 Rite in the Rain
Outdoor Journal
When having clear readable notes is necessary in all
conditions, the All-Weather outdoor journal is a must.
Andrew Buskov
Initial Report: September 28, 2009
Field Report: December 8, 2009
Long Term Report - February 09, 2010
Tester
Biographical Information
| Name: |
Andrew Buskov |
| Age: |
34 |
| Gender: |
Male |
| Height: |
5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Weight: |
223 lbs (101 kg) |
| Email: |
Rescue(at)Corridor9(dot)net |
| City, State Zip |
Madisonville, Kentucky
USA |
Backpacking Background:
I’ve been backpacking for years now,
and have
slowly started
developing my ideal style. I’ve gotten my pack weight down to roughly
25 – 30
lbs (11.3 - 13.6 kg) before water, and am whittling it down every hike. Day hiking is
nice, but
getting out over multiple nights is really what I enjoy. I like to take
my
time and enjoy the scenery as opposed to hiking hard. I also like being
comfortable and insist on an air mattress. I usually tent or hammock,
but stay in shelters when needed.
 Product
Information:
| Item: |
Outdoor Journal Kit
|
| Manufacturer: |
Rite in the Rain
|
| Website |
http://www.riteintherain.com/
|
| Year of Manufacture: |
2009
|
| MSRP: |
$34.69 |
| Listed Weight: |
.4 lb (.18 kg)
|
| Actual Weight: |
.4 lb (.18 kg)
|
Product
Overview:
This product arrived to my door in complete
condition, without any items missing, and as described. In this package
I received an outdoor journal kit (1701-KIT) which
included one 4 x 6 in (10 x 15 cm) All-Weather Outdoor Journal, one
All-Weather black pen, and one canvas
carrying pouch. I also received another larger 4 5/8 x 7 in (11.75 x 17.8
cm) All-Weather Outdoor Journal.
Other than size, the spiral notepads are only slightly different. The smaller notepad
has the spiral wire on the top of the pad while the larger notepad has
the spiral wire on the left side. Both appear to be of the same paper,
and plastic material. The pouch is made of a durable-looking canvas
material, and the pen appears to be a metal stamped pen with a
replaceable ink cartridge that is sealed on top.
Initial Impressions:
 These
are not your typical spiral
binders,
but are a double loop wire binding. The front and back
cover are
made of a thick yellow plastic with printing on both the front and back
covers. The yellow definitely makes it easier to see in the
dark. The pages, as well as the covers, have a rectangular
stamped hole in them for the wire binding, and all fit nice and tight
inside the covers without
dangling over the edge. This is nice as I have had journals with
dangling pages, and the pages always seem to get ruffled in my pack.
The paper itself is block lined. The horizontal
lines are blue and solid while the vertical lines are blue and
dashed. Down in the lower right corner is a "square ="
definition box. This is a
great feature as I now have a way to remember how many feet each
square is when I'm graphing something. Also, even though the paper is
designed to be used in poor weather, the paper doesn't feel rough,
greasy, or different in texture from standard notebook paper. The only
difference that can be noticed is the weight of the paper; it appears
to be a heavier paper which is nice for tear protection. Since both of
the journals
appear to be relatively the same except for size, it should be assumed
that whatever is mentioned within this review applies to both journals.
The pen is a click style pen as opposed to a twist style. This was a
bit surprising as it appears upon opening that the pen would be a twist
style. I found out rather quickly though that I wasn't operating it
correctly when the pen cane unscrewed and the internal cartridge was
exposed. It is a matte black pen with a small shirt pocket clip on the
top. There is no other writing on the pen and the top is a blunt end.
 The
canvas pouch is composed of a long piece of canvas that is folded over
twice to form an envelope shape. The sides are sewn together with a
ribbon material. Inside the pouch are two elastic bands that hold the
pen,
paper, and other items effectively. The bottom elastic is also sewn in
such a way to create pouches so as to separate pens, pencils,
flashlights, or other long items that could be slid into the pouch.
Having these pouches keeps the pen and pencil that I have in there now
from sliding sideways or diagonally. On the exterior of the pouch is a
plastic clip that holds the top of the pouch closed. There is enough
extra material through the clip to allow for the pouch to be stuffed
full of equipment and still allow the clip to secure the lid of the
pouch.
Being as how this item is designed to be used in poor
conditions, I thought it wise to test it out at home prior to needing
something to write on in the rain on the trail. I myself prefer using a
pencil as I often find it easier to write with. Using any standard
pencil that I tried was just as easy and simple as with regular paper.
Erasing spelling errors was quick and easy, and didn't leave any marks.
I also tried writing in pen and found the same results; it's a smooth writing surface.
After writing on the paper
for a while I tried dunking it under running water. I was simply amazed
that the ink nor the pencil faded in any manner. I even took my finger
and started rubbing the paper to see if I could smear the ink or pencil
marks. After a few seconds, I found no smear marks or smudges; simply
amazing! It really has lived up to my expectations so far.
Field Report: December 8, 2009
Field Conditions:
During
this testing phase, I was able to use this a variety of times in
inclement weather. Conditions ranged from 10,000+ ft (3000+ m) with snow
and icy rain, to 450 ft (130 m) with hard, driving rain. Temperatures
ranged from 20 F (-6 C) to 70 F (21 C) over the testing period. Windy
conditions were experienced a few times, but these really didn't have
an impact on the test, or my use of the materials.
Performance:The
Rite in the Rain Outdoor Journal held up really well over the course of
the testing period. I was able to able to take a lot of notes in rainy,
wet conditions. This simply would not have been the case with my old
style journals. As I prefer pencil to ink, I was very pleased with the
fact that my fine point pencils were not gouging through the paper as
they would with my standard journals. Even in completely wet
conditions, I was able to write easily and neatly in both ink and
pencil.
One of the things that I noticed during this testing
phase was how well the paper seemed to deal with "long term" wetness.
When using this journal in icy conditions some of the icy rain froze on
the paper. I ended up having to stick it into a plastic bag prior to
putting into my pack. Because of this, the moisture didn't evaporate as
well as it did when I was able to use the included pouch in rainy
conditions. However, the paper performed wonderfully. It didn't wet out
at all, nor did any of the pencil or pen marks run.
I did tear
out a few of the journal pages over the testing phase for various
reasons. I was surprised that there were no paper flakes at all. The
paper seemed to be thick and heavy as to rip uniformly and thus not
have little paper pieces floating all over. I used to prefer bound
journals that didn't have perforated sheets or spirals just so I
wouldn't have to deal with paper pieces all over.
As for the
pouch, I found it to be more of a hassle than anything. However, I do
realize it was designed to be used with a belt and not necessarily with
a pack. There were only a few places to attach the pouch to my pack,
and none of them proved to be very easy to reach while hiking. It did
store a few extra pens and some brochures during one of my day hikes.
While it is nice to have if I just need to take the journal with me and
don't want the pages damaged, using it during a hiking trip with a pack
didn't work out that well in my opinion.
The pen handled all
tasks I threw at it with no problem. I was able to write in the rain,
snow, sleet, and freezing rain with no problems. I even wrote with it
underwater once just to see how effectively it worked. I did find that
it started writing more cleanly the more I used it. I don't know if
there was a buildup of dry ink near the tip when I first opened it, but
I was a lot more pleased with the operation of the pen after some time.
I'm
still pleased with the operation of all items during this test. I
haven't found any aspects that I don't like, nor have I found any
problems that need to be addressed.
Long Term Report - February 09, 2010
Field Conditions:During
this testing phase I used the Rite in the Rain Outdoor Journal an
additional 10-12 times. While a few of the uses were on
the five day hikes I took in two different recreational areas in
Western Kentucky, a majority of the usage was for keeping notes and
jotting things down during meetings and training exercises.
Temperatures that I experienced during the outings ranged from 35 - 55
F
(2 - 13 C). All trips were during overcast skies, but only one day hike
had any precipitation: a bit of misty fog. As mentioned, I have used
these in training exercises as well. Being a fire fighter, training
exercises generally include a good deal of water, mud, and sometimes
foam. In all, I've used the Outdoor Journal about 25 - 30 times and
have gone through over ten sheets of paper.
Performance:The
Rite in the Rain Outdoor Journal has server me very well during both
wet and dry conditions. Having the ability to take along some paper
and pen that I can use whenever and where I need is definitely a plus.
I've even had the opportunity to dribble come coffee on the journal
during one of my business meetings, and still the paper didn't stain
and the ink didn't run. It was very nice to be able to keep my notes in
order even though I had problems keeping my coffee where it should be.
The
paper continues to remain nice and clean even after being exposed to
dirt and grime. The edges are not rolled or folded at all, and the
metal binding continues to be evenly spaced and durable. None of
the blue ink has faded to the best of my knowledge, and the cover
remains just as bright and yellow as the day it arrived. The plastic is
not creased even though it was repeatedly bent during this testing
phase due to being stuffed in a small pouch of my every day pack when
being transported back and forth to work.
The pen, which worked
flawlessly during the entire testing phase, continued to do so till it
dropped out of my pack earlier this month. I was on the way to another
meeting for a web design client and threw both it and the journal in a
large compartment of my laptop pack. When I arrived at the meeting, the
pen was gone. However, I can say that up until two weeks ago, it was
one of the smoothest pens I've used. The ink just flowed out without
much pressure or work, even in the harshest conditions. I've already
looked into getting a pen like this from a local office supply store.
The
cargo pouch didn't get much use this phase. It's primary job was to
keep everything together when I stored my materials in the desk. I
didn't need it during my day hikes as I was testing the durability of
the journal itself in foul conditions, and I simply didn't have enough
room for it in my daily laptop pack. I did like the fact that it kept
everything together and nothing got lost in my desk, but field use was
not something that I needed it for.
Overall, I've been
exceptionally pleased with the Rite in the Rain Outdoor Journal and
associated products. I had been looking at purchasing one of their
journals prior to my experience testing, but didn't know how well they
would hold up. I can now say without a doubt that these will work
wonders for me at work, even in environments that include foam and mud.
I'd like to thank BackpackGearTest.org and Rite in the Rain for allowing me to participate in the Outdoor Journal test.
Read more reviews of Rite In The Rain gear
Read more gear reviews by Andrew Buskov
|
