MSR Stove Roundup

MSR are well known for their range of lightweight high quality stoves, so here at Cheap Tents we’ve picked out our 3 favourites to help try and explain the difference between each MSR Stove.

MSR Windpro

The MSR WindPro stove is one of the most efficient and versatile stoves available, as the name suggests this MSR Stove preforms brilliantly in the wind. Due to the fact this stove has a remote burner, you can safely use a windscreen around it without dangerously enclosing the fuel canister. This massively boosts stove efficiency and the remote burner also offers better stability with large pots than other canister-mounted stoves which makes finding a place to set it up easy and allows you to swap out an empty canister without moving a hot pot.

MSR Windpro Pros

• High heat output
• Low Maintenance
• Usable with windshield

MSR Windpro Cons

• Doesn’t work in very cold conditions

MSR Pocket Rocket

The MSR PocketRocket stove is an extremely lightweight and compact canister mounted stove. The stove is a popular choice for mountain marathons and adventure races. This MSR stove also has an awesome heat output boiling 1 litre of water in about 3.5 minutes. The flame controls are also easily operated wearing gloves, as well as being easily adjusted from a simmer to a boil. The main disadvantage of the MSR Pocket Rocket is the fact that due to the fact it is canister mounted you can’t use a standard windscreen as it would cause heat to build up around the canisister which could be quite dangerous. The Pocket Rocket can also be quite unstable at times. The quickclip wind shield that this model features does seem to provide some protection from light winds but performance suffers greatly in high winds.

MSR Pocket Rocket Pros

• High heat output
• Lightweight
• Low Maintenence

MSR Pocket Rocket Cons

• Difficult to use in windy conditions
• Doesn’t work in very cold conditions

MSR Whisperlite Internationale

The MSR WhisperLite stove is a strong, reliable and versatile multi-fuel MSR Stove. It burns almost anything including white gas, kerosene, and unleaded petrol, making it perfect for backpacking and traveling especially in more remote parts of the world. The stove itself is easy to use (once you’ve read the instructions) you simply pump the bottle to build up pressure, release some fuel into the priming cup and light it. When you flames start to die down then you can open the control valve until you hear a slight hissing and then you’re cooking. This process is slightly more complicated than that of a canister camping stove although I personally rather like it. It feels like you build up some sort of relationship with the stove and get to know how it likes to be treated! The most frustrating thing about the MSR Whisperlite is the simmering control, its very fiddly to get right at first but once you do its no more difficult than any other stove. The other issue with the stove is that when using less clean fuels like petrol or kerosene the whisperlite needs to be cleaned regularly to maintain optimum performance, this is a simple procedure especially with the shakerjet.

MSR Whisperlite Internationale Pros

• Reliable
• Can burn almost any fuel
• Works well in all conditions
• Fuel efficient
• Can be stripped down and maintained in the field

MSR Whisperlite Internationale Cons

• Learning curve
• Awkward simmer control

To sum up it all comes down to personal preference and what the stove is going to be used for, for longer trips I prefer the MSR Whisperlite Internationale due to its reliability, efficiency, ease of obtaining fuel and the fact that I find it easier to judge how much fuel I need and have used. For shorter trips or competitions were weight is a concern then I would go for the pocket rocket its lightweight and lights instantly making it ideal. While the MSR windpro is perfect for people who wants the ease of use of a canister fueled MSR Stove while having stability and being able to use a proper windshield.