Pomoly Dagger Wood Stove Review: Tested at -30C in Ontario
- Perrin Adams
- 4 hours ago
- 6 min read
The Pomoly Dagger wood stove is a brand new stainless steel wood stove released in 2026. At the time of writing there are not many detailed field reviews of this stove available so I want to give you the most honest picture I can from three real trips in Ontario conditions. Pomoly sent me this product to test out in various conditions and give my honest thoughts about the product.
I ran it at minus 30 Celsius in deep winter, in milder negative temperatures, and on a spring trip in the teens with rain. Snowstorm, cold nights, damp mornings. Here is what I found.
What the Dagger is
The Dagger is a stainless steel tent stove designed for car camping, sled trips, and boat-access camps. It is not a hiking stove. The thick steel construction makes it heavy and that weight is the point. Thick steel holds heat differently than titanium and that has real implications for how it performs as a heating stove versus a cooking stove. More on that below.
The stove comes in a fully unzipping case that lets you remove the stove without any wrestling. That is a small thing but it is the kind of detail that matters at the end of a long cold day.
Key specs:
Material: stainless steel
Firebox: rectangular, long shape
Glass: three glass side panels with Pomoly metal logo detailing
Pipe: sections nest inside each other and fit inside the stove for transport
Airflow: bottom side vents plus a baffle on top for longer burns
Included: door opening tool, three internal log grates, pipe sections, carry case
Out of the box
Build quality is solid. It feels like a stove that will last. The glass panels are genuinely nice and the Pomoly logo detailing in the metal gives it a more considered look than most camp stoves at this price point.
The pipe system is well thought out. Sections nest inside each other and then the whole set fits inside the stove body for transport. Everything packs into the carry case cleanly.
The three internal plates that slide into the firebox are designed to keep logs elevated off the bottom for better air circulation. In practice this works well -- the airflow through this stove is noticeably good and more on that in the field performance section.
One design detail worth knowing about: the coupling that connects the pipe sections uses a twist-lock mechanism rather than the removable bolts you see on other Pomoly stoves. It is a cleaner design in theory but in practice when you pull the pipe out the coupling sometimes stays attached to the pipe section rather than the stove body. You get used to it but it is worth knowing before you are doing a stove teardown in the dark.
The one genuine disappointment: there is no removable ash tray. When the bottom fills with ash you have to disconnect the stove from the pipe, carry the whole unit outside, dump it, and reassemble. If the stove is hot that process involves a dangling hot pipe and an awkward carry. Gloves are not optional. It is manageable but it is the one design decision I would change on an otherwise well-built stove.
Field performance
Getting it started
Genuinely easy, and I mean that. I got the Dagger lit with cheap commercial firestarters and a full log on the first attempt. And I suppose I should preface that with I do not have the strongest woodstove starting skills. Some stoves require a careful sequence of tinder and fine kindling to establish a draft before you can add real wood. This causes me to snuff them out quite frequently. The Dagger does not have that problem. The airflow design does its job from the first light.
One thing worth knowing before your first trip: there are vents on the bottom of the sides of the stove. I did not notice them until my second outing. Make sure nothing is blocking them when you set the stove down.
Heat output and retention
This is where the stainless steel construction really shows what it is designed for.
Thick steel takes longer to heat up than titanium. If you are used to a Ti Mini you will notice the difference in warm-up time. But once the Dagger body is properly heated it holds that heat in a way titanium simply cannot. The stove stayed warm for at least two hours after a full wood load. With just coals it went even longer.
At minus 30 in the Pomoly Barracuda 2 tent it brought the interior up to temperature without any struggle. On the spring trip in the teens it was almost too effective; a small fire was all it needed.
The long rectangular firebox is a practical advantage. Full-length pieces of wood fit easily. Once you have a coal bed established you can load a large piece and leave it for an extended period without babysitting it.
Cooking on it
Better than I expected -- significantly better. I got a stainless steel pan on top and cooked burgers with no issues. Not just boiling water, actual cooking. I thought that with the limited surface area on the top of the stove that my pan wouldn't fit or heat properly. The flat top surface actually distributes heat evenly and the thick steel keeps the temperature consistent rather than spiking and dropping like thinner stoves can.
If cooking matters to you on a camping trip this stove handles it better than its size and purpose would suggest. I wouldn't use it to cook large meals for groups, however. Much too small for that.
The door handle
This gets a special mention cause I've burned myself on accident. The door handle gets hot. Very hot. Do not touch it when lit without heat proof gloves or the included door opening tool. Pomoly included that tool for a reason and I am glad they did. I use it every time without exception.
How it compares to other Pomoly stoves
I have used the Ti Mini, the Dweller Max 3, and the Oroqen in similar conditions so I can place the Dagger in context. The Dagger sits between the Ti Mini and the Dweller Max 3 in terms of size and output. It has a similar shape to the Pomoly Oroqen if you have used that stove.
The titanium stoves like the Ti Mini heat up fast which makes them excellent for cooking. The Dagger is slower to heat but holds that heat longer once established, which makes it better suited for sustained warmth over a long cold night.
Another stove I use often is the Pomoly Dweller Max 3 and it beats the Dagger on firebox volume, you can fit more wood in the Dweller which means longer burns between reloads. If you are heating a large tent for an extended winter trip the Dweller is still the better choice for that specific purpose.
The Dagger makes the most sense if you want a stove that balances heat retention, cooking capability, and a more compact form factor than the Dweller.
Who it is for
The Dagger is a good fit if you:
Camp in cold to very cold temperatures and need a reliable heating stove
Use in small to medium sized hot tents for camping
Want to cook on your stove as well as heat with it
Travel by vehicle, sled, or boat where weight is not the primary concern
Want a stove that looks as good as it performs
It is not the right fit if you:
Need a hiking stove where weight matters
Want the maximum firebox volume for heating large tents
Would struggle with an ash clearing process that requires disassembly
Should you buy the Pomoly Dagger wood stove?
The Dagger stove is a well-built, capable stove that performs exactly as a thick stainless steel heating stove should. The airflow design is genuinely good, the cooking surface is more useful than expected, and the glass panels make it one of the better looking stoves in the Pomoly lineup.
The missing ash tray is the one thing I would change. It is not a dealbreaker but it is a noticeable omission on a stove at this price point and it creates a genuinely awkward process for ash clearing when the stove is hot.
If you are looking for a solid cold weather tent stove that will last and holds heat well through an Ontario winter night, the Dagger delivers.
This stove was provided by Pomoly as part of an ongoing gear review arrangement. My content may contain affiliate links to products I mention. These are products I have tested and used personally.
