Author Topic: Short Review: Primus ETA Lite  (Read 1653 times)

Requiem

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Short Review: Primus ETA Lite
« on: 16:43:11, 18/01/19 »

Hi all,


I've spent the past few days of downtime taking stock of what I will be doing outdoors this year and bought a few bits of new kit


Last week I bought a tiny foldaway stove to keep as a spare at the bottom of my pack, whereas this week my new main stove's arrived in the guise of a Primus ETA Lite


Primus is based in Sweden and have produced stoves for as far back as I can remember, but their gear has always been a little niche and less well known than the likes of Jetboil etc. They've never really produced a Jetboil-like stove until the ETA range, and when they did it was met with lawsuits for patent infringements - I can see why this happens, because like the Jetboil products the Primus ETA range appears to fulfil the demand for compact, efficient Gas Stoves for use on the hill - It does this using a fin-like heat exchange process that Jetboil pioneered so I can understad why the stroppy Yanks felt 'their' idea was being pinched


When it arrives, the stove oozes quality just from the box::

Primus ETA Lite review walkingforum by Roy Pollard, on Flickr
! Box


Opening the box, you see the mug, with its thermal sleeve, a very small and compact burner and a loose fit lid for increasing efficiency of the boil and also (they say) to be used as a cup .. although I'm a bit dubious about that


Primus ETA Lite review walkingforum by Roy Pollard, on Flickr
! Box open


Emptying the box with shaking hands you get the Cup, Lid, Burner, gas cylinder support and lanyard for if you want to hang the burner up. It all feels really solid and well made.
You can see that Primus has been innovative and thought slight more out of the box with:
1.A looser lid so you're not wrestling to remove or seat it in difficult conditions which may cause a spill/burn hazard - despite it being easy to remove by being loose it still really helps with boil times when seated on the cup
2.The lanyard with hook that alows you to hang the cup - so more options for using the stove
3.A hand strap on the sleeve which easily detaches at the bottom using a steel buckle and then folds over the top of the cup to attach on the opposite top edge and make a loop to allow it to be hung or used in different ways
4.Three screw studs attached to the bottom of the sleeve handle which when removed and screwed into three points on the top of the burner allows you to use a standard pot rather than the sleeved pot that comes in the package
5.An excellent burner-to-pot system that means it screws to the heat exchanger to prevent accidental spills by being knocked and is straightforward to twist back off even when the pots hot from use


Primus ETA Lite review walkingforum by Roy Pollard, on Flickr
! Contents OOB


The burner is small and well made for one of these heat exchange-style systems.The big plastic flange where the piezo ignite button and twist regulator attach is of thick, heat resistant plastic which makes it easy to screw-on - screw-off (oooer!) the cup. The igniter and twist regulator or both pretty accessible so theres not much chance of a twisted neck.
The screw fit burner to cup attach requires more of a twist than just a gently seat but makes a better seal to allow the burner to restrict the heat straight into the exchanger and hence the cup contents. It works far better than the Alpkit attach method


Primus ETA Lite review walkingforum by Roy Pollard, on Flickr
! Just burner


Primus ETA Lite review walkingforum by Roy Pollard, on Flickr
! Burner and canister


The cup has a lower profile compared to stuff like the Alpkit Brukit and the Jetboil. This along with the low profile burner and a good, useable obligatory plastic canister-steady mean that the stoves more likely to stay upright and safe if knocked or rattled by a few gusts of wind.
Max volume for the small cup is just 0.5L (thats a PINT for you old [censored]) but thats enough for one person


Boil Times? Rapid. It boils a pint of water in still air in about 180 seconds - Primus say thats a class-leading time and its believable. I choppy breezes on the hill the boil time increases but theres little noticeable chance of the flame being blown out compared to the more open systems. I'd be far happier using this on open, exposed windy moorland than a Pocket Rocket or a meth burner (even tho I love a nice bit of Titanium and tin foil :-) )


Primus ETA Lite review walkingforum by Roy Pollard, on Flickr
! Canister Burner Cup


Weight? Without a canister it weighs 404g - Not superlight compared to Ti meth burners etc but still light, and most of that weight is due to the really sturdy, bomb proof build and I'd sooner have an extra 100g for something that stays intact after a few knocks


Another benefit of the really efficient heat exchanger on the cup apart from efficiency, boil speed etc is the fact that you can sit over the pot - Useful to allow youself to be a windshield and also so you can sit close to prevent the stove from being blown over if you're in an exposed, windy position. You can sit on the ground with you back to the wind with the burner literally between your thighs and not really worry about third degree burns from spills (fnur) or latent heat


Verdict?
Excellent :: Possibly the best stove of this kind I've owned. I got the lot for just shy of £67 which is very competitive compared to the Jetboils - It burns more efficiently and boils quicker than the Alpit Brukit (which is cheaper at about 40 quid) and similar cheaper products - Its bomb proof for its weight - It does the job it's intended for superbly, and has a few good innovations that will (for me) extend where I will be able to use it


*****/5
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richardh1905

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Re: Short Review: Primus ETA Lite
« Reply #1 on: 18:36:33, 18/01/19 »
Looks like an extremely well designed stove.
WildAboutWalking - Join me on my walks through the wilder parts of Britain

vizzavona

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Re: Short Review: Primus ETA Lite
« Reply #2 on: 09:50:44, 19/01/19 »

Maybe I missed something when reading this.  What type of gas canister can be used with this stove....screw-on, bayonet or some other type?
Must confess that on some occasions I still used my Primus paraffin/pump in air type of stove that I have had for nearly fifty years.

Requiem

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Re: Short Review: Primus ETA Lite
« Reply #3 on: 12:55:48, 19/01/19 »
Looks like an extremely well designed stove.


Just used it on one of the edges here in Derbyshire and works a treat :-)
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richardh1905

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Re: Short Review: Primus ETA Lite
« Reply #4 on: 13:20:35, 19/01/19 »
Maybe I missed something when reading this.  What type of gas canister can be used with this stove....screw-on, bayonet or some other type?
Must confess that on some occasions I still used my Primus paraffin/pump in air type of stove that I have had for nearly fifty years.



Looks like a standard 250 screw on gas cartridge to me, maybe Requeim can confirm?
WildAboutWalking - Join me on my walks through the wilder parts of Britain

Requiem

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Re: Short Review: Primus ETA Lite
« Reply #5 on: 11:30:55, 20/01/19 »

Looks like a standard 250 screw on gas cartridge to me, maybe Requeim can confirm?


Yep  ::)
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