New Otter Thermal

[harleyharry]

Has anyone got one of these yet. I have been seeing them advertised lately.

I an the owner of three Otter portables, and have issues with all of them. When I purchase my first one many years ago, the customer service was very good out of Otter, but a couple of years ago, not so good.

I am wondering about the quality of the new thermals. I have has a lot of issues with the support poles, and the covers being too short. Was wondering if these issues are still issues.

The closet dealer I have is fifty miles away, and they do not have the new models in yet. Too many old models left over from last year. The next dealer is three hours away.

Any info would be appreciated. I fish out of a 6x12 permanent, but that gets old sometimes.

Harry

[Brad B]

I personally don't have a thermal of theirs but I do have 2 other otter houses(discontinued models). there are a few options you could look at . they offer the thermal shell by it self as a relacement to your current shell. they also offer this with a new frame(poles). the newer poles are better then the original poles. this might be the better opition for you if the sled part of the house is still in good shape.

[DTro]

I’ve fished out of one the past two weekends, and REALLY like the thermal canvas, it is the real deal! It hasn’t been cold by any means, but it’s been below freezing, and we haven’t been able to sit in there with coats off and the door closed yet. If the heater was on (low) the door was open. It adds a little bit of weight, but not really noticeable compared to a non insulated version.

As far as the poles go, they are constructed very well and they slide super easy and are durable.

I think the whole fit thing is across the board issue with portables. Some tops are a little too tight, and some are too loose, you just have to play around with the Velcro closures and different settings on the poles to get a good fit.

I will say that the friend of mine who bought one had issues with hardware being omitted from his box when we went to assemble it. Then after jumping through some hoops to get a new pack, was still shorted by 50% in the new bag. I got a new one this year too, but just a thermal top, not a full thermal and all my hardware was there so maybe it was just an anomaly. I guess I would say that if you live far away from a dealer, or the Otter factory, I might check to make sure all the hardware is there before driving away with your purchase, otherwise you could be at the mercy of snail mail if something is missing.

With that said, I think that Otter is still best in the business and their houses are rock solid!

[Random guy]

I have had my XT900 Thermal Lodge out in -10 with the 20 mph early AM winds blowing and it was warm. Heater on low, ZERO condensation and no flapping in the wind. As far as I'm concerned the are the only way to fish.