UKC

Hello all. I'm getting off for some easter skiing and I'm hoping to do some off piste. I've been piddling around in tidgey bits of off piste for years but now it's time to take the leap and get off the beaten track. With the recent heavy snowfall in mind I'm going to purchase a transciever, probe and shovel. Is it worth splashing out on an expensive bit of kit or do I just go for the DTS tracker?

In reply to nik king:

Mamut pulse or element.

Price? It's only your mate's life at stake...

In reply to nik king:

Do a forum search. Massive thread on this a couple of months back. The general consensus was that they all work well enough and that training and practice were more important than model.

In reply to DaveHK:

^ not really true. modern digital beacons (with 3 antennas) are much better than the older style models from 5 or 10 years ago - many of which are still on sale. any of the '5 star' beacons on this site would be a good recomendation.

http://beaconreviews.com/transceivers/Specifications.asp

i.e
BCA tracker 2
Mammut Pulse / Element
Ortovox Zoom
Pieps DSP
Arva Evo 3
etc

In reply to nik king: Just make sure it has three antena, shovel- METAL, probe- 240 or longer. And practise then practice some more.

In reply to nik king: Whatever you do, do NOT get the Pieps Freeride!

In reply to all. Thanks for the info guys. I'll take a look at the previous thread mentioned.

In reply to nik king:

have a stroll round the beaconreviews site, then buy a Mammut

Was in an arva test field with some friends last year
1 had an old analog, 3 had various more modern models

I easily located all 4 in a multiple burial in 6 minutes
The others didn't come close

I was using a Pulse

In reply to nik king:

I've done a couple of snow and avalanche courses here in France ( required for my ski-touring qualification). They were very useful as well as being great fun ! We did what you would expect: search and rescue, analyzing snow flakes and layers of strata. But also, building improvised snow-shelters ( a snow-hole and an igloo). Plus knowing the precautions to take when crossing dangerous terrain: couloirs, glaciers and steep slopes. I guess something similar must be done in the UK. Altogether a great way of spending the weekend !