advice for DIY windsheild

Hi All

Today from my local pound shop I purchased an oval large foil tray/platter the type used for buffets. I reakon if I cut a rectangle from the the flat bottom part it I've got about 9 x 12 inches to play with.

Its for a Primus express spider stove and an MSR Titan kettle. I was thinking of cutting it almost as deep as the kettle so I could curl it up and store it inside the kettle with my stove in the centre.

When in use How close to the kettle do you want to windshield to be ? should it encirle the stove and kettle completley ? I could cut a few slots for the stove legs to poke through and to let some air in. I was thinking maybe having it about an inch bigger in diameter than the kettle so the whole thing doesn't get too hot.

I don't know if that all makes sense but peoples experiences would be very helpfull.

Have look on Youtube for advice but yes cut it to fit inside the kettle.

Someone might beg to differ but it can be fairly tight to and encircle the stove and kettle. A half inch space from the pot to the windscreen is ample. You could make a joint  for the ends to conserve things, or if the screen is long enough, just overlap the ends when you set it up and use a paper clip or two to neaten the circle.

9" by 12" won't be enough to surround an MSR Titan (~4.5" diameter).  Allowing 0.5" gap, that gives 5.5" diameter windshield, so needs about 17".  That solves your worries about allowing air to the burner...

For the Spider, which is a remote canister stove, you don't need to worry about the problems of reflecting heat back to the canister causing it to overheat (as you do with a canister-top burner).

If you wanted to make air vents at the bottom, round punched holes are easy to make, and don't weaken the foil like slots might.

You might look at the Caldera Clone thread for general tips on working with foil, or look at this BPL thread for a nice example of a windshield, admittedly from 'aluminium window flashing'.

Take a look here.

Bedouin wrote (see)

I asked about this a while ago for use with my Soto OD1 to cut a long story short I bought a Primus universal wind shield which wasn't tall enough so I added a thick aluminium roll to the extend the shield up. Works a treat.

Does it?  I was a bit annoyed to find that, as you say, the Primus windshield is too short for the Soto OD1 (nice stove BTW).  As I recall, the pan supports project slightly beyond the circumference of the Primus windshield so how do you keep the foil extension in place? 

rob dixon 2 wrote (see)

Re how close to the burner and cylinder, I use a windshield high enough to almost reach the top of the billy on my sit on top stove.  I tend to wrap it around fairly close but was slightly concernd to find how very hot the cylinder was on still day recently - so beware!

I made the windshield for my primus spider express and used it on Dartmoor this weekend.

 It was really windy so a good test for it. I found that it wasnt high enough and only just reached the bottom of the kettle but then it wouldn't have fit in the kettle for storage.

Also it could have come further round and been a little closer to the kettle as the 3 legs of the stove stop it getting too close. I will have to re think and try a few variations.

Mike, yes I know.  I think it had closed itself up a little, more than normal, so it's a lesson learned!  It was quite cold at the time, too.

As it happens I'm currently making a video about how to make a clip on conical windshield which you can make to clip to any circular pot, allowing airflow at the bottom, but benefitting from trapping warm air up the sides of the pot.

There's just a few calculations to make and now you've got the right material, it'll be easy. It works on the same principle as the Caldera, but doesn't quite go to the ground.

Keep your eye on The Outdoors Station or our other website and you'll see it probably towards the weekend, as I'm just finishing off one about Pot Cosy's first.