4WD Accessories and the like

[Rusty86]

Hey mate,

Ray's Outdoors and Anaconda will have some 4x4 gear but maybe not as good quality and wide a range as specialty 4x4 shops. Camping gear and accessories, yes. ARB and TJM are the big names but you pay a premium for that - often gear from here, although usually good quality, is quite expensive.

Depending where you are there will be other smaller chain or independent shops which will stock different brands, these are usually pretty decent and you have good variety so they may be worth checking out. There might be an Opposite Lock 4x4 near you, or the Roo Dogs may be worth a look.

I believe though that there are many bargains to be had online and even eBay, if you know what you're looking for. One online place I think I will be buying most of my gear from is Tigerz11 (warehouse just out of Melb), who have recently started selling everything at warehouse prices and cutting out the middle man. Most of their gear, although at times not at the quality of some of the bigger brands, is by all reports still very good and you can't get better value price wise. ARB have the problem that some of their gear is the generic Chinese made gear, and there are other brands which just don't have the same mark up on items, but are selling the exact same, re-branded things.

Some other well known 'cheaper' brands would be Ironman 4x4 and Powerful 4x4 and some others out there too, most people are happy with these products. These will be stocked in your Opposite Locks etc, but are available online too.

I would research individual items and get the best to suit your needs, performance and value wise. Some people would go into ARB and get fully kitted out (what they want you to do), but buying individually, and probably of equal or better quality in some areas online, you could save thousands!

A big one recently was winches. Some people swear by Warn or some of the bigger brands, but for $2000+ they're a big outlay. Tigerz11 have a comparable winch for $699 and by all accounts the newer model is a great winch and people are very happy with performance and features. Personally, for the amount of times I'd need to use a winch, i'd go the Tigerz. I think it all depends on what sort of driving and camping you want to do and buying appropriately. Buy for your needs and budget.

Hope this helps, another good place to start would be to search the forum for different items and people's views and experiences (eg 'Tigerz winch' etc) , you get a good idea of what's good value and what's rubbish. Search all of google to because often different 4x4 forums will have great stuff on them too. I'd do lots of research and arm yourself with good info before making decisions, because I reckon you could save some $$ that way

Cheers mate, let us know how you get on.

Rusty