Rovic RV1S Pushcart by Clicgear - UNOFFICIAL REVIEW

[Navart]

Review by Navart - 14Apr2023

Intro

I have always enjoyed both leisure and exercise outdoors. It doesn’t matter if it is July in Texas or January in Minnesota, my body and mind just find it both essential and calming. For most of my life the time has been spent running, biking, or trekking along trails with our dogs.

As such, it should be no shock that I started out walking each round with my first ever set of clubs in a stand bag. In the last couple years though I decided to buy the Clicgear 4.0 pushcart for a little extra efficiency in rounds and empty my pockets of balls, tees, scorecards and prevent leaving my umbrella around greens…. It’s been a pleasure to use but it just so happened that a buddy of mine was looking to add a cart of his own. Now, this longtime friend just had his first kid a year ago and his wife is very pragmatic about their budget despite both earning very good incomes. So I gave mine to him and he’ll pay me back in beers over time :).

With the chance to upgrade, I ran to my work’s corporate discount website where there is always a rotating selection of deals on golf equipment. Enter the Rovic RV1S around 40% off!  I knew I wanted to take a stab at writing an unofficial review for the MGS forum so rather than diving deep into every detail as I am always inclined to do, I noted this cart was MGS #1 Overall Most Wanted pushcart in 2022 but did not read the review (https://mygolfspy.com/buyers-guides/golf-bag-carts/best-golf-push-cart-2022/).  I thought it would be interesting to see what my impressions were from a (semi) unbiased perspective. I also noted the product was indeed a newer brand underneath the Clicgear umbrella and that was enough for me to pull the trigger and start this week off with some excitement. 

Now full disclosure - so far I have only had the cart a few days and used the Rovic RV1S for two 9-hole rounds, but I was mindful of where I played each. The first was a relatively flat links course and the second had more inclines and terrain. So while there is some variation, I cannot say that the following evaluation is from extensive use across any conditions you would ever encounter.

When using a pushcart, I value the following 4 areas (in no particular order) the most:

• Transportability
• Features
• Ease of Use
• Durability

Each is rated on a scale 1-5 (1=throw it in the garbage and light it on fire, 2=left wanting more, 3=satisfactory, 4=great, 5=superior to all others). Now enough rambling and onto the review!

 

Transportability - 4 out of 5

I fudged up and overlooked the unboxing. I’ll remedy that for the next review, but when I pulled this thing out of the box I was pleasantly surprised. First of all, I pulled the cart out of the box and it was somewhat hefty, but no assembly was required. And while assembly isn’t a component of the review, I could appreciate how compact this cart could get in it’s storage/transport configuration (per Rovic, H: 24”, Depth: 15”, W: 13”). This thing is smaller than some backpacks I’ve been able to sneak on planes as a personal item!

Really this cart can fit in the trunk of any vehicle and probably even on the floorboard if you needed to by pushing the seat in front of it up a bit. An under-appreciated aspect is probably that you don’t need to hold it together in it’s compacted configuration when loading either. When folded down properly it doesn't try to unfold itself. The handle bars are a convenient area to grasp and use for loading as well.

The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars is that, as I mentioned at the top of this section, it is on the heftier end. While by no means was it a struggle for me, I’m also in my twenties and don’t have to worry about lifting away from my body or over my head. I can certainly understand how some senior golfers may desire a bit of a lighter model.

 

Features - 5 out of 5

Wow. This cart has A LOT of stock features. While I’m sure there are some really expensive carts out there with more features, I am over the moon about everything that this cart packs in such an efficient way and especially at the price. I won’t run through every single feature (I found the manufacturer website has a nice interactive function to explore them all http://rovicgolf.com/pushcarts/rv1c-features.php), my favorites were the storage compartment in the handle area, the ball carrier, and the drink carrier.

The storage compartment was so much larger than I was expecting given how compact this cart is able to fold into. I was able to fit a tin of bully cigarros, lighter, wallet, and keys. Yes you can just put these in a pocket of your golf bag but I was find myself fumbling around in them when I want them. Not anymore!

There are so many other features in this cart and even a couple spots for other accessories sold separately by Clicgear so that you can really customize to your uses. If I had any qualms it would be that the umbrella holder (center of handlebars in image above) was juuuuust too small in diameter to fit the handle of the umbrella in my car. But umbrellas are not that expensive and the holder neatly unscrews from the handlebars so I can just bring it with me when I go shopping for a new one to make sure at the store it will fit. The depth of the holder is nice and deep for stability.

 

Ease of Use - 4 out of 5

Overall this thing is very easy to use from folding and unfolding to maneuvering roughs and water-logged areas. The buttons and levers are found by nicely contrasted color from the frame and nothing is in a hard to reach or uncomfortable position. The top and bottom straps also very easily accommodated my stand bag and expect most bags would fit quite nicely in this cart.

The “S” in RV1S stands for swivel and unlike some other carts the front swivel wheel is smooth and able to be locked and unlocked from the handlebars and without having to bend over at the front wheel as some others I have seen.

The back wheel (not on a swivel) brakes engage and disengage easily and I found I could confidently park my cart on the steeper greenside inclines where it was convenient for moving to the next hole. I even went back to the user manual for this write-up after my round and found that there are spots for adjusting the brake cables and even the front wheel alignment should it get off.

The other key feature was how broad all three wheels are. I felt like this really saved both the cart from getting stuck and me accidentally doing a little damage to a water-logged area of fairway that I didn't notice. My stand bag is fairly light so perhaps the outcome might have been different with a heavy cart bag loaded, but it really did sit nicely on top of the soft area with the wheels continuing to roll rather than having sunk and dragged out.

 

Durability - Incomplete

To be honest, I dont think I can really make a full-throated conclusion about the durability with just two uses. I will say however that I am very optimistic about how it will hold up and will add a follow-up after a couple years.

As I mentioned earlier, the cart is a little hefty, the wheels and wheel-set broad, and the brakes work well so I can't imagine this cart falling over often, leading to damage. The main frame is solid aluminum and part of the heftiness makes it feel high-quality. There are also no rattling or flimsy plastic parts. If I had to nitpick, I think it would be that the cabling is external rather than internally routed. However, I recognize that this is probably for smooth folding/unfolding and my bias for internal cable routing on my bicycles.

 

Overall - 4.5 out of 5

Absolutely love it and would still have made the same choice even if I didn’t get it at a discounted price. I can see why it ranked as the MGS 2022 Most Wanted Pushcart and I have no doubt it will be in my use for years to come!

Edited April 15, 2023 by Navart

[cksurfdude]

Good info, thx! ..and nice write up

Enjoy walking the course myself - initially had a basic pull cart, then a nice ClicGear (but sold it .. too heavy and bulky), replaced by a BagBoy Quad XL (which I do still have), replaced by an electric MGI Zip Navigator (bday gift from wife).

[Navart]

19 minutes ago, cksurfdude said:

Good info, thx! ..and nice write up

Enjoy walking the course myself - initially had a basic pull cart, then a nice ClicGear (but sold it .. too heavy and bulky), replaced by a BagBoy Quad XL (which I do still have), replaced by an electric MGI Zip Navigator (bday gift from wife).

Thanks, @cksurfdude! 

[navykip]

Thanks for the review.  How is it still holding up after almost another month of play?  Do you prefer the swivel or fixed wheel up front?  How did the swivel perform in soggy conditions and on steeper inclines?  Also, I had no idea the lockout for the front wheel was on the handle, very cool.

[JFish350]

Do you have an update on this cart? I'm considering the Alphred V2 and they suggest the Rovic RV1S as a good option. I have a clic gear 3.0 now but things are starting to need to be replaced. 

 

Thanks for info.