Hobo Sterno Type Stove-Directions

This stove weighs only 8 ounces, yet it gives complete autonomy in fuel supply.

All you need is a small tin can with no rough edges.

Melt old candle wax or paraffin in the can, adding 100% cotton balls for the wick and combustible fuel.

As the fuel depletes, add cardboard, other cotton balls and bits of candle or paraffin to replenish.

Just be sure to have some cotton exposed which is soaked in wax. Pure cotton will not be hot enough to melt the wax and it will just burn out. You can't light wax without a wick. Both of them work wonders together.

The directions for making your own wax alternative fuel sticks is found in this blog, on January 23, 2011

I love this hobo stove because it is so easy to make, an ideal project for scout troops.

It utilizes materials easy to find and recycles materials.

New Hobo Gear Page

My http://brawnyview.blogspot.com/

has a new page added, The Hobo Series. On that page I have embedded five different videos I have made for my

http://www.youtube.com/user/brawny03

http://www.youtube.com/user/brawny03 channel.

My first project was an ultralight wood burning stove made from a tin can.I used simple tools: a hammer, a regular screw driver, and some heavy work gloves.

When I completed the stove, I found it only weighed 3.5 ounces. When I used it on the Foothills Trail, I did not need to bring fuel, a pot support, or windscreen. This was a good trade off in terms of weight.

Because it did rain a little, I had to select my fuel from branches that were off the ground. Once the fire is going, it is easy to maintain indefinitely. This is really handy for folks that love endless piping hot cups of coffee, and a simple campfire which takes little fuel.

You can keep this stove system in a plastic bag which is then placed into a ditty bag. I found it to be very useful.

Not Gear, But Passion

Thru hiker and best friend, Rainmaker always told me its not the gear that takes you to Kahtadin, you take the gear.

The best gear in the world doesn't make a through hiker, but a through hiker can make it with just about anything. Its the passion, an almost crazy obsession with finishing the complete trail in one calendar year, be it the 2, 178 mile Appalachian Trail, the 470 mile Colorado Trail, or the 2658 mile Pacific Crest Trail. A person has to want it so much they will endure the pain and loneliness a long distance hiker will inevitable face, especially if they are solo.

A thru hiker, or through hiker of the Appalachian Trail can sleep in shelters the entire distance and not even require a shelter. Tarps, hammocks, double wall dome tents are all found in successful long distance hiker's packs. Granny Gatewood hiked the AT using just a shower curtain for her shelter and tennis shoes. Ram bunny had a sun dress on last time I met her in Maine. Most of my gear was home made, second hand or Wal Mart .

I find simplicity and minimalism aid a long hike. Its not lack of expensive gear, or having all brand name gear that makes or breaks a long distance hike. Its passion, maintaining a basic level of health, and ability to withstand pain.

Its really interesting to see what people are carrying, what they're cooking on and with. Food as simple as oatmeal or as complicated as prepackaged. The debate over synthetic or down, sleeping bags or sleeping quilts, an inflatable pad, or closed cell, full length or shorty will probably never be over.

With all that in mind, the Alternative Gear page was written and will be updated periodically. The Gear Reviews listed on this blog site are more about designs and options than actually recommending a given item. The features incorporated into a piece of gear show how well a company understands its clients.

Check out the pages, and write me if me have anything to add or have suggestions. My gear lists and trail journals can be found on my homepage at
http://www.trailquest.net/BRindex.html

Alternative Gear-Cooking

I made this hobo stove for fun and well, for frugality. It takes just a few pine cones, some twigs, tiny pieces of wood to actually cook on.

But, the practical side of me just had to know what it would be like under real circumstances.

How easy would it be to pack? Would it be messy, cumbersome, unreliable?

I posted a video on YouTube showing the results.

http://www.youtube.com/user/brawny03

I found it was really nice to boil water without worrying about fuel. I really liked the campfire aspect in the evening. A regular fire takes a lot of firewood, but this one was cute and sweet with out placing high demands on fuel gathering.

Dead branches in trees, twigs and dry bark are all easy to find and break into pieces without heavy equipment like saws, hatchets and bowie knives.

By concentrating the fuel into this small area a person can cook in a relatively short period of time, make coffee and relax.

I also used this same stove on a three day trial run on the Foothills Trail. It rained, but I was able to cook in the light drizzle. It is unpredictable enough to not cook too near the tent.

An easy way to pack this stove is wait for it to completely cool. Then, shake out all the ashes. Now, using a large plastic bag (like a walmart bag) place your hand on the bottom of the outside of the bag. Reach up and into the bag and grab the stove pulling it into the bag without actually touching it with your bare hand. This way, all the soot stays on the inside of the bag.

Notice how I use my shoe as a cup holder while relaxing near the stove. It insulates the simple plastic cup and keeps it from falling over, too. Just a simple ultralight trick I use while minimizing the pack load.

An Ultralight Pancake Flipper

I never thought I'd use an ice scraper backpacking, but turns out it makes a great ultralight kitchen tool.
We had blueberry pancakes on the menu, but, What to flip them with?
One of these weighs only 14 grams (1/2) ounce and did the job admirably.

Any trip with less than 10 mile days on the agenda can be classified as easy enough for a few luxuries like baking tools, pillows, camcorders, and experiments. At least in my book.

Tarp Modification

I'm a big fan of gear modifications.

Now, as a gear tester, I first completely test the item as sent to me. Taking into account the designers passion, I feel its very important to give them the benefit of the doubt, and find the method to the madness.

But, when its all said and done, a little modification to suit an individual's needs goes a long ways.

The above clip shows me adding a guying loop to my new Brooks-Range tarp. I found the "through hole" just wasn't optimal for me. A guying loop would be perfect. They are simple to add, you can easily do it too. If you have a shelter that would benefit from a guy line, simply watch the above video and go for it.

Today I added a new page to this site called "Alternative Gear".

Hope it helps your budget and opens new ideas to the survivalist in us all.