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MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove

$39.95

(245)

Item # 660163

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Hands-down winner in the race for space! The tiny MSR Pocket Rocket stove delivers full-size performance yet fits into the smallest corner of your pack.

Lightweight and compact, weighing just over 3 oz., the Pocket Rocket boils a liter of water in less than 4 min.!
Stove is simple to operate, with no priming, preheating or pressurizing required; simply turn it on, light and start cooking
Fully-adjustable flame, from a rolling boil to a slow simmer, lets you cook gourmet meals; control valve is easy to operate even with gloved hands
Serrated pot-supports prevent the pot from shifting; folds up compact for travel
Compatible with most self-sealing canister fuel, making it a great choice for global travel
Includes a protective, custom-fit travel case
Fuel canister sold separately
Weight includes stove, not the canister

Please note: MSR products can only be shipped to U.S. addresses.

Imported.

Item 660163

View all MSR products

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MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove Customer Reviews

REVIEW SNAPSHOT®

by PowerReviews

MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove

4.6

(based on 245 reviews)

99%

of respondents would recommend this to a friend.

Pros

Lightweight (242)
Easy to light (222)
Good power output (181)
Compact (178)
Great temperature control (136)

Cons

Unstable (74)
Poor temperature control (27)
Somewhat unstable (4)
Difficult to light (3)
Slightly unstable (3)

Best Uses

Backpacking (241)
Hiking (167)
Car camping (76)
High altitude (31)

- Reviewer Profile:
- Avid adventurer (144), Casual/ recreational (79), Casual adventurer (18)
- What Is Your Gear Style:
- Survivalist / minimalist (115), Comfort driven (55)
- Was this a gift?:
- No (45), Yes (4)

REVIEWS

Reviewed by 245 customers

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Displaying reviews 1-10

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Apr

2008

(33 of 36 customers found this review helpful)

4.0

Packs a punch!

By Crazy Stick

from Chicago, Il

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy to Light
Great temperature control
Lightweight
Powerful

Cons

Unstable

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking

Comments about MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove:

This Stove is very good. I always research products ALOT before I buy them, and still sometimes im dissapointed, But not with this stove. It is truly a great stove.
Very easy to setup, use, maintain. boils water VERY fast. and is also very lightweight.
It isnt too stable but so far I have had no problems with that, and in reality, its not too hard to stick a few rocks around the base to keep it from tipping.
Of course it dosnt perform too well in cold temperatures. If it starts to get colder, I suggest you get it going and do all the boiling you need to asap, the more you turn it on and off, the more likely it will freeze up.
with that said, I have used it in below freezing conditions, I just dont recommend it, get a wisperlight for that.

conclusion: great lightweight stove that packs a punch, if you are carefull you dont need to worry about tipping, never had it happen to me.

ps: i have heard people say they didnt like the flimsy stands that fold out. I have not had problems with flimsyness either, maybe i dont try hard enough. but I have cooked larger sized aluminum pots with it. either way, use common knowledge, this stove is really only meant for use with other ultralight (titanium, aluminum) pots.

Jan

2009

(22 of 23 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

Cooked for two on the entire PCT

By Buzz

from Oceanside, CA

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Lightweight
Powerful

Cons

Unstable

Best Uses

Backpacking

Comments about MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove:

With a windscreen made of heavy duty tinfoil and a 1 ounce anti gravity gear pot cozy - the Pocket Rocket ended up being a terrific choice for 4-1/2 months of backpacking on the PCT. The 2-quart pot was a bit wobbly on the top, but never tipped. There are postal regulations (Publication 52) that allow the fuel cannister to be mailed (ground only and only within the 48 states) so we had replacement fuel mailed ahead of us as we hiked. A downside is that some of the fuel left in the container was always left behind since we weren't going to carry 2-cannisters. If we weren't cooking for two we probably would have used an alcohol stove - but they didn't bring 2-quarts of water to a boil before running out of alcohol. This was great for a long distance hike. I looked at a MSR Reactor but the 20.2 ounce weight without the fuel was too great a difference to the approx 5 ounce weight of the Pocket Rocket, foil and cozy.

Aug

2008

(18 of 18 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

My Stove of Choice

By rmtrekker

from Canon City, Co

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Lightweight
Powerful

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
High Altitude

Comments about MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove:

What a great stove! I live next to the Sangre de Cristo range in Colorado, and take regular back country trips. Up until two years ago my stove of choice was the MSR Whisperlite. That has changed. The size of this stove alone is a dream come true for the ultralight backpacker. The stove itself takes up almost no room, and weighs next to nothing. Set up and light time is twice as fast as my Whisperlite stove. And the stove takes no time at all to boil water, which saves fuel. I will admit that cooking over the stove has always been secondary to grill grates and a fire pit, which allows me to limit my fuel weight. That is exactly what makes this stove so great.

Stability and temperature control seem to be the only complaints about this stove. I must say, that no matter which stove you choose, finding a stable platform for the stove must be your first priority. That being said, I will admit that my whisperlite seems to be a bit more stable. As far as temperature control is concerned, the stove concentrates the flame on the center of the pot or pan. Because of this, the stove requires that you constantly watch and stir you food to keep it from burning, even at low temps. Windy conditions also seems to be a problem since you are not able to use a windshield on the stove. (A drawback to using any stove with the same style of fuel canister.) In my opinion, this only requires that you find a more sheltered campsite, or sit upwind from the stove to act as a windshield yourself. Also a great time to utilize the vestibule on your tent.

Overall, if weight and size are your main concern, I would highly recommend this stove. If you don't mind carrying a little extra weight, and spending a little more time setting up your stove, I believe the Whisperlite Internationale should be the only other stove you consider.

Sep

2008

(17 of 17 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

International Traveler

By Ecuador Explorer

from Quito, Ecuador

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Lightweight

Cons

Poor temperature control

Best Uses

Backpacking
High Altitude

Comments about MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove:

I've used this tiny stove to heat water around the world. It's compact, light and cools quickly. I used it in military service for years where the joy of a hot cup in the morning made it well worth the little extra weight. I have not found a screw on canister that didn't work. I'm currently using a 70% butane/30% propane mix for high altitude use (15-16,000 feet) and it works fine. I'm still playing around with canister insulating options due to the temps at those altitudes but the stove/fuel keep making hot water so it's a combination that's working. While the canisters aren't cheap, white gas is about $15/gallon in Ecuador so they are a good alternative to my WhisperLite Int'l. Of course you need to shield this little guy from the wind and make sure the canister is firmly placed but if you want a light international stove for heating water, this stove is nearly perfect. Finally, combine it with the GSI Dualist cookset (inside which the Pocket Rocket and a fuel canister fit nicely) and you've got a fantastic system.

Apr

2008

(16 of 18 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

LOVE THE SIZE AND THE POWER

By merc15

from Baltimore, MD

About Me Casual/ Recreational

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Great temperature control
Lightweight
Powerful
Stable

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
Car Camping
Hiking

Comments about MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove:

This backpacking stove is fantastic. Incredibly compact, light-weight and easy to light. I used it on a camping trip and one tank of fluid was enough for the whole weekend (11 people). All you are going to need is a flat surface to place it and that is it. It lights on the first try without difficulty and great for one large pot or one small one.

Apr

2009

(13 of 13 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

Aptly named

By Ranger Powers

from Seattle

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Great temperature control
Lightweight
Powerful

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking

Comments about MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove:

I just used this for the first time this last weekend on a 3 day backpacking trip and found it to be absolutely perfect for a backpacker looking for light weight gear.

It is very easy to work with and managed to boil water for coffee and meals quite quickly. I also found it to be frugal on the fuel; I had half a 8oz canister left after cooking for 2 people over 3 days.

Another big plus is the hard plastic carrying case it comes with. A very nice touch when you tend to just jam things in our pack in the morning.

Apr

2008

(12 of 13 customers found this review helpful)

4.0

sips gas!

By dawnandpaulie

from Auburn, Ca

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Fair temperature control
Lightweight
Powerful

Cons

Needs level surface

Best Uses

Backpacking
Car Camping
High Altitude
Hiking

Comments about MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove:

we used this stove on a 4-day backpacking trip in the high country at sequoia national park and loved it! we were impressed with the light weight, compact size, ease of lighting (didn't fail even in below freezing temps) and the minimal use of fuel. we only used one 8 oz fuel container for 3 of us, 3 hot meal per day and coffee in the mornings...still had a tad of fuel left over at the end of the trip! i feel the price is exceptional for the product. i have already recommended it to several friends.

Jun

2008

(8 of 9 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

Great stove!

By Kurt the Dirt

from Portland, OR

About Me Professional Guide

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Lightweight
Powerful

Cons

Unstable

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking

Comments about MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove:

I am an avid adventurer, and never leave home without this stove. It lights on the fly, packs down smaller than my silverwear, and boils water quickly! Unfortunately, you need stable ground to cook things as it is easily knocked over, and due to the concentration of the flame, it doesn't cook very evenly.. But you have the right cookware, it's perfect.

Jun

2011

(6 of 6 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

In a word, "RELIABLE!"

By Carefree Hiker

from Carefree, AZ

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Great temperature control
Lightweight
Powerful
Stable

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking

Comments about MSR Pocket Rocket Backpacking Stove:

The Pocket Rocket is worth its weight in gold (maybe more, actually, as it's so light)! I've used it backpacking many, many times over the past 5+ years, and never once has it failed me. Even when faced with strong, sustained desert mountain winds, it has never failed to fire and boil water for my Mountain House meals in minutes.

It's also tiny - small enough to fit inside my Primus LiTech Ultra-light non-stick saucepan and frying pan combo --- along with a 1/2 cup measuring cup to boot (or just in my pocket, of course)!