I have read much about the new hybrid stoves and some of the cat stoves. The old Dutchwest stoves seem to have a bad rap but, what of the 2462 Dutchwest Catalytic stoves? Not much to be found on this big ol iron monster. I am happily running a Quadrafire Isle Royale and my only gripe is the burn time and that's just due to coming home after a long shift and stoves almost out. There was a time when my wife was home raising our kids and keeping the stove going was no problem. Longer burns would be a nice thing so as a frequent forum reader I look to see what's working and the cat stoves seem to be known for that. Anyone out there have any thoughts on the 2462 Dutchwest? I can't say I'd go right out to buy one but curious cause it seems on paper to be a good stove for the money?
I'm running a 2460, my backup stove, right now until I get around to fixing a leaking seam on the Keystone. The two stoves are the same rear flue exit height which makes swapping them easy. The Dw isn't too bad, burns long and puts out good heat, especially with the optional blower. I don't fire up the blower unless it's real cold and windy out. To use it, I have to tighten down two bolts that hold a couple of small convection plates in place to change the air routing to the fan intake. Takes a couple minutes. This is the stove that got me hooked on having a grated ash-handling system. Just swirl a poker through the ashes before you reload, they fall through the grate into the pan. Then remove the pan to dump outside, maybe a couple times a week on the little 2460. I never have to tip-toe around, trying to save coals and avoid clouds of ash, like I did when I shoveled 'em out. Ash-handling is non-negotiable to me at this point; I'm hooked on the grated system and won't buy a stove that doesn't have it, if I can possibly avoid doing so. The window isn't very big but the stoves are kinda cool-looking. Not sure what the Dws are going for now but I'll check, since they have re-surfaced at a shop here. Mine is in need of a seam-sealing job; I have to cut the air pretty low once I light it off. If I let a fair amount of flame keep going, the area under the cat will begin to glow a little (intake baffle that protects the cat, and surrounding area of the inner top.) The stove doesn't really seem to over-fire, just levels out around 650 stove top, 1600 cat...but I don't like to see anything glowing. Then later in the burn, to keep the cat churning, I'll have to open up the air a little. I think that when I seal the seams, I'll be able to leave the air open more initially and it should just be set-and-forget. I've got a diesel-foil cat in there right now. The castings are on the thin side, and prone to warping if they get hot, so some guys say if you take one of these stoves apart to do a proper rebuild, you may not be able to get it back together. I will seal the seams on mine without taking it apart, once I get the Keystone back in. If you want to get into a cat stove, cheap, these would be worth a look. But now with the Woodstock hybrids, they've got some competition price-wise, and quality-wise for sure...
Running low, I can easily reload on plenty of of coals after 12 hrs. The 2461 should hold a bit more wood. I'm simmering out the diesel-foil cat right now. Seems to be dropping out too soon. I tried to blow it out but some ash is still stuck. I was afraid to blow it out too hard with compressed air, so I'm cookin' 'er...
