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Well rec.food.preserving would answer you better. However, I like my 20 qt 4 qt jars or 10 pint jar american canner. Smaller canners cool down faster and do double batches faster than larger ones. Weight and height is your enemy. I hope you do not have a microwave oven above your stove or you wont be able to use it. Your better off with two smaller canners than one big one. Try the the other newsgroup for better information.

You could use the stand and propane burner that is used for a turkey fryer. It will easily hold that amount of weight. Not sure about the safety issue of doing it in your basement though.

Also the heat needs to be adjustable for a pressure canner. However, a BWB water baths temperature does not need that much regulating. For tomatoes I usually use the BWB method.