Scepter Can Review

[Scott Brady]

Wil does another great review and test. This time of the Scepter cans!

http://www.expeditionportal.com/equipment/equipment_reviews/Scepter_Can/scepter_can.php

 

[gjackson]

Wll,

Nice review. Did you get any onfo about UV resistance of the cans? Just wondering since the question came up in another thread. Also might want to re-check the spelling of Pangaea in your link.

cheers!

 

[flyingwil]

Wll,

Nice review. Did you get any onfo about UV resistance of the cans? Just wondering since the question came up in another thread. Also might want to re-check the spelling of Pangaea in your link.

cheers!

Thank for the kind words and the heads up on my wonderful spelling... I will have to wait for Scott to fix it


As for UV, I have not had them long enough to know, but I will gladly follow up!

 

[PCRover]

Nice review, I'll be looking at them to replace my old steel WWII cans soon if noting else for the improved spout on the Scepter's.

 

[flyingwil]

Yeah Just make sure you get a Military Fuel Cans (MFC) and not the type they sell at PepBoy's. These cans are thicker and are MIL-SPEC and have the larger 3/4” mouth. The high-flow spout is quick and worked very well!

 

[FlyingWen]

My favorite was running over the water can!!

As if once wasn't enough, we ran over the water can a 2nd time for the review. To look at the can now, you don't even see a dent! :clapsmile

 

[p1michaud]

Scepter Water and Fuel Cans

Will,
Having used both the Water and Fuel Scepter Cans I'd like to offer some of my experience with them. Most of this was originally discussed on 4WDtrips.net.

Military Water Cans (MWC)

I purchased and used a new MWC directly from Scepter Canada since they did not have any local distributors. On my first trip the can was leaking slightly. It was a pain with my camper set up since a my gear was getting wet.

To Scepter's credit, they made it right. I got an e-mail from Ryan a member on 4WDTrips who is also a Scepter employee telling me that a replacement MWC is on it's way and they would like me to return my defective one so that they can understand the problem and correct it! Did I mention that Scepter also covered all the related shipping charges for both the new and defective can?! Scpeter did some testing, but could not get the can to leak using their standard “topple” test. Basically partly fill it with water, set it on a shelf with the filler, vent and pour caps facing down (i.e. with water on the caps) and could not get it to leak. They contacted me via e-mail to try and figure out what the issue I had experienced was. The only difference I could think of was that the pressure build up due to heat under the sun coupled to the vibrations from bouncing in the back of the truck may have caused it to leak.

I have used the replacement MWC successfully on a few occasions with no further leaks. You just have to make sure you really tighten the 3 caps to prevent leakage. I store my can on it's side in the back of the truck under my sleeping platform so it does experience significant vibrations and temperature extremes. I would buy another one of these Scepter cans anytime.

Mil. Spec Gas Cans(MFC)

I purchased an MFC complete with high-flow spout. You do have to really tighten the cap to ensure it seals correctly. Again I store my can on it's side in the back of the truck under my sleeping platform so it does experience significant vibrations and temperature extremes. This can has never leaked to date. I would buy another one of these Scepter cans anytime.
As for the high-flow spout it does smell a bit after use, if you don't allow sufficient time for it to dry after use before putting it away. The clear pour spout is real nice feature since you can see the gas flow. It takes about 1 minute 45 seconds to completely empty the 5 gal (20L) can. The cans have a small vent path allowing for quick flow when combined with the ¾” spout. I do have one concern with the pour spout as when the can is nearly empty the small amount of fuel that is trapped in the vent leaks out through the vent hole. I have not been able to eliminate this issue so I use a rag to catch the gas now.

One option that I will try in the near future for the fuel can is the Super Siphon. You don't have to handle full cans of fuel as much and I think that you would get no spillage with this option.

The Scepter Water and Fuel Cans are a great solution for my requirements. I don't need to carry extra water and fuel on a regular basis.


Cheers :beer:,
P

 

[michaelgroves]

I've always looked on the old steel "jerry-can" as being the epitome of product design excellence.

The dimensions make them easy to pack together (width = 2 x depth), and easy to manage (not too heavy). The 3 handles mean than one person can carry 1 or 2 cans at a time, or 4 if they are empty, and two people can easily share the carrying of 1 can if necessary. They are the right size to be comfortable to grip, and free of palm-irritating seams. And they are well-placed for lashing, and they offer some protection for the lid.

The body is cheaply built, but very rigid, while patterned to allow the sides to expand a bit under pressure.

The flip-up lid is a masterpiece. It seals perfectly, even under pressure, and the seal is easily replaced. It can be locked closed with a padlock or a wire/plastic seal. The lid can't get lost. The simple separator plate in the mouth makes the can glug-free when filling or emptying (unless you tip the can at extreme angles). This means that no secondary opening is necessary. The lid is held open and out of the way by its very simple but clever hinge. And the flanged mouth and lid-retaining brackets lend themselves to all manner of crafty add-on spouts and feeders etc. which can attach/detach in seconds.

Altogether a hard act to follow!

Those Specter cans look great too. Far better than the rather disappointing plastic Nato water cans we used on our expedition. Obviously, the use of plastic instead of steel is their biggest advantage over the "proper" jerry cans. Corrosion is the Achilles heel of the steel cans, especially for water storage (but petrol also doesn't inhibit rust very well). And the fact that they don't get dented and (presumably) don't suffer from chafing are big pluses,too.

Sadly, it does seem to mean the demise of the perfect lid I imagine it's just not possible to have a plastic lid that is secured in the same way as the steel ones. And a thread instead of a flange means that the lids have to come off completely, and get dirty/lost, or dangle annoyingly by their tethers.

For water, there's no question, I would opt for the Specter cans, but I think I might, on balance, still use Jerry cans for diesel.

Btw, does anyone know if there any lids for the Specter that would facilitate the use of an electric pump for water distribution? Ideally, I would like to be able to have a bank of water cans, and simply move the pump's pick-up from can to can as needed. I never found an elegant solution to use for our Nato water cans.