GSI Pinnacle Camper cookset

[Tor]

Posted this over at ST-Owners, but since this is a pure Motocamper site, I'll post it here too:

We R&D'd long and hard last year to replace our old camping cookware. We ended up with the GSI Pinnacle Camper set, which is supposed to be a cookware set for 4 people. But, being just Lois and me, and wanting to carry with us more cups, pans and spaces to stuff spices etc, we found this set to fit us perfectly. We previously used a simple cook set from Green Country. It was ok, but food was sticking really easy, and I finally got tired of it.

The GSI Pinnacle Camper cookset


http://www.sunnysports.com/Image/Product/Large/GSIPCCS.jpg (http://www.sunnysports.com/Image/Product/Large/GSIPCCS.jpg)



is plenty light enough to take on your bike, but it's also big enough and strong enough for extended road trips.

The first thing I noticed about the Pinnacle Camper set is how light it is given the number of pieces it contains, including: two pots; one frying pan; four cups; four bowls; four plates; a removable handle; two pot lids; and a welded PVC stuff sack that doubles as a wash basin. The set packs up to a compact 6 x 9 inches.

The design of this set is also very thoughful, and contributes to the relatively small pack size.

We used to carry stainless steel coffee cups for camping, but I've never really found a great cup for the morning brew. Most of the plastic ones are just too big or they break, and the metal cups we used dissipated heat quickly. It sucks to make a good cup of coffee and then have it get cold while we cook breakfast. This set has 4 cups and they have cozies (and they fit inside of the bowls), which basically creates a double-layer insulated mug. The other two cups contain spices and such during transport.

The pot lids (2) also serve as strainers. Very cool. And another biiig plus....the non-stick coating that makes cleaning up an absolute breeze. I don't need much water to soak or clean the pot.

It's not the cheapest on the market. If I remember correctly though, Lois caught it on sale for some 55-60 bucks. Well worth the money.

[Trailace]

Thanks for the review I like my solo set as well.

[Redbeard]

How about a web site for them? If by chance 1 of you know it. Thanks.

[Mr. Guy]

Here's a link for GSI Outdoors:

http://www.gsioutdoors.com/

For the Pinnacle Camper:

http://www.gsioutdoors.com/detail.aspx?q=pinnacle&p=50174&lu=%2fsearch.aspx%3fq%3dpinnacle%26&c=4&

And for REI:

http://www.rei.com/product/784107

Guy

[Whosoever]

I got one of these for my birthday last week. Actually mine is the set just below this one...but for all practical purposes the same. What I didn't get with mine was the extra pot and the plates....everything else is the same. So, I wanted to see how it worked. I mixed up a bowl of fried bread batter (self rising flower and buttermilk)...yum, yum and proceeded to fix my breakfast. Fried bread, maple surp, bacon and a couple of eggs over easy. I started with the bacon....(keep in mind I'm using the kitchen stove...electric as a source of fire). I would need some grease for the bread and the bacon should do that. Ok. I put the bacon in the frying pan and attach the handle to the pan...and start the process. I didn't want the grease from the bacon splattering all over the stove so I put the lid that contains the strain over it. Ooops...that was a mistake! Obviously the lid is meant to be a strainer ONLY..as it started to melt and stick to the rim of the skillet. Fortunately,I caught this in time and was able to pry it off without doing major damage to the lid and/or adding a plastic layer to my frying bacon. Ok, back on story...the pan does a nice job of providing even heat and the bacon came out great. Next...pour the fried bread batter into little patties in the skillet. No problem...and using a small spatula I as able to turn my bread cakes without any problem. They looked good. After preparing about a dozen of these little rascals I fried my eggs. No problem my breakfast was a hit.
Now then....likes and dislikes: The set prepared a good meal and actually met my expectations. However, the handle gets "HOT". If it could be detached easily while cooking it would be great...but it is not that easy. The Fry Pan as stated above applied good heat accross the entire surface. The lid is not a lid....it's a strainer....perhaps after the pot/pan as been removed from the source of heat you could use it to cover food...but don't cook with it in place. Clean up of all the pieces I used came clean....simply by wiping them with a paper towel. If I were to rate this I would give it 4 stars out of five. I did not use the wash/carry bowl for clean up as it wasn't necessary this time although it seemed capable. It is a little weird drinking out of a triangle cup but they are functional.

By the way this one was purchased on line at REI

[Aldawg]

+1, I recently bought the Pinnacle Dualist http://www.gsioutdoors.com/products/pdp/pinnacle_dualist/camp_cookware/ Because we are usually 2-up I thought the Dualist was perfect. It certainly performed well, I paired it with the Trangia alcohol stove. It nests perfectly inside the Dualist, and makes for a complete and compact, reliable set-up for two. I highly recommend the GSI Pinnacle line-up. P^

[The Astute Reader(tm)]

Greetings!

Both the Halulight and the Pinnacle series of cookware from GSI Outdoors are good products. I don't like the Bugaboo line because of the painted exteriors which tend to not fare well over a campfire.

As some have already discovered, the plastic lids of the Pinnacle Hiker, Backpacker, and Camper are heat sensitive and cannot be used on the frying pan or over an open fire. The Halulight Microdualist, Pinnacle Soloist, and Pinnacle Dualist have metal lids.

For those of you who would like to have a flexible 2 person to 4 person kit, you can use the Pinnacle camper which is a 4 person kit. If you then purchase the 8 inch pinnacle frypan, you can leave off the big pot and the big frypan, remove two of the cups and bowls, and now you have the exact same kit as the Pinnacle Backpacker which is a convenient 2 person kit.

[SILVERTIP]

We just bought this same one and we love it. It cooks fast and cleans up easy. We fed 6 people from this set and had no trouble at all. Cleanup was almost like a rinse with water and a wipe of the towel and all done. Doesn't seem like such a chore to do the dishes any more....