Comments on Gear Talk with Jason Klass: Materials for Alcohol Stove Windscreens

I enjoyed following the whole entry, I always thou...

2011-07-04T09:44:46.444-07:00

I enjoyed following the whole entry, I always thought one of the main things to count when you write a blog is learning how to complement the ideas with images, that's exploiting at the maximum the possibilities of a ciber-space! Good work on this entry!

Great post, Jason. Very informative! I made my cur...

2011-06-20T11:49:16.083-07:00

Great post, Jason. Very informative!
I made my current windscreen from a can of babies formula. I cut both sides and cut it from top to bottom. This way it is elastic enough to fit itself exactly to the pot.
See a picture on the bottom of this page: http://www.campstovewizard.com/pepsi-can-stove.html

Edgar

I'm a big fan of flashing. I make my screen so...

2011-06-06T17:09:22.108-07:00

I'm a big fan of flashing. I make my screen so it stores inside the pot against the wall. The stove, lighter, salt shaker and spork go inside too. Even the alcohol fits if it's a short trip.

It also serves as a pot stand. Go to zenstoves.net/potstands.html and scroll down to see various ways to make screen/pot stand combinations.

It's light, convenient and has won a lot of converts over the years.

Thanks Jason. I will be on the look out for toolin...

2011-06-06T10:42:44.970-07:00

Thanks Jason. I will be on the look out for tooling foil (aluminum).

Matt, Titanium sheeting is very difficult to work...

2011-06-06T08:11:07.249-07:00

Matt,

Titanium sheeting is very difficult to work with. It's very springy and it would be hard to get a nice circular shape. But someone makes titanium foil and I think that might work if it's somewhat malleable.

The weight difference between these 3 materials is pretty negligable. They're all light.

Nice post Jason. How do the three options you wen...

2011-06-06T08:06:48.567-07:00

Nice post Jason. How do the three options you went over compare to each other weight wise? Also, I know you've worked with titanium in the past when making a trowel, and had difficulties it, but have you tried making a windscreen with ti yet? I was thinking about picking some up,(http://www.suluk46.com/products%20%20-%20P5%20Ti%20Sheet.html) but wasn't sure if it was worth the hassle.

Chris- Thanks for the warning. I should have ment...

2011-06-06T05:33:29.554-07:00

Chris-
Thanks for the warning. I should have mentioned that in the post.

I've made my first windscreen out of a disposa...

2011-06-06T05:19:29.354-07:00

I've made my first windscreen out of a disposable turkey roasting pan. I bought mine at a grocery store. I admit it took some effort to get the pan smoothed out flat but I did it with a wooden spoon on a flat surface. I then cut the metal with just some household scissors.

I've since found that you can buy large disposable, rectangular casserole pans at a restaurant supply store that don't require so much flattening.

I add 1/4 inch to the width of each aluminum strip and then bend a 1/8 inch hem along each long edge and then crimp the hem with a pair of regular pliers. This smooths out the rough edge, but mainly adds a little more rigidity to the metal.

Rather than folding the windscreen for storage or transport, I like to roll mine up (fewer folds to smooth out when I'm preparing to cook. I don't roll it up from one end to another like you would for a sleeping bag. Rather, I fold it in half and then roll it from the fold to the ends. In this way all I need to do is grab the loose ends on the roll and pull apart. It zips open quickly and then can be easily molded around my pot and stove.

Redrobin- Ah, I forgot about that one. Jim's ...

2011-06-06T05:15:22.002-07:00

Redrobin-
Ah, I forgot about that one. Jim's got a good design there but I like windscreens that can fit inside my pot.

Jason, I have to put up a safety warning about put...

2011-06-06T05:14:37.997-07:00

Jason, I have to put up a safety warning about putting the flashing material in the oven. Most of the coatings on this stuff are PVC based (or similar)and when heated release chlorine gas and other nasty stuff.

¡¡¡PLEASE DON'T HEAT ALUMINUM FLASHING INDOORS!!!

Use the toaster over on the back porch or in the gas grill to do the same thing.

Hi Jason - what about Jim Woods Kite Screen? I am ...

2011-06-06T03:53:02.345-07:00

Hi Jason - what about Jim Woods Kite Screen? I am making one now out of Tyvek. I'll let you know how it goes. Rob

The foil used to make those "disposable"...

2011-06-05T20:41:08.766-07:00

The foil used to make those "disposable" pans for baked goods or for oven liners is a little more durable than your second option, heavier duty than foil, and easy to come by at a dollar store. A little work to smooth out the crimped ridges and whatnot but oven liners have fewer of those.