The Camp Chef Pro 60X camp stove cooking system is a freestanding camping stove designed to help you feed families and groups. The Pro 60X is also the base for full-size add-ons like a BBQ grill box, a pizza oven, and a classic camp griddle. The Pro 60X is a camp cooking beast.
To get us a closer look, Camp Chef sent Man Makes Fire a review unit. This is what we learned:
The Pro 60X Review
The Camp Chef Pro 60X is basically a very large 2-burner camping stove. When you want to cook like a champion, the Pro 60X is the stove you want — which is also why it’s one of our best camp stoves for 2020 and beyond.
The Pro 60X uses two heavy-duty 30,000 BTU burners. On their own, they work well with pots, pans and coffee pots of all sizes, but they really come alive with a versatile camp griddle and the aforementioned Deluxe BBQ Grill Box and pizza-ready Artisan Outdoor Oven. If you choose the Pro 60X, I recommend that you also nab a griddle if you don’t already have one. Camp Chef’s 14-inch Griddle works very well and I’m a big fan.
Meanwhile, back to the Pro 60X itself.
In addition to the raw — and versatile — power, the key reason to buy the Camp Chef Pro 60X is to get a heavy-duty, freestanding camp stove system that’s also portable. The stout legs fold down, the wind screen comes off, and the two side shelves fold in. The result is a stove you can fold up and take camping.
Of course, the Pro 60X requires a willingness to deal with its weight and size — it weighs 48.5 pounds, which means one person can lug it out of the back of a pickup and to your camp or picnic site. While there is a built-in carry handle, we recommend that you grab a Camp Chef carry bag — or even the wheeled carry bag if you want that option. It’ll make storage and transport a bit easier.
On the other hand, the Camp Chef Pro 60X is 32 inches high and does not require a camp table or picnic table to use. That’s super cool in and of itself. We’re always running out of camp table space, so the Pro 60X is a welcome addition to multi-day camping trips.
Ready for the Patio, Too
The size of the Pro 60X also makes it suitable as a back deck or patio stove and grill. If you want to do outdoor cooking at home, you can leave it setup outside and simply cover it up with a perfectly sized Camp Chef Patio Cover. For me, cooking bacon outside on the back deck has been a revelation — no more stinking up the house or splattering grease in the kitchen. Plus, with the Griddle, I can cook up a lot of bacon at once, then store it in the refrigerator cooked — where it’s handy for a quick high-protein snack, sandwich helper, or salad topping.
Pro tip: Once a week you can make it a habit to have an outside cook day where you cook up meats that you and your family can eat during the week. You’ll likely end up eating out at restaurants less, likely going to the grocery store less often, and you might even eat healthier overall.
The Pro 60X Design
The two 30,000 BTU burners are set lower under the grill than you’ll find in most small camp stoves. This allows you to adjust the flame and power to fit your needs. More importantly, it also lets the heat disperse on the way up for more even heating . . . while still allowing enough power for the Deluxe BBQ Grill Box and Artisan Outdoor Oven accessories.
Basically, the Camp Chef Pro 60X burners are excellent and positioned well.
However, you should know that in swirling winds, the burners can flutter a bit more than you might expect. It’s a pro/con you make by going with the large open cooking grate design. Consider that the 448 square inches of cooking area is fairly open if you’re using smaller pots and pans, and when you have all that heat, you want a bit of space for it to do its work. Those openings give swirling wind a place to blow.
You should also know that when you have one side being used by the Griddle or Deluxe BBQ Grill Box, the more open burner gains some extra shielding from the wind. The Pro 60X blocks sustained side-blowing winds very well, but gusty swirls can come at the burners from above. I don’t consider it much of a con, just something you might want to consider if you plan to cook in very windy conditions with smaller cookware.
Stable and Strong
The steel folding legs with adjustable leg-levelers make the Pro 60X very stable. The grate is super strong, too — it can support a heavy dutch oven with ease.
The best use case for the Camp Chef Pro 60X is for people who want to have a great experience while cooking. On my last camping trip — with just five people — I waffled a bit on whether to take the Pro 60X or go small and light with a more portable table-top camp stove like the Camp Chef Everest. I chose the Pro 60X, and I’m glad I did — it’s just so much nicer to have a super sturdy cooking platform that works well. I cooked up bacon on the griddle and elk burgers on the Deluxe BBQ Grill Box. The next morning it was pancakes and coffee. So good.
If you have a cabin, some outdoor property, or go camping for a few days at a time, the Pro 60X is an easy win. If you want to be the camp chef and wow your friends and family, the Pro 60X is a win. And if you want an outdoor cooking system that can live on your deck or patio . . . and still go camping, the Pro 60X is a great fit, too.
In case this wasn’t clear, you’ll need to use a propane tank with the Pro 60X — a 20-lb tank is recommended, but I’ve used a smaller 10-lb tank, too.
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A Cooking System: 14-inch Accessories
The best way to think of the Pro 60X is to consider it the core part of a versatile cooking system. You can have great success without any accessories or you can amplify your experience by adding the pieces you want most. You can add both 1-burner accessories that fit one burner . . . or 2-burner accessories that fit both burners! If you’re not pleased with that level of customization, well, you should be.
I recommend the 14-inch Griddle for sure — and you can get a carry case for it, which I also recommend. But again, you can get a 2-burner griddle, too.
The Deluxe BBQ Grill Box has a nice cast-iron grill, and the lid locks shut, which also holds the grill in place. It’s a pretty smart design, actually. Plus, the Deluxe BBQ Grill Box works far better than I was expecting — it did a great job with elk burgers, which require more care and attention than your typical beef burger.
Shop the 14-inch Deluxe BBQ Grill Box at Cabela’s and get FREE 2-day shipping!
I haven’t tried the Artisan Outdoor Oven myself, but it’s on my mind . . . I’d rather bake pizza outside on a hot summer day than inside, certainly.
You should also know that Camp Chef also makes 16-inch stoves, which means that these stoves have cooking grates that are 16-inches in width (front-to-back). If you’re going to add an accessory like a Deluxe BBQ Grill Box or Griddle, you’ll want to get the matching size for your stove — either a 14-inch or 16-inch version.
Do I think you need a 16-inch stove? Only if you’re really going to be cooking for very large groups. I believe the 14-inchers will be a better fit for most people.
Camp Chef Pro 60X Alternative Stoves
One great thing about Camp Chef is the company makes several different versions of their freestanding, full-size camp stoves. If the Pro 60X is a bit more than you want, you can get alternative stoves that cost less. For instance, you don’t have to get folding legs, side tables, and a windscreen.
For instance, you can choose the very affordable Pioneer. It weighs just 28 pounds and while it lacks a windscreen, the burners are protected by larget rounded tubes. The legs remove and slide into pockets in the Camp Chef carry bag. It works with all the same 14-inch accessories. In fact, any full-size 2-burner Camp Chef stove is so good, it nabbed a spot in our 25 Best Outdoor Gifts for Men guide.
You can even get a single-burner Pro 30X with a flip-out shelf.
Shop all Camp Chef cooking systems for your next camping trip!
The Verdict
The Pro 60X isn’t the first full-size Camp Chef stove I’ve used over the years, but it is the first that I paid close attention to and put through its paces. The end result is that it’s a fantastic full-size camping stove — scratch that, a fantastic cooking system. If you want a rugged, freestanding stove for serious outdoor cooking, it’s hard to go wrong with the Camp Chef Pro 60X. Very highly recommended.
Get the Gear:
Camp Chef Pro 60X – check shipping/pricing:
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