REI vs LL Bean Camping/Backpacking gear

[rubysoho]

Any thoughts? I am starting to gather my own gear for some single night and weekend backpacking trips. Everyone recommends REI but is LL Bean good too? They are much closer than the REI store. Both have lifetime guarantees on their items. I know I love my LL Bean hiking boots that definitely earned their keep and held up under some pretty serious use.

[Tri Girl]

I don't have any experience with LL Bean stuff (not a store anywhere around), but I know how much I LOVE my REI stuff (and I have a lot of it). Then again- there isn't an REI within 300 miles of me, but when I get near one I'm like a kid in a candy store. I can spend hours there at a time.

Sorry I'm not much help. ;)

[KnottedYet]

I've had both.

Been shopping at REI since it was a little co-op in a warehouse on Capitol Hill in Seattle. Now it's a big multi-tentacled corporate monster...

REI's quality is about the same as LL Bean. I've got no complaints about either.

REI has a search function on their website that lets you select things made in USA, which is nice if you're the sort of person who wants manufacturing jobs to exist in the US.

[ny biker]

Bean controls the manufacturing for most of their stuff. They only recently started selling other brands in some product categories. They built their business on quality and customer service. I would not hesitate to buy camping equipment from them. I think they're now offereing free shipping on all mail/internet orders, too.

p.s. While you're at Tysons, get pizza from Luciano, next to Lord & Taylor. It's really good, real NY pizza. And the ladies room in L&T (ground floor by the baby clothes) is really nice.

[szsz]

Bean controls the manufacturing for most of their stuff.

This, and it is sometimes possible to find out who is doing the actual fabrication. My backpack is LLBean labelled but made by Gregory (it's very old) so I knew I was getting an excellent product with a stellar warranty.

That said, I have a ton of great REI gear as well. Nothing bad to say about either!

[colorisnt]

LL Bean all the way!

Although Cabela's also makes some great gear, too.

[GLC1968]

I'm a big fan of both. I put some LL Bean stuff through some serious quality testing in my college days and I use mostly REI stuff now (no LL Bean near me). Both get two thumbs up in terms of quality and customer service. Both companies stand behind their products 100%. You can't go wrong with either...

[sarahkonamojo]

I have purchased from both. I have an REI in town, so have purchased more from REI. I DO try to frequent the locally owned outdoor shops as well.
It depends on what gear you are talking about. REI does sell plenty of other brands (i.e. Pearl Izumi) that cover their weaker points. If I was looking for a tent, for example, I would look much farther than only LL Bean or REI brands. Although, you might end up with one of their tents, neither REI or LL Bean do much ground breaking gear development...
Enjoy the process.
S

[NbyNW]

DH is a Mainer and must buy from LL Bean whenever he needs new everyday items. He gets his favorite everything there, year after year. It doesn't change much.

REI is more convenient to us on the west coast though, if we want to go to a bricks-and-mortar location and kick the tires. Both are good companies. In our case, either way we are supporting the local economies of places that we love.

Sarahkonamojo is right, the store-brand stuff in both cases might not be cutting edge. But it will be solid, and good value. I don't get out as much as I would like anymore, so in the rare occasion that I need new gear I've been quite happy with store brands. My experience is that REI might have a little more selection in terms of different brands available.

It depends on what you need and how you want to spend your dollars. You'll pay more for certain brands, for titanium or other ultra-light technologies.

IMHO if you are outfitting yourself for backpacking it's important to be able to try on the gear. A pack should fit properly, and a good store will have a selection for you to try on and sandbags to put in it so you can see what it feels like when it's loaded. Same with sleeping bags. They come in different sizes and cuts now, so if you can go to a store and try them out I would do that rather than purchase online.

[rubysoho]

Thanks for all the great replies! I am happy to hear LL Bean has just a good reputation. It is much easier for me to get over the LL Bean and I definitely want to be more hands on with my purchases because this is my first time buying stuff.

[Tri Girl]

No wonder I've never seen an LL Bean store around me: it appears they are an East coast thing only. I went to their website yesterday and had a blast looking around. I got my DH an older LL Bean backpack on eBay to hike the Grand Canyon and he loves that thing! I didn't know they had lifetime warranties on their stuff, too.