Stove shopping. F55 Carrabassett follow up.

[JonOfSunderland]

I'm in the market for a wood stove and the F55 is near the top of my short list, along with the Oslo, and possibly a Summit if it'll fit in my fireplace.

I've seen a few threads on the F55 with generally good feedback, aside from one warped baffle. I'm wondering how this stove stacks up against the other steel box stoves of its size, and how it stacks up against the rest of Jotul's lineup in terms of quality. Since this is Jotul's first attempt at such a design, and since it's designed and built purely by Jotul NA (the F50 and 55 being the first designs not originating from the mother ship?), it almost feels like a completely different, new company. I could be wrong on this.

Either way, I'm not too excited about the prospect of not having any non-catalytic stove choices in a few years and want to make sure I get a stove that's in it for the long haul.

If I bought purely for looks, it'd be the Oslo hands down. I love cast iron and the Oslo in particular. But the layout of my house lends itself to more of a convective stove.

So basically I'm looking to see how any 55 owners are doing with their stoves. If any issues have crept up. Is the cast top plate as substantial as their purely cast stoves? How thick is the steel used in the firebox?

 

[JonOfSunderland]

Bump

 

[JonOfSunderland]

Bump again?

 

[jeff_t]

I've read more about the F50, but it has all been positive.

This guy just ordered an F55. I'm sure we'll here more about it.
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/torn-on-which-of-these-2-stoves-to-purchase.124534/

 

[7acres]

I'm in the market for a wood stove and the F55 is near the top of my short list, along with the Oslo, and possibly a Summit if it'll fit in my fireplace.

I've seen a few threads on the F55 with generally good feedback, aside from one warped baffle. I'm wondering how this stove stacks up against the other steel box stoves of its size, and how it stacks up against the rest of Jotul's lineup in terms of quality. Since this is Jotul's first attempt at such a design, and since it's designed and built purely by Jotul NA (the F50 and 55 being the first designs not originating from the mother ship?), it almost feels like a completely different, new company. I could be wrong on this.

Either way, I'm not too excited about the prospect of not having any non-catalytic stove choices in a few years and want to make sure I get a stove that's in it for the long haul.

If I bought purely for looks, it'd be the Oslo hands down. I love cast iron and the Oslo in particular. But the layout of my house lends itself to more of a convective stove.

So basically I'm looking to see how any 55 owners are doing with their stoves. If any issues have crept up. Is the cast top plate as substantial as their purely cast stoves? How thick is the steel used in the firebox?

Hi Jon,
I can't answer all of your questions, but I can address the firebox steel thickness question. When I took delivery of my F55 and got it off the palette I was pleasantly surprised at how thick the steel was. It is about 1/4" thick (from eyeballing it). Very substantial. My blower finally came in and I installed it two weeks ago. You have to take the heat shield off the back to install it. I was impressed by how substantial and beautiful the exposed welds were. I can't wait to fire this stove up!
One more thought... I'm glad there's no ash pan. There are basically 2 moving parts on the whole stove. The air lever and the door. With the steel and cast being so substantial and so few moving parts (and no cat to go bad either) this stove leaves me with no regrets on choosing it over the F50 and PE5 I was considering.

 

[aansorge]

If you really like the Oslo, get it! I would imagine that a simple box fan in a doorway pointed into the stove room will achieve the same results (if not better) than the fans on a convective stove. Plenty of people on this forum use this method with good results.

 

[HotCoals]

If you really like the Oslo, get it! I would imagine that a simple box fan in a doorway pointed into the stove room will achieve the same results (if not better) than the fans on a convective stove. Plenty of people on this forum use this method with good results.

Insert deal is a little different.

 

[aansorge]

Insert?

 

[Light in the Dark]

I have an F50, and it burns quite well. Last year was my first year burning, so surely the burn times will be better this second coming season. It heats our house quite well though, with fans moving air from the back to the front.