I've had several of the smaller/compact solar setups over the years including the Powertraveller Powermonkey and Brunton Freedom charger. I typically keep the smaller size kits in my day pack / get home bag and will sometimes get packed for a backpacking trip if I'm trying to keep the weight minimal. This kit typically gets used for charging my phone, flashlight or camera in normal use. You can use the panel to directly charge any USB powered device as long as you have sunlight. The Goal Zero Switch 8 kit is very basic and simple to use. It comes with their Nomad 3.5 solar panel (which is only available in this kit and not sold separately), Switch 8 power pack and a USB cable. The whole kit weighs is at 12.25oz / 350grams. The Nomad 3.5 is durable and weather resistant (mist is okay but wouldn't leave it in the rain). Like most of the other Goal Zero panels, they are chainable which means you can connect up to 4 of their panels together for more power. The panel opens up for easy free standing use or has several quality loops for hanging from a pack to allow you to charge stuff on the move. The panel has a built in storage pouch on the back where you can keep the Switch 8 or a phone you are charging. The Switch 8 power pack is a round aluminum/plastic cylinder (fancy battery) with built in USB 2.0 Male (for charging it) and a USB 2.0 female (for charging from it). It has 4 blue LED lights to indicate power capacity (1LED = 25%, 2LED 50%, 3LED 75%, 4LED 100% Power). It holds 8Wh/2200mah worth of power, which isn't a ton of power, about enough to charge my cell phone. All in all, its a great kit. It's not the cheapest system around by far (expect to pay $90-$100 new), but it is absolutely above average in quality, usability and features. I'm happy I picked it up and replaced my other panels with this model.
Please let me know if you have any questions and thanks for checking it out!
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Here is a side by side comparison of the Ecotat TMP Military Shelter/System and the Eureka Solitaire.
The pack size is about the same. The Solitaire is bigger in size once setup and made of lighter weight materials. The TMP is very multifunctional compared to the Solitaire (long coat, poncho, winter tent, summer tent, basic shelter, bivvy, rescue litter, etc.The Solitaire wins on the Simplicity comparison - The TMP has more to the design, holes, loops and parts for the different configurations you can do with it. Durability: The TMP would outlast the Solitaire on just about every test from harsh weather to abrasion wear. The TMP comes with well made aluminum poles where the solitaire comes with basic fiberglass poles. The TMP is rated as a 4 season tent where the solitaire is only 3. TMP Setup time: 4 minutes Solitaire Setup time: 3.5 Minutes (without guy lines). Enjoy the pics! If you have any questions on either system - let me know! First off I would like to say I've never been a huge "watch guy" - By this I mean I've worn watches since I was 10 or so but mostly just cheap Timex or Casio models. I always thought it was crazy to spend more than $25 on a watch.
Having said that, I love gadgets and cool stuff so I wanted to try a new watch... I've had the Suunto Core Military ABC (Altimeter, Barometer, Compass) Watch for over 16 months now. This watch has served me very well and proven to take a decent beating. I wear it as an every day item and not just for being outdoors. The user interface is very easy to learn on. I spend several nights in bed just messing with the settings and learned how to use all the features quickly. The Suunto Core has a great list of functions including: Basic watch, altimeter, barometer, digital compass, dual time, sunrise & sunset, temperature, logging altitude, stop watch, alarm, storm alarm, depth meter, back-light. Everything on my Core functioned as it was supposed to. I occasionally had to reset the altitude manually but not in excess. The depth meter was the one thing I didn't really use much. I played around with it in the pool and it functioned for the few feet I used it for. It's very easy to use tho. All you have to do is go into the "elevation & barometer" screen and the "sub screen" on the bottom and you can select the depth meter. The screen display is clean and easy to read. The durability is very good (I managed to put a micro scratch in display face when I was working on a car)... I hit the face of this watch on everything from ammo cans, the ground, car parts, walls, etc. Held up very well over the 16 months. Pros: Comfortable, user friendly, very functional with many options, user replaceable battery, great customer support, rugged. Cons: Pricey for a watch (but you do get a lot in it), the rubber strap broke at about 10 months after getting it (Suunto replaced it free of charge tho), made in China... Yea that's about all I have against it. I would suggest this watch if you are looking for a good watch with extra functions. It's hard to beat the quality. I just recently discovered these little fire starters online. I found them intriguing because of the overall design and application as well as possible uses. First impressions: Very basic and simple design. I opened up the package, slid the lid open and yellow fiber soaked in a hardened wax like material. It has a faint smell of ceder which gets stronger as you burn it. The case is a fairly sturdy light aluminum design. In Use: Per the instructions, I used a tool (this case my knife) to poke and pull up some of the fibers in the case exposing enough fiber to catch a spark, I used my EXOTAC nanoStikerXL firesteel to throw some sparks which the Live Fire Firestarter took on the first try. I only exposed about 1/4 of the fibers (keeping the lid on 3/4 of the way on the tin). The Live Fire Firestarter burned bright and hot! I'm honestly a bit surprised as its performance in those areas. The Live Fire Firestarter does not do well in wind, so it can easily be blown out without proper shielding. I was curious to see if it would boil water and it sure does. It's not fast by any means but will do the trick in a pinch. I tested 1 Cup of water (65F) - It took about 8 minutes to warm the water to the temperature I would use for coffee or other hot drink and about 14 minutes to boil. Conclusion & Features:
This makes an awesome fire starter. You can build you regular fire building tinder but use this as the ignition source for a more sure-fire way to get it going. You can use it to boil water if needed. You can use it as a heat source to warm your body, it will work even better in conjunction with a Mylar emergency blanket. After the wax type material burns off completely you are left with a char cloth material which is still usable. Burn time without the lid on is about 30 minutes, or several hours using the lid to limit the exposed fiber for a more controlled burn, so much longer than any other firestarters I've used. This firestarter is also completely waterproof. I think this is one of the longest and hottest burning fire starters I've ever used. Great for any kit! It's worth the ten dollars to me. Final Note: A friend asked me if it leaves black soot when using it as a stove. YES! It leaves a very thick layer, so keep that in mind when using it as a stove. Being from a law enforcement family, my dad was always using radios on and off duty. He sparked my interest in electronics and radios as a kid. Recently I've come across a variety of lower price point radios which offer some great features even compared to some of the nicer iCom and Motorola models at a significant discount. In the past couple years, I've used a few including the Puxing 888K, baofeng (pofung) UV5R, UV5RA, BF-F8+ and recently the newest BF-F8HP. After having used all of those models (based on function, price and user friendly-ness) I suggest the Baofeng BF-F8+ or BF-F8HP. Please, If you buy one of these radios, make sure to follow FCC rules and regulations. Get the licensing required for the frequencies you use when applicable. Having used these for awhile I highly suggest getting the program. Most are free and available for download, you just need to buy the cable to hook it up to your computer. Some programs are super easy to use and allow you to get your radio going how you want in very little time. What makes these radios appealing? - Cost starting around $35 - Dual Band. UHF (ultra high frequency) & VHF (very high frequency) - User programmable in field or via USB to computer (which is much easier) - Power. 4watt output on most models. The newest BF8-HP offers a whopping 8watt output. - Size and weight. These are compact (shorter than most phones but several times thicker) and weight around 8ozs. What are they good for? - Group or family outings. You can use them like your typical FRS or GMRS radio but with much better results and range. Keep in mind, GMRS is regulated by the FCC and you are required to obtain a license to use those frequencies. Also most channels including the FRS frequencies are regulated by the FCC and will have power (wattage) restrictions. - Emergencies. Have friends or family near by but need a way to talk when power or phone lines are down? These will work great. - Backpacking. Some areas will have GMRS repeaters for CERT (Community Emergency Response Team), SAR (Search And Rescue), REACT (Radio Emergency Associated Communication Teams). These repeaters can offer some great range/coverage and are often in areas where cell phones do not work. - Off duty LEOs. Some departments allow you to take your radio home, others don't. Figure if you don't have one with you or atleast available, for the $35 being able to get ahold of dispatch (and other officers) on the radio is quicker than on you phone. - Great radio to start with for someone looking to getting your HAM Radio License. Specifications (BF-F8+ specs shown):
65-108MHz (FM Receive only) 136-174MHZ 400-520MHZ Channels: 128 Stability: ±2.5ppm Antenna: High Gain, Dual Band Antenna Impedance: 50Ω Operating Voltage: DC 7.4V Modes: Simplex or semi-duplex Antenna: SMA-Female Accessory Plug: Kenwood Weight: 250g (including battery, antenna) Power adapter: Input: AC100V, 50-60Hz; Output: DC10V/500mA; Plug Type: US Output power: 5W / 1W (Max 5W) Modulation Mode: 16kΦF3E / 11kΦF3E Maximum deviation: 5kHz(Wide) / 2.5kHz(Narrow) Spurious Radiation: 7μW Current: ≤1.6A(5W) CTCSS/DCS deviation: 0.5±0.1kHz(Wide) 0.3±0.1kHz(Narrow) Intermediation sensitivity: 8-12mv Intermediation distortion: ≤10% [BELOW] Here is a quick comparison of several of the models. LEFT: Baofeng BF-F8+ with standard antenna MIDDLE: Baofeng BF-F8+ with Nagoya NA-771 antenna RIGHT: Baofeng BF-F8HP with standard antanna So everyone is always looking to find the best option for camping food, right? Personally I've gone back and forth on everything from canned food, ramen noodles, mountain house, military and civilian MREs, homemade MREs or packing what regular food I can take that will last a night or two and still be safe. Of course I will occasionally make some fresh food or cook some bannock bread as well. Right now I typically take stripped down MREs, extra energy bars, beef jerky, single serving oatmeal and a mountain house meal or two depending on the length of my outing. MRE (Meals Ready to Eat). The first real current style MREs started getting issued to the US Military in 1986 even tho they began testing with the more modern MRE back in 1963. Prior to the MRE there was the common C-Ration meals which were canned, these dated back to about 1940 when they began field testing them. USGI Military MREs: These are actually some of my favorites. These usually contain more items and calories than their civilian knockoffs or versions. They are truly ready to eat without any adding of water or preparing. They do come with a MRE heater which is a chemical pack which reacts to a water and heats your meal (I typically only use these when it is cold out). From my experience these pack 1300 to 1600 calories per package. Each pack contains: Main entree, side dish, crackers or bread, snack, candy or desert, jelly, peanut butter or cheese spread, cold drink mix, accessory packet which contains: *coffee or tea, creamer, napkin, wet nap, toilet paper, sugar, salt, pepper, spoon, gum, matches*, tabasco* etc. *tabasco, matches and some other items will vary depending on the meal and year of MRE. These MREs vary in variety in a lot of ways. Each year they make 24 meals (numbered 1-24) and issue them in a case A which contains meals 1-12 and case B which contains meals 13-24. These change every single year. USGI MREs (current issue) are sealed in a light brown package and stamped with "US GOVERNMENT PROPERTY - NOT FOR RETAIL SALE". The cases are brown cardboard, very plain, with simple text such as "INSP/TEST", "MENUS", "CASE B", "DATE PKD/LOT" etc. Military MRE prices vary widely, depending on the sellers, date of MFG and how they are sold. Typically cases will sell for $55-120 and individual meals will sell for $5-12. Keep in mind these are almost always sent to the military before winding up in the civilian market, so there is no guarantee what temperature or conditions they were kept in before you getting your hands on them MREs are advertised to have a 3-7 year shelf life depending on condition. I've personally had MREs that were packaged in 1992 and ate them as late as 2014... They were noticeably not as good as fresh ones but most items were okay. The chocolate bar was a little chalky white but edible. The crackers were a little stale but with the peanut butter tasted okay. Civilian MREs: The civilian MREs can vary widely, but for simplicity I will group them into one group. These are usually made by the same companies as the military MREs. They can some with everything the military MREs come with, however most come with less. Typically civilian MREs will not come with gum, tabasco sauce, matches, toilet paper in the accessory pack. They usually lack 1-2 food items as well, however it really just depends on the batch. They usually contain 800-1200 calories per package. The cases can be very sporadic in terms of contents and consistency. I've seen cases with 12 different main entrees, 12 of the same in the entire case or just random mixes. The civilian MREs come in mostly clear packages, however there are some companies who try to make them look like the issue MREs by using brown packaging and similar graphics. The civilian MRE cases can vary from only saying "MRE" on the side to having the company logo and information about the contents. Civilian MRE prices can range widely as well. Typically they do sell for 10-25% less than USGI MREs and can typically be guaranteed what conditions they were kept in because they will usually be shipped from the manufacturer to the store where you are buying them from. Homemade MREs: I've tried many different varieties of these but always have a hard time making it truly "Ready To Eat" without heating and or adding water. I won't go into great detail but my best (or favorite) version consisted of: Chicken or beef top-ramen soup, saltine or other crackers, instant coffee or other drinks, sugar & creamer, napkin, wet wipe, granola or energy bar, matches, little candy, beef jerky, can of chicken, spam pouch, etc, P38 can opener if the can of chicken requires it, jelly or peanut butter. All sealed in a vacuum pack or 1 gallon zip lock bag. What makes these nice is they are cheap to make. typically you can make this for under $3. I also like to add my jerky or chicken to my ramen soup which makes it much more filling and satisfying of a meal. However, if you are planning on doing this for a longer trip, these homemade MREs lack calories. The photo of the one below has a little over 600 calories if I ate and drank everything in there. Suggestions for acquiring stuff to make your own: Dollar Stores! You can get the wet napkins, ramen noodles for, match boxes, jerky, cans of chicken, sugar and creamer packs, instant coffee, crackers, granola bars and peanut butter. You can really build 6-10 of these MRE kits for $12-18... They will typically have a 2-4 year shelf life if you choose the items with the best shelf lives. You can always save left over salt, pepper, napkins, spoons, wet naps, sugar, creamer and other spices from when you eat out... Just about everyone has some of that stuff in the glove compartment. Mountain House Meals: I love Mountain House food for a variety of reasons including shelf life, weight, variety, taste and quality. However, they are also more expensive for the most part. I've yet to have one of their meals which I didn't enjoy, I like them all and would buy any of them again. The biggest downfall is they are freeze dried which means they need water and more specifically boiling water. Here in California water isn't something we have in abundance everywhere, so you either have to be 100% sure you are going somewhere where you'll have access to water or pack in a bit of extra water. Another nice thing is Mountain house meals are designed to be prepared inside the pouch, just boil the water in a cup or pot and pour it directly to the pouch, stir and shake then wait for it to cook (typically 10-15 minutes). One thing I would like to mention is the Mountain House pouches can contain servings for as little as 1 person and up to 4 persons, so make sure to check the back of the pouch when planning for a longer trip especially with several people. Most of the main meals are 2.5 servings which work great for 2 people cause we all know 1 serving typically doesn't do the trick. Also note these serving are typically around 300 calories, so make sure you have enough calories for a long trek. Most Mountain House meals range from $3.90-$9.00 and the prices can vary and surprisingly most big store (target, walmart, dicks sporting good are more expensive than smaller stores). Locally the Army/Navy Surplus store has the best selection and prices than anyone in the County. I hope you enjoyed reading my take of camping food.
Feel free to comment below with what you like most and any ideas for other food you take on the trails! |
Tactical-BushcrafterI'm an avid outdoorsman who enjoys a good mix of primitive bushcrafting skills and modern tactical gear and survival equipment. Archives
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