Considering the price of this item, I'd really had high hopes for the quality of the hub and cast iron grill cooktop set. It was my intention, if the grill was of high quality, to go ahead and purchase the wok -- and, perhaps, the griddle, too. I might have started with the wok set, actually, had it been available shipped via Amazon rather than through Solo Stove, but having received damaged items through 3rd-party sellers in the past, I wanted to ensure myself an easy return in the event of damage, and grills definitely have their uses, too, so I decided to start with the hub+grill cooktop set that was being shipped via Amazon. In terms of the Solo Stove cooking system, this order was me putting in my toe and testing the waters (and Solo Stove's cooktop quality control). The hub seemed to be in solid shape (though I didn't take the time to remove it from the plastic to examine it super closely for scuffs after seeing the the grill cooktop) -- that part of the set seemed, based on cursory inspection, structurally solid and didn't appear bent. So had that hub been the only item in this purchase, this rating would have likely been much higher. Unfortunately, though, there were a number of scratches and scuffs on the grill cooktop I received -- had there been an option just to keep the hub and be refunded 1/2 for the grill, I probably would have done that, but since it's a set, it all had to be returned. I will say that had the surface of the grill cooktop not had a lot of scuffs/scratches upon arrival, I would have been pleased with the size and heft of this pan and definitely would have kept it. But the damage patterns I'm seeing -- which included, but were not limited to, several scratches following a circular pattern (as if someone had put a large metal ring on top of it and then turned it) -- were excessive for a new item, especially at this price point. I've attached a few pics of damage on the surface of the pan I received today (this doesn't cover all of it, but it does capture some of the more obvious spots) as well as a couple showing small flaws in the cast (one round one the outer part of the pan and one irregular in shape closer to the center of the pan -- sadly, the latter image is a bit blurry, so I couldn't fully capture it, but I've circled these irregularities in two images). Because they're a bit deeper, those could potentially be points of weakness, but the pan is thick, so I still probably would have tolerated the small irregularities as "character" had it not been for the scratch/scuff damage. I couldn't quite capture it fully, but a few of the light-colored scuffs/scratches are indented and smooth in texture, as opposed to the rough surface of most of the pan, so while they weren't extremely deep gouges, the damage did definitely penetrate the surface. The accompanying documentation says that the cast iron cooktop is "one seasoning" away from being ready to use -- the seasoning on the pan was definitely irregular (you can see some of that in one of the images), but one more good seasoning might have been enough had there not been the scratch/scuff damage. It is also possible that I might have been able to renew this cooktop if I did a lot of scrubbing/resurfacing with a metal scrubber and multiple re-seasonings. But I didn't want to take the chance because if that didn't work, then I wouldn't be able to return it in the same condition. And, frankly, at this price point, I believe I should be able to expect to receive an undamaged cooktop. Of course, it would be one thing if I had paid a heavily discounted price for a used item -- it might be worth the labor then -- but I paid the full price, and I've got a chronic health condition, so I don't have a lot of extra time and energy for that kind of rehab project. Based on the way this pan was packaged, I can't envision how the damage patterns I noted could have occurred after boxing or during shipping -- there is a solid, thick foam separation between the hub and the pan -- so I have some concerns about quality control. I'm not sure how a careful quality control process would allow this kind of damage to get missed before packaging, but not all company's quality control processes are equal. While items did appear intact, I did get the impression, based on the condition of the box, the fact that the silica package was spilling silica balls all over the bubble-wrap-enveloped cooktop, and the particular way the box was taped that someone else MAY have already opened this box (although it may have just been a poor initial packaging job, too). So I don't know for sure whether this was damage that occurred before/during packaging or whether this was damage related to a previous purchaser. What I do know, though, is that I received the set with cooktop surface damage, and those scratches/scuffs were in excess of what I consider acceptable for a product that I purchased as brand new. After all, if I were in a store buying new cast iron cookware, I wouldn't buy a pan that looked like this. And I baby my cast iron to prevent damage like this from occurring. So as excited as I was to cook on my Ranger -- and I really, really was -- sadly, this hub+grill set had to go back. I am going to re-order just the hub once I get refunded and hope that arrives unscathed since the first hub seemed to be okay, but this particular purchasing experience was, I confess, a disappointing one. If the grill cooktop had been in unmarred condition, I would have had the confidence to definitely purchase another cooktop -- and I've really had my eyes on that wok. But based on the grill cooktop I received, I AM, I must confess, more hesitant about trying to order another cooktop than I would have been had everything gone smoothly, and at the time of this review, I'm not sure whether I'll try again with a different cooktop or not. I really did appreciate the weight and heft of that grill cooktop I received, and the size was just right for my purposes -- it was just the damage that made the set I received a non-starter for me.
