Rite in the Rain is the leader in the worldwide market for waterproof notebooks and writing accessories for them.
If you have ever been interested in all-weather notebooks for recording, then you probably already know the name Rite in the Rain. This is one of those cases when a brand pioneer gives a name to the entire market segment. As all copiers are collectively referred to as “Xeroxes”, and diapers as “Pampers”, all moisture-resistant notebooks for recording under harsh field conditions are called or associated with “Rite in the Rain”. The reason for this is leadership in the search for the optimal composition of paper and the huge range of products accumulated by the manufacturer since 1916, including various notebooks, soft and hardcover diaries, sheets, templates, all-weather writing accessories and even Stay Sharp targets. All of these products combine quality, durability, resistance to aggressive environmental influences, universal lining and full compliance with the tasks.
To get acquainted with the products of Rite in the Rain in today's review, we will be an example of a notebook with a vertical spiral-mounted pages Rite in The Rain Pocket Top Spiral 3 x 5 in color Green. Also available for order is a version of the same notebook with a cover in Tan color.
My choice fell on the Rite in The Rain Pocket Top Spiral 3 x 5 notebook with article number 935, mainly because of its compact size, thanks to which it is equally easy to carry in the back or thigh pockets of pants, inside pockets of outerwear, pouches with different equipment field orientation, etc. The following features were also important:
- Full stability of paper and records from moisture, rain, sweat, dirt, oils and other pollutants.
- The use of recycled materials in the manufacture and the possibility of recycling materials after use.
- Main material: Polydura.
- Lining: universal cage.
- 50 sheets (100 pages).
- Dimensions: 7.6 cm x 12.7 cm.
- Weight: 59 g.
The durability of Rite in the Rain notebooks is ensured by a hard cover, the front side of which contains the manufacturer’s logo and article number of the product (which is very convenient when re-buying notebooks for replacement already completed), and the back contains short information about the manufacturer’s history and material features. In addition to texts of a marketing nature, there are also scales of an inch and a centimeter ruler, which allows you to use a notebook as a small measuring device.
Inside, the front cover of the Rite in the Rain notebook is even more functional, as contains reconciliation tables for converting common values (distance, weight, volume, speed, temperature) from imperial to metric systems and vice versa. An additional section provides a reminder for the translation of distance units, which will be very useful when working with a map. Below, another section offers interpretations of common scale grids (1:10 000, 1:25 000, 1:50 000, 1:63 360, 1: 100 000, 1: 250 000, 1: 500 000) and real distances, laid in one centimeter and an inch, respectively. On all three sides of the cover, to help the existing inch and centimeter rulers, scales for maps with scales of 1:25 000 \ 1: 250 000, 1:50 000, 1: 100 000 are applied, so if you have the appropriate card, compass and Notebook Rite in the Rain You already have a basic navigation kit. On other notebooks and magazines oriented to the use of firearms, information on the front cover also contains information for ballistic calculations.
The inside of the back cover is traditionally used to represent other Rite in the Rain products and their features that may interest you further.
A metal spiral connects five dozen pages of proprietary Polydura material and passes through the covers. Thanks to this, you always have the opportunity to tear off a page of a notepad to use the sheet as a memo, a milestone or simply transmitting information to someone from the satellites. The diameter of the spiral allows you to place a simple pencil inside, which allows you to constantly carry a set of notes with you, without exceeding the overall dimensions of the notebook. To do this, I usually cut and sharpen an ordinary twice soft (2H) pencil, although you can use all-weather pencils from Rite in the Rain if you wish. By the way, turning pages without removing the pencil from the spiral will fail.
But Rite in the Rain notebooks are interesting not only with covers, but with paper itself. Initially, ordinary paper was processed with a special coating to impart moisture-resistant properties. But with the development of production technology, it was replaced by a proprietary material called Polydura. The composition uses recycled products, which slightly reduces the cost of production, thereby reducing the amount of hazardous waste emitted. But the main advantage of Polydura is not so much its environmental friendliness, but its absolute resistance to moisture, precipitation, dirt and oil, which is why the paper has the status of all-weather, and allows you to confidently record even on board the yacht, constantly washed by the elements of the sea. Even in such conditions, everything written on Polydura will remain on Polydura. What to say about the short dives in the water shown in the photo above. Please pay attention to the fact that water in no way affected the inscriptions left with a pencil, ballpoint pen, or permanent marker. The manufacturer himself recommends using all-weather pens such as Fisher Space Pen or soft pencils to get the maximum effect. A pencil, unlike pens, is rubbed off the paper, but remember that it leaves minor traces.
The page layout used in the Rite in The Rain Pocket Top Spiral 3 x 5 is called the Universal Pattern and is a cross between a ruler and a cage. The horizontal lines are solid and have a lot of fat, which makes them easier to see, but the vertical dashed lines, albeit thinner, are still present, helping in those cases if you really need a cell. In total, there are eleven full vertical cells on the sheets, and two “halves” at the edges, which serve as an indent from the edge and protect the inscriptions from wear. It’s very convenient for me personally to use the eleven columns for taking notes in primitive navigation, which I will talk about somehow in a separate publication.
Characteristic is the fact that Polydura, like any other paper, burns, and it can do this even immediately after extraction from water. All you need to ignite is to wipe the moisture off the page with your hand. Thus, if you have a lighter and a Rite in the Rain notebook, you always have not only a recording medium with you, but also moisture resistant! kindling for a fire.
Despite the fact that initially Rite in the Rain designed their notebooks for lumberjacks, today the company's products are successfully used by industrialists, researchers, journalists and even the military around the world. If you actively keep field notes while you work, work, travel, hunt, fish, or go outside in harsh field conditions, Rite in the Rain will help you keep your information until you arrive home.
A source: secretsquirrel.com.ua
Author: secretsquirrel.com.ua
