Kelly Kettle

[wolftalonID]

http://Www.kellykettleusa.com

I saw these in a magazine a while back and they intrigued me. This last week I was as sportsmans warehouse and saw one in person. I am considering purchasing one of these guys and trying them out. I really like the idea of using natural fuels for heating water, and it honestly wasn't much larger than my Flash cup i use now.

Has anyone here used one? Thoughts, feedback?

 

[AnthonyVR]

A very interesting idea. Here are some of my quick thoughts.

Pros-
Will pay for itself over time in fuel savings.
Don't have to worry about rationing fuel on extended hunts.
The small aluminum kettle weighs in at 1.3lbs which is about par with most cook systems if you include fuel.
Has a lot of versatile accessories.
Seems very durable with little to foul up or break.

Cons-
Will probably take a little longer to cook with.
Burning natural fuels will give off a little more scent.
Might have a hard time finding usable fuel on wet or snowy hunts, or way above timberline.
A little on the bulky side.

It looks like a quality product that would be suitable for some situations and not so much for others.

 

[wolftalonID]

Good feed back. I wouldnt consern myself with fire as a deterant scent on a hunt. I have spent more than my fair share of time around fires hunting, and hunting burns. Smoke doesnt cause them to go away from you. I did see a review showing a melted out interior due to cooking it dry, so it doesnt work as a stand by mini wood stove.

I almost would rather have a mini wood burner that I could put a pot on vs this idea after seeing how easy it is to burn them out on the inside.

 

[Musket Man]

I have never used one but they seem like a neat idea. Mike Eastman talks about using them in his books.

 

[Grantbvfd]

Boil time isn't very efficient. Boil time would take about 10-15 minutes if you already have kindling ready. When I get back to camp I want hot food now. Most dehydrated meals take about 10 minutes to rehydrate. You are looking at almost a half hour for food prep as opposed to 13 minutes with my jetboil. I like to organize gear for the next day not feed a tiny fire.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

 

[THelms]

I have two of these the largest model for using around base camp and the smallest model for backpack hunts. While it does take a little time to gather fuel the actual boiling time is only a couple of minutes. Put it this way, I wanted to see jut what I could use for fuel and how long it would take to boil water with "alternative" fuels. In my small model I used dried cow dung (I know, I know but hear me out) and once I got it smoking and added the pot/kettle it only took three minutes to boil 16 ounces of water. Crazy, but it worked.
Fuel is unlimited with these things and I used it all last year on everything from elk hunts to deer hunts and never noticed game "spooking" from the smoke smell. The upside to this is a hot cup of tea with honey on a cold afternoon or mid-morning hunt, it puts me back in the game mentally. I will still use my old whisperlite stove with bottled fuel but for the most part the Kelly Kettles get the nod for me. I love them! Oh, and a by the by, they are great for the drift boat in the winter too!

 

[THelms]

Just make sure they have water in them and they'll put out a lot of heat.

 

[Grantbvfd]

I have two of these the largest model for using around base camp and the smallest model for backpack hunts. While it does take a little time to gather fuel the actual boiling time is only a couple of minutes. Put it this way, I wanted to see jut what I could use for fuel and how long it would take to boil water with "alternative" fuels. In my small model I used dried cow dung (I know, I know but hear me out) and once I got it smoking and added the pot/kettle it only took three minutes to boil 16 ounces of water. Crazy, but it worked.
Fuel is unlimited with these things and I used it all last year on everything from elk hunts to deer hunts and never noticed game "spooking" from the smoke smell. The upside to this is a hot cup of tea with honey on a cold afternoon or mid-morning hunt, it puts me back in the game mentally. I will still use my old whisperlite stove with bottled fuel but for the most part the Kelly Kettles get the nod for me. I love them! Oh, and a by the by, they are great for the drift boat in the winter too!

That's incredible! Even higher end stoves that shoot an extremely hot flame on a pot still take 3 minutes to boil. From what you are saying the Kelly kettles are much more efficient than even a pocket rocket. Could you post of video showing this couple minute boil time? Would love to see this.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

 

[wolftalonID]

So Grant, do you own one? If you do post up a video showing the 10-15 min boil time. If you cant, then cut the sarcasm, as I asked for reviews not conjecture.
The product itself claims a few minutes boil time, the claim you made of 10-15 is odd.

I know how fast my jetboil Flash can get water hot, and combined with my mountain house meal, eating in five minutes from fire to spoon. I am not looking to speed up that time....really. I was considering eliminating the need for purchased fuel, although at the cost of the kettle vs jetboil fuel, the savings dont add up for me. Would take decades! Lol.

I am still intrigued by them so looking to hear first hand examples.

 

[THelms]

Grant,
Expected no less than disbelief... I wouldn't have believed it myself until I tried it. The way the stove works is like a chimney that literally rockets a flame through the middle of the water. By surrounding the flame with water the stove increases the surface area being heated and therefore cuts down on boll time. But haters gonna hate!

Wolftalon; I don't know about fuel costs, that is not why I bought mine. I thought they were/are a neat little gadget and they flat out work! I like the fact that I don't have to pack fuel canisters around with me and that I can burn just about anything in that little contraption. This fall while duck hunting I burned little bits of drift wood that were washed up around our set. It was a bitter morning and having even a little flame brought warmth to both hands and soul not to mention having a hot cup of tea and honey made the morning all the more enjoyable. I've also cooked several Mountain House meals with them and while I've not timed the prep I'd guess that I went from cold and hungry to warm and satisfied in about twenty minutes or so. For my needs the Kelly Kettle is a fun and efficient, joy bringing little stove that is well worth the money I shelled out.

Oh, and by the by; I got mine on the scratch and dent sale and saved quite a bit of coin.

 

[hoshour]

The Kelly Kettle was mentioned in Mike Eastman's new elk book as what he takes along for a stove. That's a pretty good recommendation.

 

[Grantbvfd]

I never said I owned one at all. I just think its crazy that a hand built fire can boil water faster than a jetboil. I would love to see a video of this using actual wood found from on a mountain maybe even after a rain storm. In my experience it usually takes 2-3 minutes just to get a fire actually burning... what if you are above timber line? sorry if I sound sarcastic just trying to help. If this is product you have your mind set on then get it. If you don't want to hear peoples ideas on it don't ask a forum, just call the company.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

 

[Musket Man]

I do like the idea of using wood and not having to worry about running out of fuel in a canister. My little Brunton is very convenient and I have never run out of fuel but I end up wasting fuel because I like to start off on a hunt with a full canister and end up with part full canisters left that I never seem to use.

 

[tim]

are they tought to start a fire in? do you need special fuel cubes to light the kindling? how does it smoke? thinking of use inside a tent with that last question.

 

[THelms]

Smokes a lot! You would not be able to use inside a tent. Then again, I don't use my Jet Boil inside my tent either.

Built a couple of fires with mine "above timberline." If you haven't used one then you simply don't know how little fuel it takes to boil water. ANYTHING remotely dry will boil water in this thing. You have to take into consideration where these things originated... Great Britain and are still used there today for noon tea by fishing guides on the moor lakes. If you haven't been there then you wouldn't know how similar the moors and "above timberline" can be with the exception that the moors are A LOT wetter and yet somehow those Ghillies still find ways to get that little kettle to boil water. Technology doesn't automatically make things better. In the words of Henry David Thoreau, "Simplify, Simplify, Simplify."

 

[tim]

thanks for the input. I was camped out in some extremely nasty weather this year, and the pocket rocket inside the teepee was nice. Got a fire going in the little woodstove and got my coffee going still in my sleeping bag.