bearbreeder

the alibi looked sweet .... i already have a gamma sv so i couldnt justify buying another softshell .... pit zips, waterproof top, thumb loop sleeves .. etc .... 260$ regular price ... saw it on sale for 150$ i bought my Gamma SV for 250$ at on sale .. regular 350 ... lol if i didnt already have the SV at the time i saw the OR .. sigh the SV is nice but nothing special IMO and certainly not worth the extra 2 cams i could buy with the difference

my EB downlight is built as well as any patagucci or dead bird i have .... got it for 50$ too lol

i have a solano maybe thats the one yr looking at ... its basically a goretex winstopper windshell? i got it for 100$ on sale ... would never have paid the 250$ list price

rab would disagree with you ... not that they make stuff for climbing

there's little point in buying dead bird anymore ... they're behind the curve these days and all their gear has ben surpassed with the exception of harnesses rain shells ... westcomb and others surpassed them with event shells, as well as hybrid ones soft shells ... same as above with hybrid shells ... other manufacturers have seam taped softshell as well ... insulated jackets ... the duelly is supposedly still the king of belay jackets ... however for any other jacket they are no better and much more expensive ... i mean really paying 600$+ retail for a synthetic jacket? fleece ... dont even get me started ... polartec is polartec ... doesnt matter if its walmart or dead bird ... when you charge a few hundred for a single polartec jacket .... welll ... backpacks ... heavy, lot of new ones lack ice axe loops, expensive ... theres a reason why lot of people prefer live bird (osprey) over dead bird climbing harness ... only place where its worth it dead bird has been resting on its laurels for years ... i see absolutely no reason to pay retail for stuff that much more expensive than the competition, made in developing countries, yet behind the times and no better and sometimes worse than their competitors the ONLY reason i buy it is that its often half price at the outlet store why pay 350+ for a simple softshell jacket thats made in china? if you want to spend moola ... buy westcomb ... awesome build quality, same fit as dead bird, made in vancouver bc, better materials (event)

they are only 35$ now ... and other camp screws are 30$ http://www.camp-usa.com/products/categories/CLOSEOUTS.asp get them while they last ...

here's a quick photo of the cheap siding version .... it adds almost no weight and its my tinder when the pack weight comes down ...

i sanded the edges of the balsa wood down and wrapped the sides in tape ... just ads to the flamability .... lol its stored within the bivy pad ... if yr worried u can just tape the wood to the pad and it shouldnt tear through anything ... course osprey does have a no questions asked lifetime warranty it allows me to carry a double rack, 10mm 60 m rope, water, belay jacket, helmet, etc ... with minimal frame distortion ... basically 30 lbs+ you can also use the cheap light wooden sidings from the 80s if you have any left ... the stuff they put on doors and walls ... lol let me know if you need anything else

got the mutant, actually like it alot except for no crampon pocket the frame can be an issue if you dont pack it right easy solution ... i got an thin piece of balsa wood and stuffed it between the bivy pad ... it solved any frame issues when im carrying heavier loads ... it also acts as emergency tinder in a survival situation