Work Tuff Stove WTS-380 Wood Burning Stove WOW, FANTASTIC!

Work Tuff Stove WTS-380 Wood Burning Stove WOW, FANTASTIC!

Recently I had the opportunity to review this fantastic product from Work Tuff Gear, the Work Tuff Stove 380 or the WTS-380. Well constructed and feature packed with a wood fuel efficient design and environmentally considerate output (ie it's smokeless!). I found after burning some seasoned hardwood (Plum) there was little to no soot present in the flue. There is a lot of heat output, in fact enough to cook within and on top of the stove. The windows add a great camp fire ambience plus serve as visual indicators of fuel consumption. The front air intake design prevents hot embers from exiting the stove when the vent is open at any position. The overall design allows for a low heat emission from the base and this means zero damage to the ground flora and fauna.

The applications of the stove are only limited by ones imagination! A must have piece of outdoor gear. There is nothing I didn't like about the usage and look of this stove.

ALL parts fit inside the WTS-380! One can even stack wood inside the flue sections!

Just check those chunky welds on the door hinge!

Inside view of the stainless steel mesh which prevents hot embers from exiting the combustion chamber. This mesh is firmly bolted to the door.

Front "Retro look" modern design of the WTS-380 wood burning stove

Outside view of the stainless steel mesh preventing embers from leaving the combustion chamber. This is a great idea and makes for a safer stove system. We also see here the fully adjustable air intake.

Sturdy door latch system, stainless steel and anodized aluminium.

The WTS-380 features a large side heat proof glass window for easy viewing along with added ambience to the warmth of the stove output.

Top view of the "after burner" (my words). This design will aid combustion via better internal gas circulation and will help to deliver smoke free emissions. Sturdily constructed from thick walled stainless steel and bolted with stainless socket head bolts to the stove chassis .

Precision made jointing of stainless components (lower section) of the WTS-380 wood burning stove.

left and right side fixtures for "drying rack" also included in the package of the WTS-380 stove.

Attention to detail! Thick even welded joints for the steel leg fixture.

Partial bottom view of the wood burning WTS-380 stove.

Totally portable (included nylon and webbing padded bag).

WTS-380 wood burning stove in operation burning plum wood!

The stainless steel flue also features a spring loaded baffle to help control combustion.

Total aesthetic plus functional design of the WTS-380 wood burning stove.

SMOKELESS, XLNT combustion!

Easy to adjust air flow by simply moving the front air intake slider left or right.

The WTS-380 came with everything one needs to get going, including an ash scraper. I noted too that there is NO flimsy ash tray either, it's made from thick stainless steel with vented sided for best combustion, along with a thick meshed stainless steel fire grate.

Easy to see how much fuel is remaining at any time without the need to open the stove. One can also monitor their food being cooked as well with the two windows of the WTS-380 wood burning stove.

To watch the full on field test of the Work Tuff Stove wood burning stove, the WTS-380, check this link out!

Dirty Kitchen

Forget about all these TV celebrity chefs! Learn how to cook and prepare good food like a PROFESSIONAL in the DIRTY KITCHEN!
I'll show you super tasty eclectic recipes from around the world that won't break the bank and can be cooked in minutes. No fancy equipment needed!
No fancy pants kitchen, yeah, it's DIRTY but Hygienic! It's for REAL! 
Come hungry! Come Ready for Action!
Cooking Asian style Food, Pan Asian, The Best eclectic dishes out of Europe and more from around the world!
How to cook for beginners
Reviewing excellent cooking products from around the world.

Please share and like to help me bring you great recipes and product reviews




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gmzg_m-7qMM

Giant Garlic Shrimp Gambas Cooking

Extrema Ratio TASK J

Extrema Ratio TASK J

Jagdkommando Designed

Commando Knife.

Extrema Ratio Task J one of my favorite field knives

Many ask me about this particular knife, the TASK J from Extrema Ratio in Italy. The TASK J is a design from the Austrian military (Jagdkommando) and implemented by Extrema Ratio.When you have this knife in your hands, there is no mistaking the heftiness and robustness of this field knife. There is nothing woosy about the design and functionality. The regular funky fuller of the general ER designs is gone with one solid chunk of steel for the blade. But don't worry about the penetrating power of this knife. The TASK J can easily take on the moniker of "Survival knife" (if you have to give it this title).  Of course the funny looking handle is probably one of the most comfortable grips out there. The reason is obvious when one delves into the history of how this shape came about. Solid R & D at the university research level into biomechanics of the human hand. 

There is nothing superfluous or wanting in this design. I'm not saying it's perfect, as there is no such thing as a perfect tool however, this particular knife has had a lot of thought put into it's design and it doesn't end with the knife. The scabbard is of excellent quality and safety. As a sort of a bonus, included is a giant fire steel! Considering in over 30 years of outdoor adventures, I've never even used up totally my dad's Swedish fire steel, then I reckon this steel, I'll be passing on to grand children!

BCT

Sammi Stinner Design Panthera II from Black Fox Tactical Knives

Sammi Stinner Design Black FOX Tactical Panthera II from Fox Knives

BF-707B FX Cutlery

Black FOX Panthera II BF-707B is a large fixed blade knife with an approximately 185mm long cutting surface, 5mm spine thickness and ergonomic textured and designed G10 handle scales.

The Panthera II BF-707B has a refreshing narrow profile, not of the seemingly norm today of wide bodied blades intended for outdoor usage. What this translates to is a knife which is not overly heavy despite its large size and also a knife which has a reduced frictional surface area for its size, ie for easier penetrating and cutting ease (there's just less blade to enter and exit materials).

The Black Fox BF-707B Panthera II is modelled upon the same Knife model (name) from Austrian Knife Designer and Biologist, Professor Sammi Stinner, the man behind "Pi knives". The differences between this knife his production version are the following: The blade material is 6mm D2 Böhler K110), the scales are bolted to the tang and there is a short section of serrations placed upon the upper edge of the tip of the knife. The overall shape is identical and the handle material and shape almost identical. The handle has been designed to be ergonomic and so far, my impression is this. The Original model is marketed as a Military knife and not one intended for civilian use. The Black Fox BF-707B comes with a fire steel as well.

Blade material is 440C (note only 440 is laser engraved on the blade but the written material* from Fox Knives, lists this knife material as 440C and a HRC of 57-59. Non magnetic (probably aluminium alloy rivets) are used to attach the G10 scales to the tang. I note that several models within the Black Fox line only show "440" engraved upon the blade but are in fact 440C. I would have preferred to see the use of stainless steel rivet but this of course would increase the overall production cost of this knife and defeat the purpose of mass production.
*(ref pg. 129 of the 2019 catalogue from FOX Knives)

Black Fox Tactical is the line of knives from FOX knives intended specifically for the outdoors persons usage in camping, hunting and fishing; professional people like rescue teams; fire fighters; police and law enforcement. Amongst the Black Fox branding are numerous models which have been designed by world famous knife designers and martial artists. I have tested several Black Fox models and found them to be well-made of quality materials and knives which hold a good edge and are aimed at a price point which is reasonable for the build quality. The BF-707B carries some slight modifications of the original military designed and intended knife, which make this blade more suitable for civilian usage such as: camping; hunting, hiking and fishing activities. Removal of the upper spine serrations and utilizing the high carbon stainless steel 440C, now makes it not necessary to remove the handle scales (unlike with D2 which is not as corrosion resistant) to clean this knife. 440C has a very good resistance to corrosion.

440C just again for those of you who are not familiar with this "work horse" knife alloy:

As a high carbon stainless steel alloy, 440C can also be found in numerous application in industry, such as bearing etc. High hardness and good corrosion resistance are its key features.

5mm/0.196 inches wide ergonomically placed finger/thumb gimping.

The spine is 5mm thick 440C with what appears to be some sort of PVD surface coating. Unfortunately the literature whilst listing the blade coating as TC, they omitted this in the key of blade coatings in the reference section of the current catalogue. I believe the letters TC to stand for Titanium Coated.

The Panthera II is a large outdoor knife with a blade shape not unlike the "Yatagan" knife/sword which was a common design during the Ottoman Empire rule in Europe. (see this blog here). The slightly recurved section can be seen in many such knife and sword designs of this era.

The butt end has a milled pattern in the G10 scales but this has been omitted in the actual end of the tang, probably to reduce the overall cost of this mass production knife.

The handle has supposedly been designed with human hand ergonomics in mind. Certainly it is very comfortable and grippy in dry or wet hands.

A "pancake" style Kydex scabbard with a good lock up/retention and a quick release "Tek Lok" style fully adjustable (see image below) belt clip is included in the cost. A short length of Paracord-like cord was supplied with this knife.

Easy opening but lockable fully adjustable bely clip

The BF-707B Panthera II also includes a generously sized fire steel and striker held in place by the elastic nature of the Kydex retention "tube" which has been cut in such away as to keep tension upon the steel.

The end rivet hole serves as a convenient tie in point for a lanyard hole. The Titanium finish provide an anti-reflective coating to the blade surface.

Overall the Panthera II is a quick handling knife and this is a reflection of it's original end usage in the military. In this case however, the Panthera II makes for a sturdy large outdoor knife for one who is after good corrosion resistance,  durability in the field and a narrow blade profile which is not heavy in the hand. The slightly recurved section is a bonus for easy cutting of fibrous materials. As this section is not overly recurved, I do not envisage any problems or difficulties in keeping the Panthera II sharp in the field with a ceramic rod or narrow profile ceramic block.

As usual I will be putting the Panthera II through the paces in the field and reporting my findings on BushCampingTools, so stay tuned!