Category Archives: Product Reviews

Camping Equipment Manufacturers

April 5, 2012 2:33 pm ⋅

Here is our list of many of the top camping and outdoor gear manufacturers with links to their home pages. We deal alot with many of this companies. we will do a review on each in the following weeks.

Adventure Centre
Not a manufacturer, but a specialist outdoor shop situated in Warrington, UK Offers tents, outdoor equipment and clothing for camping, climbing, hiking, backpacking, expeditions and trailwalking.

Aqua Sun
Water filtration and purifiers for camping.

ATN Corporation
Manufactures night vision optics – binoculars, spotting scopes, monoculars as well as day-time optics.

Bridgedale
Irish manufacturer of technical hiking and travel socks.

Camp Trails
Maker of backpacks.

Cascade Designs
Manufactures Therm-a-Rest Inflatable mattresses, hydration systems and purification items.

Century
Camping stoves, lanterns, heaters, toilets and accessories.

Coleman
Heaters, lighting, outdoor fireplaces and stoves, sleeping bags, coolers, tents and grills. I love this products.

Cover Me Tarps and Canopies
Frame tent canopies and replacement tarps.

Eureka
Maker of family, camping and commercial tents.

Feathered Friends
Sleeping bags, outerwear and sleeping bag accessories.

Garmin
Makes GPS products.

Garmont
Italian manufacturer of backpacking and mountaineering footwear.

General Ecology
Water filtration and purifiers.

ITT Nightquest
Maker of night vision binoculars, monoculars and goggles.

Katadyn
Water filtration and purifiers.

Kelty
Sleeping bags, tents, and internal and external frame backpacks.

Lowrance
Makes sonar, GPS and aviation electronics.

Macpac
New Zealand outdoor camping gear manufacturer.

Magellan
Satellite navigation and communication products.

Medsource International
Produces emergency medical and safety products from Mylar emergency blankets, light sticks, safety vests, hot and cold packs, first aid kits, CPR masks, wound care products, trauma shears and more products.

Moonstone
Mountain and camping equipment.

Mountain Hardwear
Sleeping bags and pads, outerwear, tents and mountainwear.

Mountain Safety Research
Water filtration, purifiers and stoves.

Nebo
Sleeping bags.

North Face
Technical outdoor camping equipment and clothing including tents, packs, shoes, sleeping bags and apparel.

Nunatak Gear
Sleeping bags, down jackets and mountain gear.

Optimus
Hiking, marine, camping and expedition stoves.

Outdoor Research
Backpacking organizers, liquid carriers and insulators, hats and caps, gloves and mittens, gaiters and overboots.

Patagonia
Makes arguably the finest outdoor clothes and apparel.

Primus
Lightweight stoves and lanterns for trekking and backpacking.

PUR
Water filtration and purifiers.

Slumberjack
Sleeping bags, pads and camp furniture.

Suunto
Technical outdoor products including water filtration systems, stoves and lanterns, and compasses.

SUR-Flame Firestarters
SUR-Flame Firestarters will show you a new way of lighting your next fire.

Sweetwater
Water filtration and purifiers.

Therm-a-Rest
Self-inflating mattresses, pads and chairs.

VauDe Sports
Sleeping bags, backpacking and mountaineering tents, backpacks and stoves.

Walrus
Alpine, backpacking and ultralight tents.

Wild Country Ltd
Climbing tools.

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skydive Jumpsuits Manufacturers

April 4, 2012 3:50 pm ⋅

Air Suits  
Highest quality Australia made jumpsuits. Based at the famous Ramblers Drop Zone.

Airwear Custom-made Jumpsuit Manufacturer
Airwear manufactures custom made parachute and skydiving jump suits. Airwear suits are manufactured using top quality fabrics and workmanship. They are custom manufactured to ensure a tailor made fit and to individual customer specifications. Airwear also manufactures ranges of custom made clothing for general aviation and other air sports. Cotton flightsuits, Fire resistant flight suits, Aero medical flight-suits, thermal microlight flightsuits and other related pilot clothing.

BirdMan skyflying
BirdMan Inc. is a true Pioneer in skyflying and our site is an excellent source of information for those who want to fly. Choose from three different types of wingsuits, from beginners to experts, or check out our new line of BirdMan Pantz for freeflying, tracking or B.A.S.E. jumping.

Deepseed
RW, Freefly, Camera, street wear, accessories, and multispeed suit. Great customer service and FAST production time!

Extreme FlyWear
Dutch based Freefly suit manufacturer Extreme Flywear. Slick, fashionable and functional. Zippers for adjusable drag/sizing of arm and leg wings.

Flite Suit Company
Makers of the “Bomber Freefly” line of airware, we build a wicked-tough Freefly Suit and some of the most cutting edge RW suits on the market!

Go Crazy Manufactoring
Creating jumpsuits for all skydivers since 1988. Built from quality materials, and backed by a warrantee. We have fixed the rest, now jump the best. We are the only manufacturer using Hemp, the strongest organic fabric. With custom dyed fabrics, The sky’s the limit!

Headfirst Headwear
A totally new concept in jump suit design. Choose from over 200 STOCK jump suits and freefly pants in 8 sizes from XXSmall to XXXLarge for immediate delivery at REALISTIC prices. Freefly suits $99 USD, Freefly Pants $59 USD.

Icarus Air Wear
We are a South African manufacturer of Bootie/ Team , freefly , Camera , Sit jumpsuits + general gear sales

Kurupee Suits
The Best freefly jumpsuits totally loaded and with a complete new look for less price than the competition.

LiquidSky Freefly Suits
The latest in Freefly fashion; the slickest,most elaborated and comfortable suits you have imagined.

NecSuits
The new option, great suits…

Skimmer Suits
Custom RW Suits, Freefly Suits and Pants, Weight Belts and More.

Sonic FlyWear
SONIC WEAR is a family-run business, based in our own workshop, 400 Metres from the DZ in Empuriabrava -Spain. Being so closely associated with the DZ of Empuriabrava and our sponsored teams, we are able to always ensure that we are at the forefront of research and development. That is why we can provide our customers with a range of products technically developed in our workshop, by our team. Having our own workshop and production line means we are able to control the quality of our products.

Spirit Skysports
Quality, technical jumpsuit for all disciplines. Custom designs, be unique. Check out the latest designs on facebook

SugarPaw Clothing Company – Druid Jumpsuits
New range of Jumpsuits; Camera Jackets, Camera Suits, Relative suits, Gloves, Freefly Pants, Freefly Suits. Suppliers to the military in Asia also.

The Camera Suit
Skyhi Visual Productions manufactures and markets The Camera Suit for skydiving photographers. The Camera Suit is a custom tailored skydiving jumpsuit designed specifically for the freefall photographer.

Vertical Suits
Vertical Suits manufactures jumpsuits that exceed today’s fashion and quality standards in skydiving.

Zoomer Suit
Zoomer Suit. FreeFly Suits, RW Suits, FreeFly Pants, Camera Suits, Student’s Suit, Tandem Pilot and passenger’s suits. Made in Brazil.

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Smart Parts Ion

March 22, 2012 4:12 pm ⋅

The Smart Parts Ion is a low-cost electropneumatic paintball gun designed for the player who wants a tournament-level paintball gun at a basement price. While you won’t mistake it for a top of the line gun, it is a good performer and can compete in the same ballpark as any gun on the market.

Pros
Inexpensive
Very upgradeable
Lightweight
Will run on compressed air or CO2 (with an anti-siphon tank)

Cons
Few modes of fire
Difficult to disassemble
Tall and non-clamping feedneck
Some upgrades are difficult to install
Difficult to change modes, dwell and recharge

Description
Electropneumatic paintball gun
Runs on compressed air or CO2
Runs on 200 psi or less of air
Shoots up to 17 BPS
Manufacturer’s Website
Guide Review – Smart Parts Ion

Design
The Smart Parts Ion is a spool valve driven electropneumatic paintball gun that operates at under 200 PSI. It is a very simple design with aluminum internals and an easily exchangeable composite body shell. It is fashioned after other high-end guns with a standard sized ASA, pistol grip and front regulator. It is an attractive looking gun and there are enough body kits available to insure that you find the one that fits you. It comes with a vertical feedneck, uses standard Smart Parts barrel threading and has break-beam eyes. The stock board has semi-automatic, ramping, 3-shot burst and fully-automatic modes and is rated up to 17 BPS.

Performance
Compared to other electropneumatic paintball guns, the Ion is quite inexpensive but its performance is not. It really will fire as fast as you can pull the trigger and once the regulator is broken in, it is quite consistent. With the right paint and barrel combinations the Ion can be as accurate as any gun out there and with a few improvements, its air efficiency is also quite good. The trigger is not very adjustable and the feedneck does not clamp, but both of these can be changed with upgrades. Overall, the stock Ion performs about as well as a other, similarly priced mechanical guns, but it comes stock with eyes and it is so upgradeable that you can get it to compete with some of the best paintball guns available.

Maintenance & Upgrades
Basic maintenance on the Ion is very simple and there are not many o-rings that need replacing, but, if you ever need to open up the whole gun, be prepared for a job. A strength of the Ion is the number of upgrades available so you can improve the gun’s performance, change its board or cosmetically alter it to fit your style.

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Spyder Sonix

March 22, 2012 4:08 pm ⋅

The Spyder Sonix is one step up from Kingman’s most basic paintball gun and is a good looking choice for the beginner player. Whether the upgrades that improve on the base Spyder model are worth the extra cost is entirely a question of preference.

Pros
Inexpensive
Very upgradeable
Simple and reliable design
Quick-release bolt

Cons
Not particularly accurate or consistent
Has a tendency to chop cheap paint
All components are low-end

Description
Entry-level blowback paintball gun
Commonly available from specialty stores and large retail outlets
Many upgrades are readily available
Can run on CO2 or compressed air
Manufacturer’s Site
Guide Review – Spyder Sonix

Design
Kingman’s Spyder Sonix 2007 is the most recent incarnation of the venerable Sonix and its design hasn’t really changed. It is still a very simple blowback gun with just a couple of upgrades over the base model Spyder Victor. It comes with a bottom line, standard ASA, double trigger, sight rail and a vertical feed tube (you have to use a removable vertical feedneck). Its upgrades over the Victor include a gas-through foregrip and a front expansion chamber under the barrel. It comes in several colors and the overall milling is top notch. It has a top-cocking delrin bolt.

Performance
The Sonix’s overall performance isn’t too bad for its price. It will fire as fast as you can shoot, but its got a long and somewhat stiff trigger pull, so don’t expect any crazy rate of fire. It’s not particularly consistent so paintball muzzle velocity will vary from shot to shot. Despite this, the Sonix does shoot fairly accurately as long as you use decent paintballs. The foregrip and front expansion chamber don’t seem to add much to in terms of performance but I think the foregrip is much more comfortable to hold on to than the Victor’s bottom line – whether or not the extra money makes the Sonix better than the Victor boils down to preference.

Reliability and Maintenance
As long as you don’t abuse it, the Sonix should work well for years – just make sure you clean and oil your gun after each use. If there is a leak in your gun, you probably just need to replace your O-rings. One very nice feature is the quick-release bolt which makes cleaning the chamber a snap.

Upgrades
The Sonix is an excellent beginner gun because it can be heavily upgraded. Whether you want to get a barrel kit, electronic trigger frame, upgraded bolt or custom grips, the Sonix can support it.

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Spyder Xtra

March 22, 2012 4:06 pm ⋅

The Spyder Xtra is Kingman’s nicest semi-auto, mechanical gun. It’s very similar to the Spyder Sonix but comes with an expansion chamber and drop forward, making it a good option for the beginner.

Pros
Inexpensive
Very upgradeable
Quick-release bolt
Expansion Chamber

Cons
Not particularly accurate or consistent
Has a tendency to chop cheap paint
All components are low-end

Description
Entry-level blowback paintball gun
Commonly available from specialty stores and large retail outlets
Many upgrades are readily available
Can run on CO2 or compressed air
Manufacturer’s Site
Guide Review – Spyder Xtra

Design
Kingman’s Spyder Xtra 2007 is the updated version of top gun in Kingman’s Classic Series which means it’s the most upgraded of their entry-level, mechanical paintball guns. It is a very simple blowback gun with just a few upgrades over the Spyder Victor or Spyder Sonix. It comes with a standard ASA, double trigger, sight rail and a vertical feed tube. Its upgrades over the Sonix include an expansion chamber and a small drop forward. It comes in several colors and the milling design is superb. It has a top-cocking, quick release, delrin bolt.

Performance
The Xtra is not designed to compete with high-end guns, but it’s performance isn’t too bad. It will fire as fast as you can shoot, but it’s got a long and somewhat stiff trigger pull, so don’t expect high rates of fire. It’s not particularly consistent though the expansion chamber is a great plus and helps it run much better with CO2. The Xtra does shoot fairly accurately as long as you use decent paintballs and you should be able to hit an opposing player at 40 feet (or even further) within a couple of shots. I think the addition of the expansion chamber warrants the higher cost compared to the Sonix.

Reliability and Maintenance
The Xtra is a very basic gun, so there really isn’t much that can go wrong and it should work for years if you don’t abuse it. All you need to regularly do is oil and clean your gun after use. If there is a leak, you probably just need to replace your O-rings. One nice feature is the quick-release bolt which makes cleaning the chamber a snap.

Upgrades
While the basic Xtra is nothing special, it does make an excellent beginner gun because it can be heavily upgraded. Whether you want to get a barrel kit, electronic trigger frame or upgraded bolt, the Xtra can support it.

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