TGO Rating 5 stars (Best Buy)

This beautifully made little Canadian stove is the lightweight version of the original Bushbuddy (which weighs all of 45.4 grams more due to heavier materials but is otherwise identical).

It has a double wall with vent holes around the base of the outer and around the top of the inner. Bushbuddy says this is to preheat secondary combustion air so that wood burns very cleanly. It’s effective, as all that’s left after a fire is a small amount of fine ash. There’s a grate inside the firebox so the fuel sits above an air space into which air enters through the lower vents, providing a draught. A pot support, also with vent holes and a cutaway section for inserting fuel, sits on top of the firebox. This can be inverted and stored in the firebox for packing. The packed stove, which looks like a tin can with a ring of holes around one end, will fit inside my one-litre MSR Titan pot. The metal of the stove is very thin and could be crushed so it is important to store the pot carefully.

The grate and the double construction mean that the base of the stove doesn’t get hot so it can be placed on flammable surfaces and even picked up and moved if necessary. I used it on a wooden picnic table and it didn’t leave a mark. However the grate means that tinder needs to be quite big. I find it easiest to light the stove without the pot support in place and then put it on before the fire grows too hot. Although the firebox provides some protection from the wind, the flames can be blown sideways out of the holes in the pot support so a sheltered site or windshield is needed. I used a Trail Designs Vari-Vent Windscreen (61g) with the Bushbuddy and it worked fine. Once lit, the Bushbuddy blazes delightfully. Feeding the stove with the pot on top is quite easy as long as the wood is in very short pieces and tiny chunks.

Without a pot on top the Bushbuddy makes a good little campfire. It’s fun to play with and very light and compact to carry. I think a meths burner could be used in the firebox, which would add versatility, but I haven’t tried this yet. As a wood-burning stove the Bushbuddy is excellent.

TECHNICAL SPEC
Design: double-wall firebox, vent holes, internal grate
Materials: stainless steel, handmade grate of nichrome wire
Boil time: 8-10 mins + per litre
Weight: 139g
Likes: ultralight, low bulk, efficient
Dislikes: expensive

Bushbuddy
www.bushbuddy.ca