Gear Pass or Fail

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cloudkicker
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by cloudkicker »

nyker wrote: Sat May 04, 2019 4:03 pm Weird right? I was pretty disappointed in them too.
On the topic of the folding trekking poles... (and I promise I'll contribute later, this is a great thread)...

Are the leki poles you listed as "PASS" in your original post folding too? I'm in the market for some folding poles that I can stash inside my pack while scrambling, and was thinking I wanted the Black DIamond Distance FLZ, but durability is a huge question mark for me. If I buy them from REI and they fail I can just exchange them, but it'd be nice going into the purchase knowing that they won't crap out on me during the first true test I give them in the alpine.
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nyker
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by nyker »

Hey cloudckicker,

Yes, they are folding and fit nicely in the side pockets of a pack or inside a pack with ease.
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Alrightmax
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by Alrightmax »

Oh good - I was just looking for a place to vent about this...

YakTrax Pro - FAIL! I bought a couple of these in February - one for myself and the other for my partner, and they are already broken beyond use. They started breaking under 15 miles of wear (all snow/ice), and within 50 miles they were trash. I guess I should have figured at that price point they'd break right away, but I was hoping they'd at least last until Memorial Day! ](*,)
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JaredJohnson
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by JaredJohnson »

Alrightmax wrote: Mon May 06, 2019 5:30 pm YakTrax Pro - FAIL!
Seconded. My wife and I picked these up before we knew about microspikes and they failed within _a couple of miles_. And one fell off without us realizing till we were down the trail
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nyker
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by nyker »

shelly+ wrote: Sat Mar 23, 2019 8:00 am anything wool: cashmere or merino (alpaca and lambswool are good, depending on the gear). i'll replace a petroleum-based polyester with a wool item whenever possible.
How do you find wool as a base layer when you are very sweaty? I've used a few different versions from Icebreaker and Smartwool and while they are much more comfortable and warmer when dry vs synthetics, they don't dry out when wet/sweaty.
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disentangled
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by disentangled »

nyker wrote: Sun May 19, 2019 2:58 pm
shelly+ wrote: Sat Mar 23, 2019 8:00 am anything wool: cashmere or merino (alpaca and lambswool are good, depending on the gear). i'll replace a petroleum-based polyester with a wool item whenever possible.
How do you find wool as a base layer when you are very sweaty? I've used a few different versions from Icebreaker and Smartwool and while they are much more comfortable and warmer when dry vs synthetics, they don't dry out when wet/sweaty.
my guess is that, even though they are technically made with merino wool, the fibers in Smartwool products have been chemically processed to make them machine washable and they have therefore lost all the valuable properties of wool. machine washing only makes matters worse. i've never worn polyester fiber base layers, so i have no comparison. as an example, i wear a 100% cashmere sweater as a base layer (purchased from J. Crew, men's size extra small, about the same cost as a Smartwool item). it's a fairly thin fabric, not much heavier than Smartwool 250, and it stays dry and hardly ever needs to be washed. i similarly wear 100% australian merino wool leggings as a base layer (these literally have to be ordered from australia, are not any more expensive than Smartwool and are about the same weight as Smartwool 250). the absolute key to pure wool, however, is in the care. i never ever ever ever ever put good-quality wool in the washer. hand wash with Dr. Bronner's castile soap, which is an oily soap that protects the natural lanolin in the fibers. and i've also been known to rely on hand-knitted, wool gear. these are awesome because i can use softer wools, like alpaca. and custom made. :)
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nyker
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by nyker »

Maybe that's the issue. I haven't used pure fibers if that would be a big difference in wicking and/or water resistance ability. I should get a pet alpaca and can make my own :lol:
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Conor
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by Conor »

Ive never found wool to offer any water resistance or quick drying properties. They do, however, hold less liquid than something like cotton. When they do get wet, they do still offer the warmth they do when dry. Go dip you wool socks in a cold stream and witness the greatness. For things like being on the sea, white water rafting, hiking in swamps, wool has superior advantages. I have swapped my wool base layer for a synthetic (sun hoody).

If one desires pure wool, i used to pick up cashmere sweaters for <$10 at the thrift store. That was 10 years ago though....
CBinmt
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by CBinmt »

Okay it's a small thing. Really small but Leki rubber pole tips are the best. No other rubber tip is worth a s... Leki must make them out of 5.10 rubber, I even use them on snow and don't take them off until I am on ice at which point (no pun) the really sharp carbide tips do their job.
On another note: I have used Microspikes for the past 10 years and outside of having the front slide off my boot, have worked great (getting the chains locked into the cleats of the boots is the trick and often a hard trick). I have well over 500 miles on this pair of Microspikes and the only thing I have done is sharpen them once. Are the newer ones less reliable?
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disentangled
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by disentangled »

nyker wrote: Sun May 19, 2019 5:59 pm Maybe that's the issue. I haven't used pure fibers if that would be a big difference in wicking and/or water resistance ability. I should get a pet alpaca and can make my own :lol:
the care of natural fibers is key. i've actually found cotton fabrics could become water resistant after repeated washing with an almond oil castile soap because the fibers absorb the natural oils. the same could be done, i would suspect, with Smartwool after repeated washing with the right soap. so maybe you don't need the pet alpaca, after all. lol
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nyker
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by nyker »

Interesting, never thought of using those soaps. Might try that. My building has a 30lb pet limit, so the Alpaca would be tough to get in.
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nyker
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Re: Gear Pass or Fail

Post by nyker »

Adding Fjallraven Keb Trousers here. PASS

Picked up a pair on sale and used them a couple times and they are pretty good.
Only negative so far is they don't come with a belt so you need to find one that works/fits well, but not a huge negative.
There is sort of a gaiter like clip on the bottom which sometimes works well but I don't think it would replace a full gaiter in heavy snow situations, doesn't seem like it would work well for that.
There is some stretchy parts that work well. They're heavier than my normal hiking pants, so I think they become my colder weather pant.
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