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Gear Review: Nightfall Helios Firepan

6K views 22 replies 12 participants last post by  greenwater780 
#1 ·
After seeing the post here about it, I ordered it on Wednesday, and it showed up today. Since I am stuck at home and going absolutely bat shit, bouncing off the walls stir crazy with cabin fever, I thought I would test it out in the backyard for something to do.

First thing I did was follow the recommendation to season the steel like cast iron. I used peanut oil, and probably got too heavy of a coat in a couple of spots. Best to use an extremely light coat, and work it a few times. I seasoned half the parts on my gas grill, and the others in the oven. The oven parts came out better, but but everything still needs work. I should have been more patient with this step, now I have some clean up work to do.

Next I did a heat test. I grabbed a milk crate full of dry cordwood and got a roaring fire going in it. I kept the fire stacked up with wood for a couple of hours until it had burned down to a 2.5" bed of red hot cherry coals, spread evenly across the pan.

Since anything worth doing is worth overdoing, I then got out a small electric shop blower and blasted the coals with air, like a blacksmith's forge, for several minutes, until the steel started to glow a low red. I'm pretty sure I got it hotter than its possible to get it with normal use :)

There were no visible signs of warping, and I don't think I got it hot enough to anneal the steel. The parts have a little play and I think this greatly mitigates warping as the metal has somewhere to expand to, unlike the folded and welded fire pans that always warp.

Pros: disassembled in the case the thing is probably only a 1/2" thick, if that. The case itself is SUPER well-made, bomber tough. The pan is pretty easy to set up and break down. Its is also WAY lighter than the standard, clunker steel firepan design. Best of all, it fits neatly inside my dry box behind the stove, taking up almost zero space, and adding insignificant weight. It is absolutely perfect for the type of trips I like to do, which are minimalist with just one 14" raft.

Cons: the only con I can see so far is a bit stiffer grade of steel might work slightly better, but that's a pretty minor con. Stainless steel would have been nice, but I'm sure that would be cost prohibitive. This pan is probably not quite as sturdy as the old heavy, clunker style firepans, but then again, it's meant to be lighter and more nimble, and is still plenty sturdy, In my opinion, it is tougher than the pop-up pit. I'm kind of wishing I would have ordered the optional grill now.

I have been looking for something like this forever, and its definitely a keeper. With further use I will post a follow up on how well the seasoning approach resists rust and corrosion.

It's also worth mentioning this is a super innovative design, and really well though out. Kudos to whoever came up with the concept!!! There is no other fire pan on the market that even comes close to being this compact when disassembled, just not even close.

I'm not receiving any kind of deal for this write up, just thought some of the gear heads in the group might be interested. Let me know if you have any questions or ideas for tests.

https://www.nightfalloverland.com/gear/firepan
 

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#2 ·
Thanks for the review.

Looks like it will work for most rivers. Just a note that the internal dimensions are not big enough for Grand Canyon. GC minimum is 300 sq inches. Looks like this one is only 240. I also think the logo cut outs wouldn't pass muster for Grand Canyon. The holes in the side don't appear high enough to be 3 inches above the bottom of the pan. Kind of moot as the pan isn't big enough anyway.


I am for anything that encourages fire pans in the back country, hope this takes off. Saw an add for Moab the other day with a fire built directly on top of the slickrock.
 
#4 ·
Are fire pans actually required on the Grand Canyon?

When we ran it in 2010 there was a ban on collecting driftwood, which pretty much meant no fires unless you packed a lot of firewood with you?

Most of the runs I've done say 144 square inches with 3 inch sides, and I've never actually had anyone inspect my fire pan.
 
#3 ·
Looks like a cool and practical setup and I love that we are getting a bunch of innovative designs from various people. Not sure what brought on this sudden surge all of a sudden...but its very welcome. A couple years ago it was all about adding fans and electronics or some clever gimmick...so I'm glad that is gone. It is also very cool that they are not only innovative but reasonably priced too.

The Pop Up Pit definitely gives it a run for its money in the the lightweight and compact category...but this one seems pretty slick too. I love my Pop Up Pit but it is indeed a bit fragile and this Helios one is a great mix in between the big clunker fire pits and the Pop up pit in durability. Pretty cool that it stashes easily in a dry box too. I put my pop up pit in my drybox last time and it did fine without taking up too much space...but being able to nestle it into the side like that seems pretty nice. I do like that the Pop Up Pit has a pretty large surface area and you can really cook as much stuff on it as the larger "clunkers" out there if you get the quad grill.

To really capture the rafting market...they are gonna have to consider making one that falls within the regulated dimensions for Grand Canyon and other areas. I've never seen or heard of a ranger getting out a tape measure... but they pick up on that stuff quickly. Not sure if 60 square inches is enough to quibble over...but I've seen people get in trouble for sillier things.

One question...how does it do when you pick it up as a unit....especially during ash emptying stage? Most rivers require you to pack the ashes out...so if this thing is coming apart as you try to do that it might take it down a notch in my book. It looks like it should be fine...but thought I'd ask.
 
#5 ·
It stays together pretty tightly when you pick it up, especially by the handles. I was able to lay it on its side to empty the ashes out with no trouble.

I did notice after disassembly that I did manage to warp the bottom slightly. Not very noticeably though. I probably did over heat it some with my experiment.
 
#6 ·
I have several conventional design firepans purchased over the years, just got the pop up.

If this unit met the Grand Canyon requirements, I would buy one. Otherwise I will continue to put a pizza pan in my pop up fire pan as a liner for my dutch ovens.

I like this design a bunch, nice to stash in the dry box. But, as mentioned no sale from me till it meets GC requirements.
 
#9 ·
I definitely use the side frames to lift the screen to get my fingers under enough to slide it off the main frame I've always left the side frames on the leg frame though.

Taking all of them off the legs at once seems like a few of the side frames would slip out and could have potential for the mesh to flex the wrong way and dump ash everywhere. I'll definitely give it a try next time though...I imagine you just have to be careful.
 
#12 ·
Thanks for the awesome review Pine, and thanks for picking up a Helios firepan. I am Andrew, one of the co-owners of Nightfall Overland, the maker of the Helios. I'm glad to hear the pan passed the "forge" test! We didn't exactly design around that but if you need to make a new oar lock or something, I guess you are good to go. (Joking, of course)



I just wanted to clarify something for anyone interested. We pre-oil the pans for seasoning. All you have to do is unpack the pan and pop it in your oven. Stacking the pieces is fine.


Regarding a stainless option, we can do that now but they are extremely expensive so we held off on that option on the website. If we get enough people interested we may do a bulk run to lower the cost.



Regarding the GC size requirements. We are aware of that and our site states that this pan will not work for the GC. We wanted first to offer a pan that would be a good size for all the rest of the rivers as well as tossing it in your truck for camping out. We have plans to make a larger version in the future to satisfy GC requirements. Thanks for the feedback everybody!



I don't know about you all, but I can't stop thinking about getting back on the water.
 
#16 ·
Fire Pans are shear madness in my book. But the theory goes for bureaucrats that you should always have a fire pan not just so someone else behind you can pretend 200 Million people have not come before you, LOL, but even if you do not plan to use it what if someone falls in and needs warmed up in an emergency. You can always try to sneak by with the not ideal regulation equipment, and much of the time they will never notice. But all of us have been grilled on something the Ranger decided to pick on, despite our best efforts. I would hate to have to go hunt down a substitute at the last moment.
 
#17 ·
Regarding the GC size requirements. We are aware of that and our site states that this pan will not work for the GC. We wanted first to offer a pan that would be a good size for all the rest of the rivers as well as tossing it in your truck for camping out. We have plans to make a larger version in the future to satisfy GC requirements. Thanks for the feedback everybody!
[/QUOTE]

Andrew - Your firepan looks super well designed! Just a thought for future innovation; many of us carry 10" & 12" dutch ovens - your firepan looks ideal to hold a bunch of charcoal briquettes and support a couple of stacked ovens - will a 12" oven fit inside your firepan?
I noticed from your website that your primary focus is making insulated window covers for vans. Next time you pass through Salt Lake City you should stop by Wave Products and introduce yourself to Helen. She makes custom bags and carrying cases - she's made a variety of stuff for me and my rafting gear addiction! PM me and I'll get you her contact info. Darryl
 
#18 ·
- will a 12" oven fit inside your firepan?
I noticed from your website that your primary focus is making insulated window covers for vans. Next time you pass through Salt Lake City you should stop by Wave Products and introduce yourself to Helen. She makes custom bags and carrying cases - she's made a variety of stuff for me and my rafting gear addiction! PM me and I'll get you her contact info. Darryl

I think a 12" DO would fit fine. The pan is 12.75" wide and a 12" DO is around 12.5 at the top and they taper down so it shouldn't be a problem. Stacking is fine too. I can stand in the firepan and I weigh 145lbs. I cooked a bunch of DO meals in the prototype just like you described, worked great.






I'll definitely reach out to Wave Products facility if I'm in the area. Always fun to meet up with other makers.


Cheers
 
#22 ·
Depending on several factors including the thickness of the metal stainless steel tends to warp more than the same thickness of carbon steel.

Stainless steels have greater thermal expansion and lower thermal conductivity than carbon steels. This is one of the reasons it is tricky to weld without distortion.

I have made a couple of stainless steel fire pans in the past and have found when heated they warp out of shape and won't return when cooled. I did do one with a stainless bottom and carbon steel sides that worked OK but had to leave a lot of room for the bottom to float and the bottom still buckled quite a bit.

I can see the way this pan is constructed having problems with the bottom warping out of shape enough to jam.

It would be an interesting experiment to see if stainless would work.
 
#21 ·
The last time I went down the Grand it was mid summer. no way we were having a fire and had no dutch meals planned and we were required to take the fire pan anyway. I now have the pop up pit for just such an eventuality. the other fire pan is too heavy especially if I'm not even going to take it off the boat. Hell I don't like getting off the boat you can get hurt going to shore. ha ha, Cheers
 
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