Stanley Cookpot,(Adventure Cook Set) and Why I Like it-MLCB Post #461, February 13, 2020

Some people would like their camping gear to be flawless. That’s fine, provided you are willing to pay the freight for flawless. I have one criticism about the Stanley Adventure Cook Set. The cups included are about as useful as teats on a boar hog. I have no idea why they are included. They add weight and take up space better used by a spork or a little alcohol stove. I would be willing to pay a bit more for that, and that would make it an actual adventure cook set. As it stands, it is a cooking pot with a lid, and two nearly useless cups.

But it is probably the finest cooking pot with a lid I have seen. Especially for less than $15. I sort of wish it was wider. But the workmanship and design are nearly flawless. I like that the handle locks into position, both open and closed, as closed, the handles hold that pot lid on. I like the lid. It functions as both a steam vent and a strainer. Those are two things that are very valuable in camp cooking pots, and you don’t always see them. The pot is light for a stainless steel pot. It has graduations showing ounces. Importantly, an Ozark Trail cup will fit the outside of it. You could use a pot scrubber to make it fit tightly.

I went to Wal*Mart looking for their GSI clone cook set which has bowls and a bigger, wider pot. Those seem to have left the building. I have heard some reviews which say the non-stick coating flakes off and other quality control issues. I was on the fence about going to the Stanley, and went to two Wal*Marts, Target, and Dicks’ before I bought this. I live in the Midwest, and sometimes the aforementioned suppliers seem to have little or no camping gear as regards cooking. Wal*Mart appeared to have the best selection, followed by Dicks, who seemed to have space for more camping gear than they had.

If the weather had been better, I would have sojourned farther to Bass Pro/Cabelas, but it wasn’t. As it was, though, I am very happy with this outfit for touring. It will do a good job for basic one day trips when I don’t want to carry the backpacking stove and gas canisters. Sometimes I like just using the Trangia or the little wood stove. Sometimes, I just heat coffee or tea. But this would provide capacity and measurements for freeze-dried meals or other prepackaged entrees. I also saw some single servings of popular freeze dried meals at the Wal*Mart. It’s the only place I see single servings of that.

The pot is made of food grade 18/8 stainless steel. It is not a magnetic variety of stainless steel. The cups also double the weight of this pot, another reason to ditch the cups. It is 14 ounces with cups, and 8 ounces without. Around any fiery situation like this, I usually have leather gloves on. This insulates me from heat of cooking pot handles, and is a good safety measure against mishaps. Often, I use such gloves for riding gloves as well. I usually use Harbor Freight’s cheaper leather gloves. I will now have to get this little cook set adapted for my use, and take it out on the road for some real world experience. Once it stops snowing.

A Simple Cooking Outfit MLCB Post #258, February 14, 2018

My basic cooking kit is not light, compared to what it could be. It is not modern, as many have come to see it. It is not attractive or superb. But my basic cooking kit is very functional and versatile. It consists of a Sterno Stove, a spacer, and a Trangia burner. The aluminum bottle has been replaced by stainless steel, so the bottle may be used for heating as well. It was inexpensive, and it ticks all the boxes for my brand of cycle touring.
I got the Sterno Stove from a Goodwill or some such thrift store, and I think it cost me a dollar. This one is vintage, and has a center ring instead of prongs coming toward the center, as the new ones have. It is nicer than some of those that were made in the seventies, which were just a grid with sides and a bottom, with an open front. Those are good for burning wood, But this one can fit a Trangia better, and the more enclosed construction works better for cooking with a burner. I’ve never considered using sterno in this stove, as I find sterno is only good for warming, or maintaining heat. This model is from the 50’s or early sixties, I’m presuming. It burns wood as well, quite efficiently.
I have the spacer with the Trangia for a simple reason. The Sterno Stove places the bottom of the pan too far from the flame. I find that the flame and the pot bottom on any stove should be about one inch apart for the best heating with the most efficiency. It saves on fuel and time to have the Trangia burner in the “sweet spot” like this. Some of the other homemade stoves I have also work well in this arrangement, especially fancy feast stoves.
Trangia stoves are great. They can hold and transport fuel, they have fabric in them so they can better and more efficiently carry fumes from the alcohol to the flame ports in the top of the stove. Some of the other “knock off” stoves lack this. They have pretty good durability, no moving parts, and require a minimum of maintenance. They are always ready to go, with little left to buy. I use Heet in them often. Denatured alcohol comes in large containers, and I use this when I can. But supplies run out on the road, and Heet is pretty ubiquitous, it comes in a small plastic container, and it is quite an efficient fuel in these burners. The fuel can be made to work in most weather, and in all weather using my setup. The Trangia should be insulated from the ground, and the Sterno Stove and spacer do this nicely.