Reviews > Cook Gear > Stoves > Jetboil Group Cooking System > Steve Nelson > Initial Report

Initial Report: Jetboil Group Cooking System
May 29, 2006

Reviewer's Information

Name: Steve Nelson
Age: 45
Gender: Male
Email address: nazdarovye at y..oo dot com
City, State, Country: San Francisco, CA, U.S.A.

Backpacking Background:

As an interface design and usability consultant by trade, I'm always excited by analyzing and improving designs and processes; backpacking provides a fertile and fun arena for that. I have been backpacking since I was a kid growing up in upstate New York: we backpacked and canoe-camped in all seasons, throughout the Adirondacks and nearby areas, ranging as far as La Verendrye Wildlife Reserve, Quebec. As an adult, I've backpacked and hiked extensively in California, but also have taken trips throughout the West, from New Mexico to British Columbia, and return often to the Adirondacks.

I made the transition to lightweight and ultralight backpacking over the past two years. I like moving fast, and lightening the load facilitates that. I also enjoy urban strolls, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, kayaking, and aviation in addition to hiking and backpacking, so my gear gets exposed to a wide variety of uses and conditions.

Product information

Overview and Initial Impressions

The Jetboil Group Cooking System (hereafter referred to as "GCS") is a matched system of stove, supports, pot with "FluxRing™" heat fins, plastic lids, and neoprene pot cozy. This system uses the same burner and FluxRing technology as the original Jetboil (identified as the "Personal Cooking System" on the Jetboil web site), and also is compatible with that system's components. The burner unit has a built-in piezo lighter and a flame that is supposed to be able to be adjusted from simmer to full power. In addition to supporting the custom pot with the FluxRing, the GCS stand also supports use of any not exceeding "23 cm (9 in) diameter" or total weight of "3 kg (6.5 lb)".

The manufacturer claims that the Jetboil can "boil water twice as fast as competing stoves, while burning half as much fuel" (if I read that correctly, that's four times the efficiency—a claim I'll certainly investigate). For the GCS, Jetboil claims 2 cups (1/2 L) of water will be boiled in "about two minutes", and a quart/liter in "about four minutes," and adds that the GCS can boil up to "50 cups (12 L)" of water on a single micro-canister of Jetpower fuel.

The Jetboil GCS comes with instructions printed on a fold-out sheet of legal-size paper. They're quite thorough, including full assembly, cooking, disassembly and storage instructions, as well as numerous cautions (in addition to standard warnings such as not cooking inside, they also say don't cook low-water content foods with the cozy on the pot); plus troubleshooting and jet cleaning instructions, and warranty information.

The GCS comes with a one year limited warranty covering failure to "function properly under normal use" and only for the original purchaser, with proof of purchase required. Damage, normal wear and tear, and "use of the 1.5 liter pot other than as described in these instructions" are among the exclusions for coverage.

Initial Impressions

I received the GCS in its standard retail packaging (a square box), along with two Jetpower mini-canisters (sold separately). To prevent damage during shipping, items were packed in some cardboard inserts and not all inside the pot, though when used in the field, all components do fit inside it.

The system is easy to assemble and made of what appear to be good-quality materials. I like the orange color on the cozy.

It took only a few seconds to put everything into its usual packed state, which is to place all stove components, plus a mini-canister of Jetpower fuel, inside the pot in a specific layout. Here it is closed up:

And h ere it is with the lid removed to show how everything stows away (there's also a plastic cover that goes on the bottom of the unit, covering and protecting the FluxRing):

I'll note that the components fit a bit loosely in the pot, and that there is definitely room for them to move around. I'll be keeping an eye on whether that leads to scratches or other damage in transit and while hiking, and may eventually try wrapping a bandana around some of the components to reduce the movement if it does seem to be an issue. The piezo lighter is exposed, and damage to that is my greatest concern at this initial point.

Assembling the stove took me under a minute. The canister (using a standard Lindal valve) screws onto the base of the burner unit; the tripod base unfolds and snaps onto the bottom of the canister; and finally the pot support unfolds and slides (with notches) onto the burner unit. The burner unit has a red button for the piezo igniter, and a black knurled plastic knob for adjusting fuel flow. Here it is fully assembled:

The pot itself is made of anodized aluminum, with long folding handles covered in rubberized material, and has a neoprene pot cozy around its circumference. The handles don't quite fold flat against the side of the pot due to interference by the pot cozy. The pot also has score lines in half liter/quart gradations up to its capacity of 1.5 L (1.5 qt); it actually appears it could hold a bit more than that, though the instructions make it clear that 1.5 L (1.5 qt) is the limit and that caution should be used even when exceeding the 1 L (1 qt) line.

The most unique thing about the pot, in my opinion, is the FluxRing welded to its bottom:

The pot nests onto the pot support on the burner unit. I found it takes a bit of care to get it to align properly, as all of the pot support wings must be kept inside the inner ring of the FluxRing, and they're narrow enough to slip into the grooves between the fins. The pot does not lock in place, but instead just rests on the support ring.

Here's a picture of the pot on top of the stove, ready to cook (note the use of the lid flipped upside down; Jetboil recommends this or placing it loosely on the pot right side up):

In this configuration, the stove seems reasonably stable, though not markedly so compared to other stoves I've used.

One minor note: I noticed some markings the bottom of my pot (as seen inside the bottom of the pot in the second picture in this review). I emailed the manufacturer to ask about this, and they said that these are just the weld marks from the FluxRing, and that the anodizing is done over those marks, after the FluxRing is melded to the pot. So, no worries.

I did an initial test at home to make sure the stove worked, and to see how well the stove performed versus Jetboil's claimed boil times. I'll go into more detail on this in my field report, but I'll summarize here by saying that the stove exceeded the boil claims at home. In my 70° F (21° C) kitchen, 2 cups (1/2 L) of tap water started to come to a boil in under 1 minute 30 seconds, and was at a rolling boil well before two minutes!

Field Information

My outdoor recreation for the upcoming four months will take place mainly in California and Oregon, with a few trips to the east coast and single trips to Hawaii and Belize. The majority of my backpacking trips will take place in the Central and Northern Sierra Nevada (Yosemite, Mt. Shasta, Lassen Peak, Sequoia/Kings Canyon, and several trips in the Tahoe and Donner Pass areas), and will include both late season snow-camping and regular spring camping. I'll be canoeing on fresh water lakes and rivers, and we'll occasionally car camp mostly at beach sites along the California and Oregon coasts. The compact and modular nature of the GCS also seems to lend itself to day hiking and travel applications, so I'll also test it for those.

Altitudes will range from sea level through at least 12,000 ft (3,660 m), and temperatures from the 80s F (27+ C) down to as low as the 20s F (approx. -5 C) if I get lucky. Climate conditions will include snowy, rainy, windy and sunny Sierra Nevada spring weather; coastal Pacific storms, moderate coastal California weather, and summer Hawaiian and Caribbean tropical weather. Due to our heavy snowfall this year, there should still be some snow around in the Sierra Nevada with which I can try melting in addition to regular water-boiling and cooking.

Test Plan

I'll bring the Jetboil GCS on all of my backpacking and hiking trips where I'll be cooking for two or more people, as well as on many of my solo-cooking trips. I'll also bring it along for canoeing and kayaking, and will test boiling and cooking with it at home.

I'll be assessing:

• General usability: how easy is the stove to set up, light, adjust, and cook with in the field; how well do all of its components mesh; how easy is it to change canisters and check fuel levels?
• Cooking performance: how well does the system boil water; fry foods; simmer; sauté; perform other cooking tasks; how fast does it boil water in varying conditions?
• Fuel usage: how much fuel does the stove use in varying conditions (how do altitude, temperature, wind and other environmental factors affect the stove's performance); is the "FluxRing" all it's made out to be, and does the system really boil "twice the water in half the time"?
• Stability: how effective and stable are the plastic legs included in the GCS, especially with a fully-loaded pot of boiling goo; how many types of canisters do they work with?
• Is it possible to cook using other pots; if so, what are the differences from the included pot with cozy and heat exchanger in terms of effectiveness and efficiency?
• Snow melting: how well does the stove serve for melting snow; how long does it take to generate a liter/quart of boiling water from snow in the conditions I encounter?
• Is the stove suited for careful use in a tent vestibule?
• The pot's size and configuration: it's advertised as a cooking system for "groups"; is the pot really big enough for cooking for groups, or just for boiling water for them; how well do the shape and handle and lid of the pot support cooking and related tasks; does the shape of the pot work well, or trap food in sharp corners; is it easy to remove the pot from the stove to facilitate cooking or serving?
• The anodized pot material: how well does it work for cooking and browning; how easy is it to clean; how durable is it?
• The cozy: how effective is the cozy for "boil and soak" cooking; does it retain heat well; does the heat exchanger work in reverse (sucking heat out of the pot) after the stove is turned off? Do the plastic base cover and lid have any insulative ability?

As always, I'll take pictures to document the product and my use of it in the field.

I'll also be looking at packability. durability, clogging and maintenance (how easy is the stove to pack up, and does it fit easily into my packs and other components of my "kitchen"; how well do the stove and its accessories hold up; does it need any cleaning or maintenance, and how hard is it to perform that maintenance if it becomes necessary; is there any added wear and tear from rattling of loose components in the pot?)

As always, I'll take pictures to document the product and my use of it in the field. I've also weighed and labeled both fuel canisters, and will weigh them after each trip (and each use at home) to track fuel usage. I am using a permanent marker to write the dates and weights on the bottom of each canister, and will also keep track of cooking types (e.g. boiling water or cooking food, and for how long), stove fuel flow settings, and ambient conditions.

My Background for Test

I have way too many stoves in my gear closet, ranging from an ancient "grasshopper" propane stove to various models of alcohol and liquid fuel stoves, to a couple of Esbit stoves and a SnowPeak canister stove. I like to pack lightweight for hiking outside of winter, and my favorite type of stove for that usage, as well as for canoeing, is my canister stove. But I also backpack with larger groups, car camp now and again, and my favorite season of all for backpacking is winter, when liquid fuel stoves are often the better choice because I have to melt snow.

I'm intrigued by the fuel-efficient nature of the Jetboil GCS, as it would seem to allow the stove to serve for all of these scenarios, and more to the point for this test, I can test it in all of those conditions and usages. I'll also note that we've had an exceptionally prolific year for snow, so it looks like we'll have decent snow for winter-style camping for at least another month in most of the Sierra Nevada, and well beyond that in some locations. I should thus be able to get in at least one snow-melting trip, and possibly a couple.

While my favored cooking style these days is to boil water and dump it into a zipper lock bag of dried food in a cozy (thus conserving fuel), our local backpacking group also does occasional "gourmet" trips. For car camping and other heavier-weight trips, I do like to cook real food, and often do so for groups of two or more. So, I'll be sure to use the stove not just for melting snow and boiling water, but also for cooking, frying, simmering, and pan baking.

Summary

The Jetboil Group Cooking System is a modular cooking system including pot, stove with pot support, canister tripod stand, pot cozy, lid and base cover. Its standout feature is its efficiency, with claimed boil times of 2 minutes for 2 cups (1/2 L) of water and low fuel consumption.

The system is a bit on the heavy side compared to a similar-capacity system based on separate components, but is cleverly designed and promises greater efficiency than any such ad hoc system.

Things I like:

• Amazing boil times with good efficiency, based on my initial tryout
• Nice quality
• Collapses down into a neat kit

Things I don't like:

• Somewhat heavy
• Piezo lighter and sharp edges of pot ring exposed to jostling in packed state

Thanks to BackpackGearTest and Jetboil for giving me the opportunity to participate in this test.

Reviews > Cook Gear > Stoves > Jetboil Group Cooking System > Steve Nelson > Initial Report