Aluminum canteen vs. plastic?

Here's what works for me. I did 20 years in the US Army and I like the GI Canteen. I carried one on each hip for balance. I also carried a GI Canteen Cup and a cup stand for heat tabs. In the little pouch on the canteen cover I carried a book of MRE matches and a bottle of water purification tabs. This was the best set up I found. It did a good job for over 10 years. One cup I'd use for coffee etc and the other for shaving and washing. I was in the field quite a bit and I tried just about everything. When we wnt to the Kevlar helmet instead of the steel pot we had to find some other way to wash. Hope this wasn't more than you wanted to know.

Rick


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Hoah! (Its an Army thing!)
 
Carry yout plastic military canteens with an aluminum canteen cup base, they are designed to be used as a cook pot, even have a carry handle and it fits in the canteen pouch with the canteen. The nice thing about the plastic ones are they do not corrode inside like the old aluminum aluminum ones.
 
I too carry a US mil Canteen set.

Steel cup for boiling and cooking and such.

Plastic canteen.

Aluminum heat-tab stove.

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Thank you all for your response.
The military plastic canteen and alu cup+stove combo sounds like the best yet.
Thanks again,

HM
 
SASS do non stick metal mugs and mess tins. The mugs fit the British issue bottle which are plastic.

Pricey, but they are very good. I've used mine for years. The non stick gives a hygiene advantage as it makes cleaning thoroughly that much easier.
 
Actually I have never used an aluminum canteen but I did use the plastic military canteen for 6 years in the Army. Like others here I used the canteen-cup to heat water in and never had a problem. One word of warning though, if you put kool-aid or gator-aid in the plastic canteen, it is nearly impossible to get the taste out.

[This message has been edited by allenC (edited 01-12-2001).]
 
Go with the wide mouth,clear(nalgene type).You pay more at first,but it will be worth it when you use them.
You wont spend all day trying to refill at a steam/lake/swamp.
You can buy and attach a filter to the top of the bottle when you refill.
If the Mil type canteens freeze you can't remove the ice plug.
The clear plastic will let you see what is/is not growing in your H2O supply.
If you are in sub-freezing temps keep your canteens upside down(lid on tight) so that when they start to freeze the ice starts on the bottom away from the mouth.
When in dought buy a camelback.Good luck
 
Stay away from the older military canteens without the NBC type top. Some of them have narrower necks that are more likely to freeze up. One thing we do in mild winter weather is to carry canteens 3/4 full so the sloshing helps prevent ice from forming.
 
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