Gone are the days of cumbersome tents and sleeping bags, and your backcountry cooking gear shouldn’t be any different. Primus has been a trusted name in outdoor gear for a long time, and their stoves are a highlight of the product line. They sent along the Express Stove Ti for testing and I put it to work boiling water and preparing meals in all sorts of conditions. From high alpine areas to the canyon bottoms, this little stove never stopped cooking.
First things first, the Primus Express Ti is light. At a scant 2.5 ounces this is one of the most lightweight devices on the market. Primus shaved ounces by building the stove out of titanium and aluminum, which also means this little gadget is tough as nails. The design is interesting: three pot supports fold in on themselves for storing. Pull the Express Ti out of its included nylon sack, screw it into a fuel canister, spread the supports out and you’re ready to cook.
The unit is controlled with a twist valve that sits just above the top of the fuel canister. Open it all the way for a fast boil or close it down to simmer. On full blast this baby cranks out 8,200 BTU per hour… now that’s some heat! I found the twist valve to be more responsive than the control devices on similar stoves. Thanks to the masterful control I was finally able to cook pasta without it sticking to my pot, and even scrambled up some delicious eggs (okay, I cooked the eggs in my kitchen, not the backcountry, but you get the idea). The microburner distributes an uniform flame even when opened to full blast, so you’ve only yourself to blame if you are still ruining your dinner.
Lightweight backpackers use their stoves mostly to boil water, which isn’t exactly a tough feat. The Express Ti sets itself apart by being able to handle big water boils with ease. The support arms provide a larger base than most stoves in its class, and that means you can feel free to steam large pots of water without fear. I used the Express Ti to cook large pots of hotdogs while car camping, an activity I usually only trust to a larger stove. At no point did I notice the pot threatening to shake off the supports; in fact, I left the pot sitting where it was to serve the wieners. In the backcountry I liked the fact that I didn’t have to keep my eyes glued to the stove, always wondering if my cup would shake off and waste precious water. Boil times proved to be the same whether I was in the snow at 10,000′ or at the bottom of a desert canyon in spring. The reliability, stability and ease of control are all big wins for this stove.
There are always drawbacks, and though the Express Ti is a near perfect cooking device, I have one big complaint: price. MSRP on this stove is $72. There are many similar stoves on the market that cost about half that and can deliver similar results. However, the other stoves don’t have the stability or bomber build of the Primus, and almost all come with more added weight.
If you’re looking for one of the most lightweight, user friendly backpacking stoves on the market, the Primus Express Ti is it. The price tag may induce a double take, but in life (and camping) you pay for what you get. Add the Express Ti to your backpacking arsenal and you’ll have a minuscule stove that packs one heck of a punch.
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