BUDGET BACKPACKING COOK KITS - DON'T OVERSPEND! 

I love the insulated cups. You can pour SCALDING hot water into them and hold them IMMEDIATELY without feeling a thing. Additionally a supercat stove will nest PERFECTLY inside the green cups. The way everything seems to nest inside the stainless pot is also something to behold. Either Stanley was extremely brilliant or extremely lucky.

Yours is one of the first videos I watched when I started backpacking two years ago. The Stanley has held up to fires, stoves, coals, and getting a glancing blow from my car. It has ABSOLUTELY no reason to be as good as it is at that price point, but there it is.

I picked up that stanley kit plus the ss mug for $1.50 at a thrift store and a 47 liter internal frame pack for $5 and several other REI products for under $10. Basically $400 worth of gear for under $50

Dude! This little set up will be perfect for a cycle n camp adventure we want to do. This setup + small sleeping bag + Mountain House meals + bike = a very simple bike adventure! Thanks for the idea!

I worked in sporting goods for 10 years and I remember GSI being a budget brand but nice stuff, then as it started getting popular the prices started going up. I have no doubt the Ozark trail cookset is the very same set. Very good review and great advice.

If you put your scrubby between your pot and cup. It will keep it from all that rattle noise from happening. Good review.

You’ve done a great service to those people starting out in the outdoor experience. Great video!

As a newbie to hiking you saved me a ton of dough with your video. Thanks

I've had the Stanley set for awhile and it works beautifully for 2 people!

Carefully folded, you can wrap two 18" squares of heavy aluminum foil around the narrow part of the Stanley cup and STILL nest it into the GSI cup for several more outdoor cooking options.

My wife and I have been using this cook-pot for quite a few years now and like them very much! We too have tossed the cups into our truck camping tote. I also found a silicone collapsing dog food dish for about $4 to use as a food bowl. I totally agree that there are other ways to go when it comes to gear.

One of the best reviews that I've seen in RU-vid in quite awhile. Thanks for sharing!

I love everything about this video! ....I do a lot of solo out door stuff. and I love to have everything organized according to when I'm going to use it. Nothing sucks more than taking your entire kit apart just to find a spoon when you sit down to have a quick cup of soup.

I pick it up and play with it too when I'm in Walmart. Always wondered about it. Thanks a lot for creating this video. It gave me multiple ideas on how to redo my setup.

Thank you for the reviews and especially the comparisons!

was impressed with the video and went and bought stanley cup. also bought the bsr 3000. reduced my cooking space by 1/4. now have space for more food. yeah. thanks. great video.

I saw somewhere an idea of taking that little plastic green lid handle off--fearing it may melt in camp fire. So I replaced the green lid handle thing on the stanley cook pot with a small key ring. This way you can take hot lid off with a stick. It still does not get in way of the flip up handle. Great video of all components!!! Thanx.

I got my Stanley last year and it is one of the best purchases I have ever made! Love it! Great video btw!

Great video. I have gone out to the woods since I was a young boy. This has given me ideas that had never occurred to me for space saving. I also appreciate the money saving tips.

I have that ozark trail kit. Works pretty great, especially for the price. Now you can buy Pace Ready meals too, fitting one into each bowl in your kit. Just add water to the pot and put the whole packs in the water. You can heat up your meal and water for coffee at the same time with no cross contamination.

Just remember, Stanley was making good products before it was cool to go camping.

I love this and never realized how well it nests with the cup I already have. I’ll be getting that Stanley cup and watching your vid on the burner.

I love my cook set I currently have, but after seeing this I am going to completely redo it. Thank you. This looks sooo much more inclusive. And I think I can still use my old pull string bag.

Hands down the most impactful video for camping, backpacking, and utility I've seen on youtube. Thank you sir.

very helpful, one of those OH SNAP moments when you have to see someone else show you a better way simpler way to cook that hamburger. Thank you !

Nice review. Just got the Stanley cooker, but never though about putting the canister in it! Great tip. Keep them coming!!

Good job on a good video, really like the format and the way you lay it all out. Thanks!

I love that Stanley cook kit, I have used it almost every weekend for years.

You can't go wrong with the Stanley Cook Cup Set🥰 it. I team it up with the Trangia 28 Mini for a great 2 person kit. Add in 2 sporks and 2 silicone bowls - you're good for a picnic on the go. Yes, that little Stanley set has seen many days at the lake and quick overnighters backpacking! Oh! If you do team the Stanley with a Trangia 28 Mini you will need a mini grate so it fits on the pot stand. I made mine from a stainless steel sink strainer flattened out. Works great.

A Bodum coffee press lid fits on that Stanley pot. Makes great coffee with no filter.

Excellent. I tested the Stanley myself and I feel like going to Walmart right now to get a new one. Realistic and practical. I even used it to make coffee in the morning at home

Decided this year to get into backpacking so thank you so much for the information and ideas!

I have one of these Stanley cook kits they are an outstanding piece of gear.... I bet the people that disliked this video are gear snobs "If it doesn't cost a million dollars it's just no good"

Also, if you're needing a easy access to your Stanley cook kit a condor H20 pouch will fit all your gear nicely. You can hook the pouch to your belt or to your hiking pack. Not a bad price either. You can pick on up at a military surplus store new around $21 to $23...

Loved the video, a lot of info for a guy in a budget. I do minimalist motorcycle camping and have put your video to good use. Thanks for tanking the time to post it up.

I love the Stanley pot. I've had one for two or three years and it goes with me anytime I am going out solo. I use it with a Trangia most of the time, but I also have a inexpensive butane burner that I use sometimes. Anyway, like you, I like to save money so I can spend it on the things I really want. Thanks for the video!

Great video, subbed! I'm going to check out that BRS Stove now.

The Stanley kit is durable and practical, I have used one for years and even brought the pot as my cooking pot when I went to college, the only downside is that it isn't very easy to clean. I have never used the insulated cups.

An excellent review of gear. Plenty of ideas for my kit. Thanks.

Good video. We think along similar lines in mess kits. I have had some bad experiences with the silicone sided collapsible bowls spring leaks, and I bought the expensive ones from Gander Mountain. The two serving meals I usually eat most of the pouch at lunch and finish it off at dinner just eating out of the bag. I have one of the Stanley cook pots and with both cups can fit one of the large spice kits from Wal-Mart in there with it...not much room for the other stuff, but the ruck I carry my kits in has a cargo pouch for the towel, sponge, suds, etc. Again, a very good video. You now have a new subscriber.

I have done the same as you with the Stanley tall pot and the cup that nests on the outside. Love that setup. The large pot is perfect for boiling enough water for a dehydrated meal *and* hot beverage at the same time. Or, in the morning, heat a full pot of water, pour off enough into your mug for your coffee or tea, and use the rest of the boiling water in the large pot for oatmeal. Just a lot of flexibility. For a camp scrubber I like what MCQ Bushcraft does. He gets those springy stainless steel scrubbies (bet you could find them at Walmart too) and uses one of those. It's all metal so after he's done he rinses the scrubby out in whatever water source is nearby and then tosses it into the coals of his fire to burn off any remaining debris and disinfect it. Leave it for a minute or two, then fish it out to cool off, and pack it back in your mess kit, clean and sterile. One thing though, my gas canisters I get at Walmart are larger in diameter than what you seem to have. Mine won't fit inside my Stanley pot.

Definitely the best cook kit video I've seen on youtube. Thank you.

Thanks so much for your video! I am just starting with backpacking and prepping, and this information is going to come in very handy. Keep up the great work!

Asa mom of 4 humans and 5 dogs, Walmart camping department is my favorite place to hangout and find new stuff for us to use. Also ozark trail is my favorite affordable brand.

I use the MSR Pocket Rocket (just a personal choice) and I've found that smooth bottom pots tend to slide around on the stove and if you're not careful the pot can slide right off and spill, so if you use a Pocket Rocket it's best to use a pot that has ridges on the bottom.

I love that pot! I also took the plastic cups out. I can fit my fuel in it like you do, also my lighter, a hot glove, utensils, and cleaning towel. I have the Primo stove, it looks like the pocket rocket but folds more flat. It's the only thing I can't fit in there lol. Glad someone else saw the potential in that kit! It's awesome.

Thank you for these reviews. They really help out when buying equipment. Keep it up!

Walmart really stepped up their camping/hiking game a few years ago. I remember when their camping section was basically a couglan's aisle.

BTW if your using a alcohol can or gel fuel can light it, put it inside of the stanley cup, put the handle over the top of the cup and cook water in the small metal cup. Works great against the wind.

I put a handkerchief between the cup and pot when I did a get home/overnight bag. Folded up neatly it makes a great "gasket" to hold the pot in the cup, eliminates rattle, and is a good pre filter for natural water sources that might have some debris. Love this little kit. Inside my pot, I rolled with a solid fuel stove (fuel doubles as a fire starter if I want to go that route and wood is damp), lighter, 2 packs of oatmeal, a granola bar, and a couple folgers coffee bags.

Thank you for this video. I plan on going camping or backpacking in the future and this was good information to build on.

It's even more fun when you can use stuff you have on hand.. That costs even less..

Absolutely love my Stanley! We boil in it AND bake in it!

Good job on the video. This may be my new favorite channels. Most channels want to point out the most expensive products they can find and it's usually overkill. I have and regularly use both of the cook pot sets and the cup you showed here. You also taught me something new. I never knew Mountain House made single serving meals. I'll have to look for those.

Great review my friend, thank you for sharing. You helped me finalize my decision. Take care and be safe out there.🤗

I know the there's more weight and it's bigger, but i got an Aladdin camp stove in a carry case for £10!! That's what? $13? I had to buy the buy the gas cylinder for an extra £3 for 2 $5? They last ages, 4 nights with proper cooked food. (not packet rubbish). I go to local markets where I'm travelling to and buy off the farmer's market producers there. Some fresh bread, cheese, tomatoes, onions, a few bits, $10? I love to cook out in the wild with fresh produce, why not, that's why we're out there right? To get natural, fresh and clean. If you drink wash it down with some ale or Wine, I don't i have tea or coffee, or maybe fresh fruit juices. I'm building a micro-camper van to tow with my bike. So many possibilities.

I also prefer Ti. But I've got that Stanley cook pot. Now I know what to do with it. Thank you.

Thank you for sharing GoatMumbler, you are AWESOME !!!! I am actually going to Walmart right now after watching your video.

I just found one of those $5 Ozark Trail cups: I bought it last night to nest my old, 40 Oz. Klean Kanteen in it. And hard-anodized aluminum ROCKS: I have a tiny frying pan that my parents bought while Ronal reagan was president, and it still works. Sadly, I've never been able to find much of that stuff for my home kitchen, so I'm glad that you've found examples for the field.

I just bought one of those Stanley pots but I didn't get the mugs in mine. Maybe I will use mine on an upcoming adventure on my channel, oh of course I will. Good video thanks!

I got a few of those Stanley's with the 2 little green mugs on Amazon for $10 in late 2020. I figure I can help new scouts get into respectable gear this way. I know how much it ment to me when I had people go out of their way for me when I was getting started.

I bought the Stanley kit and first thing was replace plastic lid handle with a key ring loop. Won't melt!!! Great video, keep them coming.

The GSI Bugaboo 14oz cup fits really nicely inside too, along with some hot lips, a scrubby, BRS stove, mini BIC, soap, a camp towel and a fuel canister. I just flip the lid upsidedown and use an elastic to keep it closed. Works well! Thanks for this video. It helped quite a bit when I was trying to figure out this system :)

TheGoatmumbler fyi a bandana works grate to hold your cup on the bottom just lay it over like a lid and push the Stanley down...

$14.97 "That's the price of good barbecue and a Dr Pepper."

A thoroughly well thought-out system. Thanks!

Thanks for sharing. I was looking at that same pot at walmart and thanks for pointing out the cup nest to it. I won a free biolite 2 as a safety award. Great info!

I do a coffee can with a Fancy Feast cat can as a burner :-)

good comparisons. one thing though, the GSI Dualist and the Ozark Trails are not quite the same. The GSI pot is hard anodized aluminum and the OT is just aluminum. However, the rest of the kit is essentially the same. And, GSI is $64.95. ;-)

I'm 17 and I'm on a budget. This is my first video of yours, but it's the first of many. Thank you for this amazing video!

Was seriously thinking of going this route. But wasn't sure the fuel cell would fit. Now I'll be doing exactly this! Great video

I have several cooking kits including titanium ones but this set is my absolute favorite. I made some changes as most of us do for personalization. I dumped the two green cups for a stainless steel cup that this Stanley unit fits into ($4.97 @ Walmart). I replaced the lid with a DZO lid from Amazon; the original green plastic tab melted. A small butane canister and Etekcity stove fit inside the Stanley along with a Bic, a small towel and a sponge cut in a round shape. I use a small bowl from another cook kit and a long titanium spoon in addition. Total weight is just under two pounds. If I bring a 6" fry pan plus chopsticks, spices and spatula add another pound. For packing purposes this kit is perfect, it nestles wherever it's placed. I found a stuff sack at Goodwill that the Stanley set fits in perfectly.

I enjoy my Stanley pot also. It nests nicely in my GSI cup at the bottom of my Maxpedition 12 x 5 bottle holder. Then the Nalgene Guyot Design stainless steel bottle (the tapered one) fits perfectly into the Stanley pot. At the top there is still room for my Solo Stove! Granted, I had to spend a lot more than you, so I guess I made your point for you. :-) Thanks for the video, my friend.

I've got most of the Walmart gear in the video. Also use the collapsible cups from there. For my own cookset, I use a very old aluminium hiking coffee pot. The folds of the cup fits perfectly into the coffee pot lid, giving me just that extra space so a bigger fuel bottle will fit inside. But recently I have found a very old aluminium measuring cup that I have added to the kit. {I still use the folding cup, but now it's my foot bath} And the measuring cup doesn't go all the way into the pot, so there is about half an inch of gap between lid and pot. I have made several cooksets from the grease pots to give away. Don't like the handle, but I let the hikers I gave the kits to worry about that.

This is probably the best camping cookset tutorial I have seen. This will save many newer and intermediate trekkers a lot of time and unnecessary expense. The learning curve developing this kind of setup can lead to a storage bin with a collection of un-used accessories. I know, I went through it and I have the storage bin filled. The only other thing I would add is that I modified a soup can into a pot stand that the stanley cookpot nests in and gives room for my Trangia as well as a more stable cook surface. Also replaced plastic lid tab with key ring so I can close the handle over the lid and slip a cord through the key ring so I can suspend it over a fire if need be. Point being, there is plenty to work with using the ss Stanley cookset as far as diy improvements to increase versatility. I did gain more good ideas from this video though. Mandatory for anyone considering a different or new cookset approach. Very well done.

Great video! Given me a bunch of ideas for my own kit - thanks! Love the Stanley cook kit :-)

"Don't 'discount' Wal-Mart" LOL!!! I like that!

Been using the stanley and mug for my bushcraft/BOB bag and have fallen in love with it. Got a few more things with my kit obviously and usually cook on a large rock or directly on top of embers

I have both setups, and I'm amazed at their versatility. there are a number of hack videos on how to make the Stanley cooker even more useful. I stuff both of the cookers/containers with coffee packets, teabags, and condiment packets (I make many of my own such by using fat plastic soda straws.) Good video!

What a hoot! I have a very similar setup. Stanley pot, isobutane canister, same cup. My cup is discolored on the bottom from using it for cooking. Walmart and Target can be great for heavier, but good stuff for backcountry. I don't do well with dehydrated foods, so I started shopping the grocery aisles for food... instant rice, potatoes, jerky, etc. It'd be good to have a video on grocery store options. Note that a Nalgene bottle fits into the cup, too. Thanks for the tip on the stove which is the one thing that doesn't fit in.

glad i found ur vid, you gave me some great ideas! thanks!

thank you! watching this in 2023 and totally helpful for my starting cook set! you rock!

I've got one of the Stanley kits along with others as well. They work great. They also fit really well on a backpacking stove.

Thank you for this video watching it in 2019

Good info on the Stanley, but the Ozark Mountain and GSI kits are not made the same. The Ozark pot is coated steel vs. the anodized aluminum GSI. It may not matter to many but just the pot and lid is 17.5 vs. 10.2 oz. Quite a difference. Still a great price for the Ozark, if you don’t mind the weight.

I have both of these sets, the Stanley and the GSI. I have customized each for my uses. I make alcohol stoves so I have some nice custom fit stuff. They work great in all conditions in the NW.

I do the same thing as your first setup for all day fishing/hiking trips. Fits in my fishing backpack easy. Very contained. After a day of hiking and fishing nothing like taking a break for a warm meal and some hot coffee.

An aluminum boy scout type mess kit might get dings, but can last for decafes and are light. Frying pan with handle that holds it all together, a bowl and a cup. Then you buy a fold up knife fork spoon thing. I would think an aluminum coffee pot like a pervolater or even a reusable filter to drip hot water over the cofee or tea would be a plus to make coffee or tea, or make tea from wild plants if you know edible plants. I would suggest pouring water yhtough a T shirt before boiling. maybe even after too. Swamp water has microbes. But you still have something to boil water in with the cheap boy scouts set. As far as fire goes, a bic lighter will run out of fuel. And a zippo too, plus a zippo will wear down the flint so bring extra flints and fluid. The match type everstrike lighter.match will also need fluid. For even a homemade alcohol stove you will beed ro also have alcohol. I suggest the 91 percent. This is why I suggest making a stove that can burn sticks or alcohol, and a magnesium block with a ferro rod for when the fuel runs out and flints and a bic dies, fepending on what the weather is..

Thank you for making this video. I was overwhelmed by the prices of some of the things I see on amazon and other stores. The little twig burning stoves start around $30, but I found out how to make one at home for about $5. Even though I hate Walmart, this looks like the way to go. I've heard good things about Ozark Trail's tents, so I'm sure their budget cooking/mess gear is just fine.

I appreciate your good suggestions and ideas.

I love my Stanley. Got it for about 15. Added a wire to hang it and I've never had to change out the plastic tab. Some say it melts but mine is going strong

also just found a 24oz GSI cup fits beautifully.. comes right up to the tapered section of the Stanley.. I'm now out of the realm of budget.. but have a pretty sweet kit. cheers

I just found the ozark trail 10 piece (gsi) for $7.50 missing the sporks!

great video! I myself have the Stanley Cook set myself and love it as well as the gsi cup. gave me some great ideas for my setup!

Thanks. I was looking for a budget minded first time backpacking pot and cook system.

I literally have 5 of these and now Stanley makes one with a coffee press in it, which, of course, I had to have as well

I use that set with 1 green cup, diy alcohol stove, fuel, scrubber, cloth, foldable spoon.

Even though one year later , I have the stanley cook set with two cups ,and i even saved more on the Ozark cookset thanks to you and for sharing. Just subscribed and now notified ,, please bring about MORE money saving videos. Awesome .

That's pretty good. I use a zebra brand stacker from Thailand. Depending on the trip I either take the 2 tier or 3 and basically the cups I use as bowls and cooking for less cleaning. It's only $15 anyway, $20 for 3 tier and it's holder is used as a pot holder. The lid can be used as a small pan using a coathanger to hold it over a sterno or alcohol stove which fits into either cup with an extra tubberware container for liquids if need be. Also, one of the stackers can fit a strainer from a coffee kettle which I modified for noodles or charcoal for purifying water. It allows more options for food choices being two or three cooking pots you can fit on each other while cooking. That $15 deal you showed is a bargan for cooking for two. You can fit a coffee pot strainer inside since it' 3-4 inches wide depending on which you find at a goodwill. You can also grab a tea bomb for making coffee, tea or for seasonings for cooking. The tea bomb is usually Stainless steel with a chain on it you can dunk into water and size of a small egg to fit easily.

It's possible other canisters besides the MSR are a bit larger but I'm not sure. What brand was it?