Petromax Dreibein ft9

The Petromax tripod is a stand made of three legs with a chain and a hook. You hang a fire pot, a cauldron or a grill grate from it over a fire. It does not come with a grate, and it does not come with a fire bowl either. Our page title speaks of a swing grill; in our reading, it only becomes one once you hang a grate on it.

We have not handled it and have not grilled anything on it. Our basis is Petromax’s product page and instruction manual (both read on 14 October 2026), the Amazon catalogue, and the prices and scores of its sibling products in our catalogue. Our own calculations and assessments are marked as such.

What is in the box, and what is not

According to Petromax’s product page, the delivery consists of a tripod, a chain, a hook and the instruction manual. A grate, a fire bowl, a fire pot and a bag are not on that list, and Amazon lists only “1 x Petromax tripod with chain & hook” as the scope of delivery. On the hook, the sources contradict each other: the instructions speak of two S-hooks, the product page of one. The product photo shows three straight legs that meet at the top and a link chain that ends in an S-hook at the bottom. No grate is visible in it.

The name is also worth a look. Petromax lists the item as “Dreibein mit Kette & Haken” (tripod with chain & hook), item number D1; an “ft9” does not appear in this name. At Petromax, ft9 denotes the size of a fire pot, that is, a Dutch oven with a 7.5 litre capacity. A tripod ft9 does not exist in the Petromax shop, and why our page name suggests one cannot be determined from the sources.

On Amazon, the listing page has a selection under “Size” in which Amazon bundles four items: the tripod with chain and hook (B00L7TR452, the one this page is about), a hanging grate with steel chain (B08ND5L27B) and two tripod rings (B084WYZHH8 and B0B1DGG9VG). The ring is not a stand but a stainless steel ring that joins three branches you carve yourself; hook and chain are included, and it costs from €14.90 at Petromax. That our ASIN belongs to the stand is based on part number D1 in the Amazon catalogue. Petromax does not link to Amazon anywhere, so the match could not be checked against the manufacturer.

Material, dimensions and weight

The stand is made of steel, galvanised. That is what the product page, the instructions and the Amazon catalogue say, the latter giving the colour as silver. Galvanised means: the steel carries a zinc layer meant to protect it from rust. The instructions still warn about moisture and surface rust (more under care). Our assessment: a zinc layer is no substitute for drying.

The setup height can be adjusted infinitely from 88 to 144 cm, and the legs are 88 to 159 cm long according to the instructions. Each of the three legs can be adjusted individually and infinitely so that the stand compensates for uneven ground, and the feet are bevelled so that it stands securely on different surfaces.

Folded, the tripod measures 98 x 12 x 12 cm. The product page labels the order of the three numbers inconsistently; we read them as 98 cm length with a 12 cm cross-section. Petromax calls the tripod easy to transport and compact to store.

On weight you have three sources and three values: 4.3 kg in the instructions, 4.76 kg on the product page (5 kg with packaging) and 4100 g in the data row of the Amazon listing. Which one is right cannot be decided. For your luggage, we would plan on 5 kg.

In detail: you control heat via distance

A tripod has no burner and no lid. How hot it gets at the grate or the pot depends mainly on the distance to the fire. Petromax writes that the heat can be regulated via the chain length, from gentle cooking to intense grilling.

The reason is general physics: an open fire radiates heat that falls off quickly with distance, and the rising air cools on its way up. The lower the grate or pot hangs, the stronger the heat. The second control is the fire itself, that is, the amount and condition of embers and flame. The legs also shift things somewhat: because the setup height can be changed infinitely, the suspension point of the chain moves with it. Petromax justifies the adjustable legs with compensating for unevenness, not with heat control.

Figures for the control range are missing: chain length, distances in centimetres, temperatures, cooking times and notes on indirect grilling are not stated, so we give none here either. Our conclusion from the design: the stand hangs food or a pot from one point above the fire and has no zones of its own. Zones only arise from the fire pit you bring yourself. What distinguishes direct from indirect heat is explained in the guide direct and indirect heat.

Does the tripod carry a filled fire pot?

For the ft9 fire pot, Petromax writes that it can be hung filled from a tripod; no compatibility list exists for the D1. For larger pots there is no statement at all. The only load figure is the maximum load of 40 kg; you add up pot and filling yourself.

Petromax gives the empty weights for the versions with feet: the ft9 weighs 9.495 kg with a 7.5 litre capacity, the ft12 13.86 kg with 10.8 litres, the ft18 17.4 kg with 16.1 litres. If you roughly add one kilogram per litre of filling, the ft9 comes to around 17 kg, the ft12 to around 24.7 kg and the ft18 to around 33.5 kg. All three totals are below 40 kg. This is our calculation and not an approval; the totals apply to full pots, a half-filled one is lower.

How a fire pot is fired and what it needs is covered in the guide Dutch oven guide.

What comes on top of the stand and what it costs

You cannot cook anything with the stand alone; Petromax sells the add-ons as separate items. The hanging grate has a 50 cm diameter, is made of chromed steel and costs €39.90 in the Petromax shop. Petromax also offers a hanging grill bowl (Ø 56 cm, €119.00), a poultry grill basket (currently €14.99) and the TA-D1 carry bag for €29.90.

The stand itself costs €74.90 in the Petromax shop (as of 14 October 2026), including VAT and plus shipping. You can see the delivery status in the Petromax shop; it changes. On Amazon, the listing page for this variant showed no price in the main offer on the same day, but the note “24 options from €74.80”. The lowest price was therefore approx. €75, as much as in the Petromax shop. The price on the day you buy is what counts.

Stand and hanging grate come to €114.80 at the manufacturer’s prices of 14 October 2026, with the bag to €144.70 (our own calculation). Fire pit and fuel are not included, nor is what the instructions require: heat-resistant gloves or oven mitts and, for emergencies, a bucket of sand or a powder fire extinguisher. For the choice between charcoal and briquettes, the guide charcoal or briquettes helps.

Setup, safety and care according to the instructions

Before setting up, according to the instructions, you check the ground: it should be neither too smooth nor too soft, so the legs do not sink in or slip under load. It names forest floor, a meadow at a campsite, a garden or a yard as ideal. The individually adjustable legs and the bevelled feet compensate for unevenness.

Petromax requires you to read the instructions before first use, keep them and pass them on to a later owner. The safety notes from pages 2 and 3 read as follows in our words, in full; the instructions in the box are authoritative:

• “Use your Petromax tripod as a cooking and fire place exclusively outdoors.” In enclosed spaces there is a risk of fire and suffocation.
• Observe the applicable fire protection regulations; in nature, show consideration for animals, plants and nature reserves.
• When building the fire pit, keep a safe distance from flammable and heat-sensitive objects and materials.
• Tripod, chain and hook can get very hot over an open fire; always handle the tripod and accessories with heat-resistant gloves or oven mitts.
• Let the tripod, chain and hook cool down well after the fire has gone out before you stow them for transport.
• Never leave the tripod unattended while a fire is burning beneath it.
• Children and animals must not be near it unsupervised.
• Do not move the tripod while it is in use or while cookware hangs from it.
• Be careful when adding fuel and always protect your hands with fireproof gloves.
• Never extinguish wood or charcoal embers with water; keep a bucket of sand or a powder fire extinguisher ready for emergencies.
• Before leaving a campsite in nature, extinguish the fire completely and tidy up the fire pit.

On the product page, Petromax also warns with pictograms about hot surfaces (do not touch, wear protective gloves). Another pictogram shows the grill crossed out in a vehicle, in a house and in a tent, and ticked in green outdoors; there is no explanatory text on the page, only the graphic’s file name reads “Kohlenmonoxidvergiftung” (carbon monoxide poisoning). The instruction text mentions only the risk of fire and suffocation. In general, and not as a statement by Petromax: embers release carbon monoxide, which you can neither smell nor see.

The instructions describe cleaning on page 4 like this: only once everything has cooled down completely do you remove soot with a soft, dry cloth. For heavy soiling, use clear water, mild dish soap and a soft cloth, and dry well afterwards. The same applies to chain and hook.

For storage, it requires: do not keep it outdoors unprotected, stow all parts only once they have fully cooled, been cleaned and dried, and by all means avoid damp from storage and condensation. Tripod, chain and hook are covered or wrapped in a dry cloth, to protect against moisture and surface rust.

What Petromax does not state

On these points, neither the product page nor the instructions give any information:

• Length of the chain, number of links and hanging height of the grate above the embers
• Material and dimensions of chain and hook
• Tube diameter, wall thickness and steel grade of the legs, coating thickness and method of the galvanising
• Reason why the leg length (up to 159 cm) reaches further than the setup height (up to 144 cm)
• Grilling area of the hanging grate in square centimetres; the page gives diameter, rim height and weight
• Recommended fuel and a suitable fire pit
• Footprint of the assembled stand (no spread width is given)
• Stability in wind and tipping limit
• Maximum temperature, temperatures at the grate, cooking times and number of people
• Minimum distance to flammable materials in centimetres and wind protection
• Setup time
• Country of manufacture of the tripod: “Made in Germany” appears only for the hanging grill bowl; Petromax calls itself a German heritage brand with over 100 years of experience, which says nothing about where the D1 is made
• Market launch: the instruction PDF carries a creation date of 19 June 2020 according to its metadata, the shop page has existed since October 2023, and neither is a market launch
• Spare parts: among the 430 products of the Petromax shop (viewed on 14 October 2026) there is no separate item for a replacement chain, replacement hook or legs

These three alternatives are worth a look

The table is not suitable for price gaps: it puts a bare stand next to sets, and the prices are guide values from our price boxes, for the Petromax with the deviation from the shop price that the text above explains. The score is our editorial assessment from manufacturer data, not a measurement result.

When the tripod fits and when it does not

Start with what you already own. If you have a hanging grate or a fire pot and a fire pit, the tripod is the smallest item, because according to Petromax exactly these parts hang from its hook. If you have none of that, with it you only buy the suspension point. The Lemodo set comes with a fire bowl, grate and goulash cauldron according to Amazon, the HeRo24 set with a grate and crank according to the manufacturer. Both cost more in our price boxes than stand and hanging grate at the manufacturer’s prices, though the Lemodo set includes the fire bowl.

Then the load. With an ft9 you stay well below 40 kg by our calculation. If you want to fill an ft12 or ft18, you have no approval from the manufacturer for the D1. We would ask Petromax first or look at the Feuerbrücke FRK1, which Petromax rates at a maximum load of 70 kg; its data is in the FAQ.

Height decides if you plan a deep fire bowl or a Dutch oven with plenty of air above the embers. The Petromax only sets up to 144 cm. According to the Amazon bullet points, the Grilltante XXL reaches 200 cm and 8 kg, while the Petromax weighs 4.3 kg according to the instructions and slides together to 98 cm in length, whereas the Grilltante can be taken apart according to Amazon and comes with a carry bag.

On a balcony, Petromax gives no approval at all for wood or charcoal fires. What your tenancy agreement and house rules allow is something to clarify first; the legal situation is summarised in the guide grilling on a balcony.

If you want to cook by the numbers, the tripod is the wrong choice. It has no lid, no thermometer and no temperature indication, so you regulate by eye. For the core temperature in meat you need a thermometer of your own; the guide grill thermometer helps with choosing. You will find appliances with lids in the overview of charcoal grills, and the Grill Finder sorts by grill type.

The tripod is wrong for anyone who wants to be ready to grill in one go: without a fire pit, grate and fuel, the stand cooks nothing.