Hardcore Field Test – Yeti Coolers

Yeti Coolers:

We have been getting a ton of questions about Yeti Coolers since we partnered with them for our Facebook gear giveaway.

We started in May of 2012 with our “25 Years of Gear” giveaway and it finished in October. Each week we partnered with a manufacturer of hunting gear to get the word out about their product, as well as get our followers some free gear.  June 2012 we did this with Yeti coolers.

We talked about and gave away one of Yeti’s Tundra 50 coolers, and there was an overwhelming response. Apparently our followers either love these coolers and want one, or have one and want another. We started getting questions on the benefits, costs and our true opinion on them…well here it is.

We have two Yetis here at the office; the first one we bought over five years ago and the other is about six months old. This cooler is a beast; it weighs 37 lbs. empty,  is 37 inches long by 18 inches wide and 20 inches high. To put that into perspective, I’ve put an entire boned out bull elk in our old one.

One problem we have with the 110 is it size. If you fill it with ice, drinks and food it is hard for even two guys to handle. I would suggest you buy one of the Tundra 50s as well. Yes it is a bit more money, but it is also nice to have two cold storage systems; one for cold stuff like drinks that you’re getting in and out of all of the time and one that is for frozen stuff that is only opened when needed. This better mimics your home refrigeration system. Plus you have two different camp chairs so when you and your hunting buddy start to get a little ripe you can separate.

This brings me to the features that all Yetis have that make it worth the money.  The reason a person buys a cooler is to keep stuff cold while away from refrigeration. Well let me tell you, these coolers are the best at insulation. We put two frozen bear hides in ours and drove for two days in the blistering heat of June and when we arrived at the taxidermist they were still frozen solid. I have had this cooler keep ice two full days longer than our other cooler while out antelope hunting in the desert of Wyoming. It can reach 90 degrees in the middle of the day in September and to put it simply, Yetis do exactly what they say…keep ice longer.

Another very thought out feature is the drain plug. How many times have you been handling another brand of cooler and you brush up against something hard and the drain spout breaks off? Well, Yeti has fixed this problem. They have not only recessed the spout from the outer edge of the cooler, but also made it from a very durable food-grade material – the same as stuff the hull is constructed from. They also made it screw in so it is more water tight and durable. The other nice feature about the drain is that it is like that of a boat…placed at the lowest point of the coolers floor. It will drain completely instead of leaving a bit of water in the bottom. This means you don’t have to empty your stuff out of the cooler to get the water out.

The handles are also recessed on the Yeti coolers. They are comprised of marine-grade, UV-resistant rope so they are durable for hauling loaded coolers, but pliable enough so you won’t rip them off.

They have also included other tie down features as well. Each cooler has anchor points on them so you can run a strap through to hold your cooler down or if you need something more beefy or permanent they have ratchet guides. This allows you to ratchet strap the cooler upside down to an airplane or in a boat and it would stay as long as your straps held it.

Another item that gets some attention is the rubber feet on the bottom. This is unique to Yeti coolers as well. These non-marking feet help the cooler stay in place in the bed of your truck or floor of your boat. We have been known to rip them off on accident when pulling a loaded cooler to the back of a truck, but you can buy replacement parts on Yeti’s website. These feet also keep the cooler off hot surfaces to help with ice retention.

The Yeti cooler was the first cooler deemed Grizzly Bear proof…simply use a padlock on each side of the lid. The Tundra coolers were approved by the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee in May of 2009. This means if you have food in the cooler and it is secured properly you will not get a ticket while in a Grizzly Bear management area and you won’t come back to camp to no food. This is a feature I have used on occasion out of convenience. Check out their website for the full details of this.

All in all, these coolers are very durable and well worth the money. We have had one of these coolers for over 5 years and it gets used for over 6 months every year and it still looks and works just like new, minus a few scratches, missing feet and one logo missing. In fact, the other hunting crew has been using Igloo coolers for the same amount of time, they are on their fourth one. Yeti’s are worth the money because they’re durable, keep ice longer and easy to use…unless you have claws.

-Ike