OR - (Revised) Olicamp Xcelerator Titanium Stove with XTS Pot - Dan Hotchkiss

Here is my updated OR, link to HTML version in test folder is here: http://tinyurl.com/gv73fb8 http://tinyurl.com/gv73fb8
 

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 Owner Review - Olicamp Xcelerator Titanium Stove with XTS Pot - Dan Hotchkiss
  
 Reviewer Information
 Name: Dan Hotchkiss
 Age: 39
 Gender: Male
 Height: 6’1” (1.85 meters)
 Weight: 230 lbs (104 kg)
 Email address: [email protected]
 Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
 Date: October 19, 2016
 Backpacking Background: I have been hiking for at least 10 years. My day hikes range from short outings in regional parks up to 5+ mile (8+ km) days at or above the treeline in National Parks. Within the last two years, now that my children are old enough, I have gotten back into camping after many years away. My camping consists mostly of outings with my kids, some car camping as well as backpacking a few miles (km) for overnighters. Having an extremely light pack is not a top priority for me, but everything needs to be justified. 
  
 Product Information
 Manufacturer: Olicamp
 Year of Manufacture: 2015
 URL: http://www.olicamp.com/
  
 Manufacturer Specs
  
 Stove -
 Weight: 3.5 oz (98 g)
 Size: 3" x 3.5" (76 mm x 89 mm)
 Ignition: Manual
 Output: 9,560 BTU/hr (2,802 watts) 
 MSRP: US$69.95
  
 Pot -
 Weight: 6.7 oz (190 g)
 Size: 32 oz (.95 Liter) 4.5"x5.3" (114 mm x 135 mm)
 Hard Anodized Aluminum
 MSRP: US$29.95
  
 Combo MSRP: US$89.95
  
 Product Description
  
 The Olicamp Xcelerator Titanium with XTS pot is a remote canister stove with a 32 oz (.95 Liter) hard anodized, aluminum pot. The system is designed to offer some of the benefits of a self contained heat exchanger system, while being significantly more flexible to varying conditions.
 The Xcelerator Titanium stove is a very compact and light weight stove, weighing as little as many direct canister stoves on the market. I measure 3.7 oz (105 g) for the stove. The XTS pot is a 32 oz (0.95 liter) capacity, hard anodized pot with heat exchanger fins spot welded to the bottom perimeter. In addition, a silicone like lid (rubbery, but doesn’t feel greasy like traditional silicone) is provided. I measured 6.7 oz (170 grams) for the pot and 1.1 oz (31 g) for the lid. Completely unfolded, I measured the stove to sit 2.6" (66 mm) from ground to pot supports while the effective diameter of the unfolded pot supports is 5.5" (140 mm) across. The XTS pot sits just under 5.5" (140 mm) tall and 5" (127 mm) in diameter with the lid on. The pot has stamped in graduations showing 8, 16, 24 & 32 oz; but no metric markings.
  
  Usage Conditions
  
 I have owned the Xcelerator and XTS pot for about a season now. I have used it on multiple campouts, although no higher than about 900 ft (274 m) in altitude.  I have cooked about 7 or 8 meals with the combo while camping, in addition to heating water for cleaning dishes, as well as hot chocolate. One particular night involved cooking through a significant rain shower where the stove lit without issue. It has performed well boiling water for freeze dried backpacker bag meals as well as cooking noodles, and soup. The precise control over flame height has even allowed me to dry bake muffins in the pot, on a number of occasions.
  
 Review
  
 First and foremost, although this is a remote canister stove, it does not have a “preheat” loop in the fuel line. As such, it should not be attempted to invert a canister in an effort to sustain burner performance in cold conditions. This will cause liquid fuel to be ejected and can lead to an uncontrollable fire. 
  
 Although many people would question the idea of owning a remote canister stove that doesn’t allow for inverted canister operation, the Xcelerator offers other benefits, compared to a direct attached canister stove. Namely, stability and the ease of using a windscreen. As I often backpack with my (inquisitive and antsy) children, having a cook system that sits as stable and low to the ground as possible is highly desired. The fact that the canister is remote also allows for easy wind-blocking without worrying about excessive heating of the fuel canister. 
  
 An additional benefit to the remote setup is that the fuel control valve is remote from the burner. This makes for easy adjustment of the flame without reaching under a hot pot, or disturbing a wind-block. The adjustment valve has a large range of adjustment too, making it very easy to adjust down to very low levels for simmering or dry baking.
  
 The folding legs of the Xcelerator provide a stable base for the XTS pot in particular, but also provides ample stability for other pots and pans (within reason) too. Stirring contents one handed while cooking is very stable, with little concern for the pot sliding off or tipping over.
  
 The heat exchanger fins on the XTS pot should offer increased efficiency, resulting in reduced fuel consumption, and in my direct testing (heating the same quantity of water, starting at the same temp, weighing the fuel canister in-between burns, etc.) the XTS pot did use less fuel than a comparably sized pot without fins, about half an ounce (14 g) less fuel in the case of bringing 16 oz (0.47 liter) of tap water to boil. The finned base has a substantial ring of flat metal allowing the pot to sit stably on many different stoves, as opposed to being married solely to the Xcelerator. It can even be used stably with a campfire, if desired. In addition, the ring does a good job of protecting the delicate fins, allowing the pot to be set down on uneven surfaces without worry of fin damage.
  
 The XTS pot has folding handles that provide for stable and comfortable handling of the pot, even when full of boiling water. The lid presses tightly down onto the pot, such that I do not fear the top coming off in my pack, even without the carrying bag. However, one should only set the top loosely on the pot while cooking, as trying to pry the lid off (without burning your fingers) when fully pressed on is quite difficult. The other negative to the system is that the stove will not fit in the pot with an 8 oz (220 g) sized fuel canister, although it fits easily with a 4 oz (110 g) canister.
  
 
 Over the span of the season, both the pot and the stove have held up well, all rivets are still tight, and the anodized coating shows little to no sign of wear. I expect to get many more years of service out of them.