking for: Ease of use. This would be for all of the various components. Interchangeability. Do the components work well with the different cook sets I have? Cleanability. This refers to all components. Packability. I generally carry a cut-off 1-gallon plastic milk jug, which serves as a wash basin. I try to carry my cookware inside this basin, to have all kitchenware in the same place. Safety. Do I need to worry about fuel leakage?

My findings so far: Ease of use. Easy to carry, easy to use. No complaints. Interchangeability. The primer pan works better with soda-can stoves than with my Trangia (which does not have a depression in the bottom), although it can be used with the Trangia in a pinch. Cleanability. The primer pan wipes clean, as do the fuel bottle and windscreen. I don’t consider it absolutely critical that I be able to eat off these components however, so any heat or fuel related staining will be left alone. Packability. The primer pan fits inside whatever sack or other cover I have my cookset in. The fuel bottle (with windscreen) fits in the outside pocket of my pack in the same place I kept my previous bottle. The measuring cup fits inside the stove. Safety. I have found the fuel bottle to be strong and well-sealed.

Things I like [return to top] Light. Small. Convenient. Things I don't like [return to top] The windscreen is taller than any others I have and won’t fit inside my smaller pots, but it can wrap around the fuel bottle. The primer pan, due to its inner lip, is intended mostly for beverage-can type stoves. It will require additional care to use with my Trangia stove.

Thank you for your time. Chuck Kime a.k.a. Fuzzy

Reviews > Cook Gear > Cooking Accessories > AntiGravityGear Stove Accessory Pack > Chuck Kime > Field Report