Gas cyclinders

[asterix]

A couple of years ago I bought a beautifully compact camping stove that a French Sports shop was selling off half price. (It's sold in the UK but never half price.)

Then I found a snag: it's one of those screw-on types (Coleman) and nowhere in France seems to sell anything other than bayonet types. I still use it but have to import my gas cyclinders from the UK.

Today in York I bought one to take to France and when I looked at the can it said very clearly 'MADE IN FRANCE'. So WTF don't they sell them in France!!?

Does anyone know? Or if they do, how and/or where?

 

[psmiffy]

Decathlon used to - climbing shops (sort of have to be where there is somewhere to climb and where there is a shop) do - but they are a rarity - I think that is what caught me out on my first french trip that it said made in france on the cylinders that I bought here - get a GAZ adaptor - then sorted

 

[andrew_s]

In France I either use an adapter (available here), or use an MSR Superfly which takes either screw-on or Camping Gas CV

 

[willem]

Primus now also do stoves that take both typoe of cartridges. Not that that helps you. There are various adapters (Markill).
Willem

 

[mark]

This is the French distributor for MSR products: http://www.pl-diffusion.fr/ They should be able to tell you where their stoves and cartridges are sold (MSR and Coleman cartridges are interchageable).

This is a dealer locator for Coleman in France (and probably lots of other places: http://www.coleman.eu/storefinder/default.aspx?Locale=fr-FR

When I was in Sicily I found Coleman threaded cartridges along the coast, in a couple of stores that seemed to cater to boaters. MSR dealers were much harder to find, MSR is more popular with the climbing crowd.

 

[Brains]

We have found the cannisters in France the places to look are:

Camp sites with lots of Brits
Specalist cooking shops, as Brule burners use them.
DIY shops as paint burners use them
and as others have pointed out top of the range sports shops, the type that sell climimg gear, not white trainers

We also bought one from an Indian resturant as the table top food warmers also use them

 

[asterix]

THanks for the tips, useful stuff. Didn't know adapters were available, must get one! The stove I have is MSR's pocket rocket.

 

[andrew_s]

Specalist cooking shops, as Brule burners use them.
DIY shops as paint burners use them

The canisters used for blowtorches are mostly long and thin, so if you use a Pocket Rocket type of canister top stove you end up with a fairly precarious situation with a pan of boiling water on a stove on the end of a 25cm high x 8cm diameter canister. It's solvable by (eg) putting guy lines on the canister, but still less than ideal.
They are also generally pure butane, so won't work well if it's cold (and I've had ice all over my tent in June, in France).

 

[Brains]

The canisters used for blowtorches are mostly long and thin, so if you use a Pocket Rocket type of canister top stove you end up with a fairly precarious situation with a pan of boiling water on a stove on the end of a 25cm high x 8cm diameter canister. It's solvable by (eg) putting guy lines on the canister, but still less than ideal.
They are also generally pure butane, so won't work well if it's cold (and I've had ice all over my tent in June, in France).

Agreed, would not be ideal for a Pocket Rocket unless rocks or bricks available to build supporting wall. However they are fine used in a gas Trangia or any other gas fitting with a hose as they can lie flat on the ground