Lighter1 Lil' Sami Bear Canister

This has been the best bear can I have purchased for my backpacking gear ( this was number 4). My wife also loves it, compared to the others we have tried, so... I will be getting one for my wife at some point. I have had this for several trips during my testing. This stays in the bottom of my backpacking bag upside down. I lay the bag down, unzip the lower section and can easily pull the top off to get to lunch or other items. No fighting with screw on lids, or getting a coin.a few pros:It is fairly small! Very light for its size and very sturdy. I am 200 lbs and I have used it a few times as a seat. The pan works pretty well, but I have not used the lid. ( To be honest I don't bring the lid with me)This has worked for me on a 4 day backpacking trip with no issues. Side note on that: I do not use normal meals, I dehydrate and seal my own meals so its really roomy for that. If you are going to use the fluffy air filled bags I am not sure how many days you can get but I would think around 2 days depending how you eat.Also the screws are easy to open and you don't have to carry a coin or something special to get into it. This has included colder temps, 30 deg or lower Fahrenheit.SOMETHING TO WATCH OUT FOR:When the can is in your bag, leave the screws out of it. ( just put them in the can or a pocket so that you will not loose them) During a long trip the screws will rub holes in your bag!!! If you keep the screws out of it and only use them when you need to secure it at night its GREAT!Yes, I learned this the hard way with an expensive bag, but I found it after a few hours into my first trip. There wasn't a lot of damage to my bag but there was damage. If I would have left it for the whole trip, there would have been some good sized holes.This does not take away from my 5 star rating base on how well every other aspect of the canister preformed. Lesson learned and sharing it so others might not do the same. Again the best bear can I have purchased.

Overall, I am pleased with the performance of Lil Sami. That said, no bear tried to open it on my trip, so I can't evaluate it for bear-durability. No small critters (raccoons, mice) breached it, though.I purchased this smaller-sized Lil Sami canister for a 4 day/3 night backpack down the coast of Washington state. Canisters are mandatory in this section of Olympic National Park. Bears can be an issue, but it's more about protection from raccoons. I was looking for a lighter weight, easier-to-open canister than the previous model that I had - a bear vault. As a 5'4" woman, my hands are not wide enough to easily open the wide screw-on lid of the bear vault. I struggled and someone else always had to open it for me. And the hard black plastic ones are too heavy - I am already carrying a higher weight-to-pack ratio with all of my gear. I was looking for a canister that had an easier way to open it, and also a small, lightweight size. The fact that I could use the lid as a pan/pot was a bonus. The small size of Lil Sami fit nicely in my 38L Osprey pack - which is a women's pack so it's a bit narrower than some. I was concerned that it would be too big in diameter by the time that I got all of my other gear in there. It was easy to grasp to yank out when I needed it. The screws on the side were easy to use - I just used my fingers. During the day when it was in my pack, I didn't tighten them down all the way - I did at night. I do agree with some of the other reviewers that the screw holes are not exactly aligned - the lid is not all the way seated for the holes - but it wasn't a big deal - I just lined it up by sight. I did have to use my spork to loosen one of the screws once, when I threaded it in wrong and could not get it back out with my fingers, but after that I was careful to screw it in straight.I'd say the Lil Sami is good for a 3 day/2 night trip for 1 person max during warm weather (i.e. less food) - I could not fit all of my food in for 4 days/3 nights, so I had to jettison some of it before leaving home, but that left me hungry and closely watching each morsel that I ate. And I was completely out of food on day 4 - no safety buffer if I had an accident. Not good. I shaved it way too close (even having trimmed packaging, let out air) and that was even with my first day's food not in the canister. For a man, who eats more, it would not be nearly enough. For longer trips, I will get the larger size.The pot worked well for me. I agree that the handle could use some re-design. I could not get it to really support the pot of boiling water, so I mostly used a cloth to pour. One thing to note is that the bottom of the pot will get dirty, which means the lid of your canister will be dirty from cooking. I use a tiny Espit stove, which leaves a sticky film on the bottom of pots. I knew this ahead of time, so I threw a shower cap into my pack and just slipped the shower cap over the lid/pot when it was in my pack. I do have some concerns that food smells from the lid/pot may attract more critters to the canister at night, but I had no issues with breaches. Like other reviewers, I did not even take the pot lid with me - I used a piece of aluminum foil. Since I am a lazy backpacker, and just eat dehydrated meals, the lid/pot worked fine for me for boiling water - it conducted heat faster than my smaller, deeper titanium pot (which I didn't have to bring). If I were cooking a meal, I think the pot would suffice, but that handle would be an issue.I did not use Lil Sami as a stool - but it seemed strong enough to support my weight.Overall, I am VERY pleased with Lil Sami. I intend to get the larger size for longer trips. And I like the fact that a father/daughter designed it. It would be even better if it were Made in USA, which I don't think it is. But for functionality, I'm now a fan.

I bought this canister and the Big Daddy because they were lighter than any other comparable product that is approved for use in the areas where we camp. As many others have mentioned, the lid that doubles as a pot is a really great feature, but there are a few things that could be improved. The lid of the canister could really benefit from a non-stick coating - it would make them much more useful for cooking. Also, the lid for the pot gets left behind on most of our trips because there just does not seem to be any good use for it and it is awkward to pack. And then there is the closing mechanism... the single most frustrating aspect of the canister. You have to be careful placing the brace, because if it is off by even a little you will not be able to get the screws in correctly. It sounds easy enough to do, but can be pretty challenging when the canister is very full and you are tight on space. The screws themselves are fairly small and can be very challenging to turn with cold fingers. I cannot seem to find any kind of replacement screws that will fit the brace and provide more of a grip. Lastly, the screws are attached to the pot, but it is kind of a flimsy attachment. 3 out of the 4 screws on our two canisters have become separated from the canisters, so we have to be very careful about not loosing them when accessing food in the canister.