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Paddling tips, tricks, news and gear reviews from an Unsponsored point of view

Category: Gear (Page 87 of 135)

Grab Handles and Security Bars – Testing, Testing

18 February 2014 / / 0 Comments

Grab handles and security bars are one the bits of kit on a kayak that I have in the past paid little attention to. But I have found that if the design is right they are great for carrying and rescue duties. If not they can be a nightmare.

Most manufacturers use either a metal bar or some sort of climbing tape arrangement. In all cases you should periodically check your boats outfitting to ensure that they do not have any sign of damage or excess wear. All manufacturers can supply replacement parts if required.

Shane at Liquid Logic has filmed one of his Safety/Security bars being put under extreme conditions. Well worth watching.

Security Bar Testing from Shaneslogic on Vimeo.

We recently did another Security Bar test. It’s always fun so I filmed it again. The head of the screw popped at just about the same time as the insert that the bar is attached to pulled out of the plastic.

Different Setups:

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Palm Snake Sling – A Closer Look

15 February 2014 / / 0 Comments

Palm Equipment have recently launched the new Snake Sling.

Palm Snake Sling - A Closer Look

The Palm Snake Sling is a 4m length of tape with sewn ends allowing the sling to be used in various different ways when you add a karabiner into the mix. What I really like is the fact that the sewn loops have been down in such a way that it is super easy to get a karabiner in/out of without high risk of snagging. I have a number of pieces of climbing kit with this setup and know that it works really well.

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Sweet Rocker – Review

13 February 2014 / / 6 Comments

I have been using a Sweet Strutter on and off for the past 10 years. The Strutter is a M/L and fits great and I have on occasion tried on a M/L Sweet Rocker when in a kayak store but have always found them a little bit too snug. Last year I tried on the new “plastic” Rocker in L/XL and bought it. The best helmet will always be the one that offers you the best protection and fit.

The new Rocker is made from a plastic outer with carbon fibre re-enforment at key points. The padding is similar to that found in bicycle helmets and is covered with a lightly padded fabric cover. Self adhesive shims are supplied with the Rocker so you can customise the fit.

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Adventure Medical 1st Aid Kit

11 February 2014 / / 0 Comments

For the last few years I have been using Adventure Medical as my main first aid kits. I stumbled upon them when I was trying to find an ultralight kit for mountain biking. Since then I have purchased several Adventure Medical First Aid Kits and they can be found in my rucksacks and now in my kayak as part of my “When it all goes wrong kit“.

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Pogies – Palm Rivertec

11 February 2014 / / 1 Comment

Keeping warm is often difficult when you paddle whitewater during the winter. I find that the one area that is difficult to keep warm are my hands. I’ve tried neoprene gloves (which work once warmed up), the woollen/washing up glove combo and various other bits/bobs.

Many years ago I owned a pair of pogies (aka paddle mitts), I can’t remember the brand but they were blue/fluorescent yellow. They did a good job of keeping the wind off until they got wet, which meant my hands got wet and cold. Roll on ten years or so and I picked up a pair of Palm Rivertec Pogies. The ones pictured below are still used and must be well over 10 years old. Palm do a modern take on the Rivertec Pogies called River Tec Paddle Mitts.

Pogies are designed to be fastened onto paddle shaft. Your hands go inside of the pogies and grip the paddle shaft as normal. Compared to wearing neoprene gloves or indeed any gloves at all improves the general feel and control. Some paddlers do find them restrictive as your hands need to be removed to access pockets, pull your spraydecks rip cord etc. In addition some designs can be difficult to get your “last” hand into.

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Spyderco Tasman Salt H1

11 February 2014 / / 0 Comments

This a Spyderco Tasman Salt. The blade is a rust resistant H1 steel. This knife has now found a new home in my PFD. A review will follow shortly.

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Best SD Card For The GoPro Hero 3+ (3 Plus)

8 February 2014 / / 0 Comments

One of the biggest areas that is overlooked when getting a video/camera setup for trips out is the speed of the your SD card. The GoPro HD Hero2 camera supports SD/SDHC cards up to 32GB (any SD card over 2GB is considered to be a SDHC card).

The new GoPro Hero 3 range – white, silver and black and the even newer GoPro Hero3+ use Micro SD Cards.

The Speed Class Rating is the official unit of speed measurement for SD cards. Speed Class is a minimum speed based on a worst case scenario test and represents the minimum transfer rate of data that the card is capable of.

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Palm Equipment 2014

5 February 2014 / / 0 Comments

Check out the new Palm kit for 2014.

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Liquidlogic’s New Playboat

5 February 2014 / / 0 Comments

Check out Liquid Logics new play boat on the Malate Wave.

Malate Testing from WE ARE HUNGRY on Vimeo.

Visit the Liquidlogic website.

Carbon Fibre Repair

5 February 2014 / / 0 Comments

Nick Wright, engineer and all round carbon fibre repair guru has sent this slalom K1 repair in to the site. Many thanks Nick.

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Once again, by poor old slalom boat was not doing too well, and it was time to fix it up (especially with BUCS just around to corner). The current problem was that the very end of the tail was cracked and leaking quite badly.

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Arcteryx Atom LT – Review

5 February 2014 / / 0 Comments

Arcteryx is a Canadian company based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Now I must admit I love Arcteryx as I find the fit to be perfect for my build.

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I own fair bit if Arcteryx kit and actually wish I owned more. However the bank balance won’t allow it. Out of all of the kit I own the Atom LT jacket and Atom LT hoodie get the most use. Construction, materials and fit are identical with the hood being the only difference between the two. Within the Atom LT range is also the sleeveless waistcoat version.

In total I have probably owned at least one of these for around two years. However the jacket is my main goto insulated jacket. I will often for for this over a fleece, including windstopper versions I own.

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Orange Mud – Transition & Seat Wrap

4 February 2014 / / 0 Comments

I received one of these towel systems from Orange Mud a few months ago for review. Since it’s first use it has found a home in my kit bag.

The Seat wrap is a towel with a number of additional features. Firstly it has a fully adjustable belt clip which ensures that the wrap stays securely around your waist or chest. It is super simple to adjust and the wrap stays put! At just over 6ft I have found the wrap to be just long enough.

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