 Poster: A snowHead
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Time to buy a transceiver, shovel and probe... or at least time before next season, and 3 sets to be more specific to cover our regular group. We tend to do a long weekend together each season and occasionally a family trip at half term.
Rather than punting for the cheapest set we can find, are there any recommendations or things to consider?
Ideally keeping weight down is desirable but is there a material difference without massively escalating costs?
I've seen an Ortovox set at just under £200. This is my benchmark. Open to spending more if worthwhile.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Adam123, PaulC is selling an avi kit on here if he hasn't sold it already. He always buys fancy stuff so it will be fine.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Generally cheapest options are fine, especially for beacons where you don't really need all the bells and whistles to overcomplicate things.Big no to plastic shovels. Probe depth is something you need to consider, if you are only skiing areas with small snowpacks you could get away with something smaller. Generally I prefer to go for something longer as the extra weight is really not that significant.
Don't worry about weight. These things are all made to be carried. Unless you are doing multiple day traverses or have some pretty extreme goals a few kg are not making much difference at all.
As always, the kit is only as good as the user. Practice is important. Making good decisions in order to avoid being in an avalanche in the first place should be the main goal.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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@Adam123, For the transceiver make sure the firmware is up to date, as aside from general improvements, there are sometimes recalls to get it updated. Further to the post by @OwenM, Facewest will support any transceiver bought from them by updating/testing it free of charge.
As always check the excellent Beacon Reviews site for comparisons https://beaconreviews.com/transceiver_reviews.php
Personally I prefer transceivers with rotating arrows rather than 5 lights or pointers, as they can point left, right or behind you. I've had the Mammut Barryvox transceivers for more than 10 years and much prefer they way they work.
As pointed out by @boarder2020, once you have bought your kit, practice with the transceivers is vital, and since you will have 3 you will be able to test them fully and practice how they behave in different search scenarios.
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