Richard Gear's Latest Answers

Q: Hi Richard, I'm off up Mt Kenya in a few weeks and I was looking for some fleece lined overtrousers with a 3/4 length zip that don't break the bank. So far I've spied the Montane Terra Pant XT and the Buffalo Special 6. Do you know of any others?

A: Gear here, Richard 'Slightly Confused' Gear. What I'm confused by is what exactly you want your fleece-lined pants to achieve. There's a big difference between the Buffalo Special 6 trousers, which use thick pile and Pertex to give an incredibly warm trouser and the Montane Terra XT, which are far less warm.

In my opinion, you might get away with the Terra XTs for active use, but the Buffalos will be so warm that you boil in them unless you run very cold or are stationary on the mountain.
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Q: After ten years use my Lowe Alpine 65 + 15 trekking rucsac is starting to cause serious friction related issues on my lower back whenever I take it out. Previously with heavier loads over longer distances it was fine.

I don't begrudge getting another rucsac, i've had it a long time and abused it a lot. What causes a rucsac that was previously ok to suddenly becoming a fierce friction monster? How many years do you think you should be getting out of a rucsac before the padding goes and you need a new one? Any recommendations for a new one?

 A: The name is Gear, Richard 'Degradation' Gear, degrading by name and degraded by nature, or so my friends tell me. Not a great advert really. Unfortunately with heavy use, even the best equipment eventually starts to show its age.

I've actually visited Lowe Alpine's pack design centre and I can tell you that they put an enormous amount of effort into ensuring that they spec the best quality components and construction methods for packs throughout their range and that includes the foam.

What I suspect has happened...
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Q: I have just read the review for Haglöfs Sharkfin Hood and am strugling to find it anywhere. I have been on the Haglöfs website and it's not on there. Is it an old model? If so what has replaced it?

A: Gear here, Richard 'Seasonal' Gear, stawberries and cream scoffing creature of summer, ahem. Anyway, Haglofs like many outdoor brands have a summer and winter collection, that may not make much sense in the UK where winter and summer seem to be interchangeable or in the Alps for that matter, but that's just how it is.

That means that while the very impressive Sharkfin Hood is still part of the Haglofs collection, it won't be back in the shops until autumn/winter 2007,
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