Thanks to the mild weather, I had the opportunity to break in the newest addition to my preps this past weekend.
The Ammo Can Stove. I got the Mid-range model, the Blue Ridge. It came fully assembled, and looking good in sexy matte black. Instructions were included, mostly giving me directions on how to season the paint and care for the stove. Seasoning was nothing more than firing this bad boy up for a couple of hours. I didn’t notice much in the way of paint smell, but hubby says he could smell it. I had it going full out for a couple of hours, and had no problems with it. Everything is sturdy and held up to me opening and closing and poking about more than is strictly necessary.
![Stove 009](https://survivedoomsday.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Stove-009-225x300.jpg)
I’ve got to say, I was pretty impressed. Here are some front and back views.
![Stove 017](https://survivedoomsday.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Stove-017-300x225.jpg)
With only a small pile of sticks, I was able to get a nice bit of heat. I should emphasize that sticks are the key word there. There is no way you could fit traditional lengths of firewood in this stove. But, for people like me, with a wood pile that’s mostly fallen dead wood, this is perfect. The box dimensions are 8.5″ High, 7″ Wide, 12″ Long.
![Stove 014](https://survivedoomsday.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Stove-014-300x225.jpg)
The one thing I wanted immediately was the stove piping. The exhaust pipe was head height as I was sitting near the stove. Which was a smoky place to be at times. Stove pipe should be easy enough to find though, and hubby has worked with it before, so this shouldn’t be hard, and we can customize the height for our easy-up shelter that we usually take camping. I’m not sure I would use this stove in a tent, while about 95% of the smoke went out the pipe, there was some smoke leakage from the sides, on the bottom where the stove sat inside the ammo-can lid. That certainly wouldn’t be a big deal in a SHTF event, but for casual camping it would be a bit too much smoke in the tent for me. This little stove would keep our easy-up toasty warm though, and I imagine that’s what we’ll use it for.
The top easily got hot enough to make some hot chocolate or coffee. I think my small 6″ cast iron pan would fit nicely and cook up little bits of food as well. That puts this little stove high on my list of useful thing to have for grid down. If things were dire enough, I would bring this stove inside my house to heat a room while I’m cooking. That was a huge hole in my preps, and worrisome, as grid down could just as easily happen during our long cold winters, and all my current burning options are open-grill style, which isn’t so safe for inside. I should probably mention, that like any other metal stove, the whole thing gets hot, and will burn children or pets if they aren’t taught to avoid it. Be a responsible adult, and it shouldn’t be a problem.
With it’s small size, it will need to be cleaned out every day during use, but that’s a snap, as it hinges open on the original lid for easy cleaning.
Two thumbs up from me, hubby and the 2 year old. A perfect addition to our preps.
– Calamity Jane
31 comments
This thing is excellent! What size is the stove pipe, CJ? I’ve been looking for something like this for my tipi and I think this stove just might be it.
Not sure if I’d backpack it like they show in the photos as I know how heavy these things are, but for car camping or something like that this would be awesome.
Very nice! I’ve been considering making one myself but I may just look into buying one instead.
Keeping it out of your tent is a good idea. You don’t want to “wake up dead” because of the fumes.
Thanks!
Joe
We normaly leave a flap un-zipped during use for ventalation, but once you get a good fire and a steady draft up the pipe, smoke is minimal.
The stoves also work well in tarp tents with one end open. We use a pack to take the stove to base camp, that is what the pic is showing on our site. The pipe is 3″ and when cut in 11″ sections, is easy to transport inside the stove itself. We store fire kits and gear inside the pipe! We will be selling the pipe as soon as we can find a good supplier. But they are available at most home supply stores. A 2′ section usually costs about $3.00.
Hi Tim – do you have any idea how many BTU’s this thing puts out? I’ve been doing some research on small military heaters (multi-fuel) and other type heaters and was wondering how this stacks up against those. I’ve used the Yukon 1950 and it did a good job of heating up an arctic 10 man tent. I’m betting your stove would do just as well.
No BTU count yet (soon). I have used this size in my GP Small but it has been mild this year. With the liner in your artic tent it would do fine for most of the country. Burn big sticks of hard wood or coal. if you use high carbon coal you will need to put some sand or a piece of tile under the grate. (I know ice fishermen who are not doing that and are happy) this will give you a years of service.
I can not seem to find weight or dimensions in the article or on the web site. Maybe I missed it?
It looks almost as big as the base line for cheap and light stoves , the Vogelzang
https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200394664_200394664
which sells for $149 during off season.
Though it is probably lighter being steel vs cast iron.
John,
The specs are, 8.5″ High, 7″ Wide, 12″ Long. 8.5 lb
The Vogelzang is much bigger and not very portable at 85lb,
but a dang nice stove and that is a great price!
Tim
I wouldnt want to heat my house with it, but it sure looks like a neat camping stove! My buddy is endevoring to make one of his own right now but I dont know how far hes made it.
This is great for many reasons …. little Miss Ragpicker! It’s definitely 10 thumbs from the missing link – very well done & yes, you should be very proud!
This stove looks awesome, but I think I’d shoot for the extra money and get the Rocket oven/stove combo; this gives you better opportunity for heating a tent and also oven cooking. I know it is more expensive, but you get a better product. However, I don’t think packing that into a remote site makes any sense. Regardless. I’m still thinking it fills a hole in my preps as well……man I wish you’d stop bringing up things I need to spend money on!!
Granite do you have a link for those? I was tempted by the ammo can stove but they only offer a 30 day warranty and they only have reinforced with steel. I would rather buy something that is all steel.
Djinnter,
The stoves are all steel and we have not had one warp yet. (and we burn coal)
We are a small company and service is everything, if you have a legitimate problem with a 10 year old stove we will help and parts will always be available.
I do love rocket stoves …
Tim
Ok Tim, you talked me into one. You appear to stand by your product and I appreciate that. I will be anxiously waiting for my stove to arrive.
Djinnter, go to www.stockstorage.com and look on the left for the wood stove and then the oven attachment. However, I agree with Tim that the ammo can stove looks quite nice. My only comment is with the Grover, you get a larger stove for tent use and an oven attachment that allows for baking and such in grid-down situations. Still thinking seriously about the ammo can stove though…..
Thank you for this review !!!! I want one ! I can see using that thing all the time and would be perfect to have in my truck .
Doesn’t the heater work in your truck?
Wah, wah, wah, waaaahhh ……
It does , but if I rip out the door pannel on the passenger side and stick the chimney out the window , I could increase my redneck status 😉
Welcome to Appalachian upgrade.
Yep , or we could call it the Jonesport jalopy ( for all those Mainers , they will understand that one lol )
Beal island to be even more precise .
Holy cow! I used to dive off Beal Island way back in the day. My brother and I rented a house there back when diving for urchins was still the unregulated wild west. I used to love how the locals would just stop their trucks in the middle of the road and park there while they went in to eat at the restaurant up there right in front of the water. Those 18 foot tides were fun to dive in!
My Ex is from Maine , which is how I came to live there for 3 years , She drove me to Beal Island because I didnt believe her that the town graveyard had only two last names in it ( we did see others but not many ) and the albino sisters she saw in the football stands she talked about from her high school days , were from there . I did hear dueling banjos in my head lol . Then again , her town of Cherryfield wasnt anything to brag about either .
Maine is a cool place , before I left , I used to go to Biddeford Pool to kick around on the beach , where else can you see surfers riding the waves in March ?
If you have access to a Mig welder , it would be an easy matter to attach a removable shelf off to the side for water reservoir , like the old cast iron wood burners of the 1800s . the old British 1 gal can would be perfect for that . Cook a meal and heat water at the same time , all removable .
That looks pretty slick.
Tim,
Thanks for the info. From the picture of the kid on the porch stairs it looks huge next to the kid’s sneakers. I couldn’t understand the backpack comments, now I do. 8.5 pounds is about as heavy as large can of fruit or a gallon of water.
This might be a nice stove for a small trailer. I had thought about using a Vogelzang, but, it requires too much floor space in a 6×14. I could see this fitting though.
Well, perspective is tricky sometimes. Plus, that’s a 2 year old’s shoe. 🙂
That must be a BIG 2 year old!
That’s a neat idea. Thanks for the review.
Was wonder if ammon can heater could be used in a camper trailer?
duh,,, ammo not sure where the n came from ,,, thanks…