The Truth About the FIREHIKING Titanium Tent Stove: Is "Ultralight" Worth the Hassle?

If you are looking into hot tent camping, the allure of titanium is undeniable. It promises the holy grail: a roaring wood stove that weighs almost nothing in your pack. The FIREHIKING Ultralight Titanium Stove (specifically the “Thickened TA1” model) is a prime example of this engineering marvel. But let’s be real for a moment—going ultralight usually comes with a penalty.

For this stove, the penalty isn’t the price (though at ~$350, it’s an investment); it’s the learning curve. Specifically, the chimney.

The “Rolling Pipe” Reality Check

Let’s address the elephant in the room immediately. This stove uses a foil-thin titanium sheet that rolls up into a chimney pipe. This design is genius for saving space—rolling up to the size of a baton—but can be a nightmare to set up initially.

User “Charles Cho” noted in his review that it was “nearly impossible to roll,” citing sharp edges and a struggle to get it perfectly cylindrical without leaks. This is a valid critique. Titanium has “memory”; it wants to snap back to its flat shape.

However, there is a hack. Experienced users like “The motorhome guy” have cracked the code. The trick is to use a rigid guide—like a 2-inch piece of ABS or PVC pipe—to assist the first few rolls at home. By “burning in” the pipe shape during your first test fire in the backyard (do not skip this step!), the titanium “learns” its new cylindrical shape. Once heat-treated, it becomes significantly easier to assemble in the field. If you aren’t willing to practice this at home, this might not be the stove for you. But if you master it, you get a 9-foot chimney that weighs mere ounces.

Why “Thickened” TA1 Matters

Why did FIREHIKING go with “Thickened TA1” titanium? Isn’t the point to be as light as possible?
Yes, but titanium has a weakness: it warps under extreme heat. Ultra-thin stoves often turn into potato chips after a few heavy burns, compromising the door seal and stability.

By slightly increasing the thickness of the TA1 alloy and reinforcing the top and bottom panels, this stove strikes a critical balance. It resists the deformation that plagues cheaper competitors. You get the corrosion resistance and weight savings of titanium, but with the structural integrity closer to stainless steel.

Field Note: (On Fuel Management)
Because this is a compact stove, standard firewood won’t fit. You need to prep your wood to roughly 10-12 inches. The side glass windows are beautiful, but they will soot up if you burn wet wood or choke the air intake too much. Keep those side vents open to feed the secondary combustion for a cleaner burn and clearer glass.

Is It For You?

If you are a car camper, get a heavy, welded steel stove. The assembly isn’t worth it. But if you are hiking deep into the snow-covered backcountry, or bike-packing where every gram counts, the FIREHIKING Titanium Stove is in a league of its own. It requires skill to operate, but once that fire is roaring and you are watching the flames through the side glass in your teepee tent, you’ll know exactly why you brought it.