There’s nothing wrong with the classic rock fire ring, but building one isn’t always possible, legal or ethical. So with the growth of a more “camp anywhere” culture spurred on by overlanding and #vanlife, we’ve seen a growth in the number of portable, collapsible fire pits out there. The new Firekorf from Belgium’s By Arnaud is lighter and more collapsible than average, relying on four folding legs and a mesh basket to pack small but fire up big. An available cooking grate and spit turn it into a go-anywhere wood-fire cooker.
Existing collapsible fire pit designs tend to be heavy and bulky or undersized for burning anything larger than tinder and kindling. Some even suffer from both issues. Firekorf designer Arnaud Desseyn attempts to overcome those problems with a fire pit that folds tiny while still offering room for a solid fire. “Korf” means “basket” in Dutch, and indeed the key to the whole design is the removable steel-mesh fire basket that can fold and roll in ways that metal-panel boxes cannot.
To hold the basket in place above the ground, By Arnaud relies on a frame of four stainless steel legs attached at the center. The legs extend up and hooks toward the top of each one secure the basket’s grommets in place. The legs easily swivel and fold down for packing.
The Firekorf won’t exactly host a bonfire, but the 19 x 19-in (48 x 48-cm) basket rim drops into something of an upside down pyramid capable of burning a few logs and housing a decent fire. The mesh serves to feed the fire with plenty of oxygen from below, and By Arnaud claims that it’s fine enough to keep ash in. The company says the Firekorf can hold up to 22 lb (10 kg).
Looking at some of the close-ups of black mesh, we do wonder how long the basket will last before developing a weak spot and ripping, especially after folding and rolling it up after each fire.
For those fires that involve cooking, the available Firekorf grill features thin stainless steel rods secured together via mesh wire, with two end rods clipping the grill to the fire pit. After use, the end rods remove, and the grill rolls up into a thin cylinder. The design reminds us of the rollable M1 grill that Wolf and Grizzly offers for use with its own folding fire pit.
Whole chickens and loaded kebabs won’t cook well on the direct heat of a grill so By Arnaud also offers a spit that attaches to the fire pit via two included brackets. It breaks down into three pieces for travel.
The entire Firekorf fire pit assembly, grill and spit fit neatly in the carry roll, which rolls and clips into a 19.7 x 3.9-in (50 x 10-cm) grab-and-go package with built-in handle. All together, the components and carry roll weigh 6 lb (2.7 kg). The fire pit itself accounts for 2 of those pounds (0.9 kg).
By comparison, the Wolf and Grizzly M1 grill and Fire Safe pit weigh in at a combined 4.4 lb (2 kg). If you drop the weight of the Firekorf spit out for an apples-to-apples comparison, By Arnaud’s grill and fire pit weigh a very comparable 4.2 lb (1.9 kg) while providing a larger fire space when assembled. Another similar option, the 6.6-lb (3-kg) Folding Fire was successfully Kickstarted last year and has a folding camp chair-like frame, fecralloy fabric fire basket and available folding grill.
It would seem that Kickstarter likes the idea of folding fire pits. After launching on April 22, the Firekorf campaign has more than doubled its initial goal and is working toward a $100K stretch goal to unlock a mesh cover for keeping embers from fluttering and exploding out of the pit. A pledge of €70 (approx. US$76) is good for the fire pit with carry case; €105 ($113) secures the fire pit, grill and carry case; and €155 ($167) tacks on the spit for the full set. Deliveries will begin in September if all proceeds smoothly.
Rollable fire pit takes wood fire and grilling anywhere [New Atlas]