Gear Patrol | Spirit of Adventure, Passion for Gear

Go Go Gadget Desk

Naming your product Geek Desk ($800) is a good way to dissuade impulse buying from the image-conscious. If you can get past that though, this utilitarian desk is pretty nifty. Its surface area measures 78.75 inches wide by 31.5 inches deep, providing plenty of room for even the messiest of workaholics. Thanks to an integrated [...]

Worth every dollar per MM

A little friendly competition is always good. In the case of playground battle between Canon and Nikon, the shooters usually win, and Canon’s much-delayed response to Nikon’s fantastic 105mm f/2.8 macro lens, the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L IS USM Macro ($900) has win written all over it. The 1:1 image uses a stabilization system that [...]

Snow Launcher

Hopefully snow isn’t on the ground for all of you just yet, but it doesn’t hurt to anticipate the battles to come. Along those lines, Arctic Force Snow Trac Ball ($16) can give you Randy Johnson-like extension to hurl snow bombs 50% further than what your regular arm can muster. In other words those punks [...]

A whiskey by any other name...

Whiskey (or whisky) drinkers tend to fall into one of two camps – single malt Scotch fans and those who favor Bourbon. Devotees of each tend to be fiercely loyal and passionate about their distilled grains. But there’s no reason why any man should limit his imbibing to the Old World or the New. After [...]

A Year Ago on Gear Patrol

These shoes were made for pubbing

In celebration of the New Balance 576′s, NB has created a limited production run called the “Pub Pack” and as you can imagine each shoe features pub-inspired design. Before you think these are shoes you should get sloppy in, keep in mind New Balance has made the collection with full grain leather, metal lace keepers [...]

Because It's Time to Stop Packing with Ziplocks

Temple’s soon-to-be-released Dopp Kitt ($55) is a great looking upgrade for those of you wanting to class up your travel gear. Its amazing rugged looks come from re-claimed WWII era canvas that’s been weathered, aged, and reborn into a bag. The leather detailing has also been salvaged off Swiss bread bags from the 1940s. Measuring [...]

Flash Video Comes to the iPhone (Sort of)

Android users can continue to laugh at the whole situation, but for Apple fanboys, the recently launched Skyfire Web Browser ($2.99) is a partial bridge to getting the “full web experience” on your favorite pocket companion. Translation: using it will allow you to play some Flash video on your iPhone. We say some because according [...]

The High-Def Sequel

How do you create a follow-up to one of the most groundbreaking and beloved cameras in recent history? First, don’t mess with it – stick with incremental improvements. And thankfully, Panasonic has done exactly that. The conservative, but welcome updates include: an improved 12.1 megapixel Live MOS sensor paired to a faster Venus Engine FHD [...]

Use This Neck and Save Yours

The genius who put a lighter at the end of a long stick is hopefully up for canonization in some religion as a finger saving saint. Clearly Zippo’s Flexneck Utility Lighter ($23) is the neck err…next evolution. Thanks to its flexible extension and slim powerful nozzle, with this in your hand, there’s no need to [...]

Loud Pipes

Our tech lust knows no bounds. The same goes for our desire to own custom and unique products that distinguish our possessions from the average catalog trawler. Unfortunately gadget manufacturers typically think in quantities of millions, not hundreds, which makes owning distinctive electronics a difficult feat. These Audio Speakers ($199) from Chicago based Etsy seller [...]

A Year Ago on Gear Patrol

Lofty Living

Like a real-life creation inspired from the game of Myst, the Cedar Creek Treehouse at Mt. Ranier is the creation of Bill Compher who built the tree house during the early 1980′s. Overlooking Gifford Pinchot National Forest the Cedar Creek Treehouse is constructed 50 above the ground on a 200-year-old Western Red Cedar tree. For [...]

Livin' The Dry Life

Those with dish washers can just ignore this post since your existence is one of privilege. Other readers who deal with the pain of hand-washing out of a lack of space or funds though should listen up. We know its hard to get excited about a dish rack — but eliminating the need to hand [...]

Meet the Bass Pro Shop On Wheels

Toyota has been pulling out all the stops for SEMA 2010 and there are plenty of amazing concepts worth browsing. The Toyota Tundra Sportsman though is hands down one of the most awe-inspiring pick-ups we’ve come across. Described by the automaker as a “command center for extended hunting trips” and “the ultimate sportsman fantasy transport [...]