My New Absolute Steel Hybrid

Last year, in February I got call from Lorin at Woodstock asking if I was still interested in being part of the bata testing of the Absolute Steel. I very much was because my old, on it's last legs, VC Resolute was done. I already have a WS Fireview in my living room and love that stove, but didn't need the soapstone beauty for my family room, but really liked the extra capacity of the Absolute and have been very impressed with two of my close friends Progress Hybrids. So the Absolute was the right size, the right technology and the right price.

I returned the field test prototype today and picked up the new product level Absolute. The attached are a number of my photos of the trip up I took today. The new stove is all installed. I now have a Fireview in my modest but beautiful New England chalet living room, and an Absolute Steel in the family room downstairs.

The Fireview, by the way, I purchased as a refurb. It was our wonderful and now deceased member Charlie Wolz from upstate Schoharie NY. Charlie traded it in for the Progress, and I ran up and bought his refurbed Fireview. Just thought I'd mention Charlie, so we can all take a minute to remember what a wonderful man he was.

Anyway, I had a nice chat with Tom and Lorin, and he tells me the next project on the road-map is a new config of the hybrid, but I'm not going to steal Tom's thunder, so get it from them. They are hopping up there. There was a que in the parking lot at 11:00AM of guys like me picking up stoves. We all had a good time shooting the breeze.

 

Here's the arrival pics of the stove and the final install.

 

Thanks Scotty! Yeah, I'm always back this time of year. My favorite forum.

I'll maybe go post some of these on your FB page too now.

I recruited a couple new members while I was up there.

 

Very nice stove Steve. Also, nice of you to mention Charlie. He was a wealth of information and I was glad he made it over to FHC. His time was too short.

 

The color of the trim on this Prairie Wheat is called some marketing name but it is essentially a brighter copper/brass color that I think really POPS much better than the duller brown burnt copper color that my beta test unit had. I really like it! and it just POPS against the charcoal.

The trim on the final product has been finished off a good deal. There are beautiful trim finish pieces on the "wings" and classy chrome acorn nuts on the window trim. The air supply handle has been modified slightly to not have the sharp/noisy teeth the prototype had but it still has lots of granularity. Did I forget to mention the ash box?! I love the ash box!

For me, most impressive is the 2.3 cu ft box in such a compact external package. The IS is great but just too big for my existing hearth or my heating requirements. This AS is just a small step down box capacity wise, yet a significant step down in outside dimension. It took me a while last year to realize how well this stove burns in slow burn cat mode, with the air supply almost set at zero. Sometimes it will be 10 or 11:00AM and my 4th cup of coffee before I bother going downstairs to feed it. (just busy, chatting up you guys here, and surfing the net, and looking at the pretty rolling flames of the Fireview upstairs.)

I'm gonna' disappear for a long week not this week but next, as the wife is dragging me along to Waikiki Beach for a short anniversary of our 40th. So you guys are gonna' hafta' live without me. I've heard there is some interesting wild life photography there that I might need to share a pic or two with you guys.

 

Great looking stove set up, love that retaining wall, have a great vacation. Let me tell ya that is a long flight!

 

Wow does that stove look sharp!!!
i bet it will heat great too.

 

We're stopping in San Fran over night in bother direction. So that will help. Didn't want a 14 hour flight.

 

Marty, I was a beta tester for the Absolute, so I can tell you already these babies heat like their big brothers, the progress and the Ideal Steel. The hybrid technology does a remarkable job of maximizing the heat output high heat or low & slow with a seamless no thinking single control. I initially had a tendency to keep it open a little more than needed, but when I started experimenting and really closing down the air, it just seemed to heat even more. The cat mode on this stove where the CAT is angled forward and the hood scoop forces air out toward the stoves front and top surface is impressive. Different that the Fireview with it's all soapstove top and sides, but great radiant heat.

We use this stove a lot during shoulder season, when we wouldn't want the heat in the living room upstairs with us, I just get the AS going down stairs and leave the door open a tad at the main floor and let the heat up. In +40'F weather it really is nice to heat the whole house from the family(celler) of the house. This stove is essentially the same package as an IS in a slightly scaled down package. I think the cat is the same size.

 

Wishing you and your wife the very best. You will be missed at the Open House.

 

Nice, A Fireview and an AS, you ought to be good to about -50!

 

Yes, I am belt and suspenders ready Dave.

 

Beautiful stove! Your pictures at Woodstock capture the essence - how many other places in our lives do we do business with and would want to both take and post a photo of the transaction? Great people, products, and service.

Best of wishes on the 40th and trip, and observe the wildlife from a safe distance!

 

Happy anniversary, brother!

Can't wait to hear about that new stove!
Keep the pics coming.

 

OldHippie you look nothing like your screen name would lead us to believe.