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| Messages 1 - 16 of total 16 in this topic |
mucci
Trad climber
The pitch of Bagalaar above you
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Yeti is still the best.
As shown in the testing.
Now, those new yeti cooler bags look pretty sweet but also very easy to rip off if you don't keep and eye on them.
I still want one.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Throughout the six-day trial the Tundra displayed consistently lower melt rates than the rest of the entrants, and held ice an additional 18 hours over the next best contender. Interior temperatures also landed among the lowest in the group. The drop test inflicted no damage and there was only light leakage when turned on its side. Infrared imaging showed even distribution of thermal transfer and minimal cool spots. The vortex drain system did splash and dribble a bit, but it was less than all but the Pelican Elite and Canyon Outfitter. The one gripe I have is that the “45” designation is misleading, as true volume is only 35 quarts. However, if I had to pick a cooler to take for the long haul, and price was not a factor, Yeti’s Tundra 45 would be the one. Made in the USA and the Philippines. IGBC Bear Resistant certified. Five-year warranty.
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Escopeta
Trad climber
Idaho
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 5, 2016 - 03:57pm PT
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I saw that synopsis but it didn't seem consistent with the FLIR image analysis. I think I misunderstood what the results of that test actually showed.
Did it make sense to you? Because I thought the bright "blue" was showing the "transfer" of energy in that spot?
What did I miss?
BTW, I'm a committed Yeti fan but was interested to see if someone had Beta-maxed them yet.
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Fritz
Trad climber
Choss Creek, ID
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I appreciate that those here who have shelled out many hundreds of dollars for a Yeti or another brand of overpriced "super-coolers" are likely going to defend their purchase, to not suffer cognitive dissonance.
I'm not on your team. As a regular participant in whitewater river trips that last 5 to 8 days, I've become interested in the subject of what coolers hold ice best, as well as all around performance.
I'll admit to getting a bad-taste for expensive & heavy super-coolers when I bought two 80 quart coolers from Northwest River Supplies for a 2006 Middle Fork Salmon River trip that ended up running 9 days, due a layover for a logjam, that we had to portage around.
We ripped a handle off one cooler while carrying it to a raft during launch day & the other cooler lost both handles while we were portaging the logjam. The coolers also only held ice for 4 days with daytime highs in the high 80's f.
Northwest River Supplies gave me a full refund & dropped the brand, but I have been wary of claims for super-expensive coolers since.
For a 2012 Middle fork Salmon trip I picked up an 80 Quart 5 day Igloo Marine Cooler for around $80.00. It kept ice just fine for 8 hot days, with a slight addition of a block of ice on day 5.
I also don't enjoy packing a big & heavy cooler like the Yetis with a load of ice, food, & beverages and then having to wrestle them on and off rafts. Those things weigh a ton empty.
There! I've vented. Here's a link to a comprehensive article that quotes a bunch of tests on "price-point" five day coolers.
http://thesweethome.com/reviews/the-best-hard-cooler/
Their conclusion is:
The Coleman Xtreme 70-quart Cooler, along with the Igloo MaxCold, dominated cooler recommendations we came across in our research. Both the Coleman Xtreme and the Igloo MaxCold outperformed their claim of 5 days of ice retention, which is impressive on its own. However, the Coleman Xtreme kept ice for a full week (170 hours or 7.08 days) — thirty hours longer than the Igloo MaxCold (140 hours or 6 days).
Wrapping it up
It’s always exciting to find and test a product that lives up to and even overperforms on a manufacturer’s claims, and both the Coleman Xtreme 5 and the Igloo MaxCold deserve credit for doing just that. It also helps when the more affordable option (in this case the Coleman Xtreme) does even better than its more costly competitor. It’s for this reason that we can heartily recommend the Coleman Xtreme 5 as a cooler to look for as things start to heat up this summer.
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Escopeta
Trad climber
Idaho
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 6, 2016 - 05:38am PT
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A tool for each job. Those coolers wouldn't cut it in the conditions I need them to work.
I'll get over it if my soda isn't cold at the end of a float trip and will purchase accordingly.
Having an entire antelope or early season elk spoil because I didn't see fit to bring adequate equipment is untenable to me. Although our next expedition vehicle is going to have adequate room for one of the Engel 12v freezer/coolers. Problem solved.
Did anyone understand the FLIR testing? It still doesn't make sense to me. Did the coleman coolers perform worse because there was so much blue area (indicating transfer) and the Yeti and others were better because the transfer was concentrated to a smaller area?
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franky
Trad climber
Black Hills, SD
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They didn't describe the test very well on that site. The colors represent temperature, since the inside of the cooler is cold, and outside is apparently hot as heck, colder areas on the surface of the cooler indicate higher transfer of heat into the cooler (areas of worse insulation).
They didn't say what the ambient temperature was outside of the cooler, or if it was held constant. Also, the colors are scaled to each particular test (blue on one cooler isn't equal to blue on another). Because of those two things, you can't really use the images to compare one cooler to another, rather just to see where design flaws on any particular cooler result in loss of insulation.
Thanks for posting this. I've always been on the fence about these because of the cost. Early season hunting is probably the only reason i'd consider getting one.
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couchmaster
climber
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Well done review. Coleman extremes and Coleman Marines are the best bang for the buck. That review and this review (Outdoor Gear labs, Supertopos gear review site) did a great test you should also check out for cooler reviews Bryan. http://www.supertopo.com/reviews/gear.php?cat=2430&c=cooler, about every offshore fisherman, they all say it. I finally gave up making due and have a Coleman Marine coming for my boat.
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Escopeta
Trad climber
Idaho
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 6, 2016 - 09:24am PT
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Good link. I didn't see that when I tried to search. Admittedly, my search skills are lacking.
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Escopeta
Trad climber
Idaho
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 6, 2016 - 09:32am PT
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I'll admit to getting a bad-taste for expensive & heavy super-coolers when I bought two 80 quart coolers from Northwest River Supplies for a 2006 Middle Fork Salmon River trip that ended up running 9 days, due a layover for a logjam, that we had to portage around.
Cool photo. I wish I had a road to walk on every time I had to portage a big raft. That had to be nice.
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apogee
climber
Technically expert, safe belayer, can lead if easy
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Love. My. Yeti.
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Fritz
Trad climber
Choss Creek, ID
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Escopeta: Re your comment on my Middle Fork Salmon logjam portage & photo.
Cool photo. I wish I had a road to walk on every time I had to portage a big raft. That had to be nice.
I didn't mention a road. There was a pretty good trail. There are darn few roads in the 100 miles of the Middle Fork Salmon trip. It's a great trip & you should definately do it, but onerous Forest Service regulations do apply to floaters.
We hiked our gear 3/4 of a mile down a fairly good trail to a launch site below the logjam. It was a very-long day.
I do think coolers get pretty rough treatment during white-water raft trips, especially if you factor in the occasional flip, likely harder treatment than yours receive in hunting camp.
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Escopeta
Trad climber
Idaho
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 6, 2016 - 05:38pm PT
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Cool. Just looked like a road running right through the upper third of the photo.
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Sierra Ledge Rat
Mountain climber
Old and Broken Down in Appalachia
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Yeti all the way
Fritz, you guys portaged around that log jam???
Me and my whitewater kayaking buddies run stuff like this all the time in our kayaks. "We don't need no stinking portages!"
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Fritz
Trad climber
Choss Creek, ID
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Sierra Ledge Rat! I suppose it's possible that a super-duper-uber kayaker could have run his boat up on that logjam & trotted to the other side. It sure looked like death to my eyes.
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Sierra Ledge Rat
Mountain climber
Old and Broken Down in Appalachia
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It sure looked like death to my eyes. nah, just tuck and duck under the logs
(:
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| Messages 1 - 16 of total 16 in this topic |
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