Author Topic: Gear reviews  (Read 2583 times)

ninthace

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #15 on: 14:10:55, 21/02/20 »
OK thanks.
I, personally want to see the boots are used, so mud doesn't bother me, in fact it's evidence of sort.
Cleaning it, thoroughly before "presentation" seems a bit [censored]. Personally, I prefer the down to earth and casual approach. I find formality too conceited.
I'm not saying you're wrong, just illustrating how diverse expectations are of YouTube videos and it highlights where I may have been slightly off the mark a bit.
  No worries - you asked me for my opinion.  My view is that if the boot is covered in carp you can't see the quality of the product e.g. stitching or material, properly.  Boots are an expensive purchase so should be looked after IMHO, if you don't appear to care for the boot, how valid is your opinion?  Presenting a mucky boot is a bit like turning up scruffy for an interview - implies you don't care.
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Ronin83

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #16 on: 16:09:54, 21/02/20 »
I did ask you and I also thanked you for your answer. You seem a bit grumpy. Are you OK?
At some point your boots will be muddy. Hiking boots are made to handle some mud and abuse. If they can't, then they're of no use anyway. At that point if someone makes the video to show they are used and not just used on national trust groomed paths then treated like a princess, I think it shows how rugged they are. At least a bit. I don't wanna see pristine boots. That makes me sceptical.
I wanna see boots that have been abused and how they stood up to it.

ninthace

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #17 on: 16:15:30, 21/02/20 »
I did ask you and I also thanked you for your answer. You seem a bit grumpy. Are you OK?
I wanna see boots that have been abused and how they stood up to it.
I’m fine. Just explaining is all. I wanna see user and abused boots too. Just sayin’ I wanna see the boots, not the remains of the field they went across. My Tetheras are well into their second soles and still take a shine.
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kinkyboots

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #18 on: 18:33:21, 21/02/20 »
With regards to boots. What would you like to see in a review? As in, how would you like to see them in action? Personally I don't see much benefit in seeing someone walking in a pair of boots. It doesn't tell me much, but if you have an idea I'd like to know as I have reviewed some boots before. Do you want to see them bending perhaps?
Thanks

FWIW my opinion is exactly the same as ninthace's. It's probably best not to ask the question if you're not prepared to consider and accept the opinions given by others especially when they differ from your own.

If you can't be bothered cleaning the boots before making the video don't waste your time or my time expecting me to watch it.

I think you need to understand that some buyer's will ignore any and all advice and are prepared to buy blind without even seeing or trying boots on. With military boots which are not normally available to the general public via outdoor retailers a video is the only way they can be see the boots prior to purchase.

It may be unbelievable but you also have to accept that for standard off the shelf walking boots some people even find travelling to their nearest retail outlet is just too much trouble for them.

We may not like it but the reality of today's increasingly technological world is that the high street is already vanishing at an alarming rate and "shops" as we know them today will eventually be a thing of the past with all purchasing done via the internet.
« Last Edit: 19:59:47, 21/02/20 by kinkyboots »

Ronin83

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #19 on: 20:26:11, 21/02/20 »
FWIW my opinion is exactly the same as ninthace's. It's probably best not to ask the question if you're not prepared to consider and accept the opinions given by others especially when they differ from your own.

If you can't be bothered cleaning the boots before making the video don't waste your time or my time expecting me to watch it.



I did accept their opinion. ..
"I'm not saying you're wrong, just illustrating how diverse expectations are of YouTube videos and it highlights where I may have been slightly off the mark a bit."  

 
And I can be bothered to clean boots. I have left them dirty on purpose for a video as that's what I would appreciate seeing myself, not because I can't be bothered as you have ASSUMED

SteamyTea

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #20 on: 14:55:25, 22/02/20 »
I wanna see user and abused boots too.
Here are mine from two hours ago.
https://ibb.co/vQCKf7Z
I don't use emojis, irony is better, you decide

pauldawes

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #21 on: 15:34:27, 22/02/20 »
Here are mine from two hours ago.
https://ibb.co/vQCKf7Z


I like the way they are carefully camouflaged to blend in with the path.


One or two people earlier made point that boots are particularly hard to review.


Would certainly agree with that. My method of deciding which boots to buy is something like:-


1/ identify which brands have a good rep...this tends, of course, to bring up the “usual suspects” (Altberg, Scarpa, Zamberlan, etc...but brands do rise and fall.)


2/ Go to local shop and try on boots from those brands until I find a really comfortable pair.


3/ Negotiate a price and buy them.


Even after that, I’ve still made boot purchases that I regret...I think it is a really tricky purchase.

ninthace

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #22 on: 15:38:22, 22/02/20 »
Here are mine from two hours ago.
https://ibb.co/vQCKf7Z
Ooh soft boot porn!
Mine get worse than that walking round my garden at the moment.  Come back when the mud is over the laces and halfway up your calves!  That's hard core  O0
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jimbob

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #23 on: 15:51:55, 22/02/20 »
Ooh soft boot porn!
Mine get worse than that walking round my garden at the moment.  Come back when the mud is over the laces and halfway up your calves!  That's hard core  O0
ha. You've seen my allotment karrimors.
Too little, too late, too bad......

SteamyTea

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #24 on: 21:32:06, 22/02/20 »
Ooh soft boot porn!
Mine get worse than that walking round my garden at the moment.  Come back when the mud is over the laces and halfway up your calves!  That's hard core  O0
I try and avoid the really dirty stuff, I may need to go back to teaching again.
I don't use emojis, irony is better, you decide

emdaw

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #25 on: 09:08:54, 23/02/20 »

I read reviews from Amazon and sites like Go Outdoors but then look for mention of the gear I am interested in on forums like this where people have purchased and used the item for a long period. Find this a good way of sorting the wheat from the chaff so to speak.

gunwharfman

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #26 on: 18:44:21, 29/02/20 »
Today's example of Reviews. In the Great Outdoors magazine 'Chris' writes about the 'Cnoc Outdoors Vecto 2 Litre 28mm Cap' and he writes 'What distinguishes the Vecto from others is the slide closure at one end. This allows the whole end to be opened for easy filling' and then 'There are other containers that open wide but all the ones I’ve tried leak.'

I don't believe him because I can draw on my own experience with my Source Outdoor bladder. I'm on my second one now, I wanted a bigger one, but both have been long-lasting and have NEVER leaked and they both have had a lot of use! My Source also fills via a slide closure at one end, it looks as though both bladders do it in the same way, both clousers are the same colour as well.

To me, NONSENSE!

zero

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #27 on: 12:14:38, 10/03/20 »
Thing is with reviews, they are (to some extent) subjective. What is the expectation? Where and when and how / how regularly was it used before review / what other similar items have been used to compare to etc... You also have the issue of the reviewer often not explaining their sizing etc. For example about a pair of approach shoes 'they fit me so well.' But what size feet are they / what size shoes do they wear / what kind of feet have they got etc. Then you have the issue of the reviewer and their experience which isn't always obvious - this isn't meant condescendingly but people may not be aware of other factors that come with experience. For example, 'my waterproof jacket got wet inside when I wore it all day in the summer rain' so it seems the waterproof may not actually be waterproof, but most likely it's sweat that's built up and nothing to do with rain ingress. And people say wrong information - for example I read one review of a softshell jacket where reviewers said things like 'it isn't even waterproof' etc. True - but it's not meant to be! I've done a fair number of reviews and try to explain all/some of the above factors but not every has the time or inclination! And then there are 'reviews' where the reviewer simply re-states the manufacturer's info! And finally reviews can often be done by people incredibly happy or very upset, so may not encourage a balanced view (or they may have a product that's a 'wrong-un' one-off!)


Talking to staff in stores is brilliant and they're often more than happy to share their experiences. Sadly many outdoors shops don't have all of the brands available (due to various reasons), often have a higher price than can be bought online and (understandably with larger stores with a turnover of staff), some don't have staff trained well enough / not able to go into the detail needed, so when done well a review is very useful. But bad reviews are beyond useless!!
« Last Edit: 12:19:53, 10/03/20 by zero »

jimbob

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #28 on: 13:40:48, 10/03/20 »
Zero, the thing is how can I possibly know the difference between a good, good review and a bad review.

I know that companies actually review competitors wares and deliberately put them in a bad light. How do you spot those professionally written reviews.

I now think this forum and others like it offer the best reviews. Yes folks have axes to grind or even sometimes don't understand the product. Recently we had a bad review of a particular tent that I am interested in but thanks to the forum I was able to pm a couple of actual many time users of said tent who had not found the same problem at all. You can't really do that on ebay or amazon., knowing you were reaching a real user.
Too little, too late, too bad......

zero

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Re: Gear reviews
« Reply #29 on: 14:23:39, 10/03/20 »
Jimbob, agreed! In terms of spotting 'fake reviews' it's certainly very tough. My general opinion now is that I stick to the products I know - generally when buying from the UK based teams (Montane, Rab, ME, Alpkit etc) I'd pretty much trust all of their kit!

In terms of reviews, I often feel the same frustrations! I think here, UKC and a couple of other places are where I'd generally trust people! As well as independent shops where staff will be very happy to share personal experiences (Needle Sports have been helpful in the past, Climbers Shop, Taunton Leisure, Cairngorms Mountain Sports etc) - plus my local Cotswold are amazing -  the staff will be honest about anything to do with kit or their passion for outdoors stuff.

(And to clarify, my comment was just a general one, certainly not towards yourself or anyone as I share the same frustrations!)

 

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