Using a Canteen Stove

[@BigHarryBalzac]

The stove goes on the outside of the cup, not inside, when you put the canteen in and put it in the carrer. That's why it's cut out on the front, to go around the handles. I have 2 G.I canteens and canteen pouches, with a canteen cup and stove in one, on my pistol belt, with suspenders, and 4 rifle mag pouches, etc. The canteens both have M1 drinking device caps on them to use while wearing a gas mask. None of t is cheap commercial grade crap either, it's all G.I. stuff. I was never issued a canteen cup stove in the army, and had cold rations and instant "covfefe" 😉 when there was no tent stove or other source of heat around. Cold C-rations in the winter suck, especially if you have something like spaghetti that bounced around in the back of a truck until there are no solid pieces left. Now I have a stock of G.I trioxane (purple) and Esbit-type hexamine (white) fuel tabs so I don't have to go through that when I'm camping. And a pair of large Esbit-type stoves I've made heavy sheet metal grates for the top of, so I can put pots and cans on top.If you turn the cup around the right way instead of backward, like you did for a second, it fits into the stove instead of teetering on top of it. I believe you you really were a marine, but never a soldier. 😀

[@brokenbushcraft]

That was one that came in a gear box, I was equally surprised to see the stove in the cup. Sometimes I just do the video without too much prep. Thats the marine in me saying f-it. I remember the canteen caps that go with the gas masks, I think you can find them at surplus stores. But like you said, they are not cheap. I have a pathfinder canteen set that I like, but it is “designed in America”.

[@peetsnort]

When I was patrolling in the Zambian bush in the 70s we made the same little fire like the video and all 10 guys put their fire buckets. /canteens all around the fire. This works well as a wind break and just the front side of the canteen gets sooty

[@brokenbushcraft]

Yeah a wind break can be very helpful. I had good conditions that day and didn’t think of the “oh shit” factor.

[@lanedexter6303]

Hey, use what you have. I’ve used one of these with trioxane to heat the cup. I think these were around before they started putting heaters into MREs.👍

[@edgarburlyman738]

Yeah I think you're supposed to use fuel cubes in the canteen stove for normal purposes, and only use a stick fire in emergencies, because it turns your cup and case into a sooty mess.

[@brokenbushcraft]

The canteen system is “old school” and is designed for fuel bars. A lot of the soot can be alleviated by not using sappy wood. Wood is easier to get than the fuel bars. I am all for saving money and if that is what you have that is what you use.

[@168Diplomat]

They were designed to be used with trioxin bars. C4 also works well just don’t take its oxygen away to put it out or it will explode. Yes , we had them before MRE’s were issued period let alone with heaters in them.

[@brokenbushcraft]

They have stood the test of time and are worth having especially if you don’t have a metal canteen. Weight is always a thing but the new metal canteens weigh almost nothing. I have seen the heating bars once or twice but I haven’t looked for them.

[@gijr2003]

Triox used to be cheap, I've got a 3 bar box that has $.65 sticker on it. Now I think Esbit cubes are cheaper. There's all kinds of tab/gel fuel now to use with cup stands.

[@168Diplomat]

@@gijr2003 yeah I believe the one the British us is called dragon something it is a gelled alcohol cube/tub type thing

[@ANDREWLewis-p9j]

@168Diplomat fire dragon made by BSB they supply the British army

[@168Diplomat]

@@ANDREWLewis-p9j yeah those are the alcohol gel packs aren’t they ?

[@highdesertdog]

Semper Fi!! When you said, "Like Such" at 1:20 then really KNEW you were a Motivator. Ooorah YUUTT

[@brokenbushcraft]

Semper Fi. Yeah I still have some jargon I can’t shake. Happens to us all. Lol

[@TheWtfnonamez]

Camper from Scotland here. I have a Dutch army version of this and its the only cooking kit I take (cutlery aside ofc) These are legendary for cooking on gas or open fires. They are really compact, robust and practical. There are pros and cons to plastic versus metal canteens, so I take a secondary stainless steel one for boiling, or to use as a hot water bottle. The problem with metal bottles is if they drop onto a hard surface, they immediately get misshapen. I own a few Sigg bottles but Im loathed to use them these days because I severally damaged one in a single accident, plus once dented the lining can start to strip off. Absolutely rate these things, and they will last for many years.

[@brokenbushcraft]

I agree with you on this. The old WWII ones that were steal worked great. But the new China aluminum don’t last as long. I boil in a steal canteen then transfer to my dehydrated foods.

[@TheWtfnonamez]

@@brokenbushcraft Well said sir. Good luck in the woods and Merry Christmas to you and yours

[@brokenbushcraft]

I agree about the metal bottles getting damaged. If it’s dented and made of a cheap material you could get that metal into your drinking water. Pros and cons to everything

[@brokenbushcraft]

@@TheWtfnonamez thanks. I hope you had a merry Christmas and this year is amazing for you

[@bruceyung70]

I do cycling and during cool-temperature rides I pull out my good ole canteen stove and boil myself some simple foods with it. Works great because it's light, compact, plenty of fuel sources and it lasts forever! 0311.

[@brokenbushcraft]

I don’t use it much anymore because I have the jetboil. But if I want to pack light it goes around the canteen. The fuel cells work best but sticks are free and everywhere. 0341!

[@arctodussimus6198]

Semper Fi

[@arctodussimus6198]

I still have the canteen cup I had issued to me in 1977. It has the handle that folds underneath, and the year 1967 engraved on it. I have a couple more with the stove and lid, and a round bottle set, but my original one is still my favorite. I’ve been carrying and using it for almost 47 years now.

[@brokenbushcraft]

That is awesome! The modern ones have the handles on the big curved part. I have one like yours and I love it.

[@BigHarryBalzac]

I remember those canteen cups, too. There was a little latch to keep the handle from folding when you pick the cup up. Both styles work well, but the newer kind is fool-proof. Mine is a U.S. marked 1987 that I bought after I got out of the army. My stove is from '88 made by PAC FAB and has the NSN stamped in it. My canteens are a 1976 R&D, and 2002 H.T.P. My canteen carriers both look like they say S&S GMT MFG CO. but it's hard to see. Instead of bottles of water purification tablets, both of them have C-Ration/MRE emergency toilet paper in the pocket. I found out in basic training to carry your canteen upside-down in the winter. If it's right-side-up, the neck will plug solid with ice from water splashing around. We spent the night out at Fort Dix, New Jersey when it hit 17 below zero, actual temperature. I don't know what the windchill was, but it was cold in those pup tents, and even colder standing watch in a foxhole.

[@brokenbushcraft]

@@BigHarryBalzac I had not heard about putting the canteen upside down in the pouches. If you have the plastic canteen then I would suggest finding some space for some iodine tablets. They can be found in a flat blister type packaging.

[@BigHarryBalzac]

@@brokenbushcraft Take the whole canteen pouch off your pistol belt and put it on upside down. Turn the ALICE clips upside down too in case they come unclipped. The canteen carrier will stay there. Same thing if you have it attached to a rucksack. I also did that with a first aid/compass pouch I have upside down on the left strap of my ALICE gear, with a field dressing ready to drop into my hand. But the clip is right-side-up so the pouch won't fall off if it comes unclipped. If I actually had iodine pills I'd carry them in the canteen pouch pocket, but the last time I had any they went bad before I even used them. I've been drinking ice cold creek water untreated my whole life and never gotten sick form it. If I have a questionable water source and don't have a survival straw on me I'll boil the water. In the marine corps, did you ever drink water from a water buffalo when they used way too much chlorine? I think they double-dosed it once when I was in the army and it was BAD, but it was all we had to drink until they refilled it. The memory of that was why I bought iodine to purify my water in the first place, instead of chlorine. I remember having to thaw out the pipes to bathe in the winter, too. That obviously sucked, but I lived in the field more than half the time I was stationed in Germany. You get used to living in a tent for over half the year, and after awhile you really like being away from the rest of the company.

[@brokenbushcraft]

@@BigHarryBalzac hilarious name by the way. As soon as you mentioned the water buffalo I could taste the chlorine water. I knew guys who would wear their compass pouch upside down. I didn’t do it for fear of it falling out (yes I had a lanyard). All of my gear now is the mollie configuration with the straps and buttons. I usually strap my canteen to my belt along with my knife and compass.

[@frontiersurvival-1]

Awesome content! New subscriber here by way of folks promoting your channel on Facebook. We are happy we clicked the link. We will be watching more.

[@brokenbushcraft]

Thanks for following, I hope the content has something you can use.

[@DistinguishedMenofCulture]

You have it exactly backwards you need to face that stove port at the bottom into the wind. The wind should be going in where you feed the sticks in those holes on the back are where the flames come out, which means it should be downwind not upwind.

[@brokenbushcraft]

That’s a good point about having the wind blow in there to push the fire.

[@johnkeenan5404]

I was in the Corps and did use it. With the old canned c rats you could turn a can into a stove. MRES came with a flame less heater and trioxide was no longer issued. It is best to Use this stove with an Esbit tab vice sticks.

[@brokenbushcraft]

I agree the tabs or other flame assists are better. But we all have access to sticks. The canteen stove is now more of an accessory to lose in the field. 😂

[@556guy4]

Great video. Semper Fi Brother

[@brokenbushcraft]

Yut! Thanks brother

[@0utrider43A]

Still keep a USGI canteen, cup, and stove in my bag. Over the years I have added a stainless steel cup hard cover. For a quick fire you need to use fire tablets.

[@brokenbushcraft]

I have recently discovered a few fire tablets I like. Sterno also works pretty good with it. Having the metal canteen is a lot more useful than the plastic ones we got issued.

[@nomadmarauder-dw9re]

I made a pop can stove that holds +/- 1oz of alcohol. Burn time of 13 minutes. I also added holes to the stove for more ventilation. I use it with the cup in the normal way since it's more stable. I'm not worried about a full boil, since that's rarely needed. But I do know that's the standard test protocol. Also works with a Fancy Feast can or similar. Everything fits into a decent sized stuff sack including a bottle that holds 3 oz of fuel. Or the MOLLE 2 pouch will take a 5 hour energy bottle that holds 2 oz of fuel in a side pocket.

[@brokenbushcraft]

@@nomadmarauder-dw9re get out of my head. lol. That is one of my videos I plan to do soon. I did make a can into a stove in one of my earlier videos.

[@timothytroxell6743]

I would love to see some content about water filtering methods!

[@brokenbushcraft]

I have some in my earlier videos, but always good to go back over some of them.

[@jackofalltrades7822]

So the point of the canteen cup stove is to use as small a fire as possible and to contain it so the fire is not as visible, thus maintaining noise and light discipline. I always just put my canteen cup next to the fire and place coals around it and it boils just fine. You can also boil water with a couple small candles and the stove if you are located inside an unoccupied building. Good video though and it brings back old Army memories.

[@brokenbushcraft]

Good point on the light and smoke discipline. They do make small tablets to burn with it, but I didn’t have any. I haven’t tried a candle, but I might give that a go. Some of the old manuals tell you to put a wind break around the canteen stove or put it in a hole. Thanks for watching. I always appreciate other people’s insight.

[@jesm1194]

Haha had em but didn't use em. True statement. I used mine once in Afghanistan to try and warm up some food late at night.

[@brokenbushcraft]

I get why we had them, but everyone has a personal stove like a jetboil or similar.

[@ANDREWLewis-p9j]

I have the metal canteen version I did think it was for solid fuel tab now I know better

[@brokenbushcraft]

The great thing about the canteen stove, is that it is multi fueled

[@alaskabornheathen8902]

Little did anyone think, place your MRE entree pouch inside the canteen cup of boiling water. Question is though, will the water be safe to drink after or do you need to boil more?

[@brokenbushcraft]

If you put the pouch into boiling water the water should be fine. There might be some cardboard dust, but the water will be safe.

[@BigHarryBalzac]

Back when we had MCIs in the army and no canteen stoves, there were a couple of times we got trioxane fuel tabs and had to figure things out for ourselves. If you empty 2 of the shorter cans, B-2 (Bread) units or D-2 and D-3 (Dessert) unit cans, you can set an M-unit (Mystery meat) can on top, with a space between them for the fuel tab. You didn't have to make an improvised stove out of the cans, either, you just set them on the ground. Sometimes we got lucky and cooks in a field kitchen would grab a can out of hot water and drop it into our boxes that got the M-units tossed in at random. Sometimes you got a big meal and big dessert, sometimes you got a small meal and small dessert but at least they didn't forget to feed you. Again. When we got MREs, they didn't have ration heaters for 9 or 10 years. Since you couldn't warm them up over a fire, we had to come up with other ideas. If you have clean drinking water and don't die from exposure, sometimes everything else is a luxury. I may have seen a canteen cup once when I was in the army, but maybe not. I know I saw exactly one poncho liner, because one of my roommates bought it and had it on his bed every day, except when there was a "surprise" inspection by a colonel or general. scheduled.

[@brokenbushcraft]

Damn! I love hearing how the old school guys did it. I went into the Marines in 99’ so we had it good, then it got “better”.

[@BigHarryBalzac]

@@brokenbushcraft And I used to listen to the REALLY old school guys, NCOs I had who were Vietnam vets. One of them had PTSD and they caught him crawling across a field one night toward the reactor building of the Army Pulse Radiation Facility at Aberdeen Proving Ground, with his face painted in camo, and a knife in his mouth like an old Tarzan movie. I'm not sure what he did, but the Edgewood Arsenal area is on the EPA's National Priorities List of the most serious hazardous waste sites requiring long term remedial action. It could just be a coincidence, but he was on a death squad that did things you thought only happened in movies, and he was capable of anything. Look up Tiger Force in Wikipedia to see the kind of war crimes that went on. AFAIK he never retired, but stayed in the army where they could keep an eye on him. He was a really nice guy when he wasn't freaking out, which I think only happened once in the couple years I knew him. I remember reading online a few years ago about how the military changed. Instead of having drill sergeants in basic training getting in your face, telling you what a useless POS you are, and that would have gotten everyone killed, you could raise your hand and ask him for a time out. If you want to produce more useless pieces of s**t, I guess that would work okay.

[@brokenbushcraft]

@@BigHarryBalzac Jesus. That guy probably saw more shit than we could ever imagine. I had desert storm NCOs. But they were hard as nails. Helped me through two tours in Afghanistan. Where are you at? I am in FL but would love to buy you a beer

[@williamwatson9166]

Thank you.

[@brokenbushcraft]

Glad you liked it

[@straton119]

Great video! Thanks! What's the a steel or aluminum cup?

[@brokenbushcraft]

It’s an aluminum cup. It was a very cheap made in China set.

[@HootOwl513]

I went thru ITS at CamPen in 2/74. We had the OG plastic 1 Qt canteens [2], and the Butt Cup with the butterfly handles. The Canteen Stove hadn't been invented yet. We had MCI field rations. [Meals, Combat, Individual -- C-Rats] We were taught to use our John Wayne [P-38] to open the Crackers/Candy can first and empty it. Then punch a series of slits along the base and the upper rim to make a hobo stove out of the 3'' x 1-7/8'' can.. Then a blue Trioxane bar was lit off and the Butt cup put over it to heat up water for the Coffee/Instant. ''Entre'' cans [meat] could be heated over the burner can, or dropped in the boiling water, depending on size. Trioxane stunk something fierce. Like rancid trash meets burning plastic. I'm sure this was deliberate to keep Privates from cooking off inside a tent and suffocating from MOX.

[@brokenbushcraft]

I love hearing the stories from you old guys. I think they trusted you all with fire and figured we would burn down Camp Pendleton. Lol.

[@HootOwl513]

@@brokenbushcraft Semper Fi

[@silvercommander]

Canteen stove has been around since ww2 wtf u going on about?

[@HootOwl513]

@@silvercommander Never saw one in Boot.

[@brokenbushcraft]

@@silvercommander they have. But in the current military we don’t ever use them. They are issued but not used. since MREs have their own heater they are almost obsolete.

[@thomasmusso1147]

Best to use Hex Tabs or Alcohol-based fuel. Wood fires are going to melt that Aluminium Stove in no time at all. Towards the end of the video, it 'appears' that this was already taking place. In case of a wood fire, rather just push the Canteen Cup (Stainless Steel) face-on, into the fire / coals.

[@brokenbushcraft]

I agree hex tabs or sterno types of fuels are superior to wood. But they are not always available, most canteen cups are steal and can handle the high heat. That one in particular is cheap and has held up so far. You’re absolutely right about pushing it in the coals for efficiency, I was showing the use of the stove.

[@silvercommander]

Stoves are not steel

[@brokenbushcraft]

@@silvercommander not unless you buy stainless steal. Most are cheap aluminum now. If you can find an old model you will get steal. But good point

[@gijr2003]

His canteen set was made in china?

[@brokenbushcraft]

That one was my pathfinder canteen and canteen stove. But you’re not wrong, they are made in China and “designed” in America.

[@kwamedindavis9840]

I learned some things.

[@brokenbushcraft]

Thank you! That is one of my favorite comments.

[@jamesroachjr4074]

I use esbit fuel works great!

[@brokenbushcraft]

Yeah there are a few fuel options that are a lot better than wood.

[@cb3391]

alice, my goto, 4ever.

[@brokenbushcraft]

I hated losing my Alice pack to the MOLLY stuff.

[@cb3391]

After my time brother. God bless alice.

[@cb3391]

Subbed

[@brokenbushcraft]

Thanks

[@davidleonard1813]

Issued with the cup. Never the stove. We just got a hexi stove. I got one of these now. No fire use a trangia underneath its perfect. No smoke No smell No footprint of ash

[@brokenbushcraft]

We got the whole system, but never the tabs. We also were “not allowed” to make fires. God forbid you show up to gear turn in with heat marks on something.

[@davidleonard1813]

@brokenbushcraft oh we got tabs. What is the point of having something to issue and not make a diggers life hell having to keep it spotless scrub every bit of scorch mark and soot off. Pro tip brasso will sort that in 30 seconds🤣🤣

[@brokenbushcraft]

@@davidleonard1813brasso cleans all. At least that is what I learned in boot camp.

[@davidleonard1813]

@@brokenbushcraft pretty much does. Did you ever use it with cardboard? We did on brass buckels initially. Works like a harsher grit, then we'd go yo polishing clothes

[@brokenbushcraft]

@@davidleonard1813 by the time I joined we had anodized brass.

[@desmo5514]

Canteen off the stove ? If it's too hot bare handed... use a glove. No gloves ? Not really prepped

[@brokenbushcraft]

Gloves are good until they are not. I use leather gloves that work well getting things off the fire quickly. But prefer to make or use a tool.

[@gijr2003]

1st, buy USGI canteen set, not MIC.

[@brokenbushcraft]

It was a set from GearPak. Not the best, actually it was my last box from them.

[@k9road]

....That`s why electricity was invented...

[@brokenbushcraft]

Why’s that’s?