Stromberg CarlsonGR-1522 Stake and Grille

I don't have a huge need to review products, but I have to say, the way this device performed and the enjoyment we got out of it on our camping trip compelled me to give my feedback.It is a basic system, pound the pole into the dirt or inside the fire pit and put the grill on and off as needed. It was very large and easily cooked multiple foods at once as well as having room for a 'cooking' area and 'warming' area depending where the hot spot of the campfire is. Strong enough to hold cast iron pans, and even a pot with 8 cups of liquid and veggies for a hefty camping soup. Was easy to clean and didn't need to be prepped with greasing. We put it through its paces, and it performed and seems super durable.This thing took care of virtually every meal for a week. Breakfast, lunch and dinner.It also comes with a nice bag to transport it. The bag easily held my Campfire Skewers, My Grill tools, a camping hammer, and my heat gloves in addition to the grill. I feel like I can now make fire virtually anywhere and make food on top of that fire with this grill set.

If you read nothing else, know this: This grill is exactly what you need to cook over a camp fire. Well made and simple, it will get the job done and probably last for years. Its amazingly easy to adjust, very stable, and as convenient a product as I have ever used.Extended review: I just returned from a camping trip using this grill. When It arrived, the box was pretty beat up just like some other reviewers stated but the stake and grill were in perfect condition. The cover/carry bag that came with the kit was just fine, if maybe a tad cheapish. The thin vinyl will probably not stand up to much use with heavy steel items but thats not really a gripe. It holds both items and as long as it lasts, makes a really convenient way to store your grill and the stake without spreading around a mess. You could easily fold over a sheet of cardboard, tape the sides, and make a servicable keeper.. But I digress. The pole is very sturdy with stabilizing fins on the side. These will keep the pole from spinning and tilting as long as they are in the ground. You will want to hammer the stake as far into the ground as you can and still leave enough sticking up to raise your grill as high as you might need it. I cant see any reason to keep it more than 6 to 8 inches over the reach of your flames. Once it's been hammered in, as long as you have good earth, it is very stable. ***NOTE that you should hammer in using a piece of wood to cushion the blow to the top of the stake or use a rubber mallet. Extended pounding with a hammer will distort the top of the stake and it may not be able to slide through the hole in the grill handle. The instructions that come with the grill say as much.The grill itself is very well made. Good welds at every junction of metal and the wires are nice and thick while still leaving plenty of space for heat to come through. If I had to guess, this grill could hold about 25 hamburgers. See the specs for size. It was more than enough for my family of 3 to cook on. The handle has a nice coil wrapped around it to dissipate heat and keep you from burning yourself when you grab it to adjust. I still recommend using a glove to be safe. Also, if the grill is loaded, you may want to use tongs or a well protected hand to hold the far end of the grill and assist in raising and lowering while cooking. Remember that the grill is a cantilever with the load on the hole where the stake meets the grill. The handle is on the opposite side of that and it becomes a lever when you need to raise or lower the grill. The handle can take a good deal of weight but it can be hard to manage the lift using just the handle. You gain a serious mechanical advantage by using a hand, tongs or even a stick on the far end of the grill.If I were forced to make a gripe, it would be that the grill cannot hold a large cast iron skillet. I tried to use my cast iron griddle for pancakes and while the grill had plenty of space for the griddle and it would hold the load in place very well, the handle could not take the force required to move the grill up and down. Using a second hand on the far end of the grill was necessary, otherwise, the handle bent. It was not hard to bend the handle back but I would imagine that a few of those moves could damage the welds or snap the handle. If you do use a cast iron pan or other heavy item on this grill, try to put the heavier stuff close to the stake. Again, the cantilever will magnify any load you put on the far end of the grill. ***NOTE, the instructions specifically say that this grill is not intended to hold cast iron pans.When I used this grill, once I found the best height to place it, I would support the far end with a couple of stones just for a little support. I dont think it was necessary but it was minor effort and I really would like to not wear this grill out too soon.Bottom line is that for $50 you get a really well made product that will perform its job perfectly. The ability to swing the grill away from the fire made it super easy to add wood or to adjust the fire or even to just swing the grill out of the way after dinner to sit around and roast marshmallows. It completely changed the way we made dinner at our camp. No more dirty grills that had been used by everyone and left outside. No more stacks of rocks balancing a pot over the fire if there was no grill provided. No more trying to call ahead to ask if there was a grill grate provided at the campsite. This thing is a little heavy, but it takes up NO space. I wont camp again without it.

This is *absolutely wonderful*. I'm a relatively prolific cook, and just love live fire cooking. Since I bought it this has been a must-have for amazing food while camping. Very well built, sturdy, and can hold a LOT of weight - no problem at all holding a 12" Lodge cast iron skillet. The long handle stays cool even after the grill has been in the fire for a long time, and adjustment is easy and smooth. Big plus over similar models that, with the long handle, you can also turn it to the side to let a pan cool out of the fire. The only thing that's worth noting is the grill and massive 0.6" solid steel stake is big, and heavy (not to mention the weight of the mallet it takes to drive this stake in to the ground). I wouldn't recommend it if you're camping more than a few hundred feet from the car.

This is my favorite grill for open fires. Super easy to slide grill up and down - or swing to the side once you are done cooking. The storage bag for the grill didn't last long before it broke - but never expected much anyway.

This thing is huge and heavy. If that is fine with you, you will love this. It works well. Be sure to put a piece of wood or something between the stake and the hammer you're using to put the stake into the ground to keep from denting up the stake (if you dent it too much you may have issues getting the grill over it). As long as you can get it stuck in the ground well enough it will hold a lot of food. I have made many chicken legs and thighs on here and the ability to adjust the grill depending on the fire is such an upgrade from simply setting a grill on some rocks and trying to manipulate the fire. No chicken has rolled off yet ,thanks to the turned up edges. This is totally worth it for car camping.

Grill looks sturdy, however it arrived in a box that had clearly been opened before and crudely taped together. On closer inspection, one of the support wires was slightly bent and had been soldered poorly to reattach it. It should not have passed any reasonable quality inspection. My guess is that someone else received it damaged and sent it back, then it was hastily fixed, the box was just taped up and it was sent out again. Disappointing.Update: replacement grill was promptly sent. Looks good on inspection, upgrading to three stars, looking forward to trying it out.

I will just jump to it, I have not had extended use with this so I can't quote durability. First impressions are the cooking grate is too large and heavy compared to the handle. The handle doesn't seem like it can handle much more than the attached grate so filling it with burgers or a pan would probably not go well. I plan to use cast iron and stainless steel pants even though it says not too. The bag it comes in is a little weak but will probably work for a little while.Overall I think this will work for the campground cooking I do, however I am worried the handle to grate ratio is so out of balance that the handle will probably snap sooner than later. I will update after more use

Well made with lots of room! Recommend wearing gloves when adjusting the grill.