You guys are probably way ahead of me on this but I just broke down and purchased a Fast Bucksaw saw and a Littlbug senior stove. Wow!! Both are great additions to my camping gear.
We all have tools that do the work, but only occasionally do you find a tool that gives you pleasure using it; I would suggest that the Fast Bucksaw is one of the few. First and foremost it cuts like a dream, but then as you get to opening and closing it it becomes evident just how much thought has gone into refining the design. Beautiful work!
Some time ago I made a twig stove from one of those chimney charcoal briquet lighter things that you can find in the hardware stores. It works well and I've had a lot of fun fooling with it. But no matter how well I like it, it is heavy and no way will it collapse and pack neatly. So after looking at all the offerings on the market, I bought the littlbug senior.  It's the larger of the two and well made with stainless steel that doesn't feel the least bit flimsy when you get it set up. For me that was one of the most important considerations; don't want the fire escaping or for me to get scalded with a tipped over pot of boiling water. As it comes, it has no bottom to hold the fire so I'm experimenting with various configurations of cake pans and what not on the bottom to hold the fire and more or less insulate the ground from the heat. A work in progress.
What I can tell you so far is that the stove shields the fire from the wind well and would allow me to have a fire under conditions that I wouldn't dare have a open campfire. I'm learning what size of sticks/chunks of wood will produce a sustainable fire with out the necessity of hovering over it all the time. The pot supports allow you room to feed the fire without removing the pot most times. There is a carrying case that you must buy extra but I'm glad I did because it allows all four parts of the stove to be packed neatly and keeps the soot controlled.
All in all I'm glad I got both of the Fast Bucksaw and the Littlbug sn. stove and if your looking for a saw or a stove I recommend them.
Best Wishes, Rob 

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Jimbo   

Oldie Moldy wrote on Jun 17^th, 2012 at 6:21pm:

If you have an interest in going this direction, you might consider using a (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links).  Some park/wilderness areas do not permit campfires directly on the forest floor.  You can make a fire on the fire blanket (with a layer of mineral soil on top as additional insulation) and it doesn't bother what is underneath.  I've had occasion to use one in the Sawtooth Range of Idaho.  It worked very well for that purpose (but a pain to carry the additional weight in my backpack).

dd

Kerry wrote on Jun 17^th, 2012 at 9:13pm:

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Another candidate:  (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links), but alas, mine lies at the bottom of Buldging Lake in WCPP after last year's trip.  The saw cuts exceptionally well and has the advantage of "no assembly required."  Flip open and you are on your way (with two open locking positions).  An added plus is that your hand is separated from the blade location by a fair distance and you have no depth limit on your cut.  Furthermore, the rubberized handle is long enough to use both hands.  I guess I should mention that the tool is likely of Japanese design, meaning that you tend to cut on the draw rather than the push (although it does cut both ways).

Oddly, it is in the same 1 pound weight class with very similar product costs.

dd

Oldie Moldy wrote on Jun 18^th, 2012 at 12:52pm:

Perhaps I'm a bit more weight conscious than you, but the I too use a spacer between flat surfaces to add a gap.  On my recent trip I used this method to cook cake/muffins via the "steam vat"method.  I placed the item to be cooked into a shallow (cake) pan and then placed that pan into a pot containing perhaps a 1/4" of water and resting on the spacers.  The steam actually cooks the item, which isn't browned, but EXTRA moist!

Oh.  My "light weight" spacers ... small flat rocks I find at the campsite.  I don't actually carry the spacers and if I loose one, there is usually another close about.  (Like the twisted cord clothes line, its a trick I picked up from backpacking.)

dd

I have the Littlebug junior and I like it very much, it works great. I am happy that I don't need to carry a bottle of fuel, especially for longer trips.
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Hi, thanks for the reference to the splitting baton. Actually I use my old Estwing hatchet just about like that! For quite a while I carried my axe camping but in the interest of weight savings and pure utility I've switched over to the hatchet. Pondering the whole chopping thing it seems that you are opening (pardon the pun) yourself up to the possibility of an serious accident when there is a technique that will reduce the wood down without chopping.  My hatchet has a one piece head/handle with a blue plastic grip. The only modification I've found useful is to wrap a bulb of friction tape near to the head to permit the user to "choke up" closer to the head for more control. That steel shaft is just too slim for me to grip comfortably. I use this setup primarily when I'm making something.
Another option is the Ontario knife company's RAT knives. I bought the RAT-7 and it's a great knife and works well to split the wood when hit with a club. Deciding between the rat and the hatchet was hard, in the end I picked the hatchet mainly because I can hammer in wedges when splitting and also tent pegs. Actually that's one of my favorite rainy-day-under-the-tarp activities; splitting that horribly twisted-grain block of wood down into fire sized bits.
Best Wishes, Rob

Oldie Moldy wrote on Jul 7^th, 2012 at 5:01pm:



Been giving some more thought to your problem.
If my silicone pad idea doesn't do the trick alone, I have another thought that may be of some use?

What if you cut a series of holes around the sides of your upside down pan, say 3/4-1" with a hole saw maybe 1" apart. This would allow heat to disperse and hopefully combined with silicone pad, solve the ground scorching problem?
Side benefit is you'll lighten your kit a little bit.

Quote:


What would happen if you put a layer of dirt/sand in the aluminum pie plate before you build your fire?
Or would it melt the sides anyway?

How about the brush buddy? Anyone have any experience with these? Thinking about getting one for a little hiking.

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My fault. For some reason the link did not appear on my screen right away.

That looks nice enough. But compared to the LittlBug it seems more dedicated to a solo trip for boiling water.

The LittlBug Sr. is good for 2, maybe 4, people. It can boil alot of water and you can keep feeding it wood. It can be a little campfire also if it is not too cold. The LittlBug Sr. is large enough that you do not have to be too fussy about buidling the fire. Just get a bunch of pine needles, pine cones, and little twigs and fire it up. Then add gradually bigger pieces. That is where the lopper comes in handy You can make quick work of beaver sticks or branches.

The LittlBug packs down pretty small also. Not the lightest imaginable but reasonable.

Yes, I agree, the brushbuddy looks particularly suitable for boiling water with a 16oz stainless steel cup (solo)...........don't think I would trust it with a larger pot.........If I'm not mistaken burns from cooking are the #1 injury in the backcountry........especially to feet..........so beware you sandal clad cookers (Um, that would be me).

Just ordered Littlbug Sr. from campsaver.com. at 45.00 it's a good price, throw in a pot gripper that I needed anyway and the shipping was free on the order over 50.00.   Butt they also sell tack 180 stoves (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links) . Has anyone heard of or used these before?

I like the idea of the Tack, but I envision one of those cold spring mornings when EVERYTHING is soaking wet, and me trying to get something to burn.  What do Tack aficionados do in these cases? 

prouboy

Excellent reminder Prouboy..........I would be exhibit 1 in this regard........

The in juries associated with cooking info still left a notable impression on me.......(no pun intended )

These discussions of what is the number one danger are fun but in reality don't we face all kinds of potential threats? Usually we manage to get past most of them unscathed. I would humbly suggest that what is really important is the mindset we bring to the problem/task.
When I was a little kid I had a friend who was a more or less retired sheepherder. This was back in the day when an old man and a boy could be friends without all kinds of suggestions of buggery and whatnot. Anyway...he had almost unlimited patience with all my questions. I asked him if he wasn't worried when he was out all alone, maybe break a leg or something? "Yep", he said "but the thing to do was slow down and think. Don't try to bull your way through a piece of work". And scowling at me, "Keep your mind on your work, save the woolgathering for the campfire".
All these years later his words still ring true. I can be working at some small fiddly task and thinking that after this I'll do these other things and then I can get back into that book again and then, DANG!! that hurt, wonder if I ought to get stitches. Serves me right; woolgathering. Again.
Don't know what's coming after this, but I would sure would like to talk to him again, he was a good old man.
Best Wishes, Rob   

My earlier note may have been missed, so I'll raise it again.

Regarding this stove...  I like the idea of it burning natural things, the weight of it, and not having to pack gas. BUT I wonder how it does on those days (we've all had them) when it's cold and everything is absolutely soaking wet.  Starting a fire in this stove with wet leaves, etc....  Anyone have experience with the littlbug stove in this situation?

prouboy

Also, always a good idea to have dry kindling along with you that you've gathered on your travel...scraps of birch bark, etc. Doesn't weigh much, can be tucked into a pocket. Obviously, if you've got a week of rain and are travelling through it, that isn't so easy to sustain.

Those conditions are exactly why IMHO anyone who wants/needs a fire brings a small saw big enough to cut a piece of downed wood that even if wet will have a dry center (heart).

Something to split it and initially a fire starter of some kind to get things going.
Birch bark is great and If you run across some, it's a good idea to stash some in a zip lock.

I'm partial to my paraffin wax/ dryer lint/ cardboard egg carton homemade firestarters.
I've added a trick b-day candle center wick to give it a little extra bang.

The magnesium powder in the candlewick makes these burn hot/fast, enough to light even the wettest wood, but the dryer the fuel source the less smoke, although if the bugs are bad, excess smoke might be a good thing..

Here's a quick tutorial of how I make my "enhanced" wax/lint fire starters.
Sorry I don't have pics.

Melt 1 lb paraffin wax. It's extremely flammable, so to be safe, do it this way.
Take a large tin coffee can that is bent in enough to form a pouring spout.
Put wax in can and set in large pan of boiling water to melt wax.

Take a CARDBOARD egg carton and in each section put a piece of dryer lint.
I roll some in a ball between my palms, you want a piece about the size of a large marble.
Have the lint in place in all sections before you add the melted wax.

While wax is melting, take those trick b-day candles that you can buy in party shops or even a good supermarket. There the kind that you can't blow out no matter how you try.
Cut each candle in half.

Pour wax into carton molds and wait till it starts to set, but not to long and stick the candle straight into the center of fire cube. You want it to get into the lint ball. It should stay straight up unless the wax is to hot.

Let them cool and tear into individual sections. Leave the cardboard on. I put a few in a zip lock bag and put one bag in all my packs.
Build a small tepee of little twigs/branches with fire starter under/inside it.
Light the candle and as the magnesium ignites it sets the small candle melting which ignites the dryer lint which sets the paraffin going. It burns very hot.
Will light wet wood and get the base going for a bigger fire.

I think in a pinch it would burn hot/long enough to heat water in small cup/pot for a quick warm-up in an emergency.

I'm glad you Littlbug and loppers worked for you on your trip! The idea of loppers never entered my mind but what with the new Fast bucksaw I'm kinda invested in the saw for now.
My next big mad scientist project is to make some of those fire-starters with the birthday candle! My stars! When did paraffin get to be so expensive? Thanks Solotripper for the instructions!
Best Wishes, Rob

I take a LittlBug Sr. and a Minibull alcohol stove. Works great for dehydrated meals, boiling water, and a little "campfire" from the Bug.

I do just that. I take a Minibull, the model with the tube so that it will run on alcohol indefinitely. It is tiny and fist inside another model of Minibull made out of a beer can. That one takes and oz or two of methanol which is fine for boiling 1-2 cups of water for coffee or hot chocolate. The Minibull is good for frying fish, baking coffee cake, simmering rice, etc. I don't cook on the LittlBug apart from boiling water. It can boil a lot of water fast so it is great for dehydrated meals and it works well in wind and rain. it would not be hard to cook with though if you committed to it. I would suggest some type of diffuser disk to temper the heat.