justdriftin Posted December 17, 2016 Report Share Posted December 17, 2016 Anyone got first hand experience with the Engel backpack cooler? Was going to get a hopper for the wife but saw the Engel online. I haven't seen one first hand. Reviews are hit and miss, but doesn't look as sturdy as the hopper and not a waterproof zipper so has to stay upright. Everything else looks good, removable liner and good pockets. This would probably be used more for road trips, pool side and ballgames, so may not need to be as sturdy, for half the price of a hopper. Still not cheap really compared to other softsides like polar bear etc but looks to be a little step up from them, maybe. Looking for something along the lines of the hopper but Engel has lots of good features if it would hold up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigsnook35 Posted December 18, 2016 Report Share Posted December 18, 2016 Rtic coolers are on sale right now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justdriftin Posted December 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 I looked at the RTIC, just have a little bit of a problem that they are blatant chinese knock offs of yeti. No real loyalty to yeti, though they have plenty of my money, but just sticks in my crawl when an me-too shows up and just straight up copies something and just makes it cheaper. Its a free market, so long as what they are doing is legal they are free to do what they want, just not going to trade with them myself. ***EDIT - didn't see the other thread with this exact same thought. But x2 on all that stuff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slyshon Posted December 20, 2016 Report Share Posted December 20, 2016 I have the Engel backpack cooler and use it a lot, on the boat and in the field, great product. It holds a ton of stuff and keeps things cold plus the dry storage is actually dry. Skip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishbum321 Posted December 20, 2016 Report Share Posted December 20, 2016 For those of you buying yeti or engel try ACK(Austin canoe and kayak) they appear to charge retail but will always sends you coupons 15 or 20 % off no tax, no shipping takes away some of the sting. I have multiple engel coolers and love them. the engel customer service was very good with the minor issue I had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCTribute Posted December 20, 2016 Report Share Posted December 20, 2016 West Marine has the Engel backpack cooler 25% off now. http://www.westmarine.com/buy/engel--soft-sided-backpack-cooler--16696452?cm_mmc=PS-_-Google-_-Shopping_PLAs-_-16696452&adpos=1o1&creative=108421553164&device=t&matchtype=&network=g&gclid=CO6j0a2Cg9ECFZqKswodBmYIVw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conocean Posted December 20, 2016 Report Share Posted December 20, 2016 On 12/19/2016 at 9:40 AM, justdriftin said: I looked at the RTIC, just have a little bit of a problem that they are blatant chinese knock offs of yeti. No real loyalty to yeti, though they have plenty of my money, but just sticks in my crawl when an me-too shows up and just straight up copies something and just makes it cheaper. Its a free market, so long as what they are doing is legal they are free to do what they want, just not going to trade with them myself. ***EDIT - didn't see the other thread with this exact same thought. But x2 on all that stuff I totally respect your stance but the truth of the matter is......just about every piece of equipment on our boats is either a cheaper Asian made knock-off of a product originally made by another company or contains cheap Asian parts! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LC Lappy Posted December 20, 2016 Report Share Posted December 20, 2016 I have the Engel backpack cooler and loved it until the zipper broke. Customer service will not return my e-mails. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Jazzy Posted December 20, 2016 Report Share Posted December 20, 2016 On 12/19/2016 at 9:40 AM, justdriftin said: I looked at the RTIC, just have a little bit of a problem that they are blatant chinese knock offs of yeti. No real loyalty to yeti, though they have plenty of my money, but just sticks in my crawl when an me-too shows up and just straight up copies something and just makes it cheaper. Its a free market, so long as what they are doing is legal they are free to do what they want, just not going to trade with them myself. Don't understand your point. Engel bought out Ultra Cool which was already an established co. They all copied the original roto molded cooler Icy Tek. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justdriftin Posted December 20, 2016 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2016 Sounds like zipper problems have been a problem on the Engel, breaking and leaking. I like everything else about it, but zippers are kind of important on these things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justdriftin Posted December 23, 2016 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2016 Picked up the Engel bag from West Marine this week. Going to put it under the tree for my wife. Will let ya'll know how it holds up. Seems pretty well made, very good design, lots of nice features the wife will especially love. Probably not quite as sturdy as the yeti, but lots more pockets and the removable liner will be helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justfish Posted December 26, 2016 Report Share Posted December 26, 2016 Just another one to throw out there - Polar Bear coolers. While I've never used the backpack, I have several of the soft colors and given tons as gifts and they are awesome. I had one issue with one of mine leaking -truth is prob from me loading with bottles - sent em a pic and they sent me a new one no questions asked..... they are doing buy one get one free right now I believe too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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