It looks like any survival stove. You know, the kind that will let you burn twigs, sticks, and all sorts of biomass for fuel, allowing you to cook at camp without having to include gas canisters in your pack. Except, the Firebox Scout is actually a more versatile camp stove that can be configured to work with a variety of fuels for a much more flexible function.
No, it doesn’t collapse into a flat pile like many survival stoves for backpacking, so it’s not quite as convenient to squeeze into your stash. Despite that, it’s still quite compact, while being way more versatile with its ability to work with all sorts of fuel options.
The Firebox Scout consists of a box that measures 4.5 x 4.5 x 5 inches (width x depth x height), with strategic holes all across its body for airflow and a larger cutout right above the base for feeding fuel to the fire when burning small pieces of wood. The size should make it compact enough for packing in various bags and cases, while being big enough to adequately heat up the kind of smaller pots and pans people tend to carry when camping. It has a lid that allows you to use it as case for smaller items during transport to save room in your pack, all while snapping to the bottom of the box during cooking to elevate the fire chamber off the ground.
According to the outfit, the upper hole pattern is meant to exhaust air flow to control the heat when the cooking vessel is placed right on the mouth opening, so if you want to cook in higher temperatures, you should use the optional Accelerator Cross Bars to create an exhaust gap around the top of the stove. Other optional cooking accessories include a Multi-Fuel Fire Grate for raising the fuel tray’s height, Positioning Pins, and a Small Grill.
If burning sticks and twigs aren’t enough to give you the high heat levels you want, the Firebox Scout can also fit a small log up to 4 x 4 inches (length x diameter), although the outfit recommends that you split the log into fourths before inserting into the fuel chamber. From there, you can lodge the Accelerator Cross Bars accessory at the top of the log and start the fire using whatever means you want. For best results, though, they suggest shoving a fuel tablet in the cross section of the log all the way to the bottom to quickly get it going.
It can also use just fuel tablets on its own as fuel, although when doing that, they suggest using the lid to cover the bottom two rows of holes to restrict air flow and make the fuel last much longer. Additionally, when using fuel tablets, wood pellets, or charcoal, you can use the multi-fuel fire grate accessory to raise the fuel tray higher, so it’s a lot closer to your cooking vessel. Lastly, the box is sized to house many types of canned fuels, alcohol burners, and gas burners that you can set in place using the Positioning Pins, in case you want to use them as fuel, with the Scout essentially serving as an external housing.
A Kickstarter campaign is currently running for the Firebox Scout. You can reserve a unit for pledges starting at $20.