A This or That Burner thread

[ArcticBear]

Well my burner kicked the bucket the other day (it was a freebie from a friend that included a wonderful 15 minute timer that had to be taped on to perform a full boil without forgetting to recrank the timer)

So now I've convinced myself into two options:

The Blichmann floor burner with leg extensions - $190
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/floor-standing-burner.html

or

The Camp Chef Clover Leaf Burner - $80 (on Amazon)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000ASCU9/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20


I am partial to the Blichmann on all fronts except for price. It has a nicer stand, sturdy base, stainless frame, great windshield, higher output etc..

I have a friend with the Camp Chef burner and he likes it. Great for the price, great output, doesnt use the extensions but has them.

I doubt I would really be able to tell the difference in heating capabilities (my old burner was beat so anything is an upgrade)

I know the majority of the cost in the Blichmann is for the name but I'm still sold on it in my head.

Someone convince me i'm either correct or insane for wanting to spend that much on a burner.

 

[day_trippr]

I really don't like the looks of that Camp Chef. Those legs look spindly - and the thumbscrew height adjustment looks under-engineered/risky. The thought of a kettle full of boiling wort suddenly falling over because a thumbscrew wasn't tight enough would be more than enough to steer a wide course around that rig.

Otoh, the new Blichmann pricing would give pretty near everyone pause. I do own a pair of their floor burners and like them enough that I designed my single tier rig around them. But I paid "only" $115 for each of them new, and the extension legs at the time were only $24 for a set. I wish my investments had increased by that much over the same time

Anyway...I'm not pushing the Blichmann, but I would urge you to find an alternative to that Camp Chef if you'd rather not pay the Blichmann price. Home brewing is supposed to be fun, and hopefully safe fun...

Cheers!

 

[worxman02]

People who have the Blichmann seem to really love them. I'm sure a large part of their cost is the fact that the entire frame is stainless steel so that pushes up the price instantly. I have a simple SQ14 which is not the most powerful burner out there, but I like the frame/stand design and it works pretty well for me. I plan on building a windshield for it that will direct much more heat up into the kettle, so I expect it to be more efficient in the future.