About the author

Tim Moss

Tim Moss has supported over 100 expeditions across all seven continents. He has climbed new mountains, crossed a desert on foot and recently cycled 13,000 miles around the world. He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society London and a Guinness World Record Holder. He aims to encourage more people to live adventurously. Read more...

23 Comments

  1. 1

    Hilary Searle

    Unfortunately REI won’t ship outside the USA. It would have been a great buy at that price.

    Reply
    1. 1.1

      Tim Moss

      You’ll have to find an American friend to forward it for you!

      Reply
      1. 1.1.1

        andy

        …or you could use a mail forwarding service like hopshopgo who’ll send your purchase to a US address before shipping it to your own here in the UK

      2. Tim Moss

        Cheers Andy, nice idea.

  2. 2

    Martin

    Nice stove but a bit limited on the fuel times. I have not seen the stove in action but from your description I consider the start action as priming the stove or not?

    All the. Best from Ulaanbaatar
    Martin,

    Reply
    1. 2.1

      Tim Moss

      Did you mean limited on the fuel *types*? If so, yes, it doesn burn less than some other stoves but I suspect white fuel and unleaded petrol/gasoline cover 95% of situations. Diesel is perhaps next popular and kerosene/jet fuel seem very rare. I thought unleaded was widespread even in Mongolia?

      As for priming, it definitely does not require priming in the traditional sense i.e. leaking fuel, lighting fuel, waiting until it’s hot and then easing open the fuel valve. However, in the literal sense, it does require priming, it’s just that it’s very clean, quick and easy (you turn a dial and count to ten).

      Reply
      1. 2.1.1

        V.Pease

        the legs look a bit spindley- how was the stability?

      2. Tim Moss

        Stability was fine and similar to many lightweight canister stoves but not quite as solid as, say, the Optimus Polaris.

  3. Pingback: Best Liquid Multi Fuel Camping Stoves - The Definitive Review

  4. 3

    V.Pease

    thanks Tim, I am trying to decide between the Optimus and the Muka. love the ‘solidity’ and real multi fuel capability of the O, but absolutely HATE priming! Even though I use alcohol-based hand gel for the latter (tip- legal on planes/heli, very clean, no soot!), the Muka has strong appeal… decisions, decisions… I will also add my thanks to you for this page – a fantastic resource for us lazy folks!

    Reply
    1. 3.1

      Tim Moss

      Thanks for that Vicky. I’m glad you’ve found it useful.

      Are you saying you prime your stove by squirting in some alcohol hand sanitiser?

      As for the Polaris vs Muka… did you watch the YouTube video of the priming process on the Muka? It does still technically require priming, it’s just a much easier process.

      It’s obviously personal preference but if you really hate having to prime a stove then I suspect the joy of the Muka’s automatic priming will outweigh the “cost” of it not being quite as sturdy. It’s a perfectly common design for a camping stove so shouldn’t be too controversial, especially with the right pan. It may not be any help but I tested mine with Primus Eta Pots which have a lip at the bottom meaning it’s harder for them to slip off.

      Good luck with the decision!

      Reply
      1. 3.1.1

        V.Pease

        yes, I use alcohol hand sanitizer to prime when going to the second or third world. 1) I often have to use diesel and heli-fuels with my stove which already create tremendous soot and in order to minimize cleaning jet, etc., the hand sanitizer is great. 2) I travel mostly by small plane and chopper so the alcohol based hand sanitizer is legal on flights and serves a nice duel purpose! I am out for 4-6 weeks and when using the stove 2x a day, every little bit helps!

        yes, I got the Muka is still priming, but it it so simplified that it is practically like not priming! so cool. let’s hopes all stoves go to true multi fuel, single jet, and ‘easy’ priming…

      2. Tim Moss

        Hey Vicky, that’s an excellent tip about the alcohol gel! Thank you.

        Glad to hear you’ve ordered the Polaris. Hope it works well for you.

  5. 4

    V.Pease

    ps- paid 145$ for Optimus with Amazon shipping to US address

    Reply
  6. Pingback: Optimus 'Polaris Optifuel' | Stove Review | The Next Challenge

  7. Pingback: Soto Muka Review (White Gas & Unleaded only) | Camping Stoves and Other Gear Reviews

  8. 5

    Jeff Tuttle

    The Soto Muka OD-1NP is fantastic stove and easy to use. I tested mine in a walk in freezer at -20° because some people have the impression that this stove is not able to function in extremely low temps. Works flawlessly in extreme cold and is very compact and light weight. No problems with pot stability either. I believe this is the best white gas-gasoline stove on the market!

    Reply
    1. 5.1

      Tim Moss

      Hye Jeff, thanks for the feedback. That’s useful to hear. Given how well it seems to work, it’ll be interesting to see if other manufacturers attempt similar automatic priming devices for their stoves.

      Reply
      1. 5.1.1

        Pepi

        Coleman Apex II had a ‘similar’ idea about priming about 15 years ago i.e. didn’t require lighting dribbled liquid fuel, but still tended to cause a bit of flare-up, pity they weren’t very solidly made. Just needing to replace mine now…

      2. Tim Moss

        Thanks Pepi. That’s interesting to hear. Have you decided on your replacement yet? I’ve written a review of all the multifuel stoves which might be useful.

      3. Pepi

        Actually, there’s nothing on the market quite like an Apex, and I’ve decided to repair and/or modify using a newer Coleman metal pump. All thanks to a very dedicated stove forum I found on the web!
        The combination of quick-start (less liquid priming) and great simmer on a multifuel stove is hard to beat, so I wouldn’t fork out for a Muka unless I’d tried it for simmer first. Apparently later Colemans (Fyrestorm) looked the part but had some lighting issues a bit like ppl report when they’re not familiar with the Muka.

  9. 6

    Pau Valls

    Hi Tim, you said ” It has no nozzle/jet so there’s no need to change one when switching fuel types…”. Soto Muka stove HAS A JET inside the burner and would be clog if you burn dirty fuel.

    Reply
    1. 6.1

      Tim Moss

      Thanks Pau. Sloppy language on my part. Yes, it does of course have a jet (just not a changeable one).

      Reply

Leave a Reply to Tim Moss Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

© 2015 - Tim Moss - The Next Challenge

%d bloggers like this: