Review – Caldera Sidewinder Ti-Tri Stove System

Update: Trail Designs contacted me and very politely informed me that I had the “Gram Cracker” esbit stove upside down (doh!)! I apparently forgot how to properly use it at some point… Fixing this will greatly improve boil times, and I will re-test and update the test results section.

Pros

• Very stable and wind resistant screen/stand
• 3 fuel options
• Screen and accessories pack neatly into pot(s)
• Overall very light
• The ‘inferno’ kit burns wood efficiently and packs neatly in the screen roll/pot
• Using an Esbit/wood combo, you can get a fire going relatively quickly and can stretch the tablet for several boils – useful if you are making stuff for more than one person. Plus you can cut a small amount of weight by bringing fewer esbits
• “10-12″ alcohol stove and “gram cracker” stove are inexpensive and available separately
• Not a huge difference in esbit vs. alc boil times
• I am DONE looking for alc, esbit, or wood burning stoves

Cons

• There are inherent drawbacks to all three of the fuel types, but you can’t really blame the design for that. For some trips, there are simply better choices due to the temps, length, etc. (Zen stoves is an excellent, informative resource for all thing alcohol stove and then some)
• With a smaller pot (like mine which is 600ml), you can’t fit the alcohol fuel bottle and alcohol stove all into the pot like you could with a larger pot.
• Denatured Alcohol only for the “10-12″ alcohol stove according to the site (so no yellow Heet at truck stops – but i might test this anyway)
• Relatively spendy for the whole shebang if you buy the pot with it.
• Esbit smells like butt and leaves behind post-disintegration martian goo

The Sidewinder Ti-Tri (from Trail Designs out of Yosemite) has the ability to use 3 fuel types (wood, alcohol, or esbit) and is designed to pack ‘sideways’ in your pot (sideways/sidewinder, get it?). The cone-shaped screen doubles as the stand and is a very stable, very snug fit (this is a big deal to me after various failed attempts to diy stoves/stands/screens and burning the effing shit out of my hand). The only problem I’ve had is knowing if the stove is still going since the screen has seldom openings, but this keeps the heat in and helps it to be more efficient. The cone screen is the secret sauce of the overall system and is custom cut to fit the pot that you choose. While you can bring all three fuel types (and I usually do), you can get by with just one and tailor your setup to include only what you need for the length/conditions of the mission.

When you light some types of alc stoves, it helps to use a wood match, and set the match in the priming pan – this helps the stove warm up and in turn, helps the alc to burn. Recently, I started noticing the side of the alc stove was getting weak and misshapen. I think this is due to the matches I was using – big ass REI storm proof matches with super long intense burning junk on them. It’s my theory these matches are getting hot enough to damage the side of the stove.

Depending on what pieces you take with you, there are essentially these elements (not including fuel):

• Cook pot (Titanium or steel is necessary since a wood fire can cause leeching with an aluminum pot. This is often debated, however)
• Screen/stand
• “10-12” Alcohol stove – Their design works pretty well, but you could likely use a number of different styles, however, you would need to keep the height of the stove in mind since the height of the screen is based on their stove design. Their design is also specifically tuned to the screen environment – lower oxygen and higher heat
• “Inferno” wood burning kit – essentially an inverted cone that fits inside of the larger stand/screen cone. There is a round piece of grating that fits in the cone, with a 1in/4in piece of screen to hold up the round grate. Includes a floor to leave less of a trace.
• 2 Ti needle stakes – used for wood fire mode to lift the pot from the stand and give the fire some room (since the pot sits so close to the alc/esbit stove), but also potentially good for raising a larger pot that would otherwise be incompatible with the screen/stand
• “Gramcracker” Esbit stove – literally just a few pieces of flat titanium. One piece is bent in a “U” shape. There is an optional floor that folds up. I like to use it for stability. Works brilliantly with the screen.
• Fuel bottle
• Measuring cup (cup isn’t necessary, but I prefer to bring it so I don’t have to play the guessing game)

gram cracker comes in at 8g with the folding floor

"10-12" alcohol stove showing signs of wear

"Inferno" wood burning kit

My personal setup typically consists of all the above kit, a Snowpeak Ti cafe press (without the press – just the lid and pot), spork, and an autoshade koozy to keep my coffee warm. In the future I plan to do the following:

• For short trips, I will just start bringing esbit and wood modes, pack it all in the single pot and use the pot for food and coffee. This will save a significant amount of space when space is very limited.
• I have decided I think sporks are stupid. They do nothing that a spoon doesn’t and you can’t stick a damn thing with those prongs. I’ll be switching to a big ole spoon and maybe a fork.
• I might add a bowl or small mug as needed

the pot fits snug and low in the cone for esbit/alc modes

True story: on our last trip, a coyote had the balls to try to steal my coffee pot/cup! I heard the rustling and peaked out of the tent. That bastard had my tall mug in his jaws and was starting to trot off. We immediately yelled at him. I got my shoes on and ran out of the tent after him, but he was already out of sight (and what am I going to really do anyway). I stood there feeling pissy and started following tracks. About 20ft off the path, I stood there looking around, about to give up when I saw my pot laying under a tree about 15ft away. Unfortunately, I lost a small piece of the ‘inferno’ kit, and there were no coyote teeth marks on my pot. Lesson learned: don’t leave a crusty spork in your cup.

Boil tests and weight table:

Alcohol boil test

• Boil time 7.5-8min for .6L of water
• ~12ml of denatured alcohol is about 10g
• alc stove weight: 16g
• Small fuel bottle holds ~103ml and weighs 21g
• measuring cup weighs 10g

Esbit boil test

• boil time 12.5-13min for .6L of water
• 1 esbit (unopened) is 15g
• esbit ‘gram cracker’ stove weighs 8g (with the small floor)

Wood fire boiling notes

• boil time varies significantly, but in general, it’s a much more of a PIA to get a wood fire going, especially when you are hungry as hell
• once the fire is going, the more boils you need to do, the more efficient it is, so not a bad idea for multiple people and only one stove
• you can use a larger pot with wood mode for a group as well, but make sure that fire is hot and keep feeding it
• it can be tricky to keep such a small fire hot – key is to keep feeding it, but don’t smother it
• fuel weight is null, but it’s easier/faster to get a fire going with a starter fuel (such as an esbit)
• ‘inferno’ kit weight: 27g (i have heard of folks making a fire just fine with out this accessory, but I haven’t tried it)

Test conclusions:

Unless you are heading out for a several-day trip, you really don’t need all the fuel types. Esbit weighs a bit more and boils slowly, but it packs much better and is dead easy to use – for quick overnighters, I would just bring the esbit system. Alcohol on the other hand weighs about 5g less per boil, but you have to bring a bottle (mine weighs 21g) – for anything longer than 2 nights, I like the alcohol option. Since the boil is so fast and clean with alc, there’s less waiting for breakfast and coffee! Esbit also adds the ability to more easily start a fire, so I would likely always have a couple with me for emergencies. I read that you can get a decent fire without the wood burning kit, but the weight is negligible and it packs really well, so for me there really is no reason to leave it out. I still haven’t tried making a fire without it, so I might try it before deciding.

Bottom line:

In case you haven’t noticed, I love this system! Like I said, I can stop looking. The only complicating factor is deciding which fuel to leave, if any. Writing this post was really useful for me to think about how I can be more efficient. In short, I will be streamlining a good deal of my overall setup and keeping my cook kit down to one .6L pot will help a lot. Of course look into what is best for the kinds of trips you plan to do before plunking down for your stove (alcohol generally isn’t good for melting snow or really cold temps). I find this kit is great for year-round trips in PNW. Do your research (a good place to start).

inside the minimal kit - esbit gram cracker stove, inferno kit, and screen. screen and half of inferno kit are rolled up in that tyvek sleeve. Missing from pic are lid, mesh bag, Ti needle stakes, and utensil which pack outside of the pot. There is enough room at least 10 esbit tabs (way more than I would bring for 3-day trips).

Weight of each piece of my kit (for those who care):