Titanium Pots

People have asked me what pots I use, so I thought I'd list out my collection and make a few comments as well.  I've listed all the weights below which may be useful in and of themselves.

	Item	Capacity (ml)	Pot (g)	Lid (g)	Total Grams	Total Ounces	Total Pounds
1	Snow Peak Trek 1400	1400	125	62	187	6.60	0.41
2	Snow Peak Trek 1400 with cheap Al lid	1400	125	29	154	5.43	0.34
3	Evernew Ultralight 1300ml	1300	94	42	136	4.80	0.30
4	Snow Peak Multi-Compact 1000ml	1000	100	64	164	5.78	0.36
5	Snow Peak 1000ml with Evernew 1300 Lid	1000	100	42	142	5.01	0.31
6	MSR Titan Kettle 850ml	850	97	36	133	4.69	0.29
7	Snow Peak Multi-Compact 780ml	780	81	51	132	4.66	0.29
8	BPL Firelite 550	550	66	14	80	2.82	0.18

General Comments
Notice first off that in lines one and two that I've listed the same Snow Peak Trek 1400 pot.  The first line is with the stock frying pan lid.  The second line is with a cheap aluminum lid that I bought in a Good Will Thrift Store.  I have lost my stock lid, so I'll have to update that column later, but I'm confident that my 29g aluminum lid (which works perfectly fine) is far lighter than the stock lid.

I also think that a titanium frying pan isn't a very good option for those who want to cook.  I much prefer aluminum fry pans which distribute heat far more evenly.  With titanium fry pans, I usually wind up with a lot of burnt spots.  Also, I find that the handle on a frying pan lid gets in the way.  I much prefer a simple loop or knob atop my pot lids.

As with lines one and two, so also with lines four and five.  Again, I've substituted a lighter lid for the frying pan lid that comes with the set.  I lose weight and gain ease-of-use.  I hate that frying pan lid handle and much prefer the simple loop on the lid of my Evernew 1300ml pot.  Since I very rarely ever take both a 1300ml and a 1000ml pot out on the same trip, using the 1300ml lid for the 1000ml pot works just fine.  On those rare occasions where I need both pots, I just suck it up and take the frying pan lid.

Recommendations
1.  Materials.  Titanium is light, and titanium is strong, but if you want to cook real food, get aluminum cookware.  I find that titanium tends to scorch foods too easily.  Titanium is great for boiling water and melting snow. When melting snow always start with some liquid water in the bottom of the pot.  That liquid water will help distribute the heat more evenly and efficiently and will help to protect the pot from warping.

2.  Size.  I find that around 1000ml is the most versatile size for me.  If I were going to just get one pot, I'd probably get something around 1000ml in size.  Why 1000ml?  Well, here are a few reasons:

• Efficiency.  Smaller pots are indeed generally lighter and more packable, but smaller pots tend to be narrow.  With a narrow pot, a lot of the heat from a stove gets wasted up the sides.  I find that my stoves are much more efficient with a 1000ml pot with "traditional" proportions (wider than tall).  I do notice, though, that my new 1300ml Evernew pot is a real "bargain" in terms of weight (see above table).  It will take slightly more room in my pack, but weigh less than my 1000ml Snow Peak Pot.  My 1300ml Evernew pot may become my new "go to" pot.
• Practical cooking capacity.  I find pots less than about 750ml to be impractical.  Not only are they inefficient due to wasted heat, they also lack enough capacity for me to boil enough water for dinner and a hot beverage in one boil.
• Carrying Capacity.  I like to be able to store my stove in my pot.  With a 1000ml pot, I can lay a Clikstand (for example) down flat inside.  I can also carry a lighter, an alcohol stove, a small fuel bottle, a spoon, and my windscreen inside.

A 1000ml Snow Peak pot can carry an entire cooking set up inside.

• Safety.  Also, I've had a lot of boil overs with small pots.  I tend to boil at least 500ml (about two cups) at a time.  With a 550ml pot, there's not much distance between the water line and the rim of the pot.  A boil over when working with a gas stove could be quite dangerous since the boiling water could overheat the canister causing a flare or in some circumstances (if the canister were already quite hot) a canister explosion.  Not good.

So there you have it, a few thoughts on pots.

Thanks for joining me on another Adventure in Stoving,

HJ