The Igloo Sportsman 55 resembles a Yeti, but it is longer and lower.
That means more top surface area is exposed to sunlight. It will hold an entire quartered deer. Currently, only the 55-quart model is available, but Steve Cochran of Igloo said a 20-quart model is in the works. Our test model is white, but Cochran said the 55 will soon be available in camo.
The shell is impact- and stress-resistant. However, we noticed that the front and rear panels flexed under pressure. This gave us some concern about toughness and durability. Yeti's box is uniformly hard and rigid.
Insulation is a uniform 2 inches, including the lid. The lid has molded in rulers (standard and metric) for measuring fish, as well as a raised, non-skid work surface.
When you close the lid, all you hear is the vacuum. No plastic-to-plastic contact is audible. The Sportsman 55 is also compatible for use with dry ice, and it works well with a combination of Arctic Ice Tundra Series ice packs and loose ice.
The hinged handles are heavy-gauge plastic with rubber grips. The handles fold into recesses, so they do not increase the width of the cooler
The Sportsman 55 is 30.38 inches long, 18 inches wide and 16.4 inches high. The Yeti 50 is 24 inches long, 18.5 inches high and 17.38 inches wide at the lid. Its footprint is 22.75 inches long and 14.75 inches wide.
The rubber T-straps are almost identical to those on a Yeti.
It has a single lock slot where the front middle of the lid meets the box. The recess tapers so that you can lock the lid with a regular padlock. A Yeti, in comparison, requires a long-shank lock. The holes on our test model are misaligned. The Sportsman 55 also has an integrated slot to install a security shim, which allows you to secure the cooler to an immovable object with a cable.
The Sportsman 55 has four non-skid feet, but the bottom is elevated to avoid contact with hot surfaces like boat decks. It fits snugly sideways in a canoe, but it is better suited for boating and car camping. It is also large and stable enough to serve as a casting platform.
In the drain is a heavy-duty, threaded plastic plug with a thick foam gasket and an oversized thumb/forefinger grip. A chain attaches it to the shell. You must remove the plug to drain a Sportsman, but the chain prevents loss. There's also a built-in slot in the cooler body to store the plug out of the way.
At 1.75 inches, the drain is much wider than that of the Yeti, so it drains faster.
MSRP $200
WEIGHT 26.8 pounds
WARRANTY 5 years
Sports on 07/06/2014