Not so hot....

[todd kelly]

Having the latest and greatest gear is the cool thing to do in hunting these days, and is an easy game to get caught up in. I find myself pulling out the old Visa more often then I should or need to do.

Also, finding honest gear reviews is becoming harder and harder. Can you trust a review from a guy that is sponsored by the company, or spent top dollar and now has to justify his purchase, or worse yet the guy who has not even used the item and is now spouting off how great it is...

So whats some gear that you have got caught up in and had to have, but wasn`t so hot once you got it?

For myself it was the floorless shelter. A must have shelter these days, and something I had to have. So 400 some dollars later I was set and part of the floorless club. I was able to use it during an oddly dry spring bear hunt and was pretty pleased with my purchase. I was thinking I had it made and was off on a solo sheep hunt a few month later. Then everything got wet. Condensation, wet ground, wet gear, muddy gear, just plain old wet.

Coming home pretty disappointed, I was off on a goat hunt and same thing, wet. I did some research after the season looking for options, and low and behold I found a solution, buy a tarp and use as a floor! My floorless shelter needed a floor. Off to the classifieds and I'm happy again with a floored tent!

 

[WyoElk]

I had the same experience with floorless. Seemed like a great idea, and I'm sure it is to some, but I have not enjoyed it at all. I will be looking for a copper spur UL2 shortly.

 

[VernAK]

Did you have a stove?

 

[PathFinder]

My experience has been the exact opposite with floorless shelters. I absolutely love mine, and despise conventional floored tents. Too much weight for far too little room. In terms of "drinking the Kool-aid" mine was the Vortex Razor HD spotter. What a pile of junk. I've purged all of my sub par Vortex optics. I typically trust the reviews from the staff on here. The optics tests are a good example; I love seeing a resolution chart being used to test actual optical performance. I end up just testing tons of gear to failure and coming to my own conclusions. It's half the fun for me.

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[todd kelly]

Did you have a stove?

no stove as the point of going floorless for myself was to save weight. Adding a stove, jack, and vestibule would over double the weight of my current tent.

No need to defend floorless shelters. Tried it and didn't work for me, but doesn't mean it won't work for you.... That's why we have options.

 

[Ryan Avery]

I love floorless shelters. I live in a really wet environment and never had an issue.

Not so hot would be Sitka Polygiene.
It stunk after a day on two different backcountry hunts. But did keep me warm on some very cold day. I'm going to stick with merino/Poly blend like Aerowool from now on.

And my quilt! Froze my ass off trying to make it work.


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[Justin Crossley]

I really like most my Firstlite clothing but I've tried both pairs of their Merino boxers and won't own another pair. They just don't last nearly long enough to justify the cost. I'll be sticking with Exofficio, Under Armor, and Duluth which have all worked great for me.

 

[GKPrice]

I love floorless shelters. I live in a really wet environment and never had an issue.

Not so hot would be Sitka Polygiene.
It stunk after a day on two different backcountry hunts. But did keep me warm on some very cold day. I'm going to stick with merino from now on.

And my quilt! Froze my ass off trying to make it work.


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HA ! have the same feelings about quilts - might be great for some, just not this old cowboy .....

 

[WyoElk]

No stove in my floorless either. The big issue for me is that im a stomach sleeper and arms and legs tend to extend off my pad which isn't great in the floorless. I like having a floor, and taking my boots off and leaving them in the vestibule. I could see where a tipi/ stove combo would be great but it's way outside my budget.

A quilt on the other hand has worked great for me for the same reasons as listed above. I'm a warm sleeper anyway so I think that helps.

I agree with the sediment above, you just have to try stuff out and see what works for you.

 

[mrbillbrown]

2 of my big fail attempts: spotters and quilts.

Any and all spotters I've purchased. Not because of price or poor quality.... I just don't like squinting with one eye. Using 2 eyes and binos is much easier/better for me than trying to use a spotter like everybody else.

Quilts also don't work for me. Tried a couple of times because all the cool kids were/are doing it. Silly straps and drafts.....I'm a bag guy pure and simple.

 

[tttoadman]

I do way too much research, and rarely do I regret any moves. The only gear that didn't work for me was going with the tarp and bivy. I just made a minor change to a tarp and nest.

I have 2 vortex optics. Binos are really nice for me, as they are genually a step up from what had. The scope was likely not the best move, but I wanted to give it a try. It is OK, but I will compare it to my VXII before this coming year.

I have reached a point that I have to consider how long I can keep packing in like I do now. I have enough quality gear that will get the job done likely as long as I can keep doing this.

 

[bcimport]

Things I've been disappointed with after too much internet kool aid (everyone's take on things will be subjective of course).

Kifaru - frame was comfy but plagued with stitching issues, unimpressed with the layout and stitching on every pack bag I've had from them. Centre zip slick bag wasn't warm enough for me and had Velcro and stitching that rubbed me uncomfortably v

Vortex Kaibabs - not impressed with the clarity at all, sent a pair back and they replaced them with a pair that was better but still not acceptable for the cost. I have been impressed with my razor binos and spotters over the years.

Merino - been there done that and feel 3/4 ashamed of the money I have spent on it (multiple brands). Scent management is great but the dry time sucks and the durability on the thinner stuff isn't good.

Types of equipment are pretty subjective (I love floorless shelters and quilts) and I can see how we all have varying view points. However, I wonder how quality control issues and durability issues get white washed. Sponsorships and free perhaps adjust people's perspective and certainly a need to like something after they pay a bunch for it.

 

[justinspicher]

I fell into the trap of collecting gear, but I was living in Kansas and there wasn't much else to do there. I moved to Colorado and realized I had more stuff than I'd ever use so I am slowly purging it and using just what I feel is needed. Not as easy as it sounds, but it's a work in progress.

Spotter. Those things are heavy and they gave me a headache after prolonged periods of time looking through them. I am much happier with my binos on a tripod.

Quilt. I really liked mine, but I was finding that because it was a down quilt I was extremely careful with it. I recently decided that I was going to offload it and just use my USGI poncho liner. My wife sewed a camo fleece blanket to one side so its fairly warm and if I use layers I can be quite comfy. It's heavier, but I am not worried about it getting dirty, wet or torn. I have had that thing for close to twenty years and it has been on almost every outdoor excursion I've been on anyway.

Inreach. The boss bought some for the team so having my own personal one is no longer needed. I'll admit, I got pretty lucky on this one.

Tarps. These things just piss me off. Sure, they are light and all, but I don't like being cramped, at all. Even when I am buy myself. I really tried to like them, but unless I am using one in an absolute emergency, I'll just continue to carry my SL5.

Kill Kit. I almost feel like this is a jinx. When I have it with me I don't see anything. When I leave it at home, animals are everywhere. Maybe its just me......

 

[WoodBow]

I bought a crap ton of FL merino after drinking the koolaid. Im a big believer in it as a next to skin material, but it just plain sucks for any layer past that. It is heavy amd has crap insulation value. I will stick with synthetic for every layer besides base.

 

[Jacob_Outdoors]

First Lite. Every piece I've purchased (a lot) has failed within two years. When you're spending $80-115 on a shirt you don't expect it to be invincible, but a certain amount of longevity is expected. The boxers, shirts, and even a pair of Kanabs I owned all developed holes within two years of normal use (I spend around 30-40 days afield a year) I babied some of this stuff, which also led to frustration since I felt like it was affecting my hunting style. My stormtight developed zipper issues, sent it in for one of the ventilation zippers to be fixed, shortly after getting it back the main zipper went south. I've switched over to a different merino company and only use it for base layers. I got rid of all my first lite stuff, I just can't justify it.


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[AK Troutbum]

I think my biggest gear failure was being sucked into the whole Rivers West rain gear ads about 11 or 12 years ago. I totally bought into the commercials and spent about $500 on a set, which at the time was the most $ I had ever spent on rain gear. The first time using it that year, was on Kodiak in Oct. and, the jacket quickly wetted out in the shoulders and the crotch, on the pants, blew out while making my first hike. Very disappointed in them to say the least. I still have this set simply because I would never sell it and contribute to someone else enduring the same miserable experience I had with them.

Next would have to be, okay get ready for this one, my Kifaru DT1. A super tough bag/frame, but with that comes weight. Also, no matter what I did with the lumbar pad, I could not get it to keep from rubbing my lumbar area raw when packing loads over 100 lbs.

 

[Ryan Avery]

First Lite. Every piece I've purchased (a lot) has failed within two years. When you're spending $80-115 on a shirt you don't expect it to be invincible, but a certain amount of longevity is expected. The boxers, shirts, and even a pair of Kanabs I owned all developed holes within two years of normal use (I spend around 30-40 days afield a year) I babied some of this stuff, which also led to frustration since I felt like it was affecting my hunting style. My stormtight developed zipper issues, sent it in for one of the ventilation zippers to be fixed, shortly after getting it back the main zipper went south. I've switched over to a different merino company and only use it for base layers. I got rid of all my first lite stuff, I just can't justify it.


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I've never had any merino from any company last two years. But I will say the Aerowool is pretty tough for a merino blend.

 

[duchntr]

Only purchase I regret in recent years was a Kifaru Bikini frame, years before I went through a number of crap "hunting" brand packs like eberle before buying a MR pack.

 

[Montanated]

Only purchase I regret in recent years was a Kifaru Bikini frame, years before I went through a number of crap "hunting" brand packs like eberle before buying a MR pack.

I too regret the eberle pack. Hung like a brick. Glad I made the switch a few years back to MR, only hinderance is the weight of it.

I've been researching on here thinking about a tipi for hunting with my son whom will be with me for the first time this year.

I really want a light weight unit for use with a stove without worry of being cramped it am hesitant on the floorless design because I am beyond hygiene crippled at times and hate dirt and crap all over my stuff. Definitely more thought is needed.

 

[Ryan Avery]

"Hygiene Crippled" that's funny shit!