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Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System

$59.95

(11)

Item # 769473

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This wilderness-ready cooking system includes an ultralight Optimus Crux Lite stove, pot, fry pan and mesh storage sack.

Hard-anodized aluminum pot and fry pan (doubles as the pot lid) disperse heat evenly, are nonstick, durable and scratch-resistant and clean up easily
Fry pan and 0.6-liter pot conveniently store stove, fuel canister and utensils (canister and utensils sold separately)
Ultralight stove weighs in at 2.7 oz.—perfect for ounce-counting adventurers
Two-inch burner head spreads the flame evenly; flip-out pot supports provide a 4.5 in. cooking surface and directional windscreen
Spring-tensioned flame-control valve adjusts flame from steady simmer to rolling boil; control wire is sized for glove-friendly operation
Pot and fry pan together weigh 5.6 oz.
Pot and fry pan together measure 4.8 x 4.1 in.
Includes a mesh storage bag

Specs based on manufacturer's information. Please note: Optimus products can only be shipped to U.S. addresses.

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

Imported.

Item 769473

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Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System Customer Reviews

REVIEW SNAPSHOT®

by PowerReviews

Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System

4.0

(based on 11 reviews)

91%

of respondents would recommend this to a friend.

Pros

Compact (11)
Lightweight (9)
Easy to clean (7)
Easy to light (7)
Good power output (6)

Cons

Poor temperature control (5)

Best Uses

Backpacking (10)
Hiking (6)
Car camping (3)

- Reviewer Profile:
- Avid adventurer (10)
- What Is Your Gear Style:
- Survivalist / minimalist (9)
- Was this a gift?:
- No (3)

Reviewed by 11 customers

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Displaying reviews 1-10

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Oct

2009

(4 of 5 customers found this review helpful)

3.0

Constantly adjusting.....

By LeonT

from Temecula, CA

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Lightweight

Cons

Poor temperature control

Best Uses

Backpacking

Comments about Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System:

Super compact and lightweight stove. Serves it's purpose. I only boil water so the lack of precise flame control does not bother me. Only complaint I have is the need to constantly adjust the flame, as the stove sometimes puts itself out.

May

2010

(3 of 4 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

Great Stove - Old Model

By East Coast Hiker

from South Carolina

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Great temperature control
Lightweight

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking

Comments about Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System:

This was actually my first REI purchase and was an overstock item I got half price about three and a half years ago. It came just as a stove however, and I see they have made some design changes. Despite the design changes it appears as though its function is still the same. The head of mine actually folds 90 degrees and fits in a small pouch that straps flush under a fuel canister and then slides right into my snow peak trek 900 cookset along with my lighter and folding REi spork.

Function wise, I absolutely love this stove. I have used it as my primary stove for the past 3 years. I also have a snow peak giga power that is way bulkier and i use it ONLY when I have a good many people with no stove hiking with me. For a single person, this stove is all you will need. My fiance and I use this for both of us when we hike. Have had no problem with stability or cooking temp control, again, I use a snow peak trek 900 cookset. I could see were stability could be an issue. But its not like you let your dogs run over your cookstove while operating it. It is perfectly fine if you stay by your food while cooking. I mean, I do that when I cook in my house. Also, I have had no temp control issues. I believe it has good adjustment ability and have had NO, NO flameouts and have used multiple fuel types. I highly recommend this stove. Also, I make pretty extravagant food on the trail. It's not like I am only boiling water and making pouch meals. Take care of my equipment, as long as you do, it should function as designed.

Again, I have the old model of the Crux, love it; however, I have not experience with the new model or the cookset that comes with this stove.

Nov

2009

(3 of 3 customers found this review helpful)

4.0

great small water boil system

By backpacking in cincy

from cincinnati oh

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Lightweight

Cons

Poor temperature control
Unstable

Best Uses

Backpacking
Hiking

Comments about Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System:

I used as a backup system when out on hikes. in case i get stuck. I also use when car camping as a nice combo to my msr whisperlite. It is a great for making enough water hot chocalote for 2 in the morning and does it fast. would reccommend a base to your can to help with the stable issues but the pot is about the biggest you can use with this stove. Goes out very easy. there is only 1 setting if you want to use this - high. Great for water boiling like i said. small and compact.

Sep

2010

(2 of 2 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

Thermonuclear stove

By laggy311

from Big Sky, MT

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy to Light
Great temperature control
Lightweight
Powerful

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
Car Camping
Hiking

Comments about Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System:

First off, I only have the Optimus Crux Lite stove. I paired with the Terra Weekend HE (has a heat exchanger ring and larger size).

I chose this stove over the more convenient, compact-able Optimus Crux only because the regular Crux has more moving parts and a plastic piece = more chances (technically) of breaking in the field.

I do not have a windscreen and I have not used this at altitude, but I was in cold temps (~35). Simmer was easy to adjust. Boiled a liter of 40 degree water in probably 2, maybe 3 minutes.

Aug

2010

(2 of 2 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

tiny and mighty

By elguaposweater

from Arkansas

About Me Casual/ Recreational

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Lightweight
Powerful
Stable

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
Car Camping
Hiking

Comments about Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System:

I converted to canister stoves after about 6 years using an MSR Whisperlite. I'm sold. I can't imagine a simpler more elegant design. All you have to do is unfold the valve control, turn it to the off position (**this is an important step and easy to forget**), screw it onto your fuel canister, turn it on and light it up! No pumping, priming, or flare-ups.

I haven't had problems with stability, but I have used it in places where I've had a flat surface on which to cook and I've used small pots. With regard to stability, I found using a fuel bottle stove that requires pumping action to maintain pressure scarier. There is also a product available from Brunton called the "can stand" which is a three legged stand that clips onto the base of standard sized canisters. I suspect this might help with stability if you aren't on a flat surface.

Also, I do much (any) gourmet cooking on the trail or at the campsite. I boil water and pour it on my noodles or oatmeal and this stove boils fast. That's all I need and this stove functions perfectly.

I've also seen the model that folds. Seems like a nice feature that would make the stove even more compact, though I wonder if it weakens the structure of the stove.

Oct

2009

(2 of 2 customers found this review helpful)

3.0

Crux Lite Stove

By Ltrain

from Baltimore, MD

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Lightweight
Powerful
Stable

Cons

Poor temperature control

Best Uses

Backpacking

Comments about Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System:

Basically I kept having to adjust the volume control b/c the stove kept backing off and a few times would back off enough and go out. I tried two different fuel canisters and both did the same, so i know it's the stove. I just thought it would have performed better for the money.

Nov

2010

(1 of 1 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

Excellant product

By Beach

from Columbia, MD

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light
Lightweight
Powerful

Cons

Best Uses

Comments about Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System:

I bought this for a recent hike of the MD section of the Appalachian Trail, did not disappoint. I only used it to boil water for Ramen noodles and coffee but worked great. One thing it doesn't show in the photo's is the measurements inside the 16 oz mug, very handy.

Sep

2010

(1 of 1 customers found this review helpful)

3.0

Ok solo but unstable; bad heat control

By T W M

from Flagstaff

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy to Light
Lightweight
Powerful

Cons

Poor temperature control
Unstable

Best Uses

Backpacking
High Altitude
Hiking

Comments about Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System:

I used this stove for three weeks in the Arctic and on various bikepacking, backpacking and car camping trips.

This stove has good heat output and is compact and light-weight. But it has poor heat control. It is hard to run on lower heat settings, and as others have noted, it often backs off when at lower settings. Simmering with this stove is a matter of constant attention. Similarly, the support structures are relatively small. This makes the stove unstable and subject to to heat loss during wind.

All that said, this is a great solo adventurer stove for heating water quickly for coffee and freeze dried meals. It is very compact and light. I would recommend it for those uses. I would not recommend it as a primary stove for more intricate cooking that requires lots of heat control.

Mar

2011

5.0

The stove is the BOMB!

By NEOScout

from Tampa, FL

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy to Light
Great temperature control
Lightweight
Powerful
Stable

Cons

Best Uses

Backpacking
Car Camping
Hiking

Comments about Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System:

I am keeping my comments to the stove because it's the item I own and I really love it. It was a gift from a buddy and I am very pleased with its performance.

We took some older boys from our Boy Scout troop to Ocala National Forest over winter break for a 50-mile trek and it turned out to be one of the coldest weeks of the year. Over night it got in to the mid-teens. Mornings, around 6:30, it was in the upper teens and low 20s. Dinnertime it got to be around 30-35. We had great success in the cold with this little stove, heating a quart of water in almost no time, and often faster than others with Coleman or JetBoil systems.

The three sawtoothed stabilizers worked well with my MSR mess kit, keeping my pots firmly atop the flame. As an alternative to the JetBoil kit, this is a great buy, especially the stove!

Sep

2010

3.0

Its nice, but it could be better.

By lucas triana

from Bogotá, Colombia, South America

About Me Avid Adventurer

See all my reviews

Pros

Compact
Easy To Clean
Easy to Light

Cons

Stability
Too much fuel consumption

Best Uses

Backpacking

Comments about Optimus Crux Lite Cooking System:

I bought this stove about a year ago on a rock trip to Coopers Rock WV. It cooked good enough, I little slow but for suck small size you couldn't ask more.
The fuel consumption is a problem. Each pipe last only a couple of uses. You also need a flat camping spot to cook, it can tilt out of the bloom when boiling water or similar.

I recommend it, if you are a casual camper who is not demanding too much from a stove. However you can find better stoves in the market for less.