Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board MSR Windboiler – Wind Testing

With their new Windboiler, MSR has definitely done a great job on the "human factors" (better handle, better lid, a cup that's actually useful, more slots so the pot attaches more easily, etc.), but if the Windboiler isn't significantly better than a Jetboil at handling wind, then it's really just a prettied up Jetboil.

So, how well does a Windboiler handle wind? I decided to find out.

I did several head to head tests with a Jetboil Sol in light to moderate winds. I could see that the Windboiler remained fairly constant while the Jetboil would lose ground (boil time would lengthen) as the winds increased, but I didn't really have the sense that I fully understood the capabilities of the Windboiler. Time to put it to a real test I thought.

So I headed to the windiest spot I could think of in Southern California – the San Gorgonio Pass area near Banning, CA, home to many a wind turbine.



I picked a spot for testing at the mouth of a canyon where I thought winds would come whistling through. I was not disappointed.


I have put up two videos on my blog that I think show the difference in the way a Jetboil behaves vs. a Windboiler in significant winds. Have a look if you like.

MSR Windboiler – Wind Testing

HJ

Hi Great charts and test results ,always brings up the old white gas stoves wind and cold , I switched to cans long ago but never found one light that would work well in the wind made all kinds of wraps / shields and wind blocks but something would always fail wind would change direction or strong gust blow snow into the burner, so the Windboiler might be the ticket.

OH last stove I tried for the all season was the Euro multifuel by primus well A PCT hiker came in and said his system was leaking and could I look at it , some how he had a water bottle type bottle and when the heat would build it would blow fuel out the seal, I gave him my bottle and pump he was on his way. I thought easy replacement short story Primus changed the systems and now can't find the correct pump/bottle. This was a very good stove you could use cans white gas, car gas diesel and cow chips if you were caught out on the plains!

Thanks, Doug.

I was pretty impressed at just how well the Windboiler did particularly after the Jetboil pretty much got creamed. I just couldn't keep the Jetboil lit.

I expected that the Windboiler would do well in wind -- on full blast. I did not expect it to do well on very low settings. What actually happened was that the Windboiler didn't give a rip. Even on its lowest setting, it never batted an eye, and the gusts were coming down that canyon and swirling in odd patterns around the big boulder I was sheltering next to.

Do you know what model and year your Primus is? Primus makes some really nice high end white gas stoves. Do you have any photos? Maybe I can ask around and source a pump for you. It's a shame to let a good stove sit just for lack of a pump.

When it gets really cold, teens and below, I still start thinking white gas even though there are ways to make a canister stove work in cold weather. Canister stoves work better in cold the higher one goes, about 2 Fahrenheit degrees per 1,000 feet in elevation gained. Up above 10,000', you can use a canister stove at temperatures that are 20 F degrees colder than you could at, say, near sea level in Death Valley. I usually say don't go colder than 20F with a canister stove, but you could probably go down close to 0F if you're above 10,000'. Do EVERYTHING you can of course to start with a warm canister (sleep with it, put it under your armpit under your shirt, etc.) and keep the canister warm (typically by putting it in a bowl of tepid water). ALWAYS use isobutane/propane mixes (MSR, Snow Peak, Jetboil) and not "regular" butane/propane mixes (Coleman, Optimus, Primus, etc.).

HJ