Pat Callinan's 4x4 Adventures Magazine

[D4D]

Can you imagine it?  I'd love to see darren's 'opinion' article on the last page...

I'd buy the mag just for that

[SteveandViv]

thats Gold!!!!! then we can have a flame war and then lock the thread, just to maintain consistancy.....

I'll just say this SteveandVic, that the mainstream mags do try and cater for a wide audience, but somethimes their "opinions" are pretty wishy-washy, and i think what we'd all appreciate is a bit more definitive comment from time to time.

Also, and slightly off topic, can anyone explain how they can decide on a "4x4OTY" or Ute OTY when they only review anything thats new or vastly changed? I reckon they should review All currently available models, not just the new ones. THATS what the punter who is looking for a new 4x4 wants to read. Not that the Navara is bette rthan the Disco 4 and the Triton and Ssangyong and the Lada Niva mk III because they because they are the new models this year. I"m not Land Rover fan (I dislike the things actually, a Massey Fergusson has more refinement than a Defender, but the Disco isnt bad) but the Defender never appears in these "Of the Year" things because it hasn't been upgraded in 2,000,000 years!! And they are a pretty good truck, well a tough truck, if you like tractors but you get my point. a very capable 4x4. Why not just grab the top 10 or 15 selling (with maybe a few "guest" appearances from the lesser selling models or brand new ones so its not just a Toyota and Nissan festival) and have them fight it out. be a much better representation of the current market.........

I'll just say this SteveandVic, that the mainstream mags do try and cater for a wide audience, but somethimes their "opinions" are pretty wishy-washy, and i think what we'd all appreciate is a bit more definitive comment from time to time.

Yep, your right. I totally agree and why I don't really take much notice of the tests they do like the *which will go further - Tyres, suspension or lockers*. Each of us build our car to a standard that gets us where we want to go and the trips we want to do.

I am happy to pay for the Mag to see good DVDs (and they are) and to learn about new products like I said. I also get sick of the lack of Pajeros in the Mags and considering that every third 4WD up the Cape is a paj and that up here in the Kimberly they are the 4WD of choice for most hire companies for both comfort and price, I wonder why...

Anyway. We get to see and learn about great places, see some great pics and it's a lot better than reading New Idea 

[qlddsl]

you dont read many do you?

ive read most of these comparos, they cater for all budgets other mags dont. if they were biased certain brands (major advertisers) would come out on top, some times these brands fail.

[Bird]

if they were biased certain brands (major advertisers) would come out on top, some times these brands fail.

yep.. i was right`

[noel_w]

Location: SE Mexico

Hi Lost
have you given your local gateway IP a DNS entry?

[Bird]

Hi Lost
have you given your local gateway IP a DNS entry?

anonimizers...

[qlddsl]

yep.. i was right`

dont know what mag you are reading, but i feel the comparos arent biased. other mags the cheap brands wouldnt get a look in, and only the well known expensive brands shown and recommended,  which doesnt cater for all readers.. the comparos are there for you to make your own decision, they just provide (in my opinion) the unbiased numbers of the results. pass, fail, cheap or expensive no consumer can afford to do these tests, allowing them to choose a product that suits their need and budget.   i

[9775Andrew]

I don't know why you feel they have to *decide*. They are there to put all the facts on the table and then lets us decide. Yes you have to read between the lines some times I agree. Of course there not going to say X is better than Y but they do tell you if one feature fails or does not do as suggested and they do tend to offer specs when they can. I just don't read a mag to be told what to buy. I do like to have all the facts they put together after a test.

It's to complex to state a winner when there are so many variables like a winch for example. One maybe cheaper but not as fast. One maybe not so good when under water but what if you live in a area where you never winch in water why would you pay for a Warn...

Just my two cents worth as well. No insults intended but I think we read to much into what the mags are trying to do which is bring to alls attention new products for consideration plus thoughts on what maybe best for X - X being what you do or I do which are never the same.

Also, and this is my main point. They just don't have to cater to you and me, those who have already got tons of stuff. They are writing for those who are now to the market for new gear and there are tons of those. Might seem wrong but when did any one really get any thing they didn't or think they didn't know from the mag.

I don't think it's all that bad. The new product reviews and stuff around that area, mods, laws etc are more than enough for me to but the mag each Month.

Pat won't do much different. He is a great guy and is like all of us in that he is passionate about the 4WD scene. But at the end of the day there will be similarities between the three or four mags no matter what...

Oh well. just IMO so no one should take offence please. If you do then you'll have to come to Broome to tell me 

Dont want to be told what to buy. Its a bit hard for an individual to line up ten products and compare performance.

I do take your point on horses for courses, but some products comparos are simply a collection of product brochures / specs. I can collect that info without leaving home.

At the end of the day we're looking for real life performance which is where this forum comes in. And yes, here too you MUST read through the bull%$^t. But you get a far clearer image of what products will and wont do. IMO

[GGV8Cruza]

They are giving another camper and Patrol package away again, I entered yesterday so I think i should win

GG

[Squalo]

I got the new mag yesterday. It's pretty flash, haven't had a lot of time to get into it but it looks pretty good so far.

[eldo]

back on topic now: i seen the pat calinan mag at the news agent when i went in to by the camper trailer mag about the kimberley. i like pat and i think he is a good honest bloke. his magazine i guess didnt appeal to me as i dont feel its aimed at people similar to myself, everything is so flashy and new and all the products they promote/use seem to be at the high end of the scale, now im sure there are a few baby boomers that this appeals to, but the average joe in their 30's with a few rug rats just cant afford  that lifestyle off road yet, the purchase price seemed a little high as well. i admit i was excited when i seen the mag though but after a quick flick through i realised it was just like an extension of the tv series. i honestly hope that this mag picks up and takes off, the other mags out there are really ****e at the moment and i only buy them occasionally now so i still have something to read/watch. this is just my opinion and as stated above im sure a few of the baby boomers/ grey nomads will find pats magazine great, i just dont think he should be aiming solely at that audience, we all know though thats were the dollars are at the moment!!!
good luck with the mag Pat

[crusier76]

Last time I watched his TV show he was flogging everything, reminds me of Roothy,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Im with you mystq why cant they just have a go like the Gall boys. Then sell all there crap at the end of the show!

[2Psinapatrol]

Brought a copy of the mag yesterday. I haven't read every article yet, but so far very impressed.
None of this rip **** and bust attude you find elsewhere. Seem to be more focused on the sights to see and history.

As it mentions, it is a touring magazine. Will not suit the hardcore boys.

[GU Rich]

They are giving another camper and Patrol package away again, I entered yesterday so I think i should win

GG

You wasted your time mate i'm going to win. Anyone want to buy a stripped gold GU, never been offroad.

My local didn't stock the new mag I'll have a look for it again this week.

Cheers
Rich

[GGV8Cruza]

You wasted your time mate i'm going to win. Anyone want to buy a stripped gold GU, never been offroad.

My local didn't stock the new mag I'll have a look for it again this week.

Cheers
Rich

We can go halves, you can have the Patrol and I will take the camper and all the other swag

GG

[Pat Callinan]

Hey guys,
I was snooping around the web to find out what people REALLY think about the mag! Let's face it, everyone's way too friendly and unbiased on F'book!
Great to hear your thoughts. And my response to the 'Will not suit hardcore boys" - yep, you're right. Although those arctic trucks in the first issue will cause the odd grin. But yep, she's a dedicated touring lifestyle mag this one.
As for the price, well, we're printed in Australia and produced in Australia. Same reason why a Qantas flight costs more than Air China. If you want the good local stuff, you've gotta pay for it. That, and the fact that we use better paper, better shooters, better writers. Oops, slap me around the head, I'm sounding like I'm selling here...
Keep the feedback coming. It's early days here and the team is genuinely interested in what you guys think.
Oh, and eldo said that we're mainly showing the fancy gear. We're definitely focusing on quality product, but will try and make sure that much of it is affordable. For example next issue we're looking at tents. Although I look at products like the EarthCruiser as a 4WD version of a Ferrari. You might not buy the thing, but it's sure as hell fun to dream.... 

[Redback]

Hey guys,
I was snooping around the web to find out what people REALLY think about the mag! Let's face it, everyone's way too friendly and unbiased on F'book!
Great to hear your thoughts. And my response to the 'Will not suit hardcore boys" - yep, you're right. Although those arctic trucks in the first issue will cause the odd grin. But yep, she's a dedicated touring lifestyle mag this one.
As for the price, well, we're printed in Australia and produced in Australia. Same reason why a Qantas flight costs more than Air China. If you want the good local stuff, you've gotta pay for it. That, and the fact that we use better paper, better shooters, better writers. Oops, slap me around the head, I'm sounding like I'm selling here...
Keep the feedback coming. It's early days here and the team is genuinely interested in what you guys think.
Oh, and eldo said that we're mainly showing the fancy gear. We're definitely focusing on quality product, but will try and make sure that much of it is affordable. For example next issue we're looking at tents. Although I look at products like the EarthCruiser as a 4WD version of a Ferrari. You might not buy the thing, but it's sure as hell fun to dream....  

I hate you, I didn't win the big prize of the car and camper

Good show by the way

Oh yeh I forgot, welcome

Baz.

[bussoboy]

not suiting the "hardcore guys" - finally a mag that doesn't.........i've not had the chance to get to my newsagent and buy a copy (want to get the first one before commiting to subscribe) but from what i've read here so far i'm going to love it.

just a word to Pat though, please don't have a team of telemarketers ringing me every second day trying to drain my bank account - sure fire way of giving me the s%@t's

[Squalo]

Well I've had a good read of it now and I'm impressed. It is everything Pat said it is above, which he also says in his intro/editorial. Overall the word I'd use is 'quality'; even the advertisers graphics and design are of a high standard.

Travelling, and the experience of travelling, are indeed the main focus of the mag, and such things as camper trailers, newly released 4WDs, owner-modified 4WDs and upgrades to drivelines etc. are left out, which is fine as all the other mags out there cover these in great detail.

I thought the Earth Explorer article was quite interesting, although at the end I was still wondering just who it would suit, but that's nothing to do with the mag.

The photography throughout is simply superb. And it even has a photography tips section.

It has a few of the 'entry level' type articles, which I know always get on the nerves of the long-term offroading types who've seen it all before, but there's always someone who's new to it, and let's face it you can only come up with so much new stuff for each issue. And on that, I thought the cover price was ok given that it is really more of a coffee table mag than a leave it in the dunny mag. And unless I am wrong it is a quarterly? So you could buy every issue for a year and still spend less than you would for that other dunny-spec magazine

[Pat Callinan]

not suiting the "hardcore guys" - finally a mag that doesn't.........i've not had the chance to get to my newsagent and buy a copy (want to get the first one before commiting to subscribe) but from what i've read here so far i'm going to love it.

just a word to Pat though, please don't have a team of telemarketers ringing me every second day trying to drain my bank account - sure fire way of giving me the s%@t's

No telemarketing going on from this end. And our inbound call centre is based right here in Oz, not Delhi...

[Jaashjr]

OK I normally keep my opinion to myself, but this one seems to bug ,me so here it is!!

When are people going to stop complaining about the amount of adds and obviously "sponsored Product Reviews", "biased Comparos" etc...  That is life and that is how the magazine makes money, business is business and the publishers aren't there just to produce a magazine for you to read, they are there to make money.  If there was a publisher that tried to make the "Perfect" mag with no adds, no biased opinions etc then they would need to sell it for $50.00 per copy, who's going to pay that???  Of course no one is, so instead they sell advertising space, sponsotship etc to make their money and keep the cost to the readers as low as possible. After all the more mags they can sell, the more the advertisers will want to advertise in that mag and the more they can charge for the advertising, quite simple really.

Yes some mags seem to have a definite "Attitude", however just because that attitude doesn't sit with you doesn't mean you should bitch about the mag, obviously that attitude is just right for alot of other readers because they still sell the mag, and advertisers still pay to be in it.

Personally I thoroughly enjoy Pat Callinans work, his TV series was fantastic and suits my "Attitude" just right, he takes his time to really enjoy the place he is touring, not just the individual track he is driving on.  Will I buy his mag, YES. Do i think it will have biased articles, plug sponsored products and be full off adds, YES of course it will, because that's life and nothing in life is free. Pat may love what he does, but he's not going to do it for nothing, he has a wife, kids and mortgage etc to support just like the rest of us.  So I just say GOOD ONYA PAT, keep doing what your doing and just ignore people who complain about the adds, biased opinions etc....

OK I'll retreat to my corner now!!

[Bird]

Personally I thoroughly enjoy Pat Callinans work, his TV series was fantastic and suits my "Attitude" just right, he takes his time to really enjoy the place he is touring

in between all the product placement adverts portrayed as 'infomation'...

[Jaashjr]

in between all the product placement adverts portrayed as 'infomation'...

Of course because that's what pays the bills and keeps the cover price down!!

Doesn't mean it's not a great read though, just have to view it as someones opinion (whether paid for or not) and your opinion may be different.  Not tring to upset anyone, just trying to bring a little bit of perspective to the discussion.

[Bird]

this subject goes to Shit everytime someone mentions magazines.. its always 5-10 pages of "this is crap"..

its not new...

[yorkie]

just grabbed a copy and first impressions it looks good.
might be the next subscription having just let pat's old mags expire for first time in 8 years.