I purchased this for use with my canvas tent and titanium stove... it appears well constructed if not somewhat delicate. The cuts and bends are well done and not sharp, just watch the corners and handle with care. To be clear this was purchased for use with a non-Winnerwell titanium stove, simply because Winnerwell doesn’t make a Ti stove large enough for my purposes and the maker of my titanium stove didn’t have a tipi protector sleeve. I’m certain it will function as designed and last some time, given care... which leads me to my concerns.. I gave it four stars for several reasons:
1. Assembly is tricky and doesn’t include instructions. I imagine it will be even more difficult in the field under less than ideal conditions. Make sure when you put it together that the non-adjustable side/screws on the interior rings go through the open seam of the outer wrap around guard. It’s nearly impossible to line up the four different holes the other way with only two hands. May seem obvious to the designers or people with experience with the device but it was a huge pain figuring this out the first time.
2. Removable hardware. This was designed to go with a folding stove, yet functions and is completely dependent on four small, threaded screws that would be easy to drop and loose, especially in snow or tall grass. No extras are included. Some sort of key-hole type locking device or overlapping seam that hooks into itself would be more intuitive.
3. Under built. It would have taken next to nothing to include a third inner ring, what cut one more adjustment access hole on one side and punch two more pin holes on the seam? This would have increased the structure of the sleeve considerably. The outer foil is about the same thickness as the roll up stove pipes, doesn’t take much to really crush or damage it. Titanium is stout but I don’t understand the logic of going as thin/light as is absolutely possible. I’d gladly pay more for something thicker and more durable and only marginally heavier, while still being a substantial savings over the weight of equivalent conventional steel or stainless. Planning on contacting the manufacturer for an extra ring or two and picking up some extra hardware/screws at the hardware store for my maintenance kit. Might make some modifications as stated above to make it a little more wilderness-ready.
All in all I’m happy with my purchase. I think it’s ridiculous how hard they are to come by... I had contacted WW about availability and then opted in to notifications. I purchased mine as soon as I got the notification and it was then immediately put of stock again. Not sure if they’re only getting these one at a time but it seems like I got the only one. Hopefully they catch on and improve the design.
FYI these will work with any 3”-ish stovepipe.
Thank you winnerwell! If I’m ever in the market for something smaller or heavier you will be my first choice!
