Primus Express Spider Stove

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The Primus Express Spider Stove is a great little butane stove to take along on a hiking trip. It combines lightness and simplicity with a sturdy design. Here is an in depth look at some more of the stove’s attributes and advantages:

Simplicity of Design

This stove is all about simplicity. It doesn’t try to impress the user with any fancy gimmicks. Instead it goes for economy and a streamlined approach to the fundamentals. It has a small three footed burner with a brass tube, connecting hose, and tank attachment. It also comes with a heat reflector and stuff sack. That’s about the extent of it, but it functions like a champ and does it all without adding anything unnecessary.

Lightness

The entire works of the Primus Express Spider Stove weigh in at 7 oz. This is light enough for serious mountain climbers and is practically unnoticeable to anyone else. The spider achieves some of this lightness by leaving out an on board igniter (this is discussed a bit more below). Weight is priority one for a well made piece of camping equipment. Weight is what a hiker or climber feels most as he or she logs in hours on the trail. The stove helps out greatly here. And despite its lightness it is rugged and sturdy.

Compactness

This stove, along with the attributes mentioned above, or perhaps as a result of them, highly compact and space efficient. At about four inches at its widest point when unfolded it is large enough to accommodate small to large pots, making it ideal whether you are a solo camper or cooking for a large group. The three legs fold up neatly making so that stove can fit in the palm of your hand. It can also fit inside many camping pots and mess kits, making storage easy.

As noted above, the Express Spider doesn’t come with its own igniter. But the fact is, most hikers carry some other form of ignition anyway, so there isn’t much reason to have an on board igniter on this kind of stove. This was a calculated and wise decision on the part of the designers for weight savings.
It is also a fast cooker, though technically not the fastest boiling stove out there: it has a boiling time of 4.5 minutes, which is perfectly adequate, but is exceeded by some other high performance stoves. The Express Spider’s output is 7150 BTU/hr. which is quite competitive.

Price

The Primus Express Spider has a manufacturer’s suggested retail of $60.00, which won’t break the bank. This price puts it in reach of casual weekend hikers and ambitious expeditioneers alike. Cutting costs on small (though not unimportant) items like this can free a hiker or climber up to meet other expenses, such as an upgraded backpack, a new mess kit, or a warmer sleeping bag.

In summary, The Primus Express Spider has all the attributes a hiker could want. On a scale of 1 to 5, this reviewer rates it a 4. Its only drawbacks are the lack of an on board lighter, and a very slightly longer boil time than some other high end hiking stoves. Seeing as neither of these items are substantial or genuinely problematic, the stove ranks high.
This Primus Express Spider’s positive attributes are its super convenient portability, its simplicity, and its sturdiness. These are some of the most important attributes for a hiking stove to possess. They make for easy packing and a hiking experience that will be comfortable, while supplying the hiker with a state of the art piece of cooking equipment. It is highly recommended for outdoor enthusiasts at all levels who want a lightweight, high performance, and affordable hiking stove.