Optimus Svea Climber Outdoor Stove

by Optimus

Product Features

• Simple: Lid also serves as a small cooking pot, there are no loose parts to loose, handle is a built in maintenance tool
• Reliable: Built in cleaning needles that work without having to stop the cooking process
• Essential for low-oxygen high altitude use, a white gas burning stove
• Virtually Indestructable
• Exact flame control from light simmer to full blast

Product Description

The Optimus Svea stove is a beautiful lightweight stove in solid brass. Used by climbers all over the world for years - optimal for high altitude performance.

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 4 x 4 inches ; 1.3 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000XZ5FDY
• Item model number: 123R
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #13,146 in Sports & Outdoors (See Top 100 in Sports & Outdoors)
  • #9 in Sports & Outdoors > Outdoor Recreation > Camping & Hiking > Camp Kitchen > Backpacking Stoves

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 33 year old Svea, but..., September 14, 2008

By 

Bret A. Ulrich (Liberty Lake, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Optimus Svea Climber Outdoor Stove (Sports)

I bought this stove in about 1975 from REI. It has served me very well for hundreds of meals. REI serviced it about 15 years ago for fun, but it has never been any trouble. What's so cool about it is that it is simple. Simply designed and kind of simple to use, once you're used to it. But two short stories will highlight my reasons to go with something else.
My teenage daughter needed a stove. I taught her how to light it, without actually doing it, so as not to build up pressure (you create pressure by external heat). She put a small amount of white gas around the neck of the burner and tried to light it with a match. After 4 nervous attempts she got a match close enough to ignite the gas. She opened the valve and waited. As the heat of the applied gas heated the contents of the gas tank, a small stream of liquid gas began to come out and also catch fire. I told her to close the valve but now she was too afraid to touch the stove which was flaming up. I calmly closed the valve and waited till most of the rest of the stove had quit burning then opened the valve and had a great, normal flame develop. I told her, "see how easy it is?". She did not. And the more I thought about it the more I could see her burning down the forest. We instead bought her a simple propane Coleman single burner stove. This stove is not for kids...actually none really are, but especially not this one.
Second story. Two months ago my friend and I set out to cook our meals on a backpacking - fishing trip. He pulled out his new JetBoil and I pulled out my Svea (I call it "Turbo"). He flipped some switch and had boiling water in about 2 minutes, and it was whisper quiet. I barely had mine lit and ready to go by then. After two days he had barely used any isobutane, I had used the white gas in my stove and 8 additional ounces I had brought. "But", I thought, "I could fry with any pan with "Turbo" and he could only use his special pot (which looks like a cup) that came with his". But it didn't matter because we only had freeze dried stuff so I vowed I would eventually change over to the newer technology for backpacking trips. I think I'll still like "turbo" for frying bacon back at base camp though. ...And I wonder if the JetBoil will be going strong in 33 years.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Ever, August 8, 2008

By 

Jenna (Nantucket, MA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Optimus Svea Climber Outdoor Stove (Sports)

I've owned this stove since 1980. It is absolutely reliable and can be used even in a downpour (I've done it). It's a great lightweight backpacking stove, but because it is so reliable and heats water so fast I always take it along even on family car camping trips when I bring the 2-burner Coleman. This stove is also incredibly sturdy and packable. As a result of a freak accident on a wilderness camping trip, the burner head broke off (not likely to happen with normal use) yet I was still able to use the stove with the head resting loosely in position! Novices may find the flaming start a bit off-putting, but it quickly becomes routine. The fuel is white gas, readily available in camping and hardware stores, or in a pinch the stove will work fine with unleaded gas. To reduce carry weight while backpacking, get a small fuel canister. It's not necessary to carry much fuel because the stove is fuel-efficient; traveling solo, 500 ml lasts me for a week.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars OPTIMUS SVEA 123R, November 2, 2009

By 

W. T. (GU, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Optimus Svea Climber Outdoor Stove (Sports)

I'm very satisfied with the purchase of the OPTIMUS SVEA 123R stove. Forget about buying this on E--y, when you can buy it brand new at Amazon. The stove is made in Sweden and very compact, consider that the tank and burner is all in one unit. It may look like antique, but it's so easy to used. The instruction stated to fill the tank with 2/3 full of white gas, but maybe I have filled it a little more than 2/3 full (be sure there is air space between the gas and the top of the tank). I then put a few drop of white gas on the spirit cup on top of the tank to prime. Get a lighter and light the gas on the spirit cup to heat up the tank. When the fire die out, just get the gas key nob and turn on the stove slightly, then light it up with a lighter under the burner. From priming the tank to having the burner all light up take me about one minute. No hand pumping the tank to built pressure like other stoves. Getting the SVEA stove started is so easy that anybody can do it (just be careful about safe handling of gas and fire). The instruction stated that this stove can run up to 50 minutes on full throttle, just on 4 oz of fuel. The fire is adjustable, so I'm sure the fuel will go much longer if you are cooking with lower heat. I watch on youtube on how to used this stove, and some people put way too much fuel (creating a big fire ball and wasting fuel) just to prime the tank. All you need is just a few drop of fuel on the spirit cup to prime the tank. Now I know why many people love this old school stove and used it half of their lifetime. Otimus SVEA 123 stove history is over a hundred years old. Hopefully the company continue making this stove with the highest quality. Optimus is doing a good job!!!