MSR Pocket Rocket Review

Overview

When I first started backpacking I used to use a very small backpacking gas stove that folded in on itself to form a Yo-yo about 4 inches accross and weighed 184g. It worked well in most weathers although in sub-zero temperatures it did need a suitalble gas mix and a bit of TLC.

After revisiting gas via Trangia I have again become quite attracted to how fast it is to boil water on a gas stove. Clearly though, a Trangia with Gas burner is very far from ultralight and so does not make it into anything other than my base-camp kit.

This brings me neatly onto the MSR Pocket Rocket. The Rocket is probably the market leader for ultralight gas stoves and well worth a look.

In the picture above the stove is shown with a '110g' Gigapower cartridge which actually weighs around 198g when full.

Indoor Testing

My standard indoor test for a stove is to see how long it will take to boil a cup (1/2 pt) of water from cold. My 'pot' of choice is usually a Titanium mug (50g).

The MSR Pocket Rocket took a sprightly 1 minute 50 to have the water boiling nicely and had actually used only 6g of fuel!!! I was so surprised by this that I did the test again and achieved the same result. I was impressed.

Outdoor Testing

The outdoor test was very simple - make myself a cup of coffee for breakfast.

For the test I was using a wide titanium Mug, the Pocket Rocket and a 110g cylinder and was cooking inside the open porch of a very small tent.

With the stove assembled and placed on soft grass/moss it was a little top-heavy and would have been better with a stabilising base or some tent pegs to restrain it. I had none of these things and so was just very careful how I handled it.

Within 2 minutes the cup (300ml) of water was boiling merrily. It was so much faster than the Alcohol stoves that I have grown used to that I was a bit taken aback.

Early Conclusions

If the suggested fuel burn rate of 5-6g per cup were to continue for the life of the canister then that would suggest that I could boil 15-20 cups of water in outdoor conditons.

If we assume that I boil one cup of water in the morning and two in the evening (pasta + drink) then that suggests that a 110g cartridge (gross weight198g) will be good for a 5-day hike. This gives it an equivalent fuel weight of 40g/day which compares favourably with alcohol stoves for multiday trips.

After the first outdoor test I was so impressed by the performance and practicality of this stove that it has now been promoted to 'pack status' now that the colder weather is here. This means that it has become a 'standard' piece of kit that will get packed as standard.

Realistic weights for a cooking system

Manufacturer stated weights are all very well but I am much more interested in the total weight of equipment that is required in order to boil a cup of water and carry everything safely. So, here are the totals:

It is minimalist but also an acceptable weight for a total cooking system if all you are going to do is boil water.

At 358g it may seem heavy for the first cup of water when compared with the Vargo Triad but after 3 or days of cooking you will be on equivalent weights.