MSR Blacklite Cookware Review

"I have the larger nesting set, of the two available, and I have mixed comments on these. I would not recommend these pots to the light and fast weekender at all, since they weighabout a full pound more than im willing to take in just about any piece of gear. These pots are excellent for a more culinary-oriented trekker, because the have the non-stick coating. Although they are a little too heavy for my recent taste, I have found that my larger pot fits nicely around a bear can. This nifty discovery proved to be most useful when hiking in bear country. Doing this eliminates the amount of space taken by your cookset(if you put your stove into the bear can as well)to almost nothing. "

"No problems here. Sure you have to be a little careful, but the ease of cleanup makes it all worth it. One of the best additions I have made to my backpacking gear. Perfect for a weekender like me who can only get out once a month if I am lucky!"

"Unfortunately like a lot have posted the pots wear quickly, very quickly. I find myself buying a new set for each year; but the old sets retain some value. I hit the weekends hard 25-30 a year and cook exclusively on these pots so to the plus, pancakes, cinnamon rolls, cobblers do not stick. Soups and saucy items do not stick even when scorched (due to absentmindedly not watching them as we all can do) along with seared meats and other culinary things most do not dare in the woods. 45-50.00$ is a lot to lay out for a cookset that you pretty much buy new each year then again, I'd spend twice that much on fuel. so do i recommend, YES like the one gentleman said know what you are buying sprayed on teflon on aluminum. It will not last 20 years or two for that matter. But if you are more obsessive about your food other than needing a pot just to boil water then this is a little expensive but i think good set for the years use. I have tried aluminum and stainless and they do not handle sticky items like pancakes and cinnamon rolls well, soups scorch very easily especially under direct heat from small compact hi heat stoves. If you just need a pot or cup to boil water buy something else. If you want some heat resistance and non-sticking then spend the money but beware you'll be back at the store buying another set for next year. The older pots then make good use for soups and boiling the water, although you'll have 50 of them...."

"I am a intermediate hiker/camper mainly taking trips into the boundary waters canoe area(bwca) in and around Ely, MN. I have found the cookset to be most excellent for my uses on weekend excursions, although i wouldnt recomend it for large groups seeing it would take forever due to the size of the pans to feed everyone.so if you solo hike or go in pairs this stove is perfect. an excellent choice for beginner hikers on a budget."

"Only complaint with product is the pot gripper marking the pots a bit. If you treat these with respect they are great. They cook very well and clean up in a snap - make sure you tell your co-hikers not to use sand for clean up! Enjoyed not having to stir my dinners to avoid sticking as much as my old SS set. If you pack stove within nesting pots make sure you roll up the heat shield very well or it will scratch away during your hike."

"I can't believe MSR would put their name on this. The non-stick coating comes off very easily and you have to treat the pots like glass. If you have a choice, get another set."

"Have had no problems so far with this cookset. It came with seperator cloths between each pot, so it seems MSR is addressing the issues of scratching. They worked very well for me, staying put on the stove, and heating evenly and quickly. The optional pantry set nests into the cookset and is a great addition to this cookset. No real complaints here. Just keep the separators for use when nesting the cookset together for travel. "

"This is aluminum cookware with non-stick coating, inside and out. The set also has non-slip ridges on the bottom to keep them from moving around on your stove. Nylon or similar utensils should be used to avoid scratching the Teflon coating inside the pots.

With that out of the way, I'd like to report a more positive experience than the previous reviews on this site. My cookware has not been heavily abused, but it is holding up well to average weekend use. It is Teflon on aluminum, however, and you must consider this before buying. The interior coating can come off and it does so easier than I expected it to on such an expensive set of cookware. However, a friend of mine cooked a meal in one of my pots and forgot to use a plastic spoon. He even let it sit too long on the stove and used his metal spoon to scrape the sauce from the bottom of the pan. While the pan certainly shows the ordeal, the Teflon is not wore through and still functions fine. I'm sure this ordeal shortened the life span of the Teflon, but it hasn't been a problem yet. I would like to mention that if the Teflon does wear through, you have a fairly useless pot on your hands. Bare aluminum is nearly impossible to clean. However, these pots are fairly sturdy as they seem to never warp or buckle like my friend's inexpensive stainless pots do.

Warning to buyers! These pots nest, but MSR seems to have overlooked a very big problem with this. When nested, the non-slip ridges on the small pot will be in contact with the Teflon coating inside the larger pot. While the fit is fairly snug, there is still enough movement that a day's hike will have made scratches all over the bottom of the bigger pot. After realizing this, I now put a paper towel between the two and the problem is solved. It was highly annoying to discover this the very first time I pulled them out to cook on them.

If you don't want to baby Teflon, then get a stainless steel cook set. While heavier and harder to clean, you can scrape and knock them around as much as you want.
"

"This is really not worth the
price. It is light and looks
good on the outside. But the non-stick layer
doesn't stick well to the
aluminium base. Just after
cooking a few meals, the
non-stick layer started to peel off. I was using a
plastic spoon and treated the
non-stick layer very very
gently. I would rather have
plain aluminium or steel cookware rather than these.

"

"This is the only product I have ever bought from MSR that disappointed me. This stuff is junk! Large chunks of the non-stick coating rubbed off on the hike into camp, while still more chunks came off each time I grabbed the pots with the pot grabber that came with the set. In spite of using all precautions the manufacturer suggests, the cookset looked like hell after one weekend trip. Fortunately, the retailer exchanged the set for an MSR Apline Deluxe Set. When I emailed MSR, they had no apologies and no explanation."