Tag Archives: MSR Whisperlite

MSR WindPro II Stove: 10 Year Review

Backpacking Gear, , , , , ,
Mountain Safety Research (MSR) WindPro II remote canister stove

Canister stoves are the most popular type of backpacking stoves these days. These stoves, often called “gas” stoves, have two advantages over “liquid” stoves (i.e. Svea 123, MSR WhisperLite, etc.): They are lightweight and incredibly easy to operate.

However, most suffer several deficiencies:

  • Work poorly in windy conditions
  • Some have inadequate pot supports
  • Some have precarious base support
  • Most work poorly or don’t work at all when the ambient temperatures drop below 30° F

The MSR WindPro II solves all these problems. Mitigating the above issues, one might think this is the perfect backpacking stove. Well, maybe. This post will take a journey past to see the evolution of canister stoves, and how they work to help you choose a canister stove if you are in the market to purchase one. Continue reading MSR WindPro II Stove: 10 Year Review →

MSR WhisperLite Stove: 35 Year Review

Backpacking Gear,
1985 model MSR WhisperLite stove in the desert.

A few day ago I wrote about the Svea 123 backpacking stove and wrote,

The Svea 123 is probably the most reliable backpacking stove ever made. It is by far my favorite stove. It doesn’t do any one thing particularly well, but it ALWAYS works. Mine has worked flawlessly for 48 years.

The Svea 123 is an industrial work of art. It is aesthetically pleasing. Made of brass, over a period of time it develops a nice patina. However, as I stated, it doesn’t do any one thing particularly well.

The past year I have been using the WhisperLite more and more; to the point I recently bought a new version of the WhisperLite. In this post I’ll review the features and benefits of the WhisperLite and compare the original version to the newest offering. Continue reading MSR WhisperLite Stove: 35 Year Review →