Camp Chef Ranger II Two-Burner Stove - Escape Trailer Owners Community
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Old 07-21-2015, 01:54 PM   #1
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Camp Chef Ranger II Two-Burner Stove

Not sure if this is new, or I just don't pay good enough attention in the past, but I had not noticed this stove that easily converts to low pressure use. From what I have seen at retailers, it seems to get great reviews for the most part too. I have had a Camp Chef BBQ in the past (my daughter still uses it at home), and was quite pleased with the build quality.

Unfortunately there is no windscreen or lid/case, but I imagine one could build a folding one quite easily, if needed.

This is the smallest low pressure stove I have seen available in North America. There seem to be a few in Australia, but I have not found any available here, or a seller that will ship.

Unless someone can find good reason (other than the Coleman I have still works good), I will likely buy one in the near future.


Click on image for link.
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Old 07-21-2015, 08:30 PM   #2
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I ended up getting the camp chef explorer, the hose it came with had the regulator built in. All I did was unscrew it and attached the hose that came with my plug in propane connection and it works like a charm. Those camp chefs are nice!
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Old 07-21-2015, 08:37 PM   #3
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The Explorer is a great stove, and have heard lots of great things about it. What kept me away was purely it's size and weight, which would not be conducive to stowing in the trailer.

The relatively small size and weight is what has drawn me to the Ranger. This makes it more portable. Cheaper too, but that is not at all the deciding point for me.
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Old 07-21-2015, 09:11 PM   #4
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I can't seem to find a place to get the Ranger in Canada other than Amazon.ca, though at a ridiculously high price. I can order from a few places in the US like REI and Bass Pro, with REI having a bit better cost for shipping.

I did talk to Bass Pro here in town, but they can't bring it in to their store. They do have the Browning 2-Burner Camp Stove in stove, which is just a re-branded Camp Chef Explorer. I might go look at it. I was surprised to see it does not cost much more, as I had thought.

I do remember someone here saying that the Explorer does not simmer very well at all. Is this true?
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Old 07-21-2015, 09:32 PM   #5
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That looks pretty solid. It seems to occupy the middle ground between the lightweight high-pressure stoves and the massive and high-powered low-pressure stoves.

Good find, Jim

It is targeted at use in duck blinds or similar sheltered locations, and thus the lack of windscreens. I note that there is also a three-burner version.
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Old 07-21-2015, 10:22 PM   #6
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I can't seem to find a place to get the Ranger in Canada other than Amazon.ca, though at a ridiculously high price. I can order from a few places in the US like REI and Bass Pro, with REI having a bit better cost for shipping.

I did talk to Bass Pro here in town, but they can't bring it in to their store. They do have the Browning 2-Burner Camp Stove in stove, which is just a re-branded Camp Chef Explorer. I might go look at it. I was surprised to see it does not cost much more, as I had thought.

I do remember someone here saying that the Explorer does not simmer very well at all. Is this true?
I was able to turn down the flame to just a hint of a flame and looks completely capable of a slow simmer. I paid 99 dollars at cabelas.
I also had no trouble slipping it under the permanent bed without the legs attached.
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Old 07-22-2015, 12:28 AM   #7
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I purchased the Ranger II and connect it to the quick connect on our Escape 19. I store it under the passenger side dinette seat.
It is large enough to hold two large pots. We like using a wok and it works great. Heat output is high - water boils quickly - and it simmers well.
It is quite large and heavy for a camp stove but I think the tradeoff is worth it.
And it lights easily.
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Old 07-22-2015, 06:21 AM   #8
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This Coleman set up is pretty nice Amazon.com : Coleman Company Signature Hyper Flame Gladiator Stove, Black : Sports & Outdoors
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Old 07-22-2015, 06:35 AM   #9
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I have the Camp Chef Explorer and love the stove. It simmers better than any stove I have ever had. On low I can simmer ground beef or tomato sauce without burning or sticking, it also has a lower setting labled "warming" which is even lower. $149.98 at Canadian Tire. We also just bought the Deluxe BBQ Grill Box 30 which turns it into a BBQ, nice to have it all in one unit rather than seperate stove, BBQ ...
..... and they also make a pizza oven for it
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Old 07-22-2015, 07:43 AM   #10
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I purchased the Ranger II and connect it to the quick connect on our Escape 19. I store it under the passenger side dinette seat.
It is large enough to hold two large pots. We like using a wok and it works great. Heat output is high - water boils quickly - and it simmers well.
It is quite large and heavy for a camp stove but I think the tradeoff is worth it.
And it lights easily.
Good to hear from someone who has one, Dave. I store my Coleman under the passenger seat, but on edge, as my dual 6V batteries are in there too. As it is, it just fits between the battery case, and the seat support. Maybe I could rework the seat support to accommodate it. I would have to check. Could it be stored on edge?
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I have a friend with one of these, at least with those burners. They actually do simmer better than the one I have, which is real crappy. The problem is that they do not connect to the trailer. One of my goals is to simplify things, so the BBQ and the stove can both be quickly hooked up at the same time.
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I have the Camp Chef Explorer and love the stove. It simmers better than any stove I have ever had. On low I can simmer ground beef or tomato sauce without burning or sticking, it also has a lower setting labled "warming" which is even lower. $149.98 at Canadian Tire. We also just bought the Deluxe BBQ Grill Box 30 which turns it into a BBQ, nice to have it all in one unit rather than seperate stove, BBQ ...
..... and they also make a pizza oven for it
$180 at CT right now. I have always liked what I have seen and heard of this stove, but have no where to stow it, other than the tow vehicle, and I prefer to keep anything that is always carried and used in camp, to be stowed in the trailer. The Grill Box does look good, and the 30 takes up only half the stove top, leaving the rest for more cooking. Does it grill stuff well? It does add even more bulk to stow, and as I BBQ a lot, I would be hard pressed to give up the performance of the Spitfire.
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Old 07-22-2015, 09:18 AM   #11
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$180 at CT right now. I have always liked what I have seen and heard of this stove, but have no where to stow it, other than the tow vehicle, and I prefer to keep anything that is always carried and used in camp, to be stowed in the trailer. The Grill Box does look good, and the 30 takes up only half the stove top, leaving the rest for more cooking. Does it grill stuff well? It does add even more bulk to stow, and as I BBQ a lot, I would be hard pressed to give up the performance of the Spitfire.
The stove was on sale a while ago for $149. We store it under the bed on our 19, we travel light so that area was basically unused. The BBQ packs into a carry bag and although it has the same size grill area as our Napoleon TravelQ it takes up far less space. I just got the grill so we will be testing it out this weekend and will let you know on its performance.
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Old 07-22-2015, 09:41 AM   #12
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I just got the grill so we will be testing it out this weekend and will let you know on its performance.
Looking forward to your findings.
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Old 07-22-2015, 10:32 AM   #13
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Looking forward to your findings.
Me too!

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Old 07-22-2015, 10:52 AM   #14
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What about availability of parts?
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Old 07-22-2015, 01:28 PM   #15
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Really like those CampChef's, hate to toss a 2 year old Coleman though. Sure would be nice to have a real simmer.
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Old 07-22-2015, 01:37 PM   #16
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Really like those CampChef's, hate to toss a 2 year old Coleman though. Sure would be nice to have a real simmer.
I am thinking along the same line, Bob. Pretty sure I could pawn it off on a kid though. And my more porridge would sure cook up nicer with better simmer control.
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Old 07-22-2015, 02:05 PM   #17
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We just got home from a couple of weeks away and were reminded of how poor the coleman stove is @ simmering. I will be in the Seattle in October and plan to pick up one of these while there, will be nice to be able to hook it to the trailer propane. Boy I hate those little green bottles
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Old 07-22-2015, 02:19 PM   #18
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Sounds like a very similar story, Dave.

If we have need for a good controlled simmer, we use the SMEV stove inside, but would love to have the better control outside.

It seems either the Ranger, or the Explorer, will simmer nicely. Pretty certain I will go for the Ranger, but do want to see the Explorer close up first.
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Old 07-22-2015, 04:12 PM   #19
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All this talk about simmering has made me hungry, for some warm poutine......
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Old 07-22-2015, 06:47 PM   #20
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All this talk about simmering has made me hungry, for some warm poutine......
Interesting! I was just thinking: scrapple. I would have thought that true for Pa. residents in particular.
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