Jetboil is not your average backpacking stove. It's a personal cooking system engineered to boil water super-fast; in just over two minutes!
Born from the frustration of clunky traditional stoves, Jetboil's founders set out to create something safer, more efficient and easier to use. Because all the parts fit together, both in use and when packed away, it sets up quickly and easily and takes up minimal space in your pack.
How does it work?
Jetboil's all-in-one cooking system combines the burner and the cooking pot into one unit. This helps to maximize fuel efficiency and extend the life of your fuel canister.
It also helps simplify backcountry cooking as you heat and eat (or drink) from the same apparatus. Because the cooking cup and burner are attached securely together and stand upright with the help of a stabilizing tripod, messy spills become a thing of the past.
Designed to be one of the safest backcountry cooking systems available, Jetboil's 2015 stoves come with a newly designed burner that secures the igniter to protect it from bumps as you travel.
It's all about the FluxRing
The secret to Jetboil is its heat transfer efficiency. The old-school way to maximize heat transfer is to use a pot with a large cooking surface, but that means hauling around a big pot.
Jetboil boosts its heat transfer efficiency by welding an aluminum FluxRing to the bottom of all of its cooking pots, pans and cups. This effectively increases the surface area of the smaller cooking vessels through the accordion folded lenght of aluminum.
What do you get with a Jetboil cooking system?
- A FluxRing equipped cooking cup, insulated with a color-change heat indicator cozy.
- An adjustable, stainless steel burner.
- A push button igniter.
- A lid that allows for drinking.
- A fuel can stabilizer.
- The bottom doubles as a measuring cup and a bowl.
- A 100g Jetpower fuel canister (sold separately) fits inside the unit while traveling.
What's so special about Jetpower fuel?
Jetpower fuel is a blend of propane and iso-butane. The propane gives Jetpower fuel high vapor pressure, while the iso-butane keeps the pressure constant as the fuel levels become low.
What about winter?
Burner output does decrease when it's cold. That's because the lower the air temperature, the lower the pressure of the gas in the canister. The key to stove efficiency in the winter is to keep the fuel as warm as possible.
- When not in use, keep the fuel canister in a warm coat pocket during the day and in your sleeping bag at night.
- Keep the fuel warm while in use by insulating the bottom of the canister with a small piece of foam between it an the snow or other cold surface.
- Use a hand-warmer on the bottom of the canister while you cook.
- Keep a spare canister warm so that you can swap out the cold one as you cook.
Better yet, buy the winter stove, the Joule. The Joule works by giving you liquid fuel performance through the convenience of a canister by inverting it. Once upside down, the canister delivers the fuel in liquid form instead of gas. The advantage is better performance in colder temperatures because the vapor pressure doesn't change while the stove is in use.
Which model is right for you?
Gravity Gear sells three Jetboil models:
Flash
- The Flash is designed as a personal cooking system. It lights with the click of a button and serves up two cups of boiling water in just over 2 minutes.
Sumo
- The Sumo is Jetboil's group cooking system. It's a great tool for the full range of backcountry cooking needs, from quick water heating, to snow melting and simmering. It allows for a range of packing combinations and is compatible with all of Jetboil's accessories.
Joule
- The Joule is designed for backpacking or mountaineering groups and winter use. It offers consistent heat output in cold temperatures with its inverted fuel delivery system. Its 10,000 BTU burner gives you the power to boil water fast, yet still offers excellent simmer control for cooking.
