Optimus Crux Lite Solo Cook System - Passaround

Yesterday I went to the post to pick up a small package from Optimus, in it the tiny new Optimus Crux Lite Solo Cook System. This set is completely new for 2010 and will be my first dabbling in gas stoves. No, I will not leave my beloved wood burning stoves behind, but in winter I find, with the cold I am even more eager to get something hot inside my mouth and thus a gas stove will not only add speed, but also convenience - I do not need to collect wood and get right down to the business of melting snow and boiling water for food.


A nice small box, full of win.

Lets get down to the most important thing first: Weight. The whole set is 269 g, and the separate weights are as follows:

- Mesh bag: 12 g
- Crux Lite: 74 g
- Crux Lite bag: 7 g
- Sauce pan: 122 g
- Fry pan: 54 g

The Crux Lite promises to be stable for the pots and would even give me the opportunity to simmer food rather easily. The sauce pan has a pouring lip and you can fit in 600 ml of liquid, that's plenty for a meal and a cuppa. The frying pan allows me to make eggs with bacon on the trail and be the envy of every other hiker, or, more likely, will be the lid for the bigger pan. The whole set packs small (13 cm high and around 11 cm in diameter if you need to know) and also fits a 110 g cartridge inside it, together with the Crux Lite and a folding spoon if that's what you use. The green plastic handles ensure you don't burn your fingers, so you don't need to use gloves. Nifty, and I love the colour.

You know unboxing photo sets of gadgets? Well, what follows is the unboxing and putting together photo set of the Optimus Crux Lite Solo Cook System, a new stage in nerdiness brought to UL backpacking =)


In its mesh bag.


Without the mesh bag, the suspense rises.


Frying pan, sauce pan and the Crux Lite, ready for action.

I can't yet tell you anything more about the Crux Lite and how it performs, as its not advised to use it inside and with the slush on the streets and the slush coming down from heaven I wasn't able to try it out yet. And that's where you come in. I will organize a Passaround of the Crux Lite Solo Cook System, and you yourself get to test it. Curious? Then read on.



Instead of me doing my usual routine I'd like to pass the Crux Lite set around to five different readers and have them test it. If you're a total newbie to gas stoves like me or a seasoned veteran, anyone can apply for a test of the set. So how does this work? I send out the set to the first reader, and he gets to play around with it for two weeks. You need to have access to gas cartridges (I can't send those) and you need to be willing to pay the postage to send it to the next person, but besides that its completely free to you and allows you to test the stove without shelling out the money first. After your two weeks of playing you send the set forward to the next in line, and drop me a short email about what you thought of the set, which will be published here on the blog. In that way we can collect different viewpoints on the Optimus Crux Lite Solo set, and get a nice review together.

You want to take part in the Passaround? Great! What you need to do is leave a comment underneath (preferrably not anonymous), and next week Monday (8th of March) around noon I will randomly pick the five people who get to test the Crux Lite Solo set. While I'd love to have this Passaround open to everyone, sending packages, even small ones like these, is expensive, so I'd would like to limit it to Scandinavia and the Baltics as that keeps the costs for those involved low (except someone wants to share the postage to them if living outside of that area, then you're welcome to comment as well). Before you hit the comment button, I'd like to remember you - you should be able to get a gas cartridge for the test in your town, you need to be willing to pay the shipping costs to the next person, and you're fine with sending me a short statement of your opinion, possibly with a photo or two. So, now off you go!

Yesterday I went to the post to pick up a small package from Optimus, in it the tiny new Optimus Crux Lite Solo Cook System. This set is completely new for 2010 and will be my first dabbling in gas stoves. No, I will not leave my beloved wood burning stoves behind, but in winter I find, with the cold I am even more eager to get something hot inside my mouth and thus a gas stove will not only add speed, but also convenience - I do not need to collect wood and get right down to the business of melting snow and boiling water for food.


A nice small box, full of win.

Lets get down to the most important thing first: Weight. The whole set is 269 g, and the separate weights are as follows:

- Mesh bag: 12 g
- Crux Lite: 74 g
- Crux Lite bag: 7 g
- Sauce pan: 122 g
- Fry pan: 54 g

The Crux Lite promises to be stable for the pots and would even give me the opportunity to simmer food rather easily. The sauce pan has a pouring lip and you can fit in 600 ml of liquid, that's plenty for a meal and a cuppa. The frying pan allows me to make eggs with bacon on the trail and be the envy of every other hiker, or, more likely, will be the lid for the bigger pan. The whole set packs small (13 cm high and around 11 cm in diameter if you need to know) and also fits a 110 g cartridge inside it, together with the Crux Lite and a folding spoon if that's what you use. The green plastic handles ensure you don't burn your fingers, so you don't need to use gloves. Nifty, and I love the colour.

You know unboxing photo sets of gadgets? Well, what follows is the unboxing and putting together photo set of the Optimus Crux Lite Solo Cook System, a new stage in nerdiness brought to UL backpacking =)


In its mesh bag.


Without the mesh bag, the suspense rises.


Frying pan, sauce pan and the Crux Lite, ready for action.

I can't yet tell you anything more about the Crux Lite and how it performs, as its not advised to use it inside and with the slush on the streets and the slush coming down from heaven I wasn't able to try it out yet. And that's where you come in. I will organize a Passaround of the Crux Lite Solo Cook System, and you yourself get to test it. Curious? Then read on.



Instead of me doing my usual routine I'd like to pass the Crux Lite set around to five different readers and have them test it. If you're a total newbie to gas stoves like me or a seasoned veteran, anyone can apply for a test of the set. So how does this work? I send out the set to the first reader, and he gets to play around with it for two weeks. You need to have access to gas cartridges (I can't send those) and you need to be willing to pay the postage to send it to the next person, but besides that its completely free to you and allows you to test the stove without shelling out the money first. After your two weeks of playing you send the set forward to the next in line, and drop me a short email about what you thought of the set, which will be published here on the blog. In that way we can collect different viewpoints on the Optimus Crux Lite Solo set, and get a nice review together.

You want to take part in the Passaround? Great! What you need to do is leave a comment underneath (preferrably not anonymous), and next week Monday (8th of March) around noon I will randomly pick the five people who get to test the Crux Lite Solo set. While I'd love to have this Passaround open to everyone, sending packages, even small ones like these, is expensive, so I'd would like to limit it to Scandinavia and the Baltics as that keeps the costs for those involved low (except someone wants to share the postage to them if living outside of that area, then you're welcome to comment as well). Before you hit the comment button, I'd like to remember you - you should be able to get a gas cartridge for the test in your town, you need to be willing to pay the shipping costs to the next person, and you're fine with sending me a short statement of your opinion, possibly with a photo or two. So, now off you go!

Optimus Crux Lite Solo Cook System - Passaround