Okay, just to confuse this matter further- do you guys prefer a log tray/grate in the bottom of your stove or not?
Sheister, you will probably get varying answers because there are a lot of different stoves and designs out there. There will be plenty of personal opinions based on how individuals use their stoves. You will probably have to experiment with what you get to figure out what works for you and the stove's idiosyncrasies.
I only use whatever local firewood I can get where I am camped, which has been a variety of places. My comments come from having owned a couple different stoves for years, and used others. All of them were collapsing or at least folding portable sheetmetal types that are sold to go with wall tents. But with that said, I am a genetic fire-poker, and I like a fire the way I like it.
The one I have kept all these years is a stove I got from Beckel Canvas Products back in the early 80s. They have a newer model now that is similar but way fancier. But the one I have does best with a small fireplace-type grate in it. As did another that I am not sure the maker on that; I sold it with my other tent sometime back. But they will burn without a grate as well. I just find that with mine, it helps to get the logs a couple inches off the floor so I can accumulate coals on the floor for steady heat and have the logs up a little so air circulates around the logs better. But I probably manage a fire differently than many. I do not run my stove overnight. It burns out after bedtime, and is relit in the morning.
The grate I use looks like this cheap little one shown in the link below. What I have is modified from its original size by cutting the legs to shorten them to about 2.5 to 3 inches, and it was cut down to fit the firebox. But the style is like shown.
stove grate example
