Peak 1 Liquid Fuel Feather 400

17 years ago I was given a Peak 1 by a well intended, but misguided relative. It was intended to be a "lightweight backpacking stove". It clearly is Not, and Never Has Been, "lightweight". Strangely, I find that I still have the stove,I use it frequently, it still performs well and its dependability is a source of great comfort to me......

Generally, I use it in the context of a picnic table or a tailgate but, I also find myself taking it along on sea kayak trips as well. The pump and pressurized fuel delivery system allow it to "fire-up" in about any condition, and the adjustable flame, on THIS stove, allows anything from a mild warming, to a well controled simmer, to a steady boil all the way up to the Frantic Blast for Morning Coffee.....

The stove is Quite Durable. It has survived 17 years of abuse and neglect. I've burnt Kerosene, Diesel and leaded gasoline in it, when situations dictated and was always able to get flame and the necessary heat from it. I've only cleaned it once!! In this Wild Wyoming Winter, that we live in ,here, about 8 months of the year, that stove is omnipresent in my truck, in case of snowbound issues or breakdown. It rattles around in the truck box, never has leaked, might go 6 months in between uses...and...it has never failed to "fire-up"!!

Additionally, it came with a "convenient" rigid plastic carrying box, which was cleverly engineered to allow the bottom of the box to drop out, with the slightest provocation, and promptly deliver the stove to the ground, or rocks, or pavement or snow, below it!! Clever !! A sort of built in Torture Test !!! Well this stove has survived ,a dozen, dozen of such drops, with all of its functions still intact.....You know, I like that kind of durability in a product...Fact is, I NEED that kind of durability in a product if its going to live long with me.!

I am NOT recommending that you march right out and buy a new one. However I am suggesting that if you stumble into one...or one stumbles into you, well Don't Look a Gift Horse in the Mouth, or Don't Piss Away a Pearl. Take it Home, it will find a Functional Place in your Life.

I found these on sale at Summit Hut last winter for $35, it listed for $65 (I think). They turned out to be very sturdy and very reliable stoves. The only time they burned poorly was when they were almost out of fuel. We used them to melt snow and cook at 13,000 ft. They are heavy, but remember that the weights listed for the 2-piece stoves only show the weight of the burner, they tend to forget that you have to carry an extra fuel canister w/pump. They seem to be made of sturdier parts then some of the ultralight stoves, and remember, your life may very well depend on your stove!

Mine is easily over twenty years old. It has never failed to work. Great product. I have used it many times surveying in winter as a hand warmer, with a heavy piece of steel on the burner.