UKC

Hello everyone,

I just got a SNAP Grand Rebound pad for a decent price, but now I'm starting to question the durability of the velcro straps used to keep it closed.

Any long(-ish) term experience with them?

I could return the pad and get a Simond (Decathlon) BigBlocker for around the same price (everything else is too much over budget), but SNAP seems to be a more reputable brand (not to mention the Grand Rebound is slightly larger than the Simond), so I would need a pretty strong reason to do so..

Any advice or experience would be much appreciated, thank you.

I've got a couple of Snap pads that I've had for about 10 years. They've seen a lot of use and have held up brilliantly.

Thank you, that's great to hear!

Do they close using velcro straps as well?

Hi

even if the Velcro begins to loose it’s grip, you can use a couple of bungee cords to hold it folded. These also allow you to carry more than one pad. 

Around 4.5 years regular use, bit of wear on the straps but nothing serious and foam still in good condition. 

Got the Simond BigBlocker recently, and the fastening buckle webbing is too slim and slick, means the pad doesn't stay shut when carrying it as a backpack with stuff inside, proving really annoying as bits stashed in the pad are falling out when heading to/from boulders. also, with the webbing being so thin, doesn't seem like it will be that durable either. however, to fall on is really nice, nice and firm so good with rocks under it and hopefully foam will be durable. Got for £200 so not a bad price for a large pad, just wish they sorted out the fastening straps. 

I had a Snap Grand Wrap about 5 years ago.  The cells in the middle of the pad went really soft in less than a year but the importer replaced them for free.  They were very helpful.

The tabs that the Velcro was switched on to, started to become unstitched.  I took them to a local branch of Timpson and they switched those back on for me.  Brilliant service and value from them.

I've found exactly the same issue with the BigBlocker. It's a shame, because otherwise it's a very good pad at a pretty reasonable price

You can rearrange the cells to even out wear, obviously still have soft spots but helps to extend lifespan.

Thank you. Indeed, I've emailed the people at SNAP (regarding replacement foam) and they seemed very kind and helpful, that's always nice to see.

So in your case the problem was not the deterioration of the velcro itself, but rather of the stitching of the straps on the pad?

Thanks, that was very useful.. I guess the grass is not really greener on the other side then!

I did move the cells around for a while, but it got to the point where I was trying to avoid falling on parts of the mat.  So, I switched to Organic pads

does yours work better now if it's a bit older?

Maybe, it's difficult to say. I've had it for about 2 years and nothing has fallen out recently but I've definitely got into the habit of not putting anything in it that I think might fall out.

Thank you everyone for the help.

I'm keeping the SNAP pad and in case the velcro wears out I'll just deal with it somehow (it's not rocket science after all, I'm just overthinking as usual).

It was nice to hear some feedback, happy climbing!

I've had two older SNAP P'tit Wraps for quite some many years (a really old one, and a bit newer one with slightly different fabric... I think it's the same as they currently have).

Both use the velcros and no issues thus far.

Had some sticthing worries on the older one, which was mainly due to the fact that I often carry multiple pads to the crag, and also assorted other stuff, so I was overloading the rucksack-straps and their attachment points (plus I have had the same issue with Organic Big Pads... no biggie, just need to remove the cover, glue in some reinforcement fabric on the inside and re-stitch by hand...).

The only problem I have with those Snaps is that they both are with that fancy aircell technology (like the one on Wham and Grand Wham)... really good to fall on, less so for sit starts (they de-inflate and suddenly your 10cm thick pad is now only 1cm think). But again, I already knew that... Not a problem for you though as the Rebound doesn't use that technology (IIRC). 
 

Replacing the velcro will be very easy for any sewing machinist to do so I wouldn't worry too much about it.

I've had a SNAP pad for the last four years now. It doesn't see a huge amount of use, but despite having the same worry as you the velcro is still going strong.