Jerry Lewis

This little lantern is sold by various companies under various names. I own three of these with all different company names on them but they are all exactly the same except for color. And they all work really, really well. They are bright and compact, and great for a moderately lightweight table or tent lantern for boat/canoe camping, car camping, or short hikes. I prefer to go ultralight when going longer distances so this stays behind and I just use my headlamp. But, for the purpose for which it was built this lantern is one of the best. It is definitely better than the Black Diamond Apollo as it puts out a more even and brighter light.

One feature that hasn't been mentioned is the ability for this lantern to function as a really good broad beam flashlight. Just unscrew the top cap and it will project a very bright wide beam. It's very useful for walking at night. With the cap off you can also hang it upside down as there is another hook in the base. This gives a nice wide and bright downward pointing beam for a table or whatever. I've used this by hanging the lantern upside down from a branch that was over the camp table.

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING: There is one little trick with this model as well as other brands/models of LED lanterns. There is a dimly flashing LED on the base near the switch that is probably designed to make the lantern easy to find in the dark. The problem is that the batteries will die after about a month if you leave this thing on. Here's the trick: loosen the base until the batteries lose connection, then tighten the base back down. The flashing LED is only activated after the lantern is switched on, so if you loosen the batteries and break contact with the circuitry, then don't turn the lantern back on, the LED will not flash and the batteries won't slowly discharge.

I hope this helps someone out. I had to learn it the hard way, but this is still my favorite of all the lanterns that I've tried. I just don't understand why they keep putting a flash setting on these LED lights. I have no use for it, but they all do it.

I bought this for my wife as an early Christmas gift. She loves it! It is about 24 oz heavier than the little pack that she had been using, but the extra weight is from the heavier material and padding and the extra pockets and organizers that this pack has built into it. It is designed to carry moderately heavy loads if needed, but she packs light so her typical pack weight is about 25 lbs for a 3 day trip, and that includes her new Deva 70 pack. Once it was adjusted properly to her body she stated that this pack actually felt lighter than her old Gregory Jade 60 that she was using before, even though it was filled with the same items and the same weight. Not only that, but she has room left over to pack winter clothing if needed.

So far she has only hiked about 20 miles with it during that one 3 day trip, so we can't speak to it's long term durability, but we have no reason to believe that this pack won't prove to be very durable. So far she still loves it and has no complaints at all.

The bottom line is that she is able to carry the same amount of gear with greater comfort and greater organization than her previous pack, despite the extra weight of the pack itself.

For reference, she is 5'3" and weighs about 108 lbs with a 16" torso length. The extra small fits her very well.

It does the job, but the water valve is counterintuitive. In other words, when the valve is lined up and flush with the marker it is turned on. When the valve isn't lined up and the tab is turned to the side and susceptible to being bumped that is the off position. I would have designed it so that the valve is easier to be visually noted as in the off position and less able to be bumped and accidentally turned on. Also, the construction is very cheap for a $6 item. I have doubts about it's long term service life. I guess you are still paying for the Camelbak name, even with this little valve.

I have tried lots of different options from little spring alligator clips, to fancy plastic clips, to magnets. So far this one is the simplest solution and it works the best. It fits the 3/4 inch straps found on the shoulder and sternum straps of just about every brand of modern backpack available, it's cheap, solid, and it is very easy to unclip and reclip the tube. Nothing bad to say. Sometimes the simplest devices are the best.

I'm really not seeing what these other reviewers see as an issue with this item. This loft attaches to the head end of the Copper Spur UL2 and stretches fully from side to side. The other reviewers main complaint seemed to be that they felt the loft was too small. After looking at the pictures and figuring out that there is no way it could be as small as they stated, I decided to take a chance and buy this.

The actual measurements are as follows: Across the bottom seam 24 inches. Across the top seam 14 inches. From top to bottom is 10 inches. The two center pockets are 8 inches across. They are large enough to hold a magazine, a Kindle, or any size of paperback book along with headlamps and whatever other pocket junk you might need. The four side pockets (two on each side) are irregularly shaped but still plenty large to put anything in them that you might bring into a tent such as stuffsacks, etc.

So anyway, this loft is well made, the seams are tight and it fits the Copper Spur UL2 perfectly. I really don't know what the other reviewers are seeing. What do they want to put in the loft? Cooking gear? A pair of boots? It's actually big enough to put my wife's camping sandals in, but that's kinda silly. If this was made any bigger then it wouldn't fit the wall it was designed to clip on to. My wife and I really like it and would recommend it for anyone who wants to add a little organization to the random chaos that is normally found on the floor of a tent.

The pic shows it compared to the obligatory Nalgene bottle along with my Kindle in one of the center pockets.

I use the red one as a very lightweight tent light when I am out on a hike. It just clips onto one of the little loops on the ceiling of my little tent. It weighs about half an ounce, if that, so it sure beats my 8 oz battery powered LED lamp. It's not as bright, but I don't need it to be. The batteries have lasted me through several outings, probably 20 hours so far. If I need brighter light then I put on my headlamp.

I wouldn't trust this to be waterproof, but it has survived a few rain showers with no problems. I would call it weatherproof, but maybe only dunk resistant. The electronics are so basic that if it does get wet just pop it open and let it dry.

Since I really prefer to have a tent light, this little gadget has saved me a significant amount of pack weight. So far it's been reliable and easy to use. I recommend it.

I've used this reservoir a few times now. The best thing about it is that the entire top will open up for filling and cleaning/drying. It's a decent bag. The plastic is taste free and tough enough to handle any reasonable amount of use. The clip design is definitely water proof and the mouth piece is completely leak free. It comes with a mouth piece cover also.

The only downside to it is when you are attempting to get water out of it for cooking. It will only give you a slight trickle of water. It takes a few minutes to get a few cups of water out. It would be nice to have that aspect of it changed. Aside from that I have no problem.

If it didn't have the wide access and the mouth piece cover I would have rated it with 3 stars (adequate for the job.)

So far I love this tent. It is amazingly light, but I had to weight it myself because I really can't see any consistency between the definitions of what "trail weight" and "packed weight" and "minimum weight," etc. is between manufacturers.

So here are the weights:

My Copper Spur UL2 weighs in at 3 lbs 12 oz. This includes everything that comes with it from the factory (fly, tent body, poles, stakes, stuff sacks, etc.)

Tent Body = 1 lb 4 oz
Tent Fly = 1 lb 1 oz
Tent poles and stakes = 1 lb 5 oz
Stuff sacks = 2 oz

The footprint weighs in at 6.2 oz. It is not included in the above total so if you were to add that in it would make the entire tent weigh about 4 lbs 2 oz. There is plenty of headroom for sitting up and changing clothes. This measurement comes in at 42". The overall length is good leaving about a foot of extra space between our 78" pads and the foot end of the tent. My wife and I are medium sized people, I am 5'8" and 200 lbs and she is 5'3" at 110 lbs so there was enough room for us and our yellow lab if we had chosen to bring him along.

So far the performance is good. It is a snap to pitch. It is very intuitive and I was able to do it solo in about 3-4 minutes the first time without reading any directions. The walls are near vertical so it makes it very comfortable for my wife and I to both sit up at the same time while next to each other. The mesh on the walls do not go down close to the floor so there is less likelihood of windblown sand entering the tent through the mesh. I have had this problem with the MSR Hubba series tents. There still remains plenty of mesh for ventilation and night sky bug free viewing when the weather permits. The tent ventilates very well. My wife and I spent a night with some light rain and woke up in the morning with only a trace amount of condensation on the inside of the fly. There is a nice vent at the head end to facilitate ventilation. I posted a photo of it here. I have not been in a heavy rain with it yet, but there is a nice overhang in the vestibules which make it easy to keep the tent open in at least a light to moderate shower. It would be possible to cook in the vestibule with care. The stakes that come with it are a very stout and very lightweight U shaped stake 6.5 inches long. They work extremely well in the packed sandy soil found here in Florida. They give you 10 stakes with the tent.

Quite possibly the only thing that I would change about this tent is the orientation of the doors. They used an arched zipper pattern that makes the door hinge on the bottom edge. I'm really not sure why they did that, but I would be much more comfortable with the door hinging on the side instead. While it hasn't been a problem yet, I believe that having the door hinge on the bottom allows an opportunity for door to lay in the dirt and the door mesh to possibly get damaged. I will just be careful of that. Otherwise this tent is perfect. I just can't come up with any significant improvements. I will update if I run into any issues, but from looking at the construction and comparing it to the other high end tents that I have bought and sold over the years, this is one of the best. So far it is my favorite. It is light and comfortable enough for me to easily go on a solo hike with it.

My wife and I just got back from a couple nights out on the beautiful Florida trail. It was great having this along with us to have a little something to nip on after dinner while getting cozy around the fire. We actually have the 10 oz size instead of the larger 18 oz size sold here. The 10 oz size is perfect for the two of us, but since the weight difference between the two of them is really negligible, if you have room in your pack I heartily suggest going with the larger one. As others have noted, this container imparts no extra taste to the contents. It seals up very well, is much lighter than a traditional stainless flask, and the wider mouth makes it much easier to fill (and to empty!)

If you enjoy whiskey, but might also like something sweeter, there is a great product that my wife and I enjoy very much. It is called American Honey. It is almost TOO good. It's a great drink to warm you (and your significant other) up on a cool night around the camp fire. It is a requirement whenever my wife and I hit the trail.

My wife and I have been using long handled plastic spoons for the last couple of years. The problem with them is that they are too flexible and you still get your hands a little messy. This titanium spoon is similarly dimensioned to what we were using and is very rigid and strong despite weighing basically nothing. It's a great utensil and absolutely worth the $5-6 bucks each.

The only thing that might be an improvement that would make this a do-it-all utensil would be to make the spoon tip into a spork style. Then I could pack just one utensil for everything.

I've had this bag for about a year now and used it a few times, but the first real test came a couple of weekends ago when we were hiking on the AT in NC and a cold front surprised us. We were camping at about 4700 feet so we figured that it was going to be chilly. I went to bed with some polyprop underwear, an knit hat and socks. I was sleeping on an Exped Synmat UL7 (GREAT pad by the way!). I went to sleep a little on the cold side hoping that I wasn't going to get any colder, but it did. It got a lot colder. By morning my 100 oz Camelbak was frozen solid. The thermometer read 19F. But I was comfortable. Not really toasty warm, but not cold either. I know they rate bags as more of a survival guide temperature and not really a comfort level, but I wasn't uncomfortable at all. However, my brother, who was in a brand new 20 deg rated Kelty bag and dressed similar to me, said that he woke up several times during the night from the cold. He had a miserable night. He was on a thick foam sleeping pad of some sort. So while this isn't a perfect comparison it's about as close as I can get outside of a laboratory.

I'm very happy with my bag. I think that it will keep me warm even below it's intended temp rating. It's also quite lightweight for a synthetic bag and it compresses down to a nice small size; just about the size of a slightly elongated basketball. It comes with a great compression sack as well as a nice big loose mesh storage bag.

Lesson learned from this trip: Keep your water inside your tent and maybe it won't freeze solid in 5 hours!

I love this pad. Over the last couple of years I have become a big fan of Exped products. I have three sleeping pads and their inflatable pillow. All of their products show top notch build quality, excellent attention to detail as well as top levels of functionality. This particular pad is very lightweight (the medium size is 19 oz) and comfortable. It lacks insulation so it's probably best for temps over 40F.

Here is a comparison of this pad with other pads that I have used: The Thermarest Prolite. Similar weight but much thinner and uncomfortable. Also the Thermarest takes much longer to deflate, roll and pack up than any of the Exped pads. The Exped UL Synmat 7 is about 3 oz lighter at 16 oz, it has insulation so it is great for temps down to probably 20F. It is just as comfortable as the Basic but the cost is three times what the Exped Basic is. Also the Basic is made of slightly thicker material which probably makes it more resistant to punctures. I can't compare the durability of any of these pads because I have yet to have any problems at all with them.

I hope this brief review helps you guys out.

I used this bladder for several hikes over the last year and a half. I really liked it for several reasons - the ease of use, the good quality plastic, the large opening, etc. and, until the last trip, I was hoping that it would be the last bag I would ever need. Unfortunately the blue plastic slide lock at the top of the bag has a fatal flaw that really messed up a cold weather trip for me. The slot in the slide lock, where the zip portion of the bag rides, has a sharp edge that occasionally makes contact with the bag itself. So after opening and closing the bag over 3-4 trips it finally cut through the bag. This cut was approximately 2 inches long. It went unnoticed by me until I saw water pouring out of the bottom of my pack. Since the cut was at the top of the reservoir I only had about 1.5 liters of water pour into my pack, instead of the entire 3.0 liters. But when the weather is 25 deg F it really doesn't matter how wet your clothes are. Fortunately I had my spare socks and shirts in a waterproof bag, but my spare pants got wet. In any case I wasn't able to carry more than two Nalgene bottles of water for the rest of the hike. What a pain that was. This was a catastrophic failure that, because of the remote area and freezing conditions, resulted in a potentially dangerous situation because of the wet pack and no easy way to dry out.

So I contacted Cascade Designs and they said to return it to the dealer for replacement. If the dealer won't replace it then to contact them again and they would honor the warranty. However, I just can't trust this bag again. It was the last thing I expected to happen. I am including a photo of the cut in the bag. If you already have one of these bags I would suggest that you check the area where the slide lock rides against the bag for scoring, or a partial thickness incision. If you find the problem please get the bag replaced before you end up miles from anywhere with a wet pack.

After looking at how this works I think that a possible solution would be to trim or sand down the sharp edge to prevent the edge from scoring the bag. It's a possible solution worth looking into anyway.

ADDENDUM: I was able to return the Big Zip to the store where I had originally purchased it with zero issues. The manager just handed me a new one off the shelf and told me that Cascade Design is so easy to work with that they have no problem at all with returns like this. My plan is to modify the slide lock as I previously mentioned and keep this as a loaner.

I currently have three of these that are shared between my wife, my brother, and myself. They are very small and provide all the illumination that we needed last weekend during a couple nights on the AT. The settings are perfectly adequate with a low red, a low white, and a high white. The lights come on in that order with sequential pushing of the switch. It's a nice feature so you don't blind yourself with the white light before switching over to the red for night vision. When activating my previous headlamp it would switch on the bright white LED first, thus blinding you and trashing your night vision before you were able to switch over to the dim red LED.

So far these are perfect. No issues or problems. They have been perfectly reliable. I haven't seen them in a heavy downpour but the light rain followed by freezing temperatures we had didn't affect them. They are listed as water resistant so I imagine they are at least splash proof and appropriate for rainy weather. The batteries showed no signs of weakening and they appear to be plenty sturdy for average use.

Because of the light weight and small size I am replacing my Petzl Tactikka headlamp with the Byte. The Tactikka is unnecessarily bright and has less runtime despite needing one more battery. It is probably built stronger, but I am not a soldier behind enemy lines so it is overbuilt for my needs.

The bottom line here is that this is a cheap light (I paid $15 at a retail store on sale) that is reliable, super lightweight, and plenty bright for campsite use. I love it and hope that it proves to be reliable for years to come.

I have not yet used this enough to speak to it's long term durability, however, I am impressed with how comfortable this pad is. I have used a couple different kinds of Thermarests: the Prolite and an older basic model, along with the RidgeRest (sp?) foam pad, and was never so comfortable as I was the few nights that I spent on this pad in cold weather. The very first night I used it was unexpectedly cold because we planned poorly and didn't watch the weather. We had planned on 35 to 40 degree F temps but when we woke up our full Nalgene bottle was frozen solid and my in-pack Camelback was slushy. Later we learned the temps were about 22 deg F. I was in a sleeping bag which should have been only comfortable down to about 30 deg F based on previous usage, but was undoubtably helped by this pad to keep me comfortably warm to well below freezing. The following couple of nights it wasn't as cold, but still below freezing. Because it was the only piece of equipment that was different from previous trips I am sure that this pad helped my trip to be comfortable.

It takes up about as much room as a Nalgene bottle, weighs very little, comes with a nice repair kit in case of puncture, inflates quickly by blowing it up (MUCH faster than a so-called self-inflating Thermarest,) and appears to be much more durable than the NeoAir.

Not only that, but this is the first pad I have ever slept on where I have awoken with no tingling or soreness from lack of circulation. It was so comfortable to sleep on it that I actually overslept. I hope that this pad proves to be as durable as it appears and lasts forever. I really love it.

The only downsides I have identified are (1) the cost, and (2) the problem that some people have complained about where their sleeping bag slides around too easily on it. I haven't had the sliding issue, but then again I was on mostly level ground the nights I used it. There are a couple of loops on it where you can lash your bag to the top of it, but I didn't have to do that.

I have become a huge Exped fan. They really seem to produce top quality lightweight equipment. I also have their inflatable pillow and have nothing bad to say about it either.

This is the old fashioned style vacuum bottle that has probably been around since the '50s. Back then they had a glass liner and were prone to breakage. Now of course they use a stainless steel liner. It works very well for road trips where you want to have a good supply of coffee available, but that is about the extent of it's usefulness in my opinion. It would be great to take on a short day hike where you are hiking out for lunch on a rock somewhere, but it is too heavy for anything beyond that.It really does keep coffee hot for many hours.

A good trick is to preheat the bottle with a quart of very hot, near boiling water from the microwave. Just pour the hot water in, let it sit for a minute, then pour it out just before you fill it with coffee. In my experience, by doing this you can keep coffee steaming hot for at least 12 hours. It is still warm after 24 hours, but who wants to drink day old coffee?

The bottom line is that this is a great item for roadtrips or short winter dayhikes where you want a hot drink and weight is not a concern. I have had mine for about 15 years and it is in great shape after occasional use. The green hammer tone finish has held up well despite rolling around on the floor of a truck a lot. The cup that screws on top is made of plastic by the way, not metal like the old fashioned ones. That's probably a good idea since drinking hot liquids out of a single walled metal cup can be painful.

The amount of lighting artifact that this little Coleman collapsible lantern produces makes it much less useful than it should be given the awesome 3w XR-E Cree LED it is equipped with. The extra shadows and hot spots are distracting at best. I rated it as adequate for the job, because that is ALL it is. Just adequate. It is too bad because it really does put out a lot of light for a battery powered lantern and the compactness and weight of the lantern is decent as well. Not as good as some others that I have used, but good enough.

All is not completely lost however. I was able to correct the artifact to a large degree by simply taking some number 180 sandpaper to the plastic lens to scuff it up. Effectively I created enough lens diffusion so that the light spread is much smoother, but this does cut down on the light output slightly. Still, by doing this the lantern is far more useful.

I have two other 3w Cree lanterns that are far superior and produce a smooth, warm light with no shadows or glare. They are my lanterns of choice. This one gets left at home. I have a feeling that the 5 star reviewers may not have had much experience with other LED lantern choices. For other accurate lantern reviews you can visit www.candlepowerforums.com.

While I don't have experience with other makes and models of iso-butane canister fuel stoves, I don't have any urge to try anything else. This little stove is super-lightweight, maybe only a few ounces heavier than my homemade alcohol stove when you figure in the weight of the alcohol fuel, but it is completely worth it. It boils water faster than alcohol, safer than alcohol or any other liquid fuel stove, it has a nearly infinite range of adjustment from simmer to full-on blowtorch setting, it takes any brand of canister that I have found so far, it is easy to find fuel for - any Walmart or Kmart carries the canisters, and it is easy to light on the first try every time.

I really don't have any issues with this stove at all. I carry it with the fuel canister inside my GSI Dualist cook kit. The lighter that I use to light the stove doesn't even make a flame anymore, I think that the fuel drained out of it when it was stored with the button pushed down. I just use the sparks to light it, so you don't really need a match, just a sparking device of some sort. The best part is that my wife is comfortable with it. Our Coleman 501 was heavy, used smelly liquid fuel, needed to be pumped up, and was a pain to get working right. With the Pocket Rocket my wife just screws on the canister, turns the little wire knob, and lights it. It really makes cooking easy.

Fuel consumption has not been an issue either. It uses only a moderate amount of fuel. One 4 oz canister is more than enough for several days on the trail with my wife and I boiling water for two meals a day. The only problem that I might come across is what others have reported and I have yet to experience: because it uses iso-butane canisters you have to take extra steps to light it in sub-freezing weather. This is an issue with ANY stove of this type. I live in Florida and do 90% of my outdoor activities here so cold weather is not a problem for me.

I have had experience with Thermarest pads going back to the mid 1980s when they still used metal valves. I hated the metal valves but I loved the pads. The current plastic valves are much more dependable and easy to operate.

My wife and I upgraded to the Prolite Plus pads from the Thermarest Ridge Rest pads that we had been using for a while. For those unfamiliar with that it is a closed cell pad that weighs about 16 oz. We saved a few bucks with the Ridge rest at the expense of not sleeping well. We grew tired of waking up a few times each night with sore hips and elbows, and numb arms. We just couldn't get comfortable on them unless we were sleeping flat on our backs. The Prolite Plus was a great improvement.

The Prolite Plus weighs a little more, about 8 oz or so, and it was more expensive (twice the cost on sale at REI), but after three comfortable nights it is definitely worth it.

Although it is heavier than the Ridge Rest, or most any other closed cell pad, it packs up MUCH smaller and can be stowed inside your pack, unlike a closed cell pad which is very bulky and must be strapped to the outside. I really like to go as lightweight as possible, and that is the main reason that I originally bought a Ridge Rest closed cell pad, but there are some areas in which you just can't compromise.

Previous Thermarest pads that I have used over the years inflate faster than this one, but that is not a deal breaker to me. I believe that it may be due to the open cell foam having smaller cells which increases the insulative properties. In any case, right after the tent is pitched I toss the pad into the tent with the valve open. A while later I go back and put a couple of lungfuls of air into it to bring it up to the firmness that I like. My wife likes it not as firm so she just shuts the valve when it seems full. But she is little, only 5'3" and 105 lbs, so the lower air pressure supports her just fine.

The only downside to the pad is not related to the pad performance, it is just that it doesn't come with a stuff sack. I don't understand why that is the case, so I just use a ditty bag that I had that happens to fit it perfectly.

Also, because the mattress depends on air pressure to function, it is subject to punctures. There is not such thing as a puncture proof air mattress so I just bring a patch kit with me. I haven't had a problem with the Prolite Plus yet, but in the past I have had to submerge my pads in a lake to find the leaks. Just follow the bubbles. If you don't have a large body of water to use then some sudsy water will help you out. The leak will blow bubbles. Just rinse the area really well so the adhesive will work.

So, the moral of the story is to go ahead and buy the best gear that you can afford the FIRST time. Now my wife and I are stuck with a couple of closed cell pads that we may never use again. Although they might be nice to bring along to go under the Prolite Plus pads when we go car camping. :)

My wife and my 13 year old son and I purchased this tent for use here in the Florida summer. The full mesh body was very appealing with the thought of making the best of any slight night time breeze in the summer heat. It works very well. We have spent five nights in the tent in the last month. Fortunately the weather has been beautiful, although hot and humid, but this tent actually makes it tolerable.

We have hiked quite a bit with it and, although it is not an ultralight tent, it is one of the lightest weight tents for the the size and the load can be easily split among the people who will be using it.

The quality of the material is state of the art. The poles and nylon fabric are all precision made. The tent is very easy to set up with one person. Set up goes faster with two people although it isn't necessary. The two vestibules and double doors are very nice features. Something that hasn't been mentioned very much is that this tent is very roomy for 3 people. It really is an honest 3 person tent. I attribute this to the great design that makes the walls nearly vertical. This gives a much more open area inside the tent, so, even though the actual square footage is on par with other 3 person tents, the usable space is 100% of that square footage and the headspace is incredible for a tent in this weight class.

This is the best 3 person tent that I have ever owned, seen, or used. The only thing that I would change about it is that little narrow panel of non-mesh fabric on the roof. There may have been a good reason for that to be placed there, but it would be nice for it to be mesh in order to complete the sleeping under the stars feeling.