DIY roll up stove pipe improvements

This post is a about my DIY roll up stove pipe improvements. Part 1 is a summary and a guide to a twelve-part series on better making and using of these ultralight flue pipes for backpacking tent stoves and hot tenting.

It also attempts to standardize my terminology for stove-pipe parts and processes that have been used somewhat chaotically during my learning. It is a great place to start the stove pipe improvement posts, whether you be a stove pipe pipe smartie or a dummy.

Introduction to DIY roll up stove pipes

Over time I have developed some of the most innovative methods of forming roll up DIY roll-up stove pipes or flue pipes in the known universe. “That is the universe of ultralight tent stoves for winter backpacking snow trekkers who enjoy going out into the wild winter to enjoy freezingourtitsoff. It is, after all, not such a big universe. Maybe my methods are so different they may be from a parallel universe.”

They have been somewhat chaotically published (by a novice) in many posts on improving the making, deployment and use of ultralight roll up flue pipes for backpacking tent stoves.

The posts have become a maze, that for me, it is sometimes difficult to navigate. Consequently, I imagine for a visitor to my site, it would be very difficult to find the post that they are looking for.

I think the posts will have value for others. Deletion is not a sensible option. So Covid19 has blocked all my skiing but has spared the time for me to tie the post together. I hope it will make them more cohesive and useful to you and hopefully, we will less easily get lost in the maze.

Here is an ode to my posting process;

They are just little gems each one so minimal,
Arriving, dreamlike, as gifts subliminal,
Not planed or sought by rational thought,
Now to arrange them in order more logical.

My most radical, innovative and valuable posts focus on eliminating crinkle damage while shaping a DIY roll up stove pipe foil. Serendipitously, with practice the methods are much quicker than the conventional one. “Even when doing it single-handed’.

At the heart of these methods are ‘coil’, ‘helical’ and ‘spiral’ foil handling techniques.

A confession. I, unfortunately, used ‘spiral’ and ‘helical’ in my prior posts to differentiate between two different techniques. Now, far far too late, I find that the dictionary tells me these words are equivalent!

So here is a little ode to technical nomenclature before I get to the real work of clearing up my mess:

Should I call it a tight helical screw?
Or a sloppy wound spiral with a name anew?
Stuff those names as they are all the same,
You will be screwed if you don’t know too.

This post will:

• Provide a guide through my maze of posts.
• Redefine the terms and techniques,
• Provide an abstract of key methods and,
• Collate the relevant posts with ‘Part numbers’ within a numbered series.

Here is another ode to an inventor. It allows me to procrastinate before getting on with the hard work;

Each one is but a vague nebulous dream or idea,
Until implemented, tested and shared with a peer,
Even with inciting thinking and writing,
They may exit excitedly, like diarrhoea.

The DIY roll up stove pipe method guide and definitions

I thought that starting with definitions this time would be a refreshingly prudent idea to make it less like diarrhoea.

Crinkle damage

I use this term to describe the nasty and destructive re-shaping of a curved metal foil. It happens where it spontaneously transforms or is forced transformed into a curve at 90 degrees to the axis of the previous curve while rolling and unrolling.

Strange as it may seem, a springy sheet of foil can hold a memory of both curves at the same time and can flip-flop between the two states. The post is all about doing the transition smoothly when YOU wish it to change.

Me

My methodology is all about making the transition gentle, silent and smooth, via an infinite number of transitional curves between the two states and thereby completely eliminating crinkling damage.

If well done, some of my alternative methods will be much quicker than the traditional ‘crinkly’ method that I and presumably, most others have used over many years.

Me

These YouTube videos exemplify crinkle damage and the progressive effort that is taken (or not taken) to minimise it.

Here is a poor example of rolling.

A better example of rolling.

The best example of rolling, but shhhh………. nowhere as good as any of mine.

Note: A good example of a bad spontaneous curve transition is shown at about 6 minutes into the last video above. The rolled up stove pipe is allowed to just noisily ‘krinkle’ its way into the flue pipe shape. Similar damage will be done when rolling it up. “This is not meant to ‘knock’ these proficient operators, as I used to do the same before I learned a better way. Here is my video confession:”

“Just remember that; a flat work surfaces, a patient team of compliant experts with warm hands, and equipment will not usually be there when deploying a flue pipe while setting up camp in a raging blizzard. With some of my new methods, the pipe does not even need to touch the ground or snow surface!”

Helical wind-up

I use the helical wind (my definition) nearly every time I manipulate a flue pipe.

It is indispensable and means that the roll can be wound up clean and dry and as tight as you like, without contact with the ground or snow.

It starts with a roll of long foil strip as in the photo below. It can be constrained by ring/s or by hand.

The inner part of the core can be pulled out to form a short tight cone. The edge of the foil will make a smooth helical line on the surface of the cone.

In this state, there is intimate and tight contact between each layer of the foil within the cone. “Not even room for a bees willy.” This contact and the ‘spring action’ of the foil means the helix is quite tight and rigid.

The conical roll can now be easily and safely grasped on both ends and be wound up to make the diameter smaller. For example, it could be made to fit easily into a smaller holding ring or storage tube if required.

Note. In this new wound up state, it will have much more energy stored in the coiled spring that will need to be carefully managed during release.

Here is a little Instagram video of the demonstration of magic coil re-sizing. You will see the coil diameter can easily be adjusted to fit inside progressively smaller rings and then released to fit in the large ring once more.

In the above video, it may not be apparent, but after one hand (narrow end) has wound up the spring cone, the other end of the roll must be gently squeezed to stop the spring reversing. This sequence can be repeated very quickly and at least in my hands is very easy and natural. “Certainly much easier than writing this description.”

Lastly, this method is relatively safe compared with my previous roll up method of many years. It used an innovative fine welded tab as a ‘key’ for two fingers to wind up the foil. Unfortunately, if it slipped from the fingertips it could lacerate the fingertips!

The new alternative of using two whole hand grips on the outside of the rolled cone avoids this risk. It also is much easier to do safely with very cold hands and while wearing gloves under adverse snow camping conditions.

Even if the foil should slip with the new method, the protruding corner of the foil does not have a suitable ‘attack angle’ to do any harm. “I also cut a generous ‘radii’ on all corners of the foil as further protection.”

Note: The vigour of the unwinding of the foil coil can be heard in the above video. There is a distinctive “sllockkk” sound as the rapidly unwinding foil comes to an abrupt stop. “It is a thing not to mess with! But good fun when you get over the shock.”

Helical unwinding

The above helical cone can also be gently unwound to make the cone have a much bigger diameter. In this case, there is less energy stored in the coil.

This cone expansion is a crucial preparation step for forming a flue pipe by the ‘open sloppy spiral’ method described below.

Helical side shuffle

This little manipulation simply allows the foil to effortlessly transition between the conical and the equivalent cylindrical coil forms.

It can be done by grasping both ends of the cone, as above, and ‘winding up the spring’ just a little. The overlapping foil layers become loose and can slip easily over each other and allow the easy transition between the two states.

If you look at the above video you can see me doing this trick while returning the coil to its original size and shape. “It is all effortless and instinctive once you get started.”

Note: Importantly, this ‘helical side shuffle’ action is used in all the subsequent pipe deployment and packing up methods.

Tight helical cone pulling/screwing

This is my most efficient method where crinkle damage is eliminated. It starts with the pulling of a short helical cone as described above. The process is just carefully continued until the flue pipe is fully formed while spreading the holding rings along its growing length. “Sound impossible?”

The continuation of this tight helical unwinding is tricky and tedious, particularly when halfway through. “Eventually, it will easily ‘rush to the finish’ to convert into a beautiful long flue pipe during a crinkle-free, silent and magical transition.”

Partway through, it may even seem impossible. “For a while, I thought that”. However, it is a technique that can be mastered with patience, preferably at home. It is indispensable and very worthwhile for the initial formation of a crinkle-free virgin flue pipe.

Here is a little Instagram video of a flue pipe being deployed by the tight helical pulling/screwing method.

I had speculated that the tight helical pulling/screwing method should work well and more easily with traditional large diameter DIY stove pipes. This has now been put to the test. The pipe shown next is a 3,000mm extension pipe for a Gstove and was easily formed this way and it does not have any crinkle damage.

Here is a little Instagram video of the pipe formation in ~4 minutes and here is the Instagram video of it being rolled up again in 65 seconds. A light dusting of talcum rose scented baby powder was used to make this virgin flue pipe slippery for these operations. It is a refractory mineral that is no problem when heated. It just give forth its rose perfume. It is not needed once the pipe is broken in by heat treatment.

The tricky nature of this manipulation may not make it your preferred way of repeatedly deploying a flue pipe while camping. If so, the ‘open sloppy spiral’ (Described later.) may be more to your liking. It will require you to work down on the ground or snow surface. It will also take a little longer and entails removal and replacement of the rings, but will still avoid crinkle damage.

The tight helical screw up

Luckily, the reversal of the ‘tight helical cone pulling/screwing’ is stunningly simple, easy, quick and can be performed up off the ground or snow surface.

The only problem is that at first sight, you will think I am talking bull-shit. I understand and forgive you. I have done the helical screw up many times now. Each time my rational mind also asks, much more politely of course; Is this really going to work?

Me

I predict that one day this fast windup method will become the standard that most ultralight ‘hot tent stovies’ will use. It will probably be irresistible to most campers who find themselves packing up their stove in a blizzard!

Once upon a time, I used to deprive myself of a warm morning tent for breakfast and thawing & drying off the inside of the tent. This was when a packing up was required in the morning. I packed up the night before so the process of packing up the DIY stove pipe would not cause excessive delays. This fast technique puts an end to that concern especially when my current KISS tent stove only takes 2 minutes to cool down before packing.

Me

The telescopic collapse of the flue pipe is simply performed by screwing the pipe ends with gentle compressive force between them. The end part of the pipe that will become the innermost part of the roll should be the one that is screwed. This is described in detail in a separate post (Part 3, in the link below).

Before we move on to the next stimulating video, here is a little ode to tight helical flue pipe pulling/screwing;

Can technical ode words become course?
Intimately coupling....., just gets worse!
Tossing in pulling and screwing could be its undoing,
Such is the problem communicating in verse.

Here is a little Instagram video of this magical and most unlikely tight spiral screwing technique. With one person or a couple, it can be performed in just one minute. “It has not to my knowledge been previously documented in any of the ancient texts.” Here is another Instagram video of a one-minute screw-up.

Speculative note: While writing this post, I think for the first time I understand why the tight helical pulling is stubborn and the reversed ‘not so tight’ helical screwing is so magically easy.

The pulling constantly locks up the intimately contacting foil layers as the cone extends and expands. The rings get ‘locked in place’ as well.

Conversely, during the screwing up action the cone diameter reduces a little. If there is resistance to screwing, the diameter gets even smaller and reduces friction between the layers of foil even more.

The diameter reduction also leaves the holding rings loose so that they can easily be shuffled along toward their final resting place on the outside of the tidy rolled up coil. “I hope this explanation makes some sense to you, as it does for me?”

A link to a more detailed post (Part 3 ) is listed below.

Open sloppy spiral- winding

This method is similar to the ‘tight helical cone method’ that has been reported above.

I think it is innately less impressive for some unknown reason. It also requires the removal and replacement of all those rings. The bottom line that it is easy and it will appeal to those who have not yet mastered the tight helical cone method.

Me

It is initiated with a foil coil that has undergone a ‘helical unwind’ so that its diameter is about three to four times the diameter of the flue pipe or diameter of the storage roll.

The relaxed coil has much less stored ‘spring energy’. This means that it is very easy to pull the central core out from the coil to start forming a long spiral.

The successive turns of the spiral have no intimate surface-to-surface contact with one another. As a consequence, it makes it flexible or ‘sloppy’. “Like a ‘slinky-spring’ without much resistance to extension or bending”.

Importantly, it happens smoothly and effortlessly with no crinkling as it changes into a shape that is starting to resemble a pipe. It is this gentle transition of the orientation of the foil curvature that eliminates crinkle damage. It is just the same for the tight helical pulling method. “However, both you and the spiral can be sloppy about it.”

This process can be continued to completion so that the entire length of the foil is laid out as a sloppy spiral.

Note: The spiral still has ‘pent up energy’ stored in the foil. So for the photograph, it is held on each end with a split stick and an orange to prevent uncontrolled un-twisting that would otherwise cause crinkle damage.

Lastly, the sloppy spiral can be slowly allowed to unwind so that it gently self-transforms into a DIY roll up stove pipe shape, entirely without crinkle damage.

Here is a little Instagram video of the ‘open sloppy spiral- pipe forming magic. It shows both unrolling and rolling up. “It can say so much more than my words can. It is like the reversal of that childhood story; the beautiful swan turns into an ugly duckling.”

A link to a more detailed post (Part 4 ) is listed below.

Mixing and matching slopy spiral and tight helical winding methods

All these methods have a unique purpose and they can be used in combination for optimum effectiveness.

For example:

• The tight helical pull/screw is indispensable for virgin pipe forming before heat treatment.
• The sloppy spiral is great for routine solo flue pipe set up and pack up when the pipe is very long, or you are inexperience or can’t be bothered with the tight screwing method.
• The tight helical screwing is ideal for routine packing up in bad weather.
• If you have a companion/s to hold the other end it is even better. It saves the foil from getting wet and dirty as it can be wiped down as it screwed up.

Burning-in of a virgin DIY roll up stove pipe

This process is one of using heat treatment of the flue pipe foil (stainless steel or titanium) to make it remember its new flue pipe shape for when it is next deployed while camping.

This happens to some extent, near the stove, when the pipe is used on a very hot stove. The pipe can also be flipped to treat the other end. However, the middle section is not well treated.

In response, I have developed heat-treating lances that use an alcohol flame, gas flame and finally a charcoal burner that can heat-treat the whole pipe. The treatment is done by passing the lance steadily through the pipe (Post in links below.)

A guide to the posts that are collated in this improved flue pipe series

Part 1.- Improvements to flue pipe rolling

( You are reading Part 1. now.)

Part 2- New stove pipe forming

Part 3- A telescopic stove pipe roll up

Part 4- Spiral roll up stove pipe for dummies

Part 5- Roll up flue pipe hand curving

Part 6.- Flue pipe seam width

Part 7- An alcohol flame lance to burn in roll up stove pipes

Part 8- A gas flame lance to burn in roll up flue pipes [when ready]

Part 9- Large roll up stove pipe forming

Part 10- A telescopic stove pipe or roll up flue pipe

Part 11- A charcoal heat lance to burn in roll up flue pipes [under construction[

Part 12- Correcting roll up flue pipe seams overlaps

Other related posts

Tent stove- a tiny backpacking stove

Part 2.- A sacrificial guard tube for a KISS tent stove

Part 3.- A guard tube as a flue pipe adaptor and a storage tube

Part 5.- Optimized holding rings for the KISS Stove

Tim