Best Camp Fire Tool with Mod
How do you move logs around once they are in a campfire? Use a fire tool called the Log Grabber.
While camping last year we sat at a neighbors campfire and saw the most magical fire tool ever invented. It’s the Log Grabber and it is seriously cool. We’ve been camping and have seen people use all kinds of things to adjust their campfires. I’ve seen anything from scissor tongs from fireplace kits to people pushing logs around with their feet. Those have merit but don’t always get the job done. Now we have the ability to place, move, and remove logs in the campfire with the brilliant tool, with one caveat.
I got a Log Grabber for my birthday last year. Diana ordered it, wrapped it, and kept it hidden on a camping trip last year. It was so much fun to open a camping related gift while camping. We usually camp on my birthday. The Log Grabber is made of steel and has a three-fingered claw at the end of it. It’s opened and closed by moving a lever located at the handle end. It provides a firm and solid grip on the firewood which is perfect for grabbing a burning log.
After using it for a few days, though, I did find one tiny flaw with the Log Grabber, the lever needed to be pushed to the open position. Grabbing the log was easy, but then you had to open the handle manually. Camping friends of ours showed us a simple modification that turns this into the ultimate fire tool. Adding a spring to the Log Grabber forces the claw open when you are not providing the clamping force with your hand. The good thing is the Log Grabber is built to accommodate a spring with one tiny hole drilled into it. It is as if they had intended to have a spring built into it, but changed the design.
Log Grabber Fire Tool Mod
Supplies
Log Grabber
A Small Spring, about 2″ long
Drill
Tiny Drill Bit
Needle Nose Pliers
Directions
Drill a hole in the notch at the top of the movable finger. You may need to tap a starter hole for the drill bit.
Use needle-nose pliers to get the end of the spring through the hole in the notch.
Open up the other end of the spring with the pliers and hook it over the top edge of the mount.
Your modified campfire tool is now ready to use.
This modification has turned our Log Grabber from convenience to the perfect tool for hot log manipulation of the campfire.
I put my spring on the handle. One side hooked around the handle’s rivet. Small hole in the main tube and pow. Problem solved.
That is a smart idea. Thanks for the tip!
I think I know why the company didn’t include that spring. After repeated exposure to heat, that little spring will gradually become annealed. The wire will get soft and the spring will stretch out. When that happens it will stop working to open the claw. It will require regular replacing to keep it functioning. The company probably didn’t want to deal with all the complaints that spring would cause. Not saying it’s not a great idea, but be prepared and keep some extra springs in your tool kit!
That’s a good idea, Kathy. It was under 2 bucks for 2 springs. I did notice that another company (SunnyDaze, I think) on Amazon sells them with the spring on. 🙂