Altoids tin stove; my version of a Bengazi boiler

I like to show you a stove/cooking set I use to carry with me when traveling to foreign lands. I don’t know about you but I like to travel light and have a serious aversion to packing too much stuff on my back.

My Luggage usually consists of a Timbuktu Messenger bag or day pack, and a Northface river duffle with pack straps. So, I try to keep my load of gear small and easy to manage.
Long ago while hitch hiking around the American west I met an interesting Individual who went by the colorful if not poetic name of Frying pan Jack.  He was the self proclaimed King of the HOBOs and among the many things that he taught me is that you should never carry more on your back than you can easily run with. Or, in his words “A flat out dead run”.
So This set im talking about falls in line with this way of thinking and with my “travel light freeze at night” life style. The stove, spoon and cup are U.S. Army issue and can be purchased online at most Companies dealing with military surplus.
I had a lid made for the cup in 1991 by a guy in Texas who specializes in Knives and unique equipment items, I have long ago lost his address or I would list it here. I have been using the Canteen cup and spoon since 1978, the rest of the set I picked up in my travels and it has served me well.
Over the years I have developed recipes in my head which I can cook up in this cup and they range from coffee to rice pilaf. It is also an excellent way to purifying water by boiling if the need be, or heat up water to clean a wound in the field or for shaving.
This set is compact and light weight and will easily pack into your luggage no matter what type you use. Placing the set in a commercial stuff sack or plastic bag will keep all the other items in your luggage clean.
The set consists of a standard U.S. Army Issue Canteen Cup with a custom made lid, an army mess kit spoon, an Army canteen cup stove (model 91) and a small metal altoids box to use as a burner unit.
I also have a small 4 oz Nalgene bottle for stove fuel. This type of set up can be used with different types of fuel from a candle, to military type Trioxane heat tabs, to burning small sticks or any type of alcohol to include Tequila or Mekong whisky.
When there was no other fuel available I have even heated a cup of water by placing my Lit Zippo Lighter in the stove. All of these fuel types can easily be found in department stores around the world.
Before pouring the alcohol or other fuel into the Altoids burner, I fill it with sand to keep the liquid from splashing around, and to lengthen the burn time.
I got the idea from reading about the Long Range Desert group in WW2, The LRDG would use empty fuel cans filled with sand as burners and then pour in whatever fuel was available, the sand supposedly stretches the burn time of the fuels used.
This small set is not unlike the alcohol stoves that can be made from Pop or Beer cans. I like this set better and have used it all over the world in all types of weather and climates.