RTIC Coolers.. Cheap Yeti Alternative

[twall13]

I bought 4 blue igloo coolers for 15$ a piece at target on sale. Shot a mule deer and drove 1700 miles home and never had to add ice. I recon that spending that much on a cooler isn't going to fit my needs. I never pay for ice. I rob it from the ice machine at the hotel I stay at or I freeze my own at home.

Am I the only one who thinks that spending that kind of money on a cooler seems a little ridiculous?

I'm a budget hunter. And my wife says these are not in my budget! haha

Cheaper coolers can certainly get you by and are what I've been using up to this point. The biggest advantage I see with the premium coolers is that when I'm hunting with other people, if someone gets an animal down early in the hunt we can load it up in the cooler and keep hunting for several more days without worrying about it. This past season I had a situation where it was too warm to hang the meat for a prolonged period of time and it would have been nice to have a cooler I didn't have to keep feeding ice into (in this case I made the hike and drive to the nearest town to buy dry ice which cost me about 6 hours). Between the lost time, travel, and dry ice money (on top of the ice I brought with me) I felt like I would have been ahead of the game if I had just brought a nicer cooler already full of frozen milk jugs or something. If the meat is only going to be in the cooler for the drive home you are probably set with the cheaper coolers. The premium coolers really shine when you need to keep things cool over the course of multiple days. At least that's my take on them.

 

[sneaky]

Yeti, Orca, Grizzly, RTIC, they're all the exact same thing...except the RTIC is half the price of the other three.

I hope RTIC sells a million coolers, and drives the price of all of them down to a reasonable level.

Orca is made in America, so that shoots holes in your theory

 

[sneaky]

Just looked them up, and a 58qt is $410..Thats even higher priced than a Yeti!

It's also a true 58 at cooler, not an approximation like the Yetis.

 

[rayporter]

i have not followed this thread for a few days, but i see ozark trail yeti copies in wally world now. the copies are going to get numerous and for under 200 bucks will be hard to pass up.

 

[Mark]

I had a couple of Rtics on order for a several weeks. The second time they changed my ship date I cancelled. I don't think I would have them yet had I stayed in the Rtic cooler game.

Here's an interesting review of what I consider over priced coolers.

 

[JRHawaii]

Yeti coolers are also made overseas in the Philipines.

http://yeticoolers.com/pages/faq/#where-yeti-manufactured

 

[The_Duke]

I just saw that RTIC changed their warranty on ALL coolers, no matter when you bought it, to 90 days..

**** them

I believe that you are mistaken on the warranty. I just went to their sight to verify and here is what it says:

"RTIC ROTO MOLDED Coolers are warranted against defects in material and workmanship for 7 years from the original date of receipt. All OTHER RTIC products are warranted against defects in material and workmanship for 90 days from the original date of receipt"

www.rticcoolers.com/warranty

 

[twall13]

I believe that you are mistaken on the warranty. I just went to their sight to verify and here is what it says:

"RTIC ROTO MOLDED Coolers are warranted against defects in material and workmanship for 7 years from the original date of receipt. All OTHER RTIC products are warranted against defects in material and workmanship for 90 days from the original date of receipt"

www.rticcoolers.com/warranty

Well then it appears they realized it was a mistake and changed it back because I went and looked when the change was originally posted on here and it no longer showed the 7 year warranty. I'm at least glad to see that's back for those who have already made a purchase but I won't be buying from them after all the bad things I've heard up to this point.

 

[tipsntails7]

I believe that you are mistaken on the warranty. I just went to their sight to verify and here is what it says:

"RTIC ROTO MOLDED Coolers are warranted against defects in material and workmanship for 7 years from the original date of receipt. All OTHER RTIC products are warranted against defects in material and workmanship for 90 days from the original date of receipt"

www.rticcoolers.com/warranty

Nope they changed it back, sorry but I wouldn't buy a damn thing from these guys..

 

[BATTLEBORN]

SO what is the verdict on the RTIC coolers?? Any input from guys who have received theirs?? I'm thinking about pulling the trigger on a 65q.

 

[jquarnberg]

I have had mine for a few months. I like it just fine. Seems like there is a lot more options in this price range now. I dont know how it compares to other coolers. I have never had a yeti or any of these newer knock offs. I have looked at many in the stores and my rtic isn't any different. I am happy with it. The sticker on the front is just a vinyl sticker that started peeling off after a few weeks I just pulled it off. Other than that it is well made and holds ice as advertised. I have the 45 and my buddy has the little 20 and we both like them. Wish they would make a basket and divider for them... its set up for these accessories but they aren't available yet and the yeti ones dont fit... I tried.

 

[BATTLEBORN]

That is good to hear, For the Price I may go ahead and order one. What are some of the other competitively priced coolers in this class?

 

[jquarnberg]

There is a thread on this site about a group buy from a company called atlas coolers. http://www.rokslide.com/forums/showthread.php?44348-Cooler-wars-getting-real&highlight=cooler+group Also the walmart brand called ozark makes these type of coolers now. Roto molded high performance coolers. Others I am sure those are just two I can recall seeing recently. Just looking I like the look and design of the rtic better than those but thats just me.

 

[BATTLEBORN]

Thanks, Ill look into the those.

 

[TheShootist]

Cabela's sells a rotomolded cooler called the Polar Cap Equalizer that is made in the USA. With the employee discount coupon, I was able to pick up an 80 qt. for $299.

 

[BATTLEBORN]

the Cabela's coolers look nice, and get some very good reviews. How does a guy get his hands on a employee discount code?

 

[COlineman78]

the Cabela's coolers look nice, and get some very good reviews. How does a guy get his hands on a employee discount code?

They just sent them out to a bunch of folks. Not going to use mine, so send me a PM if you need one. It's a pretty good sale for them as they only really discount Cabela's branded stuff and everything else is only like 5% off, but you don't find out till at checkout. The other problem is that if you use the coupon code you have to pay full shipping which is $30. IMO you'd be better off with current deal on Grizzly on midwayusa.com or Canyon Cooler's everyday prices, both have free shipping.

 

[BATTLEBORN]

^^^ Thanks, I was thinking about the shipping cost. We have a Cabela's in town. Wonder if I can order online with the coupon and pick it up at the store. Anyone know?

 

[COlineman78]

^^^ Thanks, I was thinking about the shipping cost. We have a Cabela's in town. Wonder if I can order online with the coupon and pick it up at the store. Anyone know?

Yeah, easily done but also keep in mind that you then have to pay the sales tax for that store. Here in CO you pay more than double the tax at the store vs shipped to your door. My previous employee discount codes were in store only, so I need to check the fine print to make sure.

Edit: It was in-store only, but is expired. I guess it was only good for like 3 days after it was delivered.

 

[Rs3003]

This is nice