It seems like anytime I go out with my children, I wish I had an extra set of arms especially when I'm outdoors! On many occasions, my kids want to take a special toy or clothing item and I usually end up holding it for the rest of the hike, which is terribly annoying. On one of my most recent hikes, I noticed I had nothing to clip my kids wet, muddy shoes to the outside of my kid carrier! I eventually tied them onto the side of my carrier with the shoe laces but they eventually fell off because the shoelaces were so wet and muddy.

Thankfully I received the The Qlipter in the mail a few days later and I have been using it on almost every outdoor activity I do with my kids, especially day hiking! The Qlipter is classic carabiner (non-climbing) but with a major upgrade: a swivel 360 degree hook, plus some new securing features.

The Qlipter by Lulubop

Size/Weight: 3 5/16 inches wide by 4 5/16 inches long (closed) 7 1/8 inches long (open) ~ Approx 2 ounces
Multiple Colors: Black, Blue, Classic Red, Gray, Fun Red, Kickstarter Green (temporary).
Retail Price: A pledge of $20 on Kickstarter Project, Delivery August 2014 (Project Goal met)
Product Material: Aircraft Grad Aluminum Alloy

Photo Courtesy of The Qlipter by Lulubop

The Pluses!

Sturdiness ~ The Qlipter can hold up to 50 lbs! I've only used to to hold shoes, shovels and hiking poles but I'm glad to know it can hold that much weight, like our backpacks while backpacking! Once again, this clip is not made for climbing activities and it is qualified to hold up to 50 lbs, non-moving objects.

Mulit-Use "Carabiner" ~ I've primarily used The Qlipter for attaching my kids shoes, toys and our hiking poles to my backpack/kid carrier on our day hiking trips. In the picture below my daughter was adamant about taking her shovel on our hiking trip (pictured below) and when she got tired of holding it was attached to The Qlipter, not in my hands. I am looking forward to using The Qlipter on camping and backpacking trips, where I can see more uses such as in using the hook feature for lanterns, keeping stuff off the ground and hanging clothes.

Lightweight ~ As a hiking/backpacking family weight is a very big concern of ours. I'm always looking at weight of every piece of gear I own. Not only do I carry my own gear, but my toddlers backpacking gear as well as my child. Having a light two-ounce, sturdy, multi-use carabiner will not add to my weight concerns!

Secure End Cap ~ My past clips/carabiners (non-climbing) have always buckled, broken or always left a gap and our gear like our small kid shoes would slide off. The Qlipter has a magnetic closure in the rubber end cap to make sure the closure is very secure.

The Minuses

Photo Courtesy of Kathleen Radtke-Fitzpatrick (right photo)

I had one issue with The Qlipter, difficulty looping it into to my particular kid carrier (featured on the left). The Qlipter head was a little too large for the ONE loop, my kid carrier has. I looped it through the tapered end but the carrier loop prevented the swiveling wide hook from locking. I eventually clipped it through the "paper clip" and pushed through, in the picture above (left). The Qlipter was secure but it took a lot of wiggling and pushing to get it onto my particular carrier!

Granted, it was more about the small size of my carrier loop with the large size of The Qlipter that caused this issue. The Qlipter clipped on with NO difficulties on my regular day pack and my husband's kid carrier. The owner Mina Yoo, is already working on a smaller version of The Qlipter, which I am definitely interested in trying out!

Chasqui Mom Last Thoughts...

As an outdoor mom, I'm always looking for handy gear that will help me enjoy the outdoors better with my children. The Qlipter keeps my hands free from toys, muddy shoes and keeps gear securely attached to my kid carrier. The Qlipter is new kind of multi-use hook/carabiner that is great for family use in the outdoors.

I would like to thank Qlipter who provided this product for the purposes of this review. As always these are my true and honest opinions.

Related Links: The Qlipter by Lulabop

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