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Reviews > Cook Gear > Stoves > WildWood 1 Stove > Coy Starnes > Initial ReportWildWood
I backpack stove
Initial Report August 24, 2006  WildWood I with stuff sack (and my Soltac Cookset pot)
Tester Bio I live in North East Alabama. I enjoy hunting, fishing, canoeing, and most other outdoor activities but backpacking is my favorite pastime. I enjoy hiking with friends and family or solo. I hike throughout the year and actually hike the least in the hot humid months of summer. My style is slow and steady and my gear is light. However I will sacrifice weight for comfort and durability. A typical 3-season load for me is around 20 lb (9 kg) not counting food or water. I usually sleep in a hammock and cook with an alcohol stove. I will use the wood stove during this test though. My backpacking trips are usually 2, 3 or 4 days in length. Product Information
Product Description The WildWood I backpack stove burns natural fuel. It is quite compact when dissembled but when put together it is a fairly big stove. It is also seems very sturdy once assembled. It is backed by a free replacement/repair guarantee if it fails. The manufacture provides the following information. Introducing the WildWood I backpack stove.
Initial Impression The stove comes as 7 pieces of metal stacked flat. As with any chunk of metal, it felt rather heavy for its compact appearance. The directions provided are simple to follow but I had already seen the assembly instruction video provided on the manufactures website so assembly went very smoothly. I could see why needing to know the door piece goes on last is important though (it is impossible to assemble if you don't). After assembly, the stove was as I expected and seemed to beg for some kindling and a fire. Patience grasshopper! Test Plan  I have already done a little at home testing as it would
be silly to take the stove out on a trip without checking which pots
will work with the stove. I was expecting my MSR Ti kettle to be
too small and sure enough it is. In fact it fits almost perfectly
down inside the WildWood. I next checked my Soltac Cookset pot
(cookset pictured at the beginning of this report). This one is
just right. The Stove also fits neatly inside it.  Both my other MSR Ti pots will work so I have 3 pots to
choose from as well as a small non-stick skillet. For the past few years I have been using a homemade alcohol stove but have used various canister and liquid (white gas) stoves in the past. I have not used a wood burning cooking stove. I will use the stove on several overnight trips here in my woods as well as a few longer trips. If for some reason I can not use the stove (woods too wet for my fire building skills) I will probably take my small homemade alcohol stove and a few ounces of alcohol as a backup. The online information suggests the WildWood I can serve as a windscreen for such stoves. My primary testing will revolve around ease of use. My first observation will be too see how easy or difficult the WildWood I is to pack for trips and then assemble in the field. I will also want to see how easy it is to build a fire inside the stove. This may be challenging at times, like when it has rained for several days. Along these same lines, I will be checking the ease (or difficulty) I encounter when scrounging up fuel. Will I be able to do this in a short amount of time? Will I feel like it after a long day on the trail? Will it matter if I just break off small twigs or will I need a small saw or some way to secure more substantially sized fuel? If I use the suggested charcoal briquettes will I find the weight OK for more than short trips? Can I add a grate and have steaks!!!!!! on backpacking trips? Next I will be testing the stove's actual performance while cooking in the outdoors. I cook anything from oat meal to bacon and eggs for breakfast. I seldom cook for dinner. Suppers usually consist of Ramien noodles or a freeze dried meal which only require adding boiling water. I will be sure and try to spice up my cooking skills with a little more variety as I test the Wildwood I. I will also report on any safety issues I encounter. Does the stove adequately contain the fire? How long do I have to wait before I can put the stove in its stuff sack? In my final report I will cover my overall experience. Was the stove easy to keep fairly clean? I expect some blackening but will I have to deal with rust? The instructions do mention wiping with olive oil before storage between trips. I will continue using the stove and may find new thing to discuss. I will report on any durability issues and make suggestions for improvement if I feel the need. Proposed testing locations and conditions I will be testing in the Southeastern US with trips into the local mountains of Tennessee, Georgia, and North Carolina along with plenty of testing in the woods around my home in Alabama. Elevations will generally be less than 4000 ft (1200 m). I expect a full spectrum of temperatures as well as wet and dry fire building conditions to be encountered. I would like to thank BackpackGearTest and Makaira Metalworks for the opportunity to test this stove. I hope my findings are beneficial to all who read it. Read more reviews of Makaira Metalworks gear Read more gear reviews by Coy Ray Starnes Reviews > Cook Gear > Stoves > WildWood 1 Stove > Coy Starnes > Initial Report | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||