Trangia Mini Trangia

The bare-bones Trangia—with some benefits and some compromises.

I've been contemplating this review all week, on my walks. Would a Mini be a good choice, in today's gale-force wind? Where would I set it up, in this rainy location? Would I use a Mini for my lunch stop, with a friend?

The Mini can be seen as a reaction to the soda can stove revolution.  Compared to the excellent 25 and 27 sets, this is a minimal rig, which is still safer, more practical and reliable than most home-brewed alternatives. It still offers the facility to transport leftover fuel and comes with the snuffer/simmer ring, on the full-sized, brass burner.

The burner is encased in a necessarily smaller, lighter stand and everything fits neatly inside the pot, including a skinny pot gripper, with the pan lid snapping shut, securely.

I find I use the simmer ring a lot more often, with the Mini, than with my 25 set.  The two-piece stand and windshield design of the original sets, is vastly superior, in functionality, to the super light Mini arrangement but obviously adds weight and reduces space in your pack. The compromise is fine, when space and weight are major considerations and when the operator has the experience to compensate, for the relative instability of the stand and the greater susceptibility of the stove, to unhelpful weather.

Some form of additional wind screening is usually required, along with more careful placement of the stove, to lessen the effect of wind, or precipitation and diminish the chances of pan spillage. I spend more time setting up—and keeping an eye on—my Mini, than I ever would, with the 25. If I intend to do much more than boil water for a drink, I'll often pack a sturdier gripper and for any kind of camp cuisine, that doesn't involve reconstituting a dehydrated packet or heating beans, I'm probably carrying the 25.

It can actually be a fun exercise, combatting the elements, to make your stove work well. Fashioning a suitable place, or fabricating a shield, to stop the wind from wasting all your fuel, or the dog from casually upending your dinner (so that it becomes her supplementary dinner!). I'm sure devotees of the Mini all have their own tricks and most will carry a tent peg and aluminium foil screen, of their own devising. I've used plastic flotsam, from a recent river flood, gathered rocks on a beach, and practiced Origami with my foil blanket, in efforts to achieve culinary tranquillity.

I don't want to have this fun in extreme situations, however, or when I just want immediate and controllable performance. This means that I can't seriously recommend a Mini, as the first or only stove, for someone new to outdoor cooking. As an emergency safeguard, as a group backup, as something that lives in your car, for most of the time, a Mini is a smart purchase. Perhaps a game changer, for an Adventure Racer, or solo endurance athlete?

Everything Trangia make is well designed and built, for its projected purposes. A purchaser needs to be aware of the compromises involved, when they are making their choice.

Background

I bought a Mini, when they first came to the market. Previously, I had often carried the Spirit burner full of fuel, (in a sealed bag) as a backup, in a variety of situations. So Trangia's development of a minimalist cook set, might have been designed to appeal to me. It's one of those products that I carry, a lot more often than I use- but when it leaves my pack...good things happen:-)

I usually take it on day hikes, or it lives in my car. It's not my first choice stove, for multi-day excursions, or complex cooking tasks.

Most reliable stove in the woods. A light, inexpensive, yet durable piece of gear. This is the stove that could.

Unless you're in really cold weather, alcohol stoves get the job done, and the Trangia Mini 28 gets it done in a lightweight compact package. All brass and without moving parts, this thing is durable. Unlike your homemade penny stoves/Pepsi can stoves you can store unused fuel in this stove.

If you count grams and ounces, this may not be the stove for you as penny stoves/Pepsi can stoves certainly weight less, but it's a long stretch to call the Trangia Mini 28 heavy. If you aren't a gram and ounce counter ultralight/minimalist hiker, this stove is great to have along if you ever find yourself in need of an extra burner—that's how I use it—as a compliment to my main stove.

I find the simmer ring really doesn't live up to its name. Regardless, I use alcohol stoves only to boil water. It isn't the fastest at that, but what's a couple of minutes when your supposed to be on a break anyway? The one thing the Mini 28 really lacks is adequate wind protection, so you need to take that into account and make one from a disposable aluminum pan or some flexible duct material. 

Other than the stove and stand, the Mini 28 comes with a 0.8L pot, a lid that serves as a nonstick frying pan, and a lightweight pot lifter. All neatly fits within the pot and lid for an easily transported package. The cook set is intended for solo use, but is fine for more than one if you use the kit as I do, intending it to be a second burner to compliment my Svea stove while afield.

The pot lifter is a bit short so it can be stored/hauled in the pot, but being a bit short it can heat up. Just be aware of that.

The nonstick surface on the lid/frying pan can be damaged fairly easily so you'll need to protect that in storage and transport, requiring you to make another thing (in addition to a proper windshield).

The stand is an odd size. While it fits in the pot during storage and has a good circumference to support the Mini 28's pot, its circumference is a bit large for those who prefer to heat water in their cup. As a reference point, the Trangia Mini 28 stand is just a bit too large in circumference to support a GSI water bottle cup/pot.

In the cautionary side of things, like all alcohol stoves, you must use caution with the Trangia burner as the stove makes no noise if properly protected from the wind and the flame is nearly impossible to see in daylight.  Often, only its heat lets you know it's lit. Be careful snuffing the stove with the simmer ring as you can easily burn your hand.

I've been trying to figure out what type of stove to carry while backpacking. I checked out the canister stoves, esbit, and alcohol. I decided to go with the alcohol platform.

The canister is faster and easier. But the canisters are expensive, you don't know how much gas you have left (unless you time it and do some math), and you wind up with a bunch of partially empty canisters in your gear box.

Esbit is smelly, leaves black stuff on your pot, and can only be bought at specialized camping stores (same goes for canisters).

Alcohol stoves aren't quite as efficient, and are slower, but those seem to be the only drawbacks. You can get denatured alcohol in any town, you can even use everclear or other high proof drinking alcohols in a pinch. If your alcohol stove is destroyed on the trail, on say a through hike, you can stop off and get a cat food can, and have a new stove in 5 minutes by homemaking it (google supercat stove).

Anyway, to the Mini Trangia. The Mini Trangia is heavier and less efficient than many alcohol stoves. I feel though, that it's positive qualities make up for these negatives.

The stove is brass, and very stout. It has no moving parts to break mid hike. I love the way the whole kit neatly fits together inside the pot and frying pan/lid. It can simmer, which most alcohol stoves can not. You can use the simmer ring to put out the stove when done cooking. It has a storage cap, so when you have alcohol left over in your stove, you just screw on the cap, and hike on!

The only negatives I've found, are a lack of the ability to prime the stove in cold weather, and that you need to purchase or make a windscreen. To solve the priming problem I tried several "fixes" through experimentation.

The best way I found to prime the stove in winter is this: Get a tealight candle, and pull out the candle part, leaving the metal container. Keep this with your Trangia, it weighs almost nothing. When it's cold out, get your tealight warm, I use a mini bic lighter for a couple of seconds. Put a little alcohol in the tealight. Put the tealight on the Trangia "storage" cap to elevate it. Light the tealight.

Flip the pot stand upside down, and center it over the tealight. Place your stove on the upside down pot stand. In just a minute your Trangia will be warmed up, now just set the stove up like normal, and light it (you could also use the tealight to warm up water for a cup of coco instead of lighting the Trangia).

So with my Trangia in "storage mode" I have in it: the stove, snuffer cap/simmer ring, the storage cap, potstand, potlifter, windscreen folded up, a three inch long strip of cardboard to ease lighting (not needed, but nice to have), and the tealight.

All in all I really like this stove. It's built to last, with nothing really to break, and it just works, which is the most important thing when deep in the mountains.

This stove is compact, lightweight, and very packable. It is solidly built and very durable, made for back country use and years of dependable service. Its simple design with no moving parts ensures no maintenance ever needed. It does what it is intended to do, cook my food while out on the trail.

I have been using my Mini Trangia for a couple of years now. I do have other stoves and burners I can use that are operated with white gas or propane canisters, however I prefer the ecologically sound use of an alcohol stove. It is a quiet, non disruptive method of cooking while in the outdoors. There are no canisters to dispose of, and if the fuel spills it simply evaporates without harm to the environment.

I use it mostly for boiling water for dehydrated foods and beverages, but have used it to fry eggs and spam too. It works very well. Boil times vary form 6 to 10 minutes depending on the weather and temperature of the water so its not the fastest way of cooking on the trail, but the extra few moments are worth the peace, relaxation, and ecological benefits using this stove brings. You can simmer with it by using the simmer control ring supplied with the stove. You ignite the stove with a match, a lighter, or a simple spark from a ferrocerium rod.

I have used this stove in many different weather conditions with success, in both cold and warm temperatures, in snowy and rainy conditions, and in altitudes up to 10,000 feet. Sure some of these varying conditions do affect the performance of the stove, but it still works. I should add that the use of a windscreen should be considered in most instances as it does seem to be affected in winds over 5 mph.

I carry this stove not only for hiking, I also throw it in my day pack and carry it with me everyday. It is lightweight, compact, and very packable. Because I am on the road everyday I take along with it some water, coffee and a Mountain House meal. I never know from day to day whether I will be close enough to a restaurant to grab a warm meal, so this little stove has been a Godsend and has saved me allot of money in dining expenses.

This is a very simple, durable and reliable stove. It stores fuel unlike other compact alcohol stoves. This works great with the aluminum Westbrook stand.

This stove is out of the box ready to use, there is not setup or prep time needed. This unlike other one piece alcohol stoves is quick and easy to fill. You just simply unscrew the stove cap and add your choice of approved fuels and light.

It will burn all styles of alcohol and automotive additive "heat." After about a minute the stove starts generating the forced flame. This particular style of alcohol stove comes with a simmer lids which allows you to control the flame. I have boiled water as quick as 8 1/2 minutes in optimum circumstances. The average time is closer to 10 minutes.  

The stock stove stand that comes stock with this is heavy and bulky, I replaced it with an aluminum Westbrook stand. The three piece after market stand/windscreen is light and very compact. This extra is a must for solo hikers looking to save weight and space.

This stove will boil two quarts of water on just over an ounce of fuel. So keeping this in mind an 8-ounce fuel bottle will last you about 6 days making coffee in the morning and a dehydrated meal at night. Once you finish boiling or cooking, just simply drop the simmer plate over the stove and this extinguishes the stove. To use the simmer lid with the stove just slide it to the open position and adjust the flame to the level desired. 

The stove is made out of sturdy brass weighing in at a little more than 9 ounces (used a spring style food scale could be heavier). The stove stand provided with this stove is heavy, that is why I bought the aftermarket stand ($12-14) even though the stove it self is small the stand allows you use large size pots or pans without a worry of dumping your meal.

I used this stove on several week long hikes this summer in the eastern Sierras and found no real issues with this product. I have yet to use it in freezing weather conditions, so maybe I will update you on this in the winter months.

Simple, reliable, and fuel is a renewable resource.

When I started planning my backpacking needs, stoves terrified me.  As ten-year old I had suffered significant burns to my arm and foot (boiling soup) and all things fire/heat related still freak me out thirty years later.  In my planning I immediately nixed any of the pressurized stoves and soon nixed canister stoves as well, I just wasn't comfortable with using them.  I found one of the three million build-a-soda-can-stove websites and did some tinkering. Though the stoves I built came out well, I still wasn't happy.

Then I found Trangia.  A simple, time-tested burner design that is idiot-proof.  Well, to clarify that a little, it's idiot-proof for someone cautious and attentive. It doesn't get simpler to actually fire up — just pour in fuel and light — in a few seconds (depending on how cold it is) you will have a nice steady flame ready for your pot. 

Things I like: easy to use, nothing to fail in the field, and I know how to safely handle its fuel. I also like the idea that the alcohol that this stove burns comes from a renewable resource and not a fossil fuel. The stove is quiet when operating and with a little practice with the simmer ring, you can cook all sorts of things.

Things I dislike: I wish the simmer ring was more of a lobster claw design (meaning two leaves that open) as opposed to the single plate which ends up offsetting your flame under your pot. 

Overall I really like this stove and pot stand. I did upgrade my pot to one that's a bit larger than the one that comes with the kit. I wouldn't call the pot stand a windscreen at all though, this stove definitely needs a better windscreen to be at all efficient.

I've used mine for day hiking meals, as well as our primary cook stove during a couple of winter storms where we lost power as well as getting us through a week without power during Storm Alfred in 2011.  I've also dragged it along to our Relay for Life weekend to keep the coffee flowing for our team, everyone on the overnight especially appreciated the hot coffee and popcorn (lol this stove and Jiffy Pop are a dynamic duo!).

I do love this little stove! Best used for day trips and weekend trekking adventures. Perfect for solo or 2-person meals.

I have used my Mini-T 28 often. I do day trips, weekend trips, and even take it on road trips. When used for its intended use it works flawlessly. By that I mean, measure when, where, and how you are going to be cooking. Don't expect it to be the be-all-end-all of camping stoves.  

It's perfect for the solo camper, weekend trekker, day tripper.

Food portions are great for one person or two people with reasonable and balanced portions. Best meals are: soups, stews, rice dishes, mac, eggs, bacon, pancakes, noodle dishes, freeze-dried meals, chili, burgers, hot dogs, grilled cheese sammies, canned BBQ, canned veggies (repack your canned goods into lighter storage for rucks.) and great for making drinks, coffee, tea, etc.  

Flame control, it has a simmer ring, but I mostly stir to reduce the chance of burning foods. It's just easier that way.

Boil times, add about two minutes to what you think the boil times should be if you are used to using a canister stove. It doesn't cook as hot as a canister stove, but for cooking that is sometimes a good thing.

Bottom line: Great sove and easy to use. Bullet proof, no frills cooking. If you want more than that then maybe the Trangia 27 would be your next option to consider. I own both.

Personally I think the Mini-T 28 when combined with the Trangia 27 Cookset makes for a perfect camp kitchen set up for most any cooking needs during longer trips out. I say this because I am an avid roadie and will often go on roadtrips for as long as 30 days or more. I ALWAYS take the Mini-T and the Trangia 27-7 with me for more extended days out.

Ok I have been out of the game for a while but it hasn't been that long anyway. I use to rough-it and cook over a fire but that has its problems like rain. So in my search for a stove I ruled out all petroleum based and pressurized fuels and that don't leave much.

So alcohol it is, cheap & easy to find and works good. You can use most any alcohol but I found that HEET works the best (Methyl Alcohol gas line antifreeze in the YELLOW bottle not the red) or Denatured Alcohol but with this it depends on the brad because of additives.

I chose this particular stove for three reasons A.) it has been in successful service for 20-25 years with the Swiss army (not that the Swiss have a great army) B.) it is durable with no moving parts (I can be kind of rough with my equipment) C.) you can seal in unused fuel with the o-ring sealed cap.

Pros
Easy to find fuel, Works good, easily packed, Windscreen doubles as a pot stand, Seals in extra fuel, Very durable

Cons
Not as hot as canister stoves, In bright light you cant see the flame, Windscreen could be better, A little heavy

My Conclusion
This is an awesome little stove and I won't go camping again without it.

Update: March 9, 2009

I started out with just the spirit burner and windscreen / pot stand and I carried it nested in my other cook-set. I was so impressed with the quality and durability that I bought the complete set and it is my first choice for cook sets and stove set up. I have cooked pancakes, stew etc boiled water and eaten out of it an it is just right. The stove is a bit heaver than my Gigapower but when you add up all you canisters windscreen fuel etc they are actually pretty close in weight.

Bottom line is if you're solo or in a group it's a nice set to have and it will last you a long time.

I give the Mini-Trangia 28 4.5 stars, only because it needs a windscreen to truly be a complete stove. I made my windscreen out of an aluminum roasting pan that cost about a buck at W-Mart.

The neat thing about the 28 over the larger Trangias like the 25 or my 27-7, is that it really does have a pre-heat attachment included, and it's easier to use than the optional winterizing kit that you have to buy extra for the bigger models.

Just pour a little fuel in the aluminum potstand of the 28, place the spirit burner in the potstand as you normally do with the lid off, and light the fuel in the bottom by inserting a lit match through one of the air holes in the side. This will not only pre-warm the spirit burner, but also light it after a while. If you pre-warm, use a windscreen, and leave the lid on the pot, you will get a lot faster boil times than most people would have you believe.

About the lid/frypan: it snaps on for storage and transport. To use it when cooking, invert the lid on the pot. When inverted, it has a rebated rim that keeps it from sliding off in the same way the pot rests on the pot stand. Plus you can use the pot grab to remove it.

It may seem silly for me to write this, but a few others on the internet claimed the lid was difficult to use when cooking because they couldn't get it unsnapped without burning their fingers!

I do love my Trangia 27-7, but since I got the Mini the Mini stays ready to go in my ruck. Even after a brief period of soda-can experimentation, I find I like this compact utterly bullet-proof Trangia the best of any one-person stove I've used.

Lightweight and compact, fuel is cheap, but stove is illegal to use.

I was new to ultralight backpacking, so I bought this as my very first camping stove. It was lightweight, minimalist, and the fuel was super cheap. I used it for six or so camping and backpacking trips.

My biggest complaints then were fuel inefficiency and fire hazard. (I had to remember to bring foil or something else to make a windscreen with or the flame was out of control when windy.) Then, I learned it was illegal in many places because it doesn't have an appropriate flame adjuster. (Having once lit the Trangia stove without the windscreen on a windy day, the flame shot out to the side for a good foot and a half! Not only was I at risk of burning myself, but it could easily have started a forest fire.)

It had other drawbacks, but the fire hazard combined with limitations on where I could legally use it pushed me to buy a new stove. 

I have just completed a 12 month review of the Trangia 28. 4 seasons of use and approximately 103 days in the field. I cook both conventional meals and dehydrated meals. I gave this stove a 4.5 as it does not have the final component - a windscreen and you must protect the interior of the lid when stored to save the non-stick coating.

The stove is well designed, sturdy and with care should last a lifetime. It packs nicely and does not rattle in the pack. There is room to put a lightmyfire scout in it when packed. Drop two stones in the burner holder/windshield and you can cook with esbit. A k-mart grease pot can be substituted for the pot for a little more volume and the lid still fits. Or the whole kit will drop right in the grease pot to have two pots to use.

Fuel is stored in the stove which decreased the amount of fuel wasted compared to a Pepsi can stove. With the simmer cap I can cook things like spaghetti, eggs over-easy, and pancakes. There are no moving parts to fail and virtually no maintenance - field or otherwise. The frypan/pot lid is non stick and works wonderfully. I have never had a problem lighting or using this stove - even on snow.

For a solo hiker this a wonderful kit. I am now starting my 12 month review of the Trangia 27-3 ul.

Cheap, light, and completely reliable.

I have two Trangias, and they are excellent stoves. I bought the Mini to try it out, and learned a few lessons:

While an alcohol stove is slower than the pressurized ones, they are also completely reliable. While I was doling out my supper, sometimes others were still trying to fix leaky valves, plugged jets, or missing o-rings, and hadn't even started!

The whole package comes complete with stove, stand, bowl, frying pan, and handle, and packs up into a neat bundle that fits into one of the side pockets on my pack. Because it's so small and light, I'll carry it as a backup when someone else wants to use their fancy new MSR, and on occasion my little stove has had to feed everyone when the more expensive ones have failed.

Hint: Preset the simmer ring ahead of time — once it's warmed up, you'll burn your fingers trying to choke it back to save fuel.

A great setup, but needs a supplementary windshield; very thirsty!

A great little setup for the solo camper, trekker, hiker. Works well in most conditions and in the worst W/P matches help to get a solid burn. A supplementary windshield is a must to get maximum efficiency.

Fuel is easy to obtain in most locations unlike white gas or canisters. The only problem is the amount of fuel used compared with other alcohol stoves. This said, boil time are by the fastest of any other stoves of this type.

The fact that fuel can be stored in the burner is a bonus and after cooking the snuffer means unused fuel is not wasted burning out. I find maximum burn time is plus/minus 17 minutes, more than enough for my purposes.

I would rate this as tops for day walks or 2/3 day overnighters. For extended trips the Zelph Starlyte is by far the more fuel-efficient option.

Background

Many years of travel in wilderness places

The little stove that could. I was surprised how small it is, compared to the T-25, but the performance cannot be beat. The stove might be slower than the "rocket engines" of white gas stoves, but the fuel is safer and can be found more readily, and there is no fuss with the stove.

I would recommend making a second windscreen to go around the pot if you are cooking in a non-sheltered area, as the windscreen provided keeps the stove from going out, but doesn't trap the heat in. The stock windscreen (which doubles as a pot support) is really heavy duty, a bit of weight could be cut if they would make it out of titanium or if you made a lighter weight replacement.

Overall, the stove is perfect for the solo backpacker who wants to eat more than freeze dried foods. You start it up, go about setting up camp, and soon you have hot water. The stove also simmers very well, and because there are no flame-ups or intense heat it is easy and “safe” to use in a ventilated tent vestibule.

I use a Liberty Mountain pot stand and a small wind screen from Amazon that is 5'' high. The reason for my type of pot stand is that I can adjust the simmer ring a whole lot easier. It is just a GREAT cook set.

Sometimes, for fun, I will use my Svea 123R stove, which works well also, but is heavy and uses white gas (Coleman fuel), but I always go back to the Trangia.

Great stove ... seems that I wrote my review in the summary. Nothing else to add.

It's perfect for boiling noodles on short solo trips.

Core stove design has been available since 1958: it's well-proven.

Limited pot capacity rules out serious two-person cooking.

High fuel consumption rules out longer trips.

Is wonderfully lightweight, entirely reliable, and unbreakable with zero maintenance.

The various forms of alcohol are widely available.

Wind raises fuel consumption dramatically.

Not usable inside a tent and/or severe cold.

Brilliant little stove! Weighs next to nothing, uses renewable fuel, and cooks only a bit slower than a gas-burner. I would only suggest that you take along a lightweight windscreen.

Great size for solo hiker and is nice and light but it doesn't cope very well even with a moderate breeze, which means crazy fuel high consumption. A windscreen is essential for this stove else you will have burned all your fuel and still have to eat a cold dinner!!

I must chime in as a counterweight to all the rave reviews.

In its basic configuration, this is most definitely not a field-worthy alcohol stove.

The reason is that the windshield does not trap the heat in as soon as there is slight wind. Efficiency goes down the cellar, completely unacceptable, the stove gets EXTREMELY thirsty. Cutting a soda can into shape as an extra windshield makes it slightly better however.

The stove is not safe, either. Huge foot-long flames shoot out of the burner frequently. In-vestibule tent usage is hence out of the question. Not that you should really use any stove inside a tent but using this one would be very very dangerous.

Some people say this kit gets much better with a compact gas burner such as the Primus Micron (supposed to fit in the kit, replacing the burner and windshield). I don't like gas for simplicity reasons so I never tried this.

Summing up: Avoid, unless you will cook only in sheltered locations. Get the Trangia 27-1 instead, which is a great stove. The extra size and weight will be offset by greater fuel efficiency if your trip is longer than just a couple of days.