Flatpack Portable Grill and Firepit & Behemoth Sweetfire Matches by UCO
Editor: Johnny LeMaster
Follow up on INSTAGRAM @ireviewgear
Just the Facts:
Flatpack Portable Grill and Firepit
The Flatpack portable grill & firepit packs compact for easy transportation to the beach, campsite or barbeque. It’s constructed of stainless steel for durability and easy maintenance. After a quick 30 second set-up, you’re ready to go. All you need to do to set up this grill is unfold it and place the grates on top. It has a stable base for safe grilling and the sides serve as wind breaks for grilling in windy conditions. It can also be used as a firepit, to help you leave no trace.
FEATURES
- Folds to less than 1.5″ thick to pack in backpack.
- Quick 30 second setup.
- Safely contains a fire and keeps fire off the ground.
- Constructed from durable stainless steel to provide high rust and corrosion resistance.
- Sides of grill serve as a wind-break.
- Can be used as a Firepit.
PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS
- Dimensions-packed: 13.5″ x 10″ x 11″
- Weight: 3.2 lbs.
Behemoth Sweetfire Matches
This new Behemoth Sweetfire is our largest strikeable tinder ever. These ‘points’ are made from renewable biofuel and burn for 15 minutes. They are a great addition to any outdoorsmans backpack, disaster kit or bugout bag. Our mission is to help you easily start a fire. It’s so easy it’s almost cheating! Comes in a reusable metal tin. Tin comes with 9 Behemoths.
FEATURES
- Stormproof strikeable tip, can be used with striker in box, eliminating need for matches.
- Made from sugarcane waste – bagasse is a fibrous sugarcane by-product and is used around the world as a renewable bio fuel.
- Each tin comes with 9 Behemoths nestled inside, ready for use.
- Each Behemoth is 5.5″ long.
SPECIFICATIONS
Burn Time: 15 mins/point
Weight: 0.8oz (23g) each point
Packaging: Metal Box
Dims: 5.5″ x 0.75″ x 0.4″ (14 x 2 x 1 cm) each
PERFORMANCE TIPS:
- For lighting a match, it is ideal if the striker is a firm surface which can usually be achieved by just closing the box.
- If striker and box become wet, the striker will still work, but needs to dry first so that the surface is once again firm. Use a spare striker until then.
- If matches become wet, just wipe dry before use.
My Story:
If you frequently find yourself in the outdoors whether going for a backcountry drive, backpacking, hiking or camping you will want to take a look at the UCO Gear product line. UCO gear carries the products you will need around camp and in the field. We had the opportunity to test out two products that go hand in hand, the Flatpack Portable Grill and Firepit, and the Behemoth Sweetfire Matches. These are two items you will want to add to your gear.
I got a hold of the Flatpack Grill and Firepit and was excited to try it out. It is small only 13” long by 10” wide. This is a great little travel fire pit for when you just want a little fire. Something to sit around with a couple friends while you swap stories in the evening, or something to warm up to in the morning and just lose your self in thought as you watch the flames dance and lick the wood. Which is exactly what I found myself doing.
I took the Flatpack up to archery elk camp this year. We have a large fire pit at our camp site that you can pack 15 people around if you want, and often times we do after the evening hunt as everyone winds down for the night. This year our camp was small. For part of the time there was only a couple of us. There was no need for a large fire the first week, nor did we want to worry about floating embers catching the dry grasses on fire around camp. I pulled out the Flatpack, unfolded it and set it up in the middle of camp one evening. Grabbed a few sticks and pulled out my Behemoth Sweetfire matches. I didn’t feel like going through the effort of collecting tinder and kindling, and building a fire. I wanted one now with minimal effort. I was tired and just wanted to enjoy a little fire. The Sweetfire match lit on the first strike. They aren’t messing around when they call these matches storm proof. They flame up and continue the intense initial burn for a good 20 seconds before calming down a little to their sustained 15 minute burn. This allows you to get damp, or larger kindling lit with ease. Within just a few short minutes we had a small fire burning giving us something to sit around and relax while we ate our dinner and discussed the hunting plan for the next day. I was sold, the first time trying out both the Flatpack Grill and Firepit and the Behemoth Sweetfire matches presented just how convenient and well these two pieces of gear could be. I plan to make sure these two become a permanent part of my packing list when headed up in the mountains.
A few days later our camp had swelled in people and the rain came. It poured on us most of the night and into the morning hours. Soaking everything with a much needed late summer storm. Personally I love when it rains during hunting season. It knocks down the dust, dampens the noise when walking in the woods and brush, wets the ground making it possible for a big fire, and the one downside is it gets much of our firewood wet. Luckily we were anticipating the rain, and the majority of our firewood was covered. The unfortunate part was all of the tinder and kindling we had did not make it under cover. Sure I could cut up some more, but that was work that I did not feel like doing after getting back from a long evening hunt. I piled some larger kindling in the big fire pit, put some smaller logs around it, fired up a Sweetfire match and had a blazing fire in no time. We all gathered around the warm blaze marveling at how easy building the fire was with the use of the Sweetfire matches.
The next morning I woke up early to hunt only to discover the previous days wet conditions aggravated a cold I was trying desperately to keep at bay. Try as I might, I couldn’t get myself moving. I was feeling miserable and decided that as much as I wanted to be hiking around chasing elk, I needed to let my body rest so I went back to bed. Waking a few hours later to a deserted camp I warmed up some coffee and sought the warmth and comfort of a fire to wake up and try to get myself right by. Being it was only me at camp, I pulled out the Flatpack and build a little fire, pulled up my chair and lost myself in the flames. Enjoying the fire until I was ready to face the day.
Elk camp ended a few days later. I fell in love with my UCO Gear. The Flatpack was a great little firepit. Small and convenient it was easy to stow away, and convenient to use in so many situations. However, I never got the chance to use the Flatpack as a grill. Of course I had to grill on the Flatpack or I would not use it to its full potential. I didn’t wait long before pulling the Flatpack back out. Spending a day working around the house and playing on the ATV, the best thing I could think of to cap off the day was to grill up some venison burgers. The Flatpack set up in seconds, I started the charcoal to let it heat up while I finished my work. Because of the small size of the Flatpack and the V-shape It doesn’t take a lot of time for the small amount of charcoal to heat up ready for burgers to cook. The flat pack worked great as a grill the shape and stature optimized the heat, transferring it to the cooking surface. The patties cooked perfectly over the stainless steel grill. The Flatpack lived up to expectations yet again. No longer do you need to pack a barbecue and firepit when you go out adventuring With the Flatpack Grill and Firepit you have everything all in one small package that is easy to use and easy to stow.
UCO Gear has come out with some great quality products for very reasonable prices. The Flatpack Grill and Firepit, and the Behemoth Sweetfire matches are two of these pieces of gear that I had the pleasure to get to play with. I am excited to use these two items many more times in the future. I am excited to check out other items in the UCO Gear line up in the future.
Find it Here:
What Could be Done Better:
The only thing about either item that I think could be done better would be making the Flatpack lighter. At 3.2 pounds it is a little heavier than I would want to pack on a back pack trip, but still light enough and small enough to make it easy to use, and pack away when not in use.
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Functionality
(4.5)
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Value
(4.5)
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Ergonomics
(4.5)
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Durability
(4.5)
