Reviews > Cook Gear > Utensils > Trangia Billy Grips or Pot Lifters > Owner Review by Ralph Ditton

I have been walking the Bibbulmun Track in sections over four years. My goal is to complete the 964 km (603 mi) and become an end to end walker. So far I have completed approximately two-thirds of the Track from North to South, and a quarter in the opposite direction. I have evolved from carrying a heavyweight load -- approximately 28 kg (62 lb) including food and water--to being a midweight backpacker, averaging 18 kg (38 lb) at the start of a trip. My trips are usually between three to five days duration.

Product Information
Manufacturer: Trangia
Made in: Sweden
Year of Manufacturer: Not stated
Model: 602510
Material: Aluminium
Listed Weight: Not stated
Manufacturer's URL: http://www.trangia.se
MSRP: Not listed

My Measurements
Weight: 47 g (1.66 oz)
Length: Top handle 105 mm (4.13 in)
               Bottom handle 125 mm (4.92 in)
Width: Top handle 24 mm (0.94 in)
             Bottom handle 19 mm (0.55 in)
Diameter of Notch formed for rounded rims when
handles are closed: 4.5 mm (0.18 in)
Diameter of Notch formed when handles
are fully open: 8 mm (0.31 in)

Product Description
The spondonical  is a tool designed to grip onto pots, billies, bowls, frying pans and lids to lift them off a stove when hot and to hold them  to prevent spilling when stirring the food being cooked. It has the appearance of a pair of pliers with a bent head.
The top  handle (refer to picture below) has eight small holes of 5 mm (0.2 in) with four aligned along each edge and four larger holes with a diameter of 11.5 mm (0.45 in) down the centre of the handle.
The bottom handle also has eight holes of 6 mm (0.24 in) aligned along each edge and four larger holes with a diameter of 9.5 mm (0.37 in) down the centre of the handle.
.
top view of the spondonical
The manufacturer claims that the holes in the spondonical minimize both heat conduction and weight.  I have never felt any heat from the stove through the handle, even when holding onto a frying pan for lengthy periods cooking sausages and bacon.  
The notch formed in the jaws of the head is designed to fit over folded rims on billies, pots, bowls, pans and frying pans and grip them when I squeeze the handles together.This lets me hold the object  to stir food or lift off a stove. 

spondonical gripping bowl
The shank of the top handle is 17.5 mm (0.69 in) long and this rests against the side of objects with deep sides giving stability to the object being lifted or held in place. The shank of the bottom handle is 13 mm (0.51 in) and this shank goes on the inside of the object being lifted or held in place.

jaws of spondonical

Field Use
I have owned a spondonical for about five years and it has been used on every camping trip where cooking has been required. Last year I purchased another spondonical because with two stoves going at the same time and a friend helping me cook, it is much easier to have two implements on hand when needed. On the odd occasion when I have boiled up a large volume of water in a bowl, it is much safer to use the two spondonicals at the same time, one on either side , to lift the hot bowl off the stove and avoid an accident of spilling/dropping the bowl of boiling water.
Apart from lifting hot containers off stoves, I also use the spondonical to remove lids from my bowls and billy.

lifting lid off bowl


lifting lid off billy
As can be seen in the above photo, the spondonical can fit into the handle section of a billy lid. This method of removing the lid aids in generating greater pulling power.This helps me overcome the slight vacuum inside the  billy caused by the steam inside cooling down if the billy has gone off the boil. This sometimes happens when the water boils quicker than I expected and I am not fully ready.  
Only once have I had a problem in not being able to remove a lid from a bowl because I let the bowl cool down with the lid in place. The bowl, in cooling, contracted and formed a perfect seal with the lid due to the lower pressure inside the bowl. I could not pull it off with my hands, protected with cloth, or using the spondonical. The only way around it was to heat the bowl up again to get the bowl to expand slightly and break the seal and I removed the lid with the spondonical as it was extremely hot.
Another method of removing my billy lid that I use successfully is to use the side of the shanks and place one side under the handle and lift the lid off. This way I can generate a twisting action to break the vacuum of the billy and lid.

using shank to lift lid
To cut down on weight, this year I have left my lids at home and now use my stove's radiation shield as a lid. It is made out of aluminum foil from a baking dish and I use it as a radiation shield when cooking with a large frying pan. To keep the lid in place, I place the spondonical on top. That way I always know where the spondonical is and not lost amongst the clutter on the camp table, especially when other people are using the table at the same time preparing their meals.

spondonical on top of radiation shield/lid
I have found it necessary to use the spondonical as a handle on a frying pan when cooking sausages, bacon, steak and onions due to the constant stirring and turning of the food.  When I do not hang onto the frying pan, it can come off the stove in an ungainly manner, causing much gnashing of teeth. This has happened on three occasions when the support arm of the stove moved out of position, tipping the frying pan onto the table and spilling the food.

hanging onto the frying pan using the spondonical

turning food and using spondonical
As a lot of spondonicals look similar, especially when a number of people are cooking their meals at the same time, I have engraved my spondonicals with my initials to prevent them from growing legs. With my initials I can examine the other spondonicals to find mine as I have experienced that a number of people will grab the nearest one to hand to use with their cooking. There have been occasions when other campers did not have a spondonical due to either being a novice or having left theirs at home and they will ask to borrow mine. I wised up very quickly that I needed to be able to identify my spondonical, hence the engraving of my initials on the inside of the bottom handle near the axis. The spondonical can take a lot of physical abuse such as being dropped, stood on in the dark (when I did not know it had fallen onto the ground), dropped into a fire ring with a fire going (used a stick to lift it out very quickly. The holes in the handles provided a lifting spot).

Likes
Lightweight
Indestructible
Essential
Comfortable to use
Reasonably priced

Dislikes
None

Cleaning
I give the spondonical a good wash in soapy water when I get home to remove any grime and/or food particles that may have adhered to the tool, then I let it air dry on the kitchen sink drying/draining rack. On the odd occasion when the spondonical gets grubby out in the field, I wash it in my washing up water or in plain warm water if I do not have any warm/hot washing water available.

Would I purchase another
I already purchased a second spondonical, so I now always take the two with me on bushwalks. I consider the spondonical an essential piece of camping equipment as I do not want to have my fingers scalded/burnt from hot cooking vessels and I find it awkward trying to use cloth to lift a hot pot from a stove or hang onto a frying pan when cooking.

Reviews > Cook Gear > Utensils > Trangia Billy Grips or Pot Lifters > Owner Review by Ralph Ditton