Lightweight woodburning Backpacking Stove with Upgrade Kit

This stove is one of the most amazing pieces of equipment I have ever had the fortune to try out. It just works. Seriously, as long as you know how to start a fire (and in my opinion, you shouldn't be backpacking without that knowledge in the first place, it's THE most important survival skill). I tried it out a couple times at my house to make sure I understood how everything worked and to figure out the best way to get it started. Then I took it out in the field for a four day backpacking trip. It rained almost the entire trip. Even during the worst of the rain, this little stove did the trick. As long as you have a little dry tinder to get the fire started, you can burn almost anything. It even worked when my backup stove (a gas powered job by MSR) failed from too much water. As an aside, make sure to buy the upgrade kit, it just doesn't work as well without it (my grandfather has the version without it, and the standoff makes a huge difference in the flexibility, plus it is much easier to add more wood to the stove). In my opinion, this stove is more reliable than a gasifier stove (like solo), and more flexible than gas (you never have to worry over running out of fuel). It is slightly heavier than a gas stove (depending on how long you plan on going out) but, in my opinion, more than makes up for it in reliability.

Turn on your personal forge and watch it go! Boil water or soup using a small pile of twigs and little bitty sticks or chunks, in 3-5 mins. No need for a big old pile of wood and a smoky fire to cook or get warm. Just over half as tall as a medium coffee can, all packed in. You want the center support grid and windscreen, its easier to feed the fire when there's a pot on top. The manufacturer is outstanding in the design and build of this product. Nobody paid me anything, I just love it!

My 20-year old zzip stove finally broke so I got this replacement. Wiring and switch may be an improvement but wire looks flimsy. I reinforced wire with duct tape. These are great for a backup stove but bit too much of a hassle for a primary stove. Fun though.

I bought the Sierra Stove in February 2006 direct from the vendor after suffering a previous power outage in an all electrical dependent house. It was after this event I realized that I needed some off the Grid skills. This was my second purchase after buying a generator. At the time this purchase seemed a bit pricey. The product is still going strong. The price was worth it! Today, I fired it up with wood pellets. I used some alcohol fuel gel over the wood pellets to get the fire up. The hot dogs were done in a minimal amount of time.

These are wonderful little stoves. I took one on a long canoe trip to northern Alaska and burned dead willow sticks I gathered along the river. It worked great (even though willow is not the best wood to burn.) The fan has two speeds and gets a fire going quickly. And the fire burns hot. I also brought along an MSR, which I used when I wanted a quicker meal. It takes a little less time to set up and get going. But by using the Zip stove part of the time I was able to carry a lot less gas. I recommend taking along a small folding saw to cut branches so that they fit in the burner. Plus, the maker is a small company and has excellent customer service.

This stove is one of my favorite wilderness camping toys. Does it work better than a gas stove at it's best? No. It is amazing, none the less. You can leave your fuel supply at home. You can use it where firewood is scarce. It will cook a meal for 4 people with a sandwich bag full of twigs. I once cooked a large pot of chili for 4 in the poring rain using damp rotted wood collected while I cooked with a pocket knife.It not only works, but it's fun and a bit amazing.

Fantastic stove! I've even burned cow dung it it. I've had mine for about 25 years and it's still working just fine.