Does anyone NOT own a Yeti?

I do have a Yeti 65 cooler. Bought it three years ago from a local True Value that was one of the few outlets in town that sold them at that time. I had a 25% off coupon and the cooler was left over stock and still marked with previous years price. Got a great deal on it. At that time the other cooler makers weren't making "extreme" type coolers-now they are. Bought it as I do week long camping trips in very rural area and don't like burning gas every other day in the summer to get ice.

Pros: They are certified bear proof when used with locks. They do keep ice a long time if you follow their directions.

Cons: They are priced high and they are heavy for one person when loaded.

I do keep it cable locked to the picnic table while camping. I am sure of the some of the newer entries into this market work just as well for a better / lower price.
 
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I bought a Yeti 45 some years ago when Yeti had no real competition. I don't remember the price, but I don't believe it was anywhere close to the $350.00 some have mentioned on here; perhaps that's what they sell for now.

I'm not an ice chest connoisseur and don't have a garage full of different sized coolers, but I've replaced lesser coolers over the years. I'm aware of claims that five dollar ice chests people bought at garage sales work as well as Yetis, but I haven't been that fortunate.

I don't know what my Yeti 45 weighs, but it's very heavy indeed. Fully loaded, I need help to lift it, and that's certainly a drawback. I would never buy a larger Yeti.

Last summer, as a fitting conclusion to a backpacking trip in New Mexico, we iced beer, etc. in a friend's Yeti 45. It was left in the covered bed of a pickup parked in an unshaded area from Sunday afternoon until Thursday around noon. Everything was cold as there was plenty of ice remaining. While I'm sure this is far from a record, we all thought it quite convenient since we were forty-five miles from the nearest place to purchase ice. Surprisingly, not one person out of the twelve mentioned that their far-greater-value ice cooler would have worked as well or better. Yetis (and now maybe similar coolers) fill a niche, even if it's a small niche.
 
DUCK BLINDS/BOATS???

Blind BAG not blind ICE CHEST-you can store lots of other stuff in there besides a few cans of diet coke. My blind bag now is my son'd old school back pack in camo-greatest thing ever-lots of room gor everything needed-for canned drinks I carry a couple of gallon zip locks-put in a couple or tree cans with some ice and you're good to go. Those soft side coolers are just the right size for everything you'd need on a morning hunt!

Prior to FL the issue was keeping things from freezing & avoiding frostbite. Ice was plentiful, we often had to break thru it to get onto the water. 14 years in FL & hunting, or doing much of any physical activity in heat/humidity is tough. I did see 17 degrees one morning (not for long, 60's by 9-10am) hog hunting in January, it was a pleasant change. If thirsty enough I drink my water at whatever temp. If I think of it, I may freeze a 32 oz Gatorade bottle of water. NOTHING FANCY. Ice stays in a cooler chained & padlocked in the back of the pick up. More of a coffee & thermos guy.
 
I bought my favorite cooler, an Igloo Brand MAX Cooler, at Goodwill for $20. Very Large cube shaped, wheels and a retractable handle for pulling it around.

It has held ice for 4 hot days when I brine a turkey or a few chickens. Ice lasts for days on end before I fry them.

The wheels make it our go-to ice chest for summer vacations and parties (like tomorrows 4th of July here in Vegas. 110 degrees or so!). Big enough to hold 80 bottles of water and ice, and keep ice cold all day.

Never needed more than that.
 
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I had a Hydro flask before Yetis were cool I'll stick with it. As for the coolers I drink it faster than the ice will melt anyway I do not own one.

I prefer Hydroflask as well. They don't spill
 
I was cleaning out my wallet yesterday and found an old raffle ticket where I paid $20.00 for a chance to win a Yeti cooler. I guess I didn't win.

When I saw the ticket I remembered it. Some kids athletic league was selling them. I was going to just give them a twenty dollar bill but the lady insisted I take the ticket. She said if I didn't want the cooler (I didn't) the store would give me the money instead.

Oh well.
 
We bought Yeti coolers for our employees last Christmas, not sure what model. They hold about 24 cans of beer I think. Its really heavy for its size, I only use mine if I won't be straying far from the truck. I think it was a waste of money but it does keep stuff cold. I put some beer in it from the fridge and two days later they were still cold enough to make condensation on the cans when I took them out (with no ice in the cooler).

Overpriced and too heavy to be convenient is my opinion.
 
Like I said I have a 20 Oz and a 40 Oz Hydroflask that I use for water I keep them in the freezer so they start cold when I fill them and they will keep the ice for at LEAST 24 hours. So I take the 40 Oz to work and when i get home I switch to the smaller one.

I generally only replace the ice when I wash them.
 
I'm not sure where I stand. My son bought me one for Father's Day, and my daughter promptly confiscated it. :D
 
Only bought the Koozy for a cold beer for $29. They make that soft cooler now for $300!! Take to beach? Would be gone in 2 seconds!
 
I'd rather spend money on firearms and accessories. Coleman is all I've ever needed in an ice chest. I guess if I were on an extended trip that isolated me from modern conveniences, I might change my mind...
 
I do not own a yeti cooler or mug or cup, the coolers I have now work fine. I can get a week out of 5lbs of ice and keep everything cold. I just dont open it often. beer and soda have a different cooler than uses more ice. I learned long ago I buy what I need, not what I want. But I need guns.
I questioned your statement about 5lbs. of ice lasting a week...until I saw you're in the Upper Penninsula of Michigan.
In fact, you probably need a heater on your cooler to keep your beer from freezing in the winter!
 
I bought a $20 knock off (Magnum Steel). It's a 40oz tumbler. With some waterfilled plastic ice cubes keeps my coffee or seltzer water cold all day.


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No Yeti's, I have 7-8 coolers, each bought at yard sales by the wife, and another 3 in styrofoam given to us by my 91 yr old aunt. Those work the best, prescription meds came in them and the foam is over 2" thick, and the lids are a nice tight fit. The others all work OK, but not as well as those free ones. The free ones would likely hold about 18-20 cans with some ice, but the most we've ever had in them is a six pack and about 6-8 frozen bottled water for ice then to drink.
I'd rather buy a new gun than spend it on a Yeti.
 
I asked him one day after we'd had a few beers, if the Costa's were really better than the $4.95 Berkley fishing sunglasses at Walmart. He paused, shook his head and said "No, man...you really can't tell any difference with em."

:eek:

Maybe he can't, but his eyes sure will tell in the long run. How much are your eyes worth?

$130 Costas versus $300-$400 Maui Jims, Persols or some designer name that's another story. A decent pair of sunglasses pay for themselves.

Same goes for ear protection. You don't need high tech electronic muffs, but you need more than cigarette butts.

You can replace a cooler... eyes and ears, they are a little more difficult.
 
Like many things there is time and a place for a certain tool. I don't own a Yeti cooler but have been on hunts where I've been glad to have one along.

On last years Pronghorn hunt we had a couple of Yeti coolers and Cabela's equivalent. Day time temperatures often reached into the upper 80s. Those coolers still held a good amount of ice through the hunt which ran from Wednesday through Friday the following week.

It was great to have them still over half full of ice to cool and pack home skinned and quartered pronghorn.

My hunting buddy also has packed home flash frozen salmon with just a little dry ice. Over a week later that salmon was still frozen hard.

For a picnic or over weekend camping trip a Yeti might be over kill. For food, game and fish packing, when you might be out away from civilization for 8 or 10 days, a Yeti and some of their close knock offs really come into their own.

I plan on picking up a big one before this Fall.

I do have some of the Ozark, Yeti knock off cups that I picked up at Wally. Sitting them side by side with the Yeti I wouldn't be surprised if they came off the same production line. If you fill one with ice it will still be full of ice the next day. If you put hot coffee in one watch out you might get burned an hour later.
 
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The DU dinners have been raffling off a cooler the last few raffles .. I bought a Thermos Can Cooler a few years ago and it does work ..

A Tupperware plastic glass fits n one and I left it in a thermos can cooler and there was still ice in the glass 7 hours later .. well worth the price !!

Both the wife and I have one for traveling and a soda or can of beverage will still be cold 4-5 hours later ..
 
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