Feedback on Little Buddy Heater (tank-top style heater)

[holehopper]

I've been considering getting a Little Buddy heater (the kind that sits on top of a 1 lb propane tank) and would like some feedback from anyone that owns one.  I would be using this in a 1 man flip over shelter and have found the regular buddy heater to be too warm.  I am constantly turning it on and off. 

I do have a small sunflower heater that I could use but as you know, they burn anything that gets near them.  One of the things I like about the Buddy heater is that really the only part of it that gets hot is the grill in the front.  Is that the same with the Little Buddy heater?  Does the outer ring get hot on that unit or is it really just the grate that gets hot?  It seems to me like the ceramic heating element is far enough back inside the Little Buddy that you don't get the same sort of line melting, canvas burning, heat that you do with a regular sunflower heater.  With that sunflower, if you get it anywhere near anything that will melt or burn, you are going to have an issue.  Is the Little Buddy a little more "forgiving" based on the heating element being a little more wrapped inside the unit?  Could you position this with the back of the unit close to the canvas and not have to worry about it melting the canvas? 

The Little Buddy also looks a little "top heavy" to me.  Are they pretty tippy? 

Thanks for any feedback you can share.  I see them for sale all over Craigslist and that tells me that guys aren't thrilled with them, but wanted to hear some feedback.  Thank you!

[Jeff in WI]

I've got a 1 man Jason Mitchell flip over and the little buddy is perfect for heating it. It will not tip over unless you kick it over. I do have the small clam light/fan that I hang from one of the overhead poles to help circulate the warm air. I also have a older 2 man otter wild. When it got REALLY cold the little buddy was not quite big enough. I added reflectix insulation to the roof of the otter and now the little buddy just gets the job done. I usually have mine on the right side of the shelter pretty close to the wall, but not actually touching the fabric and have had no problems. If I can ever figure out how to post a pic on this site I will post a picture. For a one man shelter it is great. There are also a number of home made mods you can make. Dave Genz has a video of how he modified his to stay in place while towing his shelter. One I plan to do is a small alum. shelf that hangs from the handle and extends over the front and allows you to heat up some soup or warm up a brat!

Just reread your post. The heater I'm posting about is the red, one bottle heater with the handle on top vs. the Big Buddy that that has 2 1lb bottles. I don't like sunflower style heaters. To easy to burn/melt things in a small shelter.
Here is a link to a pic.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/33448956@N03/10984431266/

[sunniewally]

the little buddy heater is 3800 btu the regular buddy heaters low setting is 4000 btu. will that really make muck difference?

[massNtrash]

I have a little buddy that I use to heat my clam Bigfoot and it gets the job done just fine until it gets below zero. The only part that gets hot is the grill on the front. It is extremely stable from what I've seen. It can be a little difficult to light at times but that is all. I kinda wish that it wouldn't shut itself off when it is on its side so I could boil a pot of water with it but that's ok I guess. Overall I like it and I'm glad I bought it you won't be disappointed

[holehopper]

Thanks everyone!  I really appreciate the info.