A Solid Fuel Solution to Emergency Cooking...

Hexamine, formally known as Hexamethylene Tetramine, is a solid fuel used for cooking in the British Army which was invented in Germany in 1936. Commonly known as a Tommy Cooker, it can be found commercially under the brand name Esbit, though the British Army version is larger. (I've found commercial versions of the British cooker available from Mil-Com and Kombat)

            

The British Army cooker is pocket sized (4 3/4" x 3 3/4"x 1 1/8" closed or 4 3/4" x 3 3/4" x 2 5/8" open), and comes issued in a brown paper wrapper with an adapter to hold a Crusader mug securely for heating. The tablets, 8 in the British Army issue, come packed in a waxed box packed inside the metal cooker. The standard issue is one cooker every three days and a refill of the fuel tablets every day.

Tablet burns about 7 1/2 minutes and was true for both tests. Leaves a residue on the mug or mess tin which can be cleaned off with a Brillo pad or in a pinch with a used tea bag. Doesn't quite reach at boil at 60 degrees, but is definitely hot enough to brew a mug of tea. (during the tests I brewed 500ml of water for tea.) The same was true at 70 degrees. During the 70 degree test, the water was too hot to keep a finger in it beyond 1 second by 4 1/2 minutes heating time. As the fuel is waxy, it is not easy to ignite, requiring three hurricane matches to light one tablet.

In the second test I used a single wooden match and achieved the same results.

In my third test I went back to the hurricane matches and again required three. This time I heated up a mushroom omelet boil in  the bag from a 24 hour ration. This fit snugly in the crusader mug with about half a litre of water. This heated nicely from the full 7 1/2 minute burn and I used the remaining heated water to make a cup of instant coffee. Using only 300ml of water the stove was able to bring the water to a rolling boil.

The fuel is toxic to consume and it is said the smell of the burning fuel is dreadful, though I did not experience this while cooking outdoors.

I would be sure to use the stove on a non-flammable surface, as well and a surface you are not worried about having damaged. The hexamine or its wax coating seems to drip down from the stove occasionally so you should be aware before you set it up for use.

This is my new go to emergency stove so you can certainly say that I'm hooked on hexi!

For those looking for British Army Hexamine, I suggest Go Army in Glasgow.

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