Category: Links

Some good deals to be had, oddball sizes so don’t get too revved up. I grabbed a dry bag to try for a great price though. (Pro-tip: Filson tends to randomly add more stuff throughout sales.)

Gear up. 

$125 with shoulder strap, for what is probably one of the better weekender/travel duffle bags out there. I currently use mine as my emergency bag for my house, and I think it fills that role supremely well (members can head here to see what I use in place of it).

My thoughts on the bag are here.

These bags are highly underrated by those who don’t yet own one.

Find them here.

Really good deals on headlamps here if you need to grab some. The Spot Lite 200 for a small compact light that has a red light is a favorite of mine. The Wiz is ideal for kids. The Storm models are great for those who need to make it through some rough weather conditions. And for me, the Flare is the ultimate for an emergency bag. I can’t even count how many headlamps I have from Black Diamond, and they are all great.

Some good deals on Black Diamond headlamps (big fan of those, though Black Diamond’s sale has slightly better pricing depending on shipping and taxes for you) and hiking shoes (I snagged some Salomon XA’s) — also a bunch of merino gear is on sale and that’s a good enough reason for me to grab another t-shirt.

I love the Road Buddy series. My review is here.

Know that I still use these bags to this day, and refuse to let people borrow them. They are excellent bags.

Pre-order for 36 is here.
Pre-order for 60 is here.

Get some!

GORUCK just dropped some GR1 Field Pocket in Multicam Tropic — a favorite of mine — and they are not USA made which means the price is nicely set at $50. (They also released Multicam Black and Black at the same price.)

I think this is the best size of these GORUCK makes, and I have a ton. Also, pockets in camo are super fun, so indulge.

Find them here.

Limited edition SB (Special Blend) model of the ASAP is out now. Two differences:

• Laptop Sleeve!
• Special Colorways

They seem to have a couple hundred left at writing, go get it. The biggest downside of the ASAP was the missing laptop sleeve, and this has it. Oh my.

Buy here.

GORUCK released ‘reservations’ for the new Rucker 4.0, and Rucker Long Range.

The Rucker 4.0 appears to have a few changes: extra padding on the top of the plate, velcro closures on the internal flap pockets, extra d-rings inside the bag, and no slant pocket on the front. This is all done to make for less breakage when slamming the bag around — everything else seems to be the same as the 3.0 model. The Multicam Tropic model does come with a matching hip belt, and appears to be running the camo pattern horizontal — which would be great if it proves true during shipping.

The Rucker Long Range is completely new. It’s a Rucker 3.0 design, on the GR2 platform (so you still get zipper pockets and the front pocket, no extra d-rings, but the sleeve does seem more padded). These come in 33L and 39L for $245/$255 — that’s a hell of a deal for the GR2 platform. They have the slick material against your body and the lumbar support — I bet they feel killer to ruck with, or use in general. GORUCK has been talking about this model for a while now, and it should be great for those who find the 25L stuffed with a plate and hydration bladder (which it is tight).

For readers here, use code BEYOND25VIP for 25% most items. I grabbed the Sherpa fleece, looks great. I love the Todra t-shirts for working out, btw.

Up to 40% off, I normally don’t highlight their sales but there are a few items that are hard to get on sale I wanted to point out:

• Togiak Belt: this is a great belt I love to wear around on the weekends or when I go outdoors. It’s massively long, but really nice. On sale for $27.
• Lightweight Alaskan Guide Shirt: I have the standard weight and it’s so warm I rarely get to wear it, I’d buy this if I were getting one again. Great comfortable shirt. Sale price is $75.
• Small Rugged Twill Duffle: long has this been on my wishlist, and often heralded as one of the best ‘buy it for life’ pieces you can get. It’s normally $350, but on sale for $210. These are their limited run colors, so if you like them you better grab them now because they likely won’t make a return. I think that green looks stellar.
• Rugged Twill Original Briefcase: one of my all time favorite bags, I use mine all the time. It’s a legend. Normally #325, it’s on sale in these colors for $195 — excellent price. This is also limited edition colors, but that Flag Blue is dope.
• Medium Rugged Twill Field Bag: this is the standard tan color, and I loved this bag when I had mine. It was a little too big and a little too small for me — I couldn’t use it for the office (too small), and it was a little bulky for much of what I was trying to use it for (travel and such). That said, what a great bag it was/is. On sale at $237.

Bunch of other stuff too, but those are my picks.

This is my favorite keyboard available (my review). Excellent feeling and bluetooth! Go get it while you can.

Buy here.

I love the new publishing features in Ulysses, if for nothing else than being able to know that I published something, amazing. But being able to update a post after publishing: aces. Not noted is that you can open the published posts on the web by clicking on the published card for the post — which is also another great add.

Good stuff, best writing app still. Download it, like now.

Mostly mentioning this because they are making it in Multicam Tropic and 500D. Oh my. Must resist. Also like 26L GR2 I guess.

Caitlin Flanagan on the parasite that is Twitter:

Twitter is a parasite that burrows deep into your brain, training you to respond to the constant social feedback of likes and retweets. That takes only a week or two. Human psychology is pathetically simple to manipulate. Once you’re hooked, the parasite becomes your master, and it changes the way you think. Even now, I’m dopesick, dying to go back.

This applies to all social media regardless of which it is, or how you interact with it. I don’t miss leaving Twitter at all, it’s been fantastic. Even Reddit use I waning for me as I spend more time reading and writing than ever (you might have noticed the up tick in writing that’s because I don’t waste the time on scrolling endless feeds).

That said, her sons sound a little annoying to be around.

Some interesting, and somewhat random feeling, deals for this year.

This evening the current newsletter system is being turned off, and I am moving to the native WordPress email notifications. I am *not* migrating your account, so please go here to sign up for email notifications of new blog posts: [Sign Up](https://brooksreview.net/newsletters/).

Really quick: I’ve had a pair of Simple Shorts in Coyote for a while now, but rarely wore them. This summer I’ve been wearing them a lot more, especially since they are one of the few shorts that fit me well (lost some way, yay?). Anyways, they are deceptively good.

I won’t say they look the best, because they don’t. But they are very comfortable to wear. They breathe well (both for casual wear, and rucking) and are nice and stretchy. They dry fast and all that too. But more than that, like with the Simple Pants (Lightweight, love those more), they are fantastic to pack as backup clothing since they weigh nothing and pack down very small. I brought them as backups on a recent vacation, wore them the entire time.

Also I should note that if you want secure pockets for going to the beach, these shorts are what you want. Stuff stays in these pockets, but the thin material means they print very well too. So a trade off, but a worthwhile one.

Anyways, these aren’t always in stock but appear to have a decent stock right now, which has been very hit and miss with GORUCK lately. If you are interested grab a pair.

Tom Bihn just released a batch of Yeoman Duffels in many sizes and colors (including Beaver Camo). They aren’t committing fully to when/if the next run will be. Be sure to snag one if you want one. I love them.

Note, from Tom Bihn’s product page at the very bottom:

The Yeoman is built entirely from our U.S.-made 1050 denier high-tenacity Ballistic nylon—but unlike other TOM BIHN bags, which are made from flawless 1050d ballistic, the Yeoman is made of fabric that is what we call “seconds”; fabric that may have cosmetic blemishes which do not impact its utility or durability.

They detail what to expect more in the last paragraph of the page.

I am trying to slim down over here, so I have two items to sell today:

• Drop ALT Halo Clear Switches: comes with the keycaps you see on it, and one USB-C cable, just tell me if you want USB-C to USB-C or USB-C to USB-A. $85 shipped US Only Sold.
• EDC Starter Kit: OneTigris Admin Pouch, 2020 Dumpster Fire Patch, Triple Seven Gear EDC Wallet, Retro51 Tornado Pen (with fresh refill), FourSevens Mini MKIII, Leatherman Carabiner Tool, Spyderco Ladybug ZDP-189. $95 shipped US Only Sold

Email me, first to pay gets the item.