what have you tried lately that just failed to work out?
 

theres not a person alive that has not read some magazine article or watched some video,
or listened to a buddy describe how he succeeding in getting his deer or elk,
and thought, crap I could do that.. in fact I could most likely do it even better...
so you went out and found, that in the area you hunt... the idea or method ,
well it leaves a great deal to be desired,
many of us tried things like horn rattling, doe scent, deer or elk calls promoted on various videos,
scent eliminator sprays , ground blinds, easy pack folding chairs , boot liners, deer or elk calls being advertised as far superior, etc,
or equipment like see through scope mounts, screw in tree steps,tree stands,etc.
and at least during the limited time and in our particular location, where they were tried, the result was far from impressive.
or you watched a buddy drop a deer at 100 yards with a shotgun slug, and purchased a similar shotgun, only to find the group size far from confidence inspiring.
for every product or skill theres a few guys that seen naturally gifted with a matching golden good luck charm,
yet for the guy down the street, well his ability to get it right,or luck or skill seems doomed.
ok, what have you tried that was less than impressive?

Too many things to list actually but a short list would be boots, monopod versus bipod or tripod, pants that collect burrs like a magnet, etc. I like hunting gear and am always willing to try something new. Lately I've been on a binocular collecting spree. I think most of us tend to hunt in our own states every year and figure out what works best in our respective states. That same gear that works in my state doesn't always work best in the other guy's state, especially if he's hunting in snow, etc. There are a few hunting writers that I trust to give good advice and many of the newer writers who just seem to regurgitate generic info that doesn't seem like it's well thought out. I get that they're trying to get established but a lot of the time, it seems like a lot of the info in their articles isn't so applicable or useful.

yeah, I purchased a rain coat a while back,
that got so rigid and stiff at temps below -5F that it basically cracked into a few dozen long slivers.
I purchased sling swivels that had the dis-concerting habit of opening and coming off the rifle sling,
I purchased a set of thermal barrier boot liners that bunched up and caused blisters
theres lots of good items but theres always a few really inferior products.
then theres also the potential for operator error..
One of my friends improperly assembled a tree stand and was bitching about how it failed to remain steady,
once I showed him the error he made in assembly, he was amazed at the difference it made.

Yeeeaaaahhhhh….living up on the highline in Montana, I can tell you that not much rain falls when it is 5 below, word of advice, wear what the locals wear, not what is cool and fashionable.

Women.....

in my defense here , the day started out with a slushy rain/snow mix with temps about 35 f, but as the temp dropped it did not take long for that to change to basically cold ice, then snow
temperature swings in the mountains seem to be more frequent and at times more rapid than many people expect.
one reason I generally pack a poncho and spare down vest in a pack.
being from montana you might not believe this, but in mid florida ,winter around here, tends to last 48-72 hours with temps rarely dipping into the very high 30F range.
in the last 70 years or so, in mid fla. its snowed twice that I remember, both times the snow melts as it hits the ground.
Yeah I foolishly purchased a camo rain coat , that looked too be rubberized fabric at a close out sale at a local sporting goods store, for a very low price..
Sure Ive occasionally made mistakes, but I seldom repeat mistakes. and learning from those mistakes is part of gaining skills

back a few dozen years ago one of the guys I hunt with purchased a well known discount scope brand ,
( brand begins with a (T) and at the time cost under $100,)
to use on his marlin 45/70 rifle, everyone in our hunt club strongly suggested,
he either buy a better brand name and higher quality scope or use quick detachable scope mounts so he could use,
the iron sights. he was also repeatedly advised to sight the rifle in using the iron sights before mounting the scope.
and yes that proved to be valid advice as the scope internals fogged so badly,
it looked like someone had filled the scope tube with a cotton ball on the third day of the hunt.
buying decent value in any equipment is seldom priced at close out or bargain basement prices
yet most of us have occasionally found that out through personal experiences.