CSC'rs: Show and tell camping/wheeling/expedition gear (1 Viewer)

[murf]

How about posting up your opinion of gear you have had or just obtained.

Some good feedback would help steer others in making wise purchase decisions, not to mention a source of ideas to keep feeding the sickness

camping gear, expedition gear, tools, wheeling must haves, sleeping items, etc, etc. Share what you like and dont like

...and of course pictures are nice!

 

[murf]

ok, Ill start

instead if getting scolded from the Mrs. from taking silverware out of the kitchen for my camping trips , I ordered a Boker Magnum outdoor Cuisine III knife for just these occasions. Boker Outdoor & Collection


Ive seen some of the ceramic knives in other campsites which I like but wanted to give this a try. ill post up opinions after this weekend.

 

[LX Avalanche]

Great idea. Especially for newcomers like myself looking to make big purchases in the near future.

 

[blatant]

An Awning. An awning is a requirement in this hot state, imo for any extended stop. They set up in seconds and allow stops to be longer and more enjoyable. Awnings have all sorts of mounting options and are a welcomed respite from the sun. Show up at any meet and you can review several varieties.

 

[jclarke450]

Just ordered my hacksaw for those who were on the Death Valley Trip!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003KINVKA?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

 

[Saddletramp]

Just ordered my hacksaw for those who were on the Death Valley Trip!

Milwaukee 48-22-0305 Folding Jab Saw 6-Inch - - Amazon.com

No group buy?

 

[blatant]

I just picked up a couple of these. Very slick.

Streamlight 66318 MicroStream C4 LED Pen Flashlight - Basic Handheld Flashlights - Amazon.com

 

[Otter]

My brand new Bushranger X-Jack came in really handy in Death Valley.

Amazon.com: ARB 72X10 Orange Bushranger X-Jack Kit: Automotive

It's required equipment for all Subaru WRX rally racer rescues.

 

[Rudster]

Tried and proven

 

[LandCruiserPhil]

Just ordered my hacksaw for those who were on the Death Valley Trip!

Milwaukee 48-22-0305 Folding Jab Saw 6-Inch - - Amazon.com

I carry a hacksaw blade mostly for cutting hose but for the serious stuff I carry an air powered die grinder with cutoff wheels.

 

[SOAZtim]

How about posting up your opinion of gear you have had or just obtained.

Some good feedback would help steer others in making wise purchase decisions, not to mention a source of ideas to keep feeding the sickness
camping gear, expedition gear, tools, wheeling must haves, sleeping items, etc, etc. Share what you like and dont like

...and of course pictures are nice!

I am a big fan of my Microstart. I carry it on the motorcycle or in the car or truck when I'm going on a roadtrip. If I dont need it I can charge my phone, camera or gopro and I've used it a couple times to jump start a friends truck or bike. I have the cheaper model, but there are even more powerful ones around. I wouldn't weld with them because the manufacturer states they may EXPLODE, but some of the other instructors at Overland Expo do weld with them (three of them in parrallel) and it seems to work. YMMV.
Don't buy directly from the manufacturer, they are a lot cheaper than MSRP other places on the net.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=microstart

Gotenna. Jury is still out on this one. Basically, in a rare twist my parents got me a gift for Christmas that I hadn't heard of and that actually applies to all the camping and backpacking we do. Pretty cool, but I'm still trying to compare to see if a traditional FRS Radio works better or these. The plus with this is that you can text which is sometimes nice. Also, you can send your GPS coord to the other Gotenna user if you were hurt or couldn't describe your locale very well.
I want to take out both to see which have a better range. In the truck we use HAM radio's, but it's expensive and heavy to carry 2 handheld HAM's when we are just out hiking around. This "might" be the replacement for the FRS Radio's we keep in our camelbacks for when we go hiking around, but I want to make sure we're not giving up range.
goTenna | Text & GPS on your phone, even without service.
Pretty small, but fairly expensive toy. With the 20% off coupon through REI it's a bit better. $199 retail.

 

[LongDuck]

LED Lanterns; recent purchases of GoalZero Lighthouse 250 and Lighthouse Mini (210), and a Nomad7 Solar Charger for extra points!

First, the Lighthouse 250 -

Used in Death Valley a few weeks back and the single biggest improvement is in design. This little lantern (about the size of a large can of peaches) has an internal, non-replaceable battery, a crank handle for on-board generator which seems more stout than earlier GoalZero LED lanterns, charging lights - those 4 blue LED's on the front so you know how much power you have left, and a 5v/1amp USB plug in the front for charging other devices. Seems pretty rugged, and the fold down legs of the new design are interesting, useful, and elevate the lantern plenty for getting it up off of a picnic table. The hanging bail on this one is a bit flimsy, though - and stiffer wire, maybe with a loop or hook on the top - would increase utility. Charging takes some time from 1amp/2.1amp USB connections, about 5-6hrs from dead to full up, but it will run seemingly forever at just about any light output - which is rated at 250lumens with both sides running. Speaking of, you can turn on one side, or both sides together for full brightness, and 250lumens is plenty for most camping situations. It's smaller than my Coleman, obviously, no white gas needed, and worked great on the Death Valley run, prompting me to buy...

The 250's Little Brother, the Lighthouse Mini (210lu) -

Hard to tell from the pictures, but the Mini is truly miniaturized, using the same 4 blue lights for charge, a similar turning dial for full dimmable power, one or two sides for limiting output, but removes the red LED's on top, and the crank charging capability, but adds a removable (18650) battery, a magnet on the base, a tripod thread adaptor on the base, and an open loop bail for easier hanging. The concessions are an improvement now that I've spent some time using it, as the crank generation is a lot of work for not much light. This Mini is smaller than a can of Red Bull for reference, and when you see it in person, it's surprising how much light it puts out - only 40lumens less than big brother, in a package about 1/3 the overall size and weight. The 18650 battery included seems to have much less capacity however, and I ran it tonight for about 3hrs on full blast just to see how long it would run. The 1amp USB charging port is convenient, as is the un-rollable USB charging input which laces nicely around the lower globe - just like in the bigger model, keeping the cord out of the way until you need it (USB plug is retained by a small magnet).

These make a great duo setup as the old saying of, "two is one, and one is none" is always in the back of my mind. They're not cheap by any stretch at $79 retail for Lighthouse250, and $59 for Lighthouse Mini, but I was willing to pay for the quality and performance features.

Nomad7 is about the size of a small notebook, and seems to charge well from AZ sunlight over the past few days. I was looking for another way to recharge phones and BearCat scanner, and this has all the plugs I need already attached. Nice build quality on everything and GoalZero has come a long way in design since just a few years ago. The early GoalZero LED lanterns purchased from LCP look cheap by comparison, and light output is far lower compared to the latest generation of LED's (Cree).

As I put more hours on these and spend more timing charging from solar, I'll have more information. I'll also bring them to future CSC Club Meetings if anyone is interested in seeing them up close,

 

[LandCruiserPhil]

LED Lanterns; recent purchases of GoalZero Lighthouse 250 and Lighthouse Mini (210), and a Nomad7 Solar Charger for extra points!

First, the Lighthouse 250 -
https://www.rei.com/media/6285e787-40c5-4d34-bfcd-d6e8bdcc78f0
Used in Death Valley a few weeks back and the single biggest improvement is in design. This little lantern (about the size of a large can of peaches) has an internal, non-replaceable battery, a crank handle for on-board generator which seems more stout than earlier GoalZero LED lanterns, charging lights - those 4 blue LED's on the front so you know how much power you have left, and a 5v/1amp USB plug in the front for charging other devices. Seems pretty rugged, and the fold down legs of the new design are interesting, useful, and elevate the lantern plenty for getting it up off of a picnic table. The hanging bail on this one is a bit flimsy, though - and stiffer wire, maybe with a loop or hook on the top - would increase utility. Charging takes some time from 1amp/2.1amp USB connections, about 5-6hrs from dead to full up, but it will run seemingly forever at just about any light output - which is rated at 250lumens with both sides running. Speaking of, you can turn on one side, or both sides together for full brightness, and 250lumens is plenty for most camping situations. It's smaller than my Coleman, obviously, no white gas needed, and worked great on the Death Valley run, prompting me to buy...

The 250's Little Brother, the Lighthouse Mini (210lu) -
https://www.rei.com/media/ff01646a-f41a-4237-a8f2-84ac489e6898
Hard to tell from the pictures, but the Mini is truly miniaturized, using the same 4 blue lights for charge, a similar turning dial for full dimmable power, one or two sides for limiting output, but removes the red LED's on top, and the crank charging capability, but adds a removable (18650) battery, a magnet on the base, a tripod thread adaptor on the base, and an open loop bail for easier hanging. The concessions are an improvement now that I've spent some time using it, as the crank generation is a lot of work for not much light. This Mini is smaller than a can of Red Bull for reference, and when you see it in person, it's surprising how much light it puts out - only 40lumens less than big brother, in a package about 1/3 the overall size and weight. The 18650 battery included seems to have much less capacity however, and I ran it tonight for about 3hrs on full blast just to see how long it would run. The 1amp USB charging port is convenient, as is the un-rollable USB charging input which laces nicely around the lower globe - just like in the bigger model, keeping the cord out of the way until you need it (USB plug is retained by a small magnet).

These make a great duo setup as the old saying of, "two is one, and one is none" is always in the back of my mind. They're not cheap by any stretch at $79 retail for Lighthouse250, and $59 for Lighthouse Mini, but I was willing to pay for the quality and performance features.

Nomad7 is about the size of a small notebook, and seems to charge well from AZ sunlight over the past few days. I was looking for another way to recharge phones and BearCat scanner, and this has all the plugs I need already attached. Nice build quality on everything and GoalZero has come a long way in design since just a few years ago. The early GoalZero LED lanterns purchased from LCP look cheap by comparison, and light output is far lower compared to the latest generation of LED's (Cree).

As I put more hours on these and spend more timing charging from solar, I'll have more information. I'll also bring them to future CSC Club Meetings if anyone is interested in seeing them up close,

Nicely done reviews

Do we new a product review section on CSC???

 

[murf]

youre on it Bro

 

[medtro]

Added to CSC Technical FAQ under Important Club Threads - Check Here First!

 

[tlin]

Buttoned up my Foxwing recently, first trip out yesterday just as an excuse to deploy it and enjoy 30 minutes outside. Definitely now a permanent part of all future camping endeavors......hoping to make that Mexico run next month, TBD.

As to details, the installation itself hangs off my Baja rack via u-bolts and some bracketing I did myself. It's at a height where I can just reach it (including flipping the cover over itself to get it out of the way), it clears all doors and rear hatch and now also doesn't interfere with my Porta-Bote when I have that on top of the roof rack. It's a very sturdy install, took several tries to get it right but she's dead-solid with no interference now.

Deploying - EASY - <=90 seconds without trying to go fast (I'm sure this'll be a sub-60-second affair after a couple more tries) just to get it out and secured via the single tensioning strap which keeps it taut. Poles, stakes and lines obviously add a few minutes to the mix.

It's BIG - a buddy has the traditional ARB awning which I was originally going to get as well. After seeing his setup/put-back effort, I held out until I found this. It really does provide A LOT of shade and I particularly like that it covers the rear as well - 270-degrees of coverage is pretty damn cool. The downside to that, however, is that it does really require decent space to actually use it (i.e. tailgating for ASU games in a normal parking lot probably won't see this open).

I think it's awesome, will certainly be a conversation starter and the deal I got on it ranks high on my list of bang-for-the-buck. All thumbs up over here with this thing.

 

[Mattman]

I bit the bullet and ordered an Exped Mega Mat 7.5 LXW per strong recommendations from @Saddletramp and @LandCruiserPhil

Just wanted to share that campsaver.com has them cheaper than anyone I could find plus they have a 20% off online coupon. $187 with tax and free shipping.

I'm looking forward to actually sleeping on my camp trip to NM next weekend.

 

[Saddletramp]

You will not regret buying the Megamat. @Otter , @verruckt1 , @LandCruiserPhil , @LongDuck we all have the pads and we tell everyone how great they are.
BTW. I have the Megamat 10 LXW, Phil has the 7. Don't forget to order the shnozzle too.

Schnozzel Pumpbag UL L

See you on the next outing.

 

[Dissent]

Looking forward to picking up a Megamat one day for my REI RTT solution.

 

[murf]

Been thinking about a megamat 7 for the tent cot for top shelf comfort.