I've been experimenting with top lighting batch loaded stoves. I think I've got a good one here. It's made of welded stainless steel wire, has a light weight, courrugated stainless steel firebox liner which helps reduce the weight of the stove. It weighs 3 ounces, is 4" in diameter and is 5" tall. I've been doing lots of tests this past week to test the welds. They are holding up just great. The firebox liner can withstand temps up to 2,300 degrees F.
Stacking the wood vertical will give the stove a long burn time to accomplish boiling 4 cups of water on one batch of wood. No need to attend the stove feeding it twigs.
I used the Starlyte burner as a possible backup alcohol burner in case of extended wet weather and it really fills the nich, perfect flame pattern to the bottom of a pot. No need to shim up the burner to get it closer to the pot.
I've loaded fuel both ways, vertical and horizontal. I've been using light weight telephone book pages as tinder for lighting. I'm amazed how easily this stove lights from the top.
I tried the Garlington design wood burner and had a hard time getting it to work and gave up on TLUD designs. Last year I came across a Canadian site that sells wood stoves for residential use. They demonstrated how to light split logs with news paper. I was skeptical for sure until I tried the method in my own home woodburning stove. I'll be darned!! the method of lighting from the top worked.

I had thoughts about applying what I had learned to backpacking size stoves. I made a few designs and the system worked. No chemicals or fatwood needed, just paper. I've had a 98% success rate at top lighting. this past week I did at least 45 test burns using different species of wood. I'm hooked on the method of top lighting and you will also when you start practicing. My earlier tests consisted of using big honker twigs split in half and had 100% success using the paper method and stacking horizontal.

When you watch the videos keep in mind how much wood gas is being formed and burned. The stove design is a single wall, no double wall needed. I've done recent tests with the BushBuddy and a stove of this design and found no significant benefit using a double wall.The tests were done side by side, same amount of fuel by weight( new, out of the package,clothes pins) same size K-mart grease pots and starting water temps.
There are more videos and photos at bplite.com in the "Wood Stove" forum if anyone has further interest in this type of stove.

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[youtube]dURvht8-LQM [/youtube]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PtnpHpcrww

Edited by zelph on 08/27/2010 14:50:54 MDT.

Can you say anything about wind, windscreens, and stove performance in wind?

This seems to be such an open design that wind would be a problem.

--B.G.--

This type of design is a little susceptible to being blown out during initial lighting. I had 2 tests fail due to a breeze blowing out the burning paper. I later found that a windscreen too close to the pot would create too much of a chimney drafting effect and consume the fuel faster. The screen has to be held to one side of the stove about 4 inches away to aid in the lighting. Holding 4 sheets of paper on the windward side cause the flames to be drawn toward the paper, very effective. A screen is necessary to concentrate the flames under the pot in breezy conditions. I have not taken any timings on getting to a boil. My goal was to boil with one batch load of wood. I had success every time I put a pot of water on. I'll post more video as the days go by so you can see the stove in operation under more breezy conditions. Thank you for your comment.

Those of you that have a BushBuddy note how the BB lights and burns with the interior top row of holes covered up by the load of wood. The stove is getting ample air over the top to ignite and burn. Woodgas is being formed right at the top of the pile and is burning. Watch the video where I use lamp oil to jump start it.

Edited by zelph on 08/27/2010 14:56:22 MDT.

Some of your wood fuel looks like clothes pins!

--B.G.--

Yes, some of the tests were done with clothes pins for a more scientific case study between the BB and the Woodgaz.
I used other woods to see how each burned.

The stainless steel windscreen shown worked ok on the stainless steel clip supports.

Edited by zelph on 08/27/2010 15:10:45 MDT.

For a simple windscreen, I suggest a piece of titanium foil that goes all the way around. Extremely light and heat-resistant.

--B.G.--

The windscreen in the photo is corrugated .oo2 stainless steel, easily rolls for storage and has a heat resistance up to 2,300 degrees. You can see how nice it looks supported by the stainless steel clips.

Top lighting with paper is amazingly simple.

Post in question was removed. Thanks BPL Staff!

Edited by bigray on 09/08/2010 19:45:01 MDT.

Hey BigRay, I'm here to promote Top Lighting single wall stoves. As time permits, I'll show everyone that has an interest how to make one. Don't be so quick to judge ;) Sit back and have another brewski, eat well, laugh alot and enjoy life. Come back and show us how to make a stove or two. You live in Illinois, come on up to Rockford and I'll give a personal demo on how to make one.

Hey Dan, BigRay wasn't talking about you, he was talking about the comment directly above his, from Billy. Don't be so quick to assume ;) Sit back and have another........etc. etc.

Thanks Douglas for bringing my attention to that.

Let's all sit back and etc, etc, etc.

Here is another video showing how easy a TLUD single wall stove lights with paper. No fatwood or liquid excelerants used. Short version.

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Edited by zelph on 08/30/2010 15:36:44 MDT.

Here is another batch. Did the video with my camera, 20 second segments combined.

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These stoves are easy to make out of 1/2" hardware cloth. I made a smaller version and it works well. Fits inside a 600ml mug. Weighs 2.2 ounces and is 3.25 diameter and 4" tall. Made of stainless steel. I'm going to use a StarLyte burner as a back-up alcohol stove.

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Edited by zelph on 09/03/2010 10:06:35 MDT.

This is what the StarLyte Burner looks like when used in conjunction with the wood burner. Nice flame pattern, is not effected by being enclosed in a confined space. Always good to take along a 2 day supply of alcohol for back up when the weather gets nasty.

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Hey Dan - where did you source your stainless mesh and stainless corrugated materials?

Hi Nick, Nickolson Hardware store in Rockford, IL ordered it for me.

It's been a busy summer and stove went from being round to square. From a one fold to a multi fold, compact pocket size, 3.5"x5" Weighs 3.9 ounces and will boil 4 cups of water with one top lit load of wood. The name woodgaz come from the fact that it produces and burns lots of woodgas. I know, it's a single wall. Lots of videos on youtube. I made some for photobucket so I could load them here.

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Edited by zelph on 11/20/2010 19:21:39 MST.