Long Term Report - Brasslite Turbo II-D Stove

Date: April 5th, 2004

Reviewer Information

Name: Jim Sabiston
Age: 49
Gender: Male
Height: 6' 3" (1.9 meters)
Weight: 207 lbs. (94 kilos)
Email address: JimSabis(at)aol(dot)com
City: Bay Shore (Long Island)
State: New York
Country: USA

Backpacking Background:

I've been camping for several decades. I joined the Adirondack Mountain Club four years ago, the Appalachian Mountain Club a year later and am active in both. I have also expanded my backpacking to include more winter trips, mountaineering and backcountry cross country skiing, and participated in the AMC's Winter Mountaineering training program with Chauvin International Climbing Guides. More recently, I have actively studied ways to backpack lighter and more efficiently. During the summer months, my style tends toward very light, but not quite ultralight. I use a hammock or tarp for warm weather, and a small four-season tent for winter trips. Most of my other gear is very changeable, as I am constantly experimenting with gear and techniques.

Product Information:

Manufacturer: Brasslite
Year of Manufacture: 2003
URL:www.brasslite.com
Listed weight: 2.6 oz. (74 g)
Weight as delivered: 2.6 oz. (74 g)
Specifications for the Turbo II-D: (from the Brasslite Web site)
            Width of chamber and stand: 2.4 in.(60 mm)
            Width of Preheat Pan: 3.0 in. (75 mm)
            Height of chamber: 1.7 in. (43 mm)
            Overall Height: 2.75 in.(70 mm)

MSRP: $50.00 US

The Brasslite Turbo II-D:

The Brasslite Turbo II-D is very small, approximately 2.75 in (70 mm) tall by 2.9 in (74 mm)  wide at the base. It is clearly hand made, with detail variances and minor flaws to be expected in any handmade item, but these add to the feel and character, rather than detract from it. The brass construction also contributes favorably to the overall look and character of the stove. With the exception of the stainless steel pot stand attached to the top of the stove body, construction is entirely of very thin brass sheet metal. The entire stove is held together with silver soldered joints.

The only moving part is the ‘simmer sleeve’, which covers most of the stove body. The sleeve has six small triangular cutouts at the bottom. The sleeve can be rotated to move the cutouts so they line up over the six air intake ports, also located at the bottom of the stove body. Rotating the simmer sleeve allows control of the air flow into the stove. The sleeve is also constructed of thin sheet brass and has a small folded tab allowing the sleeve to be rotated after the stove is lit.

The pot stand is attached permanently to the stove body by five very tiny tabs, carefully bent and silver soldered to the stove top around the bottom wire of the stainless steel stand. All tabs butt up against an upright wire of the pot stand, two adjacent to the stand opening, two approximately ¼ of the circumference around on either side of the opening, and the last directly opposite the stand opening.

The Turbo II-D claim to fame, and what makes it different from earlier Brasslite models, is the addition of an inner wall inside the main body of the stove. This reportedly has the effect of improving flame control, apparently in combination with the relocation of the air intake ports to the base of the stove, rather than near the top of the stove body, as in earlier models.

The stove is designed for two types of ignition priming: referred to as ‘warm prime’ and ‘cold prime’ respectively. The warm prime is typical to many alcohol stoves and is simply a matter of pouring a bit of alcohol on the stove top and lighting it. This serves the dual purpose of warming the stove and vaporizing the alcohol, thus starting a continuous burn. The ‘cold prime’ uses the fluted bottom rim of the turbo II-D to hold a larger amount of priming alcohol. In addition to the small amount of fuel poured on top of the stove, fuel is poured into the fluted dish which makes up the bottom of the stove. This larger amount of fuel provides a longer burn, which is needed in colder weather to get the stove warmed and alcohol vaporized.

Brasslite provided a fuel bottle with the Turbo II-D which deserves some mention. The bottle is translucent plastic and has a secondary reservoir which allows very precise measuring and loading of the fuel into the stove with a simple squeeze. It is small and flat (roughly rectangular, 7.5 in X 3.75 in X 1.5 in (19 cm X 9.5 cm X 4 cm), for packing considerations) and has an 8 oz (.24 L) capacity). It is far more accurate than my usual alcohol fuel bottles, but a bit large for the typical weekend excursion. I will be using this bottle almost exclusively for the test series, but will probably revert to my smaller 4 oz (.12 L) bottles for weekend use and save this bottle for longer trips. Note: Brasslite now offers a 4 oz (.12 L) fuel bottle which can be seen at the Brasslite web site.



Long Term Experience:

The Brasslite Turbo II-D has held up extremely well during the six months of the test period. I have used the stove exclusively for the last six months. Aside from the natural oxidation of the brass finish, the stove shows no wear and tear at all. The only moving part, the simmer sleeve, still functions as designed. I have occasionally detected a stiffness in the operation of the sleeve after several weeks of storage, but this has been easily remedied by simply working the sleeve back a forth a couple of times before use.

In my early use of the stove, I had little use for the simmer sleeve, only using it to verify its effectiveness, which was quite good. My plan was to remove the simmer sleeve after the test had concluded. I have decided to keep the simmer sleeve, as I have learned how it can expand my cooking options. Many super market sourced foods are now suitable for backpacking use. Many of these products require simmering and I have found they and the Turbo II-D are a happy match. This has expanded my menu selection considerably and it could easily be argued that I am eating better on the trail because of this little stove!

As I have become more experienced with the Turbo II-D, I have become more adept at estimating fuel consumption, meaning there is less wasted alcohol or awkward re-lights in the middle of meal preparation. As I gather more experience using the stove in a wide range of temperatures and weather conditions, estimating the proper amount of fuel seems to be becoming an intuitive affair. Just this past Sunday morning, sitting in the Mink Hollow lean-to in the col between Sugarloaf and Plateau Mountains in the Catskills, I was preparing a cup of tea before starting the hike out. The stove and windscreen take seconds to set up. I made a quick evaluation of the temperature, about 30 F (-1 C), winds, none to speak of at the moment, the amount of water I wanted to boil, 16 oz (.47 L), and poured a bit less than 1 oz (30 ml) of alcohol into the stove (hmmmm, that should be about right). After a generous sprinkle of alcohol on the top of the stove and the cold start ring, I ignited the stove. About seven or eight minutes later, I poured the boiling water into my waiting mug. The fuel lasted about 30 seconds past the boil. I prefer a slightly longer burn when just boiling water, as I then use the flame to burn off any remaining moisture in the pot. This is much faster and more effective than towel drying the pot and has reduced the amount of moisture corrosion on the stove and windscreen parts, which are stored in the pot when not being used.

I have learned to use the cold prime (using the priming tray built into the bottom of the Brasslite Turbo II-D body) whenever the temperature approaches freezing. This has resulted in fewer false starts when trying to ignite the stove. When in doubt, I find the cold prime is just a more reliable ignition method. The extra cost in fuel is very minimal. In general, especially during more typical weather conditions (meaning anything but deep winter) fuel consumption remains fairly minimal. A recent climbing weekend in the Catskills serves a typical example: 3 oz (89 ml) of alcohol boiled 16 oz (.47 L) of water for tea, boiled and then simmered for ten minutes a nice broccoli/cheddar cheese/pasta dinner, heated some cleaning water and, finally boiled another 16 oz (.47 L) of water for morning tea. The temperatures hovered around 30 F (-1 C) for this particular weekend. Warmer weather would require even less fuel. This means I can carry a weekend’s fuel in a tiny 4 oz (118 ml) plastic bottle, and have a bit of fuel left over for an extra cup of tea or a hot toddy if the mood suits.

One of my primary points of interest was the performance of the Brasslite Turbo II-D as we got into the winter season. I was concerned that the lower BTU content of alcohol might not hold up well in the deep cold of the winter mountains. As the Long Term portion of the test spanned the coldest Northeast winter months, I had the opportunity to try the stove out in these colder conditions.

I am pleased to report that the Brasslite Turbo II-D did not disappoint. On one trip in particular, a three day ski-backpack into the Adirondacks High Peaks Wilderness, I subjected the stove to -15 F (-8 C) temperatures in an open lean-to for two nights and two mornings. The stove performed quite well, even in these very cold conditions. The stove definitely required the cold weather prime. In fact, the first night it required the cold prime twice in quick succession to get going. Apparently, most of the energy of the initial prime is spent warming up the stove and alcohol fuel. The stove ignited normally during the second prime. After the initial burn, re-lighting the stove to boil more water was done with a single cold weather prime.

Fuel consumption was definitely higher in these temperatures, requiring about 1.5 oz. (44 ml) of alcohol to boil 16 oz (.47 L) of water, and the time to boil was definitely longer, around ten minutes, or so. This can seem interminable when it is very cold and you are starved for a hot meal after a long day climbing and skiing. It became clear that Brasslite’s own recommendation that the stove NOT be used for melting snow is very accurate. The alcohol fuel just does not have the massive BTU output that this chore requires.

Summary:

The Brasslite Turbo II-D could easily serve as my all-season general purpose stove. It has the great advantages of light weight, simplicity and ready fuel availability. The lack of complicated valves and fittings eliminates the likelihood of a serious stove failure when far from home, giving it tremendous reliability. Its small size makes it a snap to pack away, slipping snugly inside my titanium mug. The only limitation is melting snow for water during winter camping. If there is no liquid water available, a white gas or canister stove would be a better choice.

If I was limited to having only one stove for year round use, the Brasslite Turbo II-D would get very serious consideration and I would highly recommend it to anyone shopping for a good, low maintenance, light weight, reliable backpacking stove.