High End Coolers?
Equipment
Folks, Just curious what experiences any of you have with some of the new to the market "Mega-Coolers". I am currently looking into one of the Grizzly 150 units. While they are somewhat costly...they are made in USA and come with a lifetime warranty. I did an initial comparison with a yeti, and to me the grizzly's structure and other features were more impressive. If anyone can add any information/experiences it will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance for your time.
I own a Grizzly 150. Love it.
It's a huge upgrade from my over 10 year old Igloo.
Keeps ice well.
Rudy
Hope they come with GPS tracking devices.
I have a Brute. I love it. Yeah, they're expensive but I use it daily, and its still still several hundred dollars less than an ARB fridgefreezer.
If you only use an ice chest on the weekends, stick with your Coleman's and Igloos. I fill my Brute up on Sunday night's with 20# of ice, and I still have ice in it when I dump it out on Friday night when I pull into the driveway. It stays in the bed of my truck, chained to the headache rack.
they must have a niche as the prices would otherwise be insane. $300 for a 35 quart yeti.
Huntography, Thanks for the reply. I see some of the 150's have three latches, while others show only two......any ideas? Also is there a "bargain-store/business" for grizzly's, or are they much like Danner boots/Carhart.......the price is the price...just about everywhere?
I have a 75 quart Yeti and Love it! My hunting buddy keeps coolers for his employees and has purchased and tried several different brands of high end coolers over the years. He said the best cooler for the money is Yeti. I know he owns several yeti coolers ranging from 35 quart to one that fills the bed of his truck. Every time I see a thread about high end coolers there is a plethora of post about how crazy people are to spend that much money on a cooler. Here is how I justify the cost. I would tell everyone to look at purchasing a high end cooler as an investment. The purchase of my cooler has saved me money and has allowed me to spend more time in the field hunting. Before I purchased my Yeti, almost every year I was purchasing a new cooler to replace the one that was broke and falling apart from last year. The low end coolers do not keep ice well and need to be restocked every 3 days. Where I hunt elk, base camp it a good hour and half from the trucks on ATV’s and then 60 mile ride to town that takes another hour and half Let’s do the math. I paid $400 for my cooler. • New cooler every year – approximately $50 dollars a year. I could have bought 8 coolers that are junk. • Fuel for the truck; the truck gets 16 miles to a gallon. Let’s say I can find and buy diesel for $4 a gallon. Most seasons I spend 3 weeks in elk camp. Say I can spread my ice trips to 4 days and take away day that I would have to go to town for other supplies; that gives me 5 days that I would have to go to town for Ice. Each trip to town cost around $30 a trip and $150 a season. Priceless items: • How much is time in field worth to you? Each trip to town takes at least 7 hours. I figure I gain at least 2 ½ days each season that I’m in the field and not going for ice. • Knowing that if the cooler breaks I can get it replace of fixed for free. Mine has never broken. My buddy said that he had a handle on one of his break and he took it to a dealer and they gave him a new one from their stock. • Peace of mind known that any game I kill will not go bad. So in my example the cost of the cooler pays for itself in 2 years. In reality, for me, the cooler paid for itself the first season by given me the extra days in the field.
I have a 155qt Yeti. On a trip 2 years ago I packed that cooler 3/4 full with ice, 3 lbs of dry ice on top and balled up newspaper to the top.... Left the trailhead and returned 8 days later with meat in the pack and came back to a cooler full of ice. End of story
Very good post slip shot.
3 larches are the newer ones and its the one I have.
PM me as I point you on the best direction
Thanks!
Rudy
"I have a 155qt Yeti. On a trip 2 years ago I packed that cooler 3/4 full with ice, 3 lbs of dry ice on top and balled up newspaper to the top.... Left the trailhead and returned 8 days later with meat in the pack and came back to a cooler full of ice. End of story"
I did the same with my $58 158 qt. Igloo only I was opening it every day getting food and drinks out. Still had plenty of ice 10 days later.
I don't know how anyone could destroy a cooler every year, either, unless they are using it nearly every day. If I did use one that much, or was that hard on them, then I could justify the cost, but for most of us, I think it's a huge waste of money.
I have the same coolers that I bought at Wal-Mart 15 years ago. I have a 150 ish quart cooler that may need an extra couple of bags of ice in a week versus one of these high priced coolers. I will just buy more ice. I could see if one were in some remote location where ice is at a premium but I am guessing that is much more the exception than the norm. Different strokes for different folks I guess.
Besides Hunting I do alot of Paintball Events where sometimes Ice is as valuable as gold. This week when I head to Oklahoma D-DAY with my son to have fun I know I can load the Yeti up and not worry about Ice the rest of the week. This was never the case the last 15 years or so. I would have to pack up my gear take an hour to go to town where I would hope they were not sold out of Ice (Over 5000 People attend this event). Time to me is priceless and weather it be hunting, fishing, paintball, or any other reason out of the five coolers I have at the house the Yeti is always the first one I grab.
Most of the igloos, etc. we rented never made it a year, even the marine models. Handles break, hinges, latches, etc.
The IRP (same company that makes the grizzly I believe) Outback coolers are going on about 10 years now, nothing broken. And will hold ice much longer than any other cooler I've used. We have 5 of them and when they do finally go I will invest in some other high end brand. BTW, I think Igloo even has come out with their own "high end" cooler line as well at pretty much the same price point.
What cooler is most cost efficient for you will depend on your uses. No need for that much cooler if you don't use it but on occasion. Ours go out every weekend to parties or the beaches or wherever. The definition of rode hard and put away wet.
Plus these days I buy stuff planning on it being the last one I ever buy. Pass it on to the kids if they want it. WRT high end coolers, I can' imagine why, but if the kids don't want it you can always be buried in it.....
The question that will make or break your decision is:
What are you using it for?
Yeti and other type of coolers were meant for offshore and very rough conditions. Something a normal cooler couldn't handle regularly.
If you aren't in the above situation the lower end coolers will suffice. The newer lower end coolers hold ice for 4-5 days.
The biggest difference I can see between Yeti and Grizzly is that the Yeti put 3" of insulation in the lid, the Griz only 2". Not sure it makes that much difference, but maybe a stouter lid to sit on? I guess I must be one that is hard on coolers, because I have two igloos right now that have been around for a couple of years. One has broken hinges and one has a broken latch (both components are made of fairly thin plastic and screwed into fairly thin plastic with screws that tend to strip after awhile.
I have a 50 quart Yeti that I have had 4 years now and there is NOTHING wrong with it even though it is my go-to coolers unless I need something bigger. Two summers ago it was HOT in Texas. I Made two trips that year to Colorado. One in the summer for vacation, another in the fall for hunting. I started with a 10 lb bag of ice and "cold stuff" in Texas. Stayed in the back of my truck all the way up there and back (two days one way so 4 days total). When I got there, I put the remaining ice in a freezer because we stayed in a cabin, then back in the ice chest for the return trip. Both ways the temp was upper 90s/lower 100s when we were not in the mountains. Took the remaining ice and put in the freezer until fall. Took what was left in the same Yeti back to Colorado (Day and 1/2 trip for hunting both ways). In a freezer in CO and back in the cooler for the return trip. This cooler had our drinks, milk, mayo, etc and all told was keeping things cold for 7 days. When I got home after the second trip, I still had over 5 lbs of ice!
There is not an igloo made that would do that. I will bet you that 10 years from now, I will still be using the same Yeti and it will have no problems.
As far as pricing, hopefully more competition will mean better pricing in the future. As I understand it the price on Yetis are controlled by MAP pricing (minimum advertised price). So if you sell them, you have to advertise them for the price set by the company.
anybody looking at buying a cooler you ought to watch the cooler test, You will be surprised
One thing many seem to overlook is that even with the best coolers, if you're in and out of them a lot they are only marginally better than the $45 coolers.
and a full cooler always keeps ice better than one half full, 2 70 quart coolers will keep better than one 140 quart cooler
These were on sale on the grizzly site:
http://www.grizzlycoolers.com/catalog/grizzly-sale-coolers.html
I too have a coleman extreme. Decent cooler for keeping ice, but latches, hinges and especially handles will break with time.
a guy should be able to replace a latch or 2 every few years and never even approach the cost of a yeti and still keep ice and food cold far longer than the yeti
Go with what you can afford. I have a big colman. Fits 2 deer quarted nicely with a bunch of frozen bottles of water and kept them cold for week. If your in cooler weather ice always last longer anyway.
Go with what you can afford. I have a big colman. Fits 2 deer quarted nicely with a bunch of frozen bottles of water and kept them cold for week. If your in cooler weather ice always last longer anyway.
Wow, that video was impressive!!! The Coleman was just as good at keeping ice as the Yeti!
I have a 45qrt yeti that doesn't hold ice for a day. Called yeti about it and they told me it wasnt designed for what I used it for, you know, keeping stuff cold. It is bear proof though. There's not a grizzly in Florida that can get into it.
Thanks for the laugh big, that was great.
"a guy should be able to replace a latch or 2 every few years and never even approach the cost of a yeti"
Your coolers must only break latches/handles/hinges when you are at home. Mine break on the mountain nowhere near anyone who sells replacement parts. Could have a spare part for everything that WILL break at some point, but I wouldn't know where I put them when I needed them!
But I hear you. Coleman makes a decent ice chest for keeping ice cool. And for many, they are the right choice. But if you want to buy one and keep it for 15-20 years without a problem, it is worth it to some people to buy high end coolers.
Bigs; I must have gotten my 50 qt Yeti off the good side of the production line. It has kept ice longer than any cooler I have had before (and I have had a bunch of cheaper "5 day" ones) Yes, if you take one that has been in a 100 degree garage and put ice in it, it won't last long. When I get ready to go on a trip, I bring my cooler into the house a couple of days before we leave and 24 hours before I fill it with ice I put some "blue ice" frozen containers in it. It is then cold when I add ice and it has lasted for many days in high temps.
Interesting video.
They could've taken salt and added it to the Coleman, and others, and the ice would've kept longer than the IRP.
Old redneck trick. :-)
Once you throw a quartered elk in any cooler the ice will melt at the same rate. You will need to head to town for ice no matter what kind of cooler you have. Until the meat is cooled down.
A $40 coleman extreme will keep ice with the best of them. Last time out the extreme coolers held ice 9 days with the Highs in the 90's. That's 5 guys getting in and out of them a lot during the peak heat times. Dumped half the ice out on day 9 when we left, after refilling them multiple times during the week with warm drinks.
as far as construction, a piano hinge costing $6 buck screwed into the lid and cooler fixes the hardy problem. To each his own. God Bless
You guys are missing the point of Yeti type coolers.
I love my cheap coolers like the next guy. However, when I go on my buddies 50ft offshore boat Yetis weight and durability are the only way to go.
Not everyone needs a backhoe but man they can be very useful - overkill can have its advantage.
Well, I reckon if you got a 50 foot offshore boat, $300-$400 for a cooler is no biggie. :^) I'm sure they are everything to the guys who have them. I'll spend my money on hunting gear and gas to get there instead of coolers. God Bless
yeah, I keep ice just fine for up to a week in my old white igloo, but I cover it with an old sleeping bag and keep it in the shade and I'm not in a super hot enviroment. I think one of the keys to keeping ice is get a white ice chest. I used to have one of those old school forrest green metal igloo ice chests, damn thing would get so hot damn hot sitting in the sun you could cook on it. Ice wouldn't last a weekend even, took it home after a camping trip, got a can of white spray paint and painted the whole thing, it no longer got too hot to touch and would keep ice for I bet 4x as long. If your in the hot desert, one of the high end ones might be the ticket, but if not, just cover your existing one with an old sleeping bag and you will be good to home and just for info sake, you can buy replacement hinges for igloo chests for very resonable, I ordered two new latches today for 10 bucks today.
I have had a Yeti since 2007. No broken hinges, no broken latches, still keeps ice ( out in the Texas sun) for 4-5 days. Paid $200 for it, that's about $35 a year so far. Still going .............
What Sage said, keeping ice a little longer is nice. Several tips and tricks to use to make any cooler keep ice longer as well.
But they mostly build the high end coolers not to BREAK. I don't want things that are cheap and easy to repair. I want things you don't ever HAVE to repair.
That is the main criteria for NEEDING one of these rather than just WANTING one.
Nothing wrong with just wanting the best either. I enjoy and appreciate high quality tools and equipment, no need to justify that, they are a pleasure to own. Know lots of folks that only hunt a few weeks a year from treestands and they have $1500+ into a bow and accessories when a $250 big box store package rig would do just fine. I see nothing wrong with that.
" I don't want things that are cheap and easy to repair. I want things you don't ever HAVE to repair."
Exactly!
+1 to your whole post.
