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Gear you liked/disliked 2023

gcr0003 said:
This is why I bring tp. Even when I don’t have tp I would cut my britches before my darn tough socks.

Seriously though, how in the world did you rip the socks? I have had the same pair and used for skiing and hunting for 5 years and they are still in excellent shape.
Click to expand...

It ripped just pulling it up. I have Darn Tough ski socks that are pretty tight on me and never had a problem over several years.

78918786-A635-42E0-A93D-C65BCD743CF4.jpeg
 
Only thing I changed up in my gear/process this year ended up being a like.

I always struggle trying to balance boot insulation, not too much that my feet sweat on the walk in but, not too little that they freeze when I get there. I bought a pair of uninsulated Crispi Valdres for my CO trip. I loved the fit/feel of the boots so I bought Arctic Shield boot blankets to wear with them when the temps dropped.

I discovered that with a thin merino and heavy Alpaca sock my feet were fine in the Crispi's down to the upper 30's. Opening morning of Rifle the temperature was 19 deg on the 2.5 mile hike in. Once on stand my feet were comfortably warm in the same merino and alpaca socks for the first hour, they started to get a little chilled the second hour so I pulled out the arctic shields and hand warmers. I ended up dropping one hand warmer, so I used the opportunity to run an experiment. One boot blanket with a handwarmer and one without. The one with was a little warmer but both feet were comfortable all morning.

The boot blankets have a little room for improvement but, overall the combo works for me better than insulated boots.
 
Thanks for sharing. The Sock rip looks like user error to me. Start from the toes and pull the slack out as you go up. If you’re pulling slack out from the top. A rip is inevitable. Something like this doesn’t take anything away from the product for me.
 
Plebe said:
Liked:
-Gun bearer…received it as a gift before opening day in PA and worked awesome with my short barreled Model 7 (scope down)
-Still loving my EV1 Incinerator bibs. Compress and pack well, and warm.
-Climbing platform with post
-Padded 2 panel saddle, bulky but super comfy for all day sits in the cold
-Tom’s Unscented deodorant, overtop of unscented crystal…won’t do antiperspirant

Disliked:
Hard to hate on things that might work for others, but…

-EXO K4 2200. Haven’t even used it, but it’s so narrow it’s like a tube. Buckles on the sides of the back panel would be a huge upgrade, I hate having to compress the bag to tighten the load in the meat shelf. A bag this thin hardly needs compressing. At worst, have both options. It’s a miss, imo, but there’s things I like about it too. Besides, the other bags aren’t any better.
-I ripped a Darn Tough wool sock about in half…I disliked that…but I liked the lifetime warranty
Click to expand...
Just bought the Aerolight incinerator bibs. 430$ at Eurooptic. After I sell the Fanatic bibs won't be an expensive upgrade at all. Excited to see how much they pack down
 
bowhuntr09 said:
I have the same socks ripped in the exact same way.
Click to expand...

That’s not good. Was hoping it was a one off.

I got some hollow boot socks to try as a result (Thnx @bowhunthard88). Can’t say how they’ll hold up, but man are they luxurious. I’m swapping lighter Darn Tough hiking socks for them when I arrive at my spots…so they should last awhile. My feet still get cold with 200g boots when it’s in the 20’s but it’s pretty bearable. I’ll have to do a side by side with the one uncompromised DT HWT sock to see which is warmer. I think the Hollow boot sock could win out.
 
gcr0003 said:
Thanks for sharing. The Sock rip looks like user error to me. Start from the toes and pull the slack out as you go up. If you’re pulling slack out from the top. A rip is inevitable. Something like this doesn’t take anything away from the product for me.
Click to expand...
Looks like @gcr0003 needs to start a sock donning class for all yall losers. Is it going to be online or do we have to travel for the class? Maybe get Darn Tough to sponsor you to save replacement cost. LOL
 
I wanted to add some dislikes:
Hoyt Go Stick. Horrible design and they only wish to be a Mathews Tripod
Hoyt low pro quiver. It’s just annoying.
Epsilon rest. Third year with it and each year I like it less.
I keep forgetting but the Latitude Gear Strap. I want to like it but it’s a PITA.

I still really like the Transformer saddle. Extremely comfortable.
 
Last edited:
Liked:
- Exo K4
- Sladder
- Badlands Shift set
- Badlands Exo set
- Latitude X-Wing
- Lumbar belt setup
- Dryad Mini-Drey/Killdeer setup
- Sticht hitch
- Crispi Shimek boots
- Argali Serac knife
- Amsteel gear hanger setup
- CGM custom dump pouches
- Kuiu Mountain Star tent

Disliked:
Tethrd HYS gear strap (too bulky)
Tethrd SYS ES dump pouches
First Lite Sanctuary Set 2.0 (weird fit and restrictive)
Nemo Tracker tent (restrictive living space)
Mystery Ranch Treehouse 9

Undecided:
Exo K4 2200 bag (too small for late season layers)
Canyon Elite (too bulky...?)
 
gcr0003 said:
Thanks for sharing. The Sock rip looks like user error to me. Start from the toes and pull the slack out as you go up. If you’re pulling slack out from the top. A rip is inevitable. Something like this doesn’t take anything away from the product for me.
Click to expand...

Must have lost the instructions, lol. I’ve been hunting and putting socks on for a long time and have never had another sock do this.
 
CooterBrown said:
Looks like @gcr0003 needs to start a sock donning class for all yall losers. Is it going to be online or do we have to travel for the class? Maybe get Darn Tough to sponsor you to save replacement cost. LOL
Click to expand...
I actually fly to your house and put the first pair on for you free. Dang it you caught me. I’m a vendor rep for Darn tough. We see a few returns like this a year. Never fear. I’ve been showing people how to put socks on without ripping them for 11 years now.
 
GCTerpfan said:
I ended up dropping one hand warmer, so I used the opportunity to run an experiment. One boot blanket with a handwarmer and one without. The one with was a little warmer but both feet were comfortable all morning.

The boot blankets have a little room for improvement but, overall the combo works for me better than insulated boots.
Click to expand...
I had a similar experiment opportunity this year when I dropped one of my Arctic Shields while wearing 800g rubber boots.

I'd read that people feel like the Arctic Shields don't work on rubber boots, but only cloth type material boots.

Not true! My left foot practically froze off while my right foot was toasty warm all day... and I don't even use any warmers with them. Those Arctic Shields are awesome! Relatively light and packable to "boot".


Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk
 
gcr0003 said:
I actually fly to your house and put the first pair on for you free. Dang it you caught me. I’m a vendor rep for Darn tough. We see a few returns like this a year. Never fear. I’ve been showing people how to put socks on without ripping them for 11 years now.
Click to expand...
You put that first pair on me or on you?
 
Plebe said:
Must have lost the instructions, lol. I’ve been hunting and putting socks on for a long time and have never had another sock do this.
Click to expand...
Sorry for sock-splaining. I let my buddy borrow a pair of socks and I watched him put them on the wrong way. He was pulling and couldn’t get the slack out of the foot so he just kept pulling until they ripped. I asked what the heck he was doing and just said the socks suck lol. I imagined this is what happened with your socks too even though it might not have been. Sock PTSD is what the doctors call it.
 
Liked: JX3. Tried it once. Was nice.
Crimson Talon Broadheads. Smashes thru deer spines with a crossbow.

Disliked: JX3. So far it's a love hate relationship. It's not a soft saddle, it's not a tree stand. So gotta learn to hunt it different.
Vortex Crossfire Crossbow scope. To much going on.
 
GCTerpfan said:
Only thing I changed up in my gear/process this year ended up being a like.

I always struggle trying to balance boot insulation, not too much that my feet sweat on the walk in but, not too little that they freeze when I get there. I bought a pair of uninsulated Crispi Valdres for my CO trip. I loved the fit/feel of the boots so I bought Arctic Shield boot blankets to wear with them when the temps dropped.

I discovered that with a thin merino and heavy Alpaca sock my feet were fine in the Crispi's down to the upper 30's. Opening morning of Rifle the temperature was 19 deg on the 2.5 mile hike in. Once on stand my feet were comfortably warm in the same merino and alpaca socks for the first hour, they started to get a little chilled the second hour so I pulled out the arctic shields and hand warmers. I ended up dropping one hand warmer, so I used the opportunity to run an experiment. One boot blanket with a handwarmer and one without. The one with was a little warmer but both feet were comfortable all morning.

The boot blankets have a little room for improvement but, overall the combo works for me better than insulated boots.
Click to expand...
I know this a has been a source of conversation before, but are the boot shields very noisy?
 
I didn't hunt with much of anything new this year except my flat UP Platform. I think I need to find an angled UP since i sold mine to fund the flat.
Just doesn't seem as comfortable as the angled UP.

My wife bought some clothing storage bags that can be vacuumed down flat for storage last spring. I stole the travel size that will fit two pairs of pants, two shirts, my quarter zip pullover, and my NMG leafy top. Best piece of "gear" I've used this season.
 
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