Coleman® Feather™ 442 Stove

Most Sea Anglers who think Lantern or Stove will immediately think Coleman. The Northstar Lantern and Sportster Stove [533] have long been the 'Anglers' favourite.   The Feather™ 442 however is a lighter version of the Sportster that packs a punch well above it's weight. With s  Space in the tackle box is limited at the best of times, and a Hot Beverage a must in Winter, the Feather Stove will take up no more space than 2 multiplier reels [15x12cm]  Although not any smaller than it's 'Bigger Sister' the Feather™ weighs in at 658g to the Sportster's hefty 1.18kg - hence it's name.

Reviewed: Coleman® Feather™ 442 Stove
Reviewed by Lloyd Rush
Selling Price £59.99 more info www.coleman.eu

Quick Look:

• Power: 2 200 W
  
• Run time: Up to 7 hours
• Size: 15 x 12 cm Ø
• Boil time: 3 min. 55 sec
• Weight: 685 g

Fuel - The Feather™ can run on 'Coleman® White Gas' or Unleaded Petrol which is much cheaper than other options. Should your Lantern be dual fuel too you will only need to carry a single Fuel supply and again reduce the overall weight whilst getting to your fishing mark. Some simple tips I would offer:

• Get a small specialist fuel bottle that will cover a nights fishing [will also help with decanting/filling routines].
• Every 6 to 8 tanks of fuel run a little 'Redex' in the tank to keep the Stove in as New condition.
• Read the Instructions that come with the Stove - both common sense and safety!

The Verdict:

The Feather is a well designed stove that is just as robust as the bigger and heavier models also available from Coleman. The stove is marketed towards the 'Hiker' but also applies its functionality well when employed by Shore Anglers. It will boil a small kettle of water, more than enough for 2 pot noodles, in less than 4 mins in wet and windy conditions [much less on a perfectly still day]

I wasn't a massive fan of the rubber lanyard that attaches the Tank Cap to the Tank, the Lanyard is a great idea - I'm just not sure of the wisdom of making it out of rubber? I guess time will tell, at the first signs of perishing I'd replace it with something more suitable; which looks like a 2 min task to be fair!

The narrow tank/wide burning bowl is overcome with the neat and effective fold out feet, when fully extended the feet make the Feather extremely stable, whilst tucked under the tank the Feather is very portable.

The narrow tank is the means of greatly reducing the weight, and impressively only 1 hour of burn time is lost when compared to the Sportster whilst still offering a decent flame for up to 7 hours.

In reality you should only need one full tank for your outing - unless your making Bacon butties for the whole beach?

The high pot supports assist the ample burning bowl with protecting the flame from the sea breeze and provides a suitable support for a kettle and pan alike. Given a few moments to warm the vapour tube a fearce blue flame is easy to achieve. The accurate flame control highlights the simplicity of use and gives reliable testament to the stove being anything but a 'lightweight' - apart from the when placed on the scales that is!

All said and told, I would personally recommend the Feather above the Sportster for use by the Shore Angler. I'm more than content with the 2 200w power compared to the 2 500w kicked out by the Sportster, the tipping point for me personally was the 1lb saving in weight.   Well maintained, the Feather should last an age, just as you would expect from a Coleman product