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BioLite CampStove 2

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A former Navy SEAL puts a stick-burning stove through its paces to see if it earns a spot in a bug-out bag.

Shawn Ryan, who runs the Vigilance Elite channel and the Shawn Ryan Show, spent his review breaking down the BioLite CampStove 2 the way he’d assess any piece of field gear — not by specs alone, but by whether it holds up when the fuel source is whatever’s lying on the ground. The CampStove 2 burns twigs, dry sticks, and pinecones instead of gas or propane canisters, and it uses the fire itself to generate electricity through a thermoelectric heat probe. Ryan’s test walks through how that system actually performs, from boil times to the on-board battery that keeps a phone or GPS unit alive miles from an outlet.

• The CampStove 2 boils one liter of water in roughly 4.5 minutes using an internal fan that forces oxygen through jets into a stainless-steel burn chamber for a near-smokeless flame.
• Excess heat is converted into electricity via a thermoelectric generator, feeding a 2,600 mAh battery pack with a 5V USB output that produces about 3W — enough to charge a phone or run the included 100-lumen USB FlexLight.
• The unit weighs approximately 33 ounces (935 grams) with folding aluminum legs, and its updated power pack includes an LED dashboard tracking fire strength, electricity output, and four fan speed settings.

Burn Chambers Convert Heat Energy

The core of the CampStove 2 is the heat probe sitting inside the combustion chamber, wired to a thermoelectric generator. As the fire burns, that generator converts a portion of the heat directly into electricity — no batteries required to start the process. That electricity powers an internal fan that injects oxygen through multiple jets into the stainless-steel chamber, which is what lets the stove sustain a hot, near-smokeless flame on nothing but scavenged biomass. Ryan’s demonstration shows the practical payoff of that engineering: a liter of water boiling in about 4.5 minutes, comparable to a lot of canister stoves, without ever needing a fuel bottle.

Boil a liter in 4.5 minutes on nothing but sticks and pinecones, then plug your phone into the same fire.

Charging Gear Off the Same Flame

Where the CampStove 2 separates itself from a standard wood stove is what happens to the electricity the fire generates but doesn’t use. That surplus routes into a 2,600 mAh battery pack fitted with a 5V USB port, putting out roughly 3W — enough to top off a smartphone, a handheld GPS unit, or the stove’s included 100-lumen USB FlexLight while dinner cooks. The updated power pack also carries an LED dashboard that reads out fire strength and electricity output in real time, plus four selectable fan speeds so users can dial in airflow depending on how hot or how quiet they need the burn.

Weight and Field Practicality

At around 33 ounces (935 grams) with folding aluminum legs, the CampStove 2 packs down to something Ryan treats as realistic for backpackers and preppers alike, not just car campers. The pitch for survivalists is straightforward: no propane canister to run out mid-trip, no batteries to die on the flashlight, because the stove is generating its own power source as long as there’s dry fuel nearby. That’s the same logic that shows up across a lot of off-grid and bug-out gear reviews — the goal isn’t novelty, it’s removing a point of failure. Anyone comparing options in that category alongside a piece like the best bug-out tent on the market is thinking the same way Ryan frames the CampStove 2: what happens when resupply isn’t an option.

Former SEAL Perspectives Provide Authority

Ryan’s background running Vigilance Elite content built around special operations experience is part of why the review lands with the audience it does — he’s not reviewing gear as a lifestyle influencer, he’s stress-testing it against the standard he’d apply to anything meant for austere conditions. That’s consistent with the broader tone of his channel, which sits closer to the world covered in pieces like why you never mess with elite special forces than to typical outdoor-lifestyle content. The CampStove 2 review fits that lane: a tool judged on whether it functions when the stakes are real, not just when the weather’s good.

For Ryan’s audience, the takeaway is less about the CampStove 2 as a novelty and more about it filling a specific gap — heat and a charging source from the same handful of sticks, with an LED dashboard telling you exactly how much juice you’re getting before your phone dies in the field.