Ultralight Multi-Fuel Stove (23g+16g)

Ultralight Dual Fuel Stove

This little stove has seen me through a couple of trips and is my favourite ultra-light alternative to cooking on gas. This one can use either Alcohol or Esbit. To use Alcohol you will need the 19g Ultralight Alcohol Stove.

On its own I use it with small Esbit/Hexamine tabs. The most common tab size available in the UK is rather large - straight from Army Issue - and will not fit. Genuine ESBIT tablets will fit as will the round tablets manufactured by Gelert. The larger tablets are best broken up.

The stove dimensions are all based around the Titanium mug that I use for cooking. The stove is designed to fit inside the mug for travel. In making this stove I'd suggest that you also make it to fit the dimensions of your mug!

Ultralight-Multi-Fuel-Stove

Materials Required

All materials are available at the larger B&Q stores in the UK. Obviously this stove doesn't use much but you can only buy 1m lengths of some stock even if it is cheap!

  • 10x10x1mm Aluminium L stock - the base support
  • 10x2mm Aluminium strip - the legs
  • Aluminium sheet (it's all thin but not too thin so pick one!)
  • 3mm or 1/8th Rivets (you need 6) + suitable drill
  • Hand Rivet Gun (can be bought in B&Q and often Car stores)

Construction 1

I will assume that you are using your own mug as a starting point.

  • Use paper and pen to draw around your mug base
  • Within this circle draw an equilateral triangle so that it fit comfortably inside the circle
  • Carefully cut out the paper triangle and see if it will drop into the base of your mug
  • Trim it until it drops in AND has a little wriggle room (maybe 3-5 mm)
  • Measure the sides. Mine are 7.5cm. If yours are less than 5cm you will need to shorten the legs (below)

Ultralight Stove in a Mug

Construction 2

  • Cut 3x 5cm legs from the 10x2mm Aluminium strip
  • Round the leg edges and corners using a file.
  • Cut a length of the 10x10x1mm Right-Angled aluminium that is 3x the length of one of your triangle sides. Mine are 7.5cm so I cut a 22.5 cm strip.
  • Mark the strip into thirds
  • Very careful cut a wedge out of one side of the strip at each 1/3 marking so that two wedges are cut. The goal of doing is so that the strip may be folded at this point (see below)
  • On the same side of the strip cut each end to an angle (30°) so that they will not overlap when folded to meet.

Corners shown

Construction 3

  • Carefully bend the L strip at the two cut out points and keep bending until you can form an equilateral triangle. You may need to trip the cut-outs to make it all work.
  • Use that triangle (or your original paper triangle) to mark out and then cut a small triangular piece from the Aluminium sheet.
  • Mark each leg 1cm from one end and in the centre of the strip and drill a hole for a rivet.
  • Mark each side of the folded triangle and also drill a hole 1cm away from each corner. Check reference photos above if not clear

Stove Legs

  • Clamp Right-Angled Triangle and Aluminium Sheet Triangle together and 1 rivet hole on each side
  • Round off the corners and edges of each leg

Construction 3 - Riveting!

  • Rivet the sheet to the base
  • Rivet the legs