Other Gear – Page 6 – The Gear Journal

Square carabiners are actually far more practical for hanging and attaching things than traditional round carabiners. The thing is though, finding well made square examples is difficult. I’ve been looking for some to use as an attachment point for a homemade camera cube for months and have found nothing but trash in my search.

Recently, however, I was turned onto Yakoda Supply’s carabiners. My search is finally over. They are the right size, the right weight, they lock, and they are made like someone gave a shit. Perfect.

Details.

January 14, 2022

Peak Design Mobile Mod

Ryan

Other Gear, Tech

So it’s no secret that I love the design team at Peak Design. Recently, they released a new line of mobile products – basically, phone cases that match to very secure mounts for things like cars, motorcycles, tripods, etc…

I bought a universal mount for review and testing and was really impressed. But, I didn’t really have a use for it as I have a RAM mount standard for all of my devices. If it doesn’t mount by 1″ ball, it’s just not for me.

Still, the Peak Design mount worked so well that I figured I should at least try to adapt it. Turns out, it’s an easy job… After about 5 minutes on the CNC router, I had an adaptor that allows me to use the PD mount with my RAM system.

I can’t recommend this enough.

More info on the Peak Design Mobile line here.

January 7, 2022

Daylight Slimline Desk Lamp

Ryan

Other Gear

Clamp on desk lights harken a time from the past, but they are still very functional today despite the fact that most of modern society has shunned them. In fact, for the right guy or gal they absolutely rule the day… and I love this one from Daylight.

Details.

December 22, 2021

MOFT Smart Desk Mat

Ryan

Other Gear

Essentially, it’s a desk mat with a shitload of magnets onboard allowing it to be all sorts of other things as well… This is really neat design work.

Details.

December 14, 2021

FujiFilm X100V

Ryan

Other Gear

Hey Ryan, my son wants to learn about photography. What is a good camera to start with assuming a budget of around $1000? He’s gonna be using YouTube and books for schooling, so I think simplicity would be best?
Jerry Sloan

My son is interested in photography as well and wanted a DSLR that made him look and feel like a bigger deal… I thought about buying him an entry level Nikon or Cannon DSLR to feed that urge, but instead decided to go in a different direction. I want him to learn the basics of capturing light before complicating things with lens choices and menu options and…

In my opinion, the Fuji X100 series is probably the best “thinking man’s” camera on the market. It has a fantastic fixed lens, a very simple menu interface, and handling that rivals a Leica. It’s just a very simple camera that is capable of producing amazing files. Plus, if he gets to the point where he has to have interchangeable lenses there is no better compact (read backup) camera on the market for the price.

The latest X100V is priced at around $1,400, but if that is too much for ya don’t be afraid to shop used/older variants. You can get them for under $1000 and they are still quite good.

Details.

September 9, 2021

Randolph Military Heritage Collection

Ryan

Other Gear

Rayban wasn’t the only eyewear company to win a government military contract in the 1960’s. In fact, Randolph made more issued sunglasses than anyone else… And they are still at it.

Details.