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Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove

$32.95

(17)

Item # 761903

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Designed for weight-conscious backpackers, the ultralight Vargo Triad XE stove burns hot at high altitudes and in very cold temperatures.

Dual fuel capability burns fuel tabs in addition to alcohol, improving performance at altitudes over 11,000 ft. and in temperatures below 20°F
In more moderate conditions, denatured alcohol burns very efficiently and boils 2 cups of water in 6 min.
Lightweight titanium construction makes the stove ideal for the minimalist backpacker who primarily boils water to make meals
Retractable top and bottom legs create a compact design for easy transport
Simple maintenance and cleaning ensure reliable performance
Use of a windscreen greatly improves stove performance; visit www.vargooutdoors.com for instructions on making a windscreen
Burns denatured alcohol and fuel tabs (both sold separately)

Specs based on manufacturer's information. Please note: We may not ship stoves to addresses in Japan or Korea.

Imported.

Item 761903

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Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove Customer Reviews

REVIEW SNAPSHOT®

by PowerReviews

Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove

2.9

(based on 17 reviews)

65%

of respondents would recommend this to a friend.

Pros

Lightweight (14)
Compact (12)
Easy to clean (7)
Easy to light (7)
Stable (4)

Cons

Poor temperature control (9)
Difficult to light (3)
Unstable (3)

Best Uses

Backpacking (13)
Hiking (11)

- Reviewer Profile:
- Avid adventurer (13)
- What Is Your Gear Style:
- Survivalist / minimalist (10), Comfort driven (6)
- Was this a gift?:
- No (5)

Reviewed by 17 customers

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Displaying reviews 1-10

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Oct

2007

(16 of 17 customers found this review helpful)

2.0

Titanium Pepsi-can stove

By DCB

from Fresno

About Me Internet yahoo

See all my reviews

Pros

Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Lightweight
Stable

Cons

Poor temperature control

Best Uses

Backpacking
High Altitude
Hiking

Comments about Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove:

This is good for boiling a 3 cup mug of water for tea. The Snow Peak Trek 700 fits perfectly on the titanium arms. Flame size is perfect for this mug, as is the qty. of fuel it holds. The stove holds enough fuel to bring 3 cups of 60degreeF water to a boil, and hold that boil for a couple of minutes, max.

Heat control is absent, being full blast or nothing, whether with alcohol or heat tabs. It burns both of these nicely. Off brand heat tabs put plenty of interesting brown junk on the bottom side of your pot, which transfers easily to your clothes :)

A typo in the description reads "2 quarts". Should have been "2 cups".

I am torn on whether I would recommend this to a friend. I think what it essentially is, is an updated replacement for my old military canteen cup stove.

Sep

2008

(9 of 11 customers found this review helpful)

3.0

nice and small

By Adam Army

from Surprise, Arizona

About Me Outdoor Professional

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Lightweight

Cons

Difficult to Light

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking

Comments about Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove:

Its hard to put the cap on and realy hard to take off.
Getting the alcohol to light is hard at home. out and about would be imposible.
It works realy well with fule tabs and holds a 2 cup cup with no problem.

Nov

2010

(7 of 8 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

great little stove

By push

from Whittier, NC

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy set up
Easy To Clean
Light weight

Cons

Poor temperature control

Best Uses

Backpacking
Car Camping
Hiking

Comments about Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove:

This stove will serve you well if you take the time to figure out how to work it. First thing is that it needs to sit on soil so the thin legs can anchor in the ground. It will not perform well on a table and i don't recommend using it on a hard surface. To fill the stove remove the top of the canister. It should come off easily set the bottom back in the stove and fill it up. The let the top ease back down on the bottom of the canister. It does not require a push down to make it tight. To prime the stove fill up a bit of alcohol in the space surrounding the canister and try not to run it over. Light the prime from a hole on the side.I use the small Ti cookset from Rei and it took some adjusting to get the kettle to nest inside the top grid but it sure works great. Snowpeak cookset would be more desirable. This stove is great if you plan on dehydrated meals and heating water. I have cooked with it but it takes a bit of getting used to. This stove will serve you for years and years. Its titanium and very strong. It fits well in a cook pot and with a piece of tin foil for a windscreen works like a charm. I am writing this review with three steady years of using a vargo stove in all four seasons. You will need to keep the alcohol warm if possible in winter conditions but with a bit more priming the stove will fire up and glow.

Apr

2010

(6 of 7 customers found this review helpful)

2.0

Not so great

By majorhiker

from Baltimore, MD

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Lightweight

Cons

Not easy to use
Poor temperature control

Best Uses

Backpacking

Comments about Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove:

To use the product you have to split the canister pour in the denatured alcohol and then press the two halves together tight enough so the alcohol burn through the holes on top vs out the sides. The big problem is that if you press the two halves together tight enough then it is vary difficult to open up again. When you fill it and press it together it's almost impossible to not get alcohol all over your hands, you will have to rinse them off or dry them vary well so you don't catch on fire. When filled it would only burn about 8 to 9 mins at sea level and 70 degrees ambient temperature not 30 mins like the package says. If you need more time to cook you will have to put on gloves because this thing get hot if you can open it at all. The flame is vary sensitive to wind, much more so than propane/butane.

Sep

2010

(5 of 8 customers found this review helpful)

2.0

Not Great

By JuniperTrekker

from Richland, WA

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Cons

Best Uses

Hiking

Comments about Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove:

Stove looks neat and performs slightly better than the Vargo Triad--one of the worst performing Alcohol stoves out there. Alcohol stoves of the right design are great for a L/W stove when 1-2 cups of boiling water are needed. Much better choices are out there: Cat, Pepsi, Zelph, etc...

Jul

2010

(5 of 9 customers found this review helpful)

1.0

DANGEROUS

By Barman

from Appalachian Trail

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Cons

Unstable

Best Uses

Comments about Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove:

Do NOT buy this product.
It is elegant, simple, and light. BUT: With this tripod design it is prone to tipping over. Nothing worse can be said about a stove, especially an alcohol stove. A stream of flame runs down the table.
Vargo makes a very stable stove. If you want to use alcohol consider that one.
I tipped this one over three times -- imagine maiming someone at the table!

Jul

2010

(3 of 5 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

Perfect for the right person

By geek99

from Nevada City

About Me Casual/ Recreational

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Lightweight
Stable

Cons

Poor temperature control

Best Uses

Hiking

Comments about Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove:

I've used an older version of this stove for some time. It doesn't come apart and fills through a small hole.

I think it is a great invention and absolutely reliable with basically no moving parts. I have to plan around its limitation of needing to be filled and then basically also needing to burn to the end. I haven't tried it with 200 poof alcohol but think it must work so that's something you could probably put in your luggage? It is about the same size as a ping pong ball. I made a wind screen out of 6 inch aluminum flashing material available in hardware stores that rolls up and stores around inside edge of pot. Leave about 3/8 inch gap around pot to give greatest efficiency. I also cut notches in bottom of screen to let in air and trimmed to not interfere with handle.I get easy 4 cups boiled from a filling and then some. I put extra water boiled into canteen.

Jul

2010

(3 of 5 customers found this review helpful)

4.0

Gets the job done

By tsunamiscott

from Pacific Northwest

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Cheap fuel
Compact
Easy to Light
Lightweight

Cons

Poor temperature control

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking

Comments about Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove:

The Triad is very easy to light with the sparks from a fire steel if the stove is primed with alcohol first. This stove is able to boil 16 ounces of water in 7-11 minutes depending on the conditions and if a windbreak and a lid are used. The maximum burn time is 15 minutes if completely full (1.1 ounce). Not the fastest stove but it's size and weight make it perfect for UL backpacking or as a backup stove. Uses denatured alcohol or Esbit fuel.

Oct

2009

(3 of 5 customers found this review helpful)

3.0

A good stove for being ultralight

By Jarhead_1101

from Southern California

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Lightweight
Stable

Cons

Difficult to Light
Poor temperature control

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking

Comments about Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove:

I bought this item as a lightweight alternative to my Jetboil stove. What this stove lacks in convenience, it makes up for it in its weight. This stove is versatile as it allows the use of denatured alcohol and Esbit Fuel Tabs.

According to the Vargo website, alcohol doesn't work well at high altitudes at 11k feet or in cold weather 20F. So fuel tabs should be used, though they leave a strong odor and a dirty residue.

This stove also requires the use of a lightweight windscreen for best results. You can buy one or make one out of a aluminum cooking pan found at grocery stores.

I use a Snowpeak TI Cup with a lid to boil water. I can boil water in about 6 minutes at 2300'. That is with the alcohol almost filled to the rim of the stove.

Priming can be tricky and may take one or two tries. The alcohol is very quick to evaporate and the top of the stove doesn't allow a lot of alcohol to remain after being poured on top for priming. It tends to run off the sides.

This stove is great for short hikes or in a mountain bike pack for long rides. Though you would have to find somewhere to stick the bulky cup or pot.

Jul

2010

(2 of 6 customers found this review helpful)

3.0

Its Ok!?!?!

By livingxtreme

from South New Jersey

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Easy to Light
Lightweight

Cons

CANNOT relight easily

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking

Comments about Vargo Outdoors Triad XE Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove:

I just bought this product.. I havent got the chance to use it in the field, howver, what i noticed is that the cap is snug so it takes effort to put on/off, So when you fill the stove with alcohol, you will spill some by putting cap back on AND... if you need to reuse the stove after one use, you have to wait until it cools off to open the cap again. Takes little while to cook.. I think I am gonna invet in another stove for back up. I like how this is lightweight, but not thrilled about the design so much. Overall, I would recommend because it does do its job and is really lightweight for the weight concious backpacker, but for convenience it doesnt do!