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TGO has a great gear thread with lots of practical advice, so to avoid stinking it up I'm creating this thread to talk about all the weird or pointless stuff that we get as gifts from our loved ones, see online and lol about, or buy on impulse with our REI dividends. And I've got three things to review in excruciating detail. KA-BAR BECKER BK3 SURVIVAL TOOL, I got this as a gag gift years ago from a Russian friend when I talked about how cool the old Spetsnaz machetes were. This looks like something a police officer in a dystopian future would use, and i was highly skeptical that it would have any real outdoors applications. Pros: 1. Durable – This thing is a pound of 1095 cro-van steel, the blade is over 1/4” thick, and it has a full tang. 2. Versatile – It's got a knife edge, sawblade, hammer pommel, prying edge, belt cutter, green peppers, chili... onions... Cons: 1. Tweener – This thing does everything ok and does nothing well. I was able to kind of feather a stick with it, kind of hack at a log with it, kind of saw a branch with it, etc. 2. Dull – This is not a knife. It didn't come with a keen edge on it, and judging by the look of the blade i don't think it will really take a keen edge. It's probably best used as a hatchet. 3. Handle – This handle should look familiar if you've seen Ka-Bars recently. It would definitely benefit from scoring or tape. Verdict: This is a great tool for a doomsday prepper, but for a normal backpacker it won't replace your trusty hatchet or bowie knife.    BIOLIGHT POWERLIGHT I just got this gizmo on impulse at an online flash sale because quarantine boredom. It's a rechargeable led flashlight/lantern with a usb charger. It seems a little bulky given all the compact wearable lights available nowadays, but flashlights are always handy to have around. Pros: 1. Bright – Both the flashlight and the lantern have 4 brightness settings, ranging from 50 lumens (romantic candlelight) to 250 lumens (light a small room). 2. Versatile – Can be used to charge phones via usb port, has a little s-hook that can be used as a stand or a hanger, also comes with these little site light gizmos that plug into the main light. 3. Long-lasting – Lasts from 4 hours to 75 hours, depending on how much light you want. Cons: 1. Not wearable – You could theoretically strap it to you head somehow, but that can be said of almost anything 2. Over-engineered – In my experience things with lots of flaps, buttons, knobs, and switches tend to have a short life in the field Verdict: I really like this thing. It's a good balance of core functionality and bells/whistles, so I'm including it in my pack. It's kind of heavy at 8 oz (plus 2 each for the site lights) but it's worth it to also have an emergency charger.     TINY WIDDLE KERSHAW TITANIUM SPOON/FORK This was a stocking stuffer last year. It's a great example of what happens when a gear designer hears 'make it lighter' too many times and finally snaps. Pros: 1. It's technically better than eating with your bare hands. Cons: 1. It's basically eating with your bare hands. It will take a lot of luck and focus to safely stir a pot or eat a mountain house. Verdict: Is there such a thing as an emergency spoon? I guess you could use it for that.  
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Aug 26, 2020 00:46
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| # ? May 5, 2024 18:34 |
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My mom got me one of those silver survival blankets that comes packed as a 5x5" square Pros: ?????? Cons: Moms will bring it up without fail when you mention you'll be out overnight "Willfrey, what if you lose your pack? You'll need that blanket" "Willfrey, you can put that in your raft in case it tips over and everything gets wet" "Willfrey, these are the same blankets firefighters get to protect themselves!" "Willfrey, maybe someone else on the trip will need it!" "Willfrey, its silver, if you are lost you can wear it and search parties will find you easier!" "Willfrey just bring the blanket I'll feel a lot better"
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Aug 27, 2020 18:22
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My mother gave me a pair of glasses with yellow lenses for fishing years ago. The idea is that yellow lenses allow you to see into the water, in reality its more complex than that. Thankfully she gave up asking if I had worn them, because I never have. My basic pair of polarized glasses works better for me and looks 75% less dorky.
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Aug 28, 2020 02:06
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Willfrey posted:My mom got me one of those silver survival blankets that comes packed as a 5x5" square This post was so real I feel like my ma just astrally projected into my living room and punched me in the esophagus.
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Sep 1, 2020 09:38
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I was given some Aldi carabiners because "you do a lot of abseiling, more of these should be useful". Carabiners with an unknown weight rating on them. Not trusting my life to them sorry.
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Oct 11, 2020 23:08
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I got a used multi-day hiking backpack for christmas. The husband of a friend of my boyfriends mum had stopped using it so it was awkwardly given to me as a present. It had unopened out of date chocolate in the side pocket! (which was delicious) only problem is i'm not a hiker and have never done more than a day hike. i go cycle touring and stuff, so now this big cheap backpack is using up a ton of space in my cupboard next to a bunch of super expensive ultralight bags. im too polite to get rid of it. hemale in pain fucked around with this message at 10:21 on Oct 12, 2020 |
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Oct 12, 2020 09:51
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Willfrey posted:My mom got me one of those silver survival blankets that comes packed as a 5x5" square This is the perfect thing to throw in your glove box in case you ever break down in the middle of nowhere in the winter. Takes up next to no room and won't go bad, so you don't have to worry about it until someone needs it. Inceltown posted:I was given some Aldi carabiners because "you do a lot of abseiling, more of these should be useful". Carabiners with an unknown weight rating on them. Not trusting my life to them sorry. It's still useful to have a couple of crap carabiners to toss into your luggage / laptop bag / whatever. Might be good to find a way to teach the gift giver about kN ratings on climbing carabiners.
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Oct 17, 2020 14:24
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Lol, I have about two full sets of outdoor gear. The first was acquired after going 'pfft I hauled heavy poo poo in the army, I'll skip the lightweight stuff and save some cash'. The second was built up after realizing that continuing the circle of abuse was loving stupid. All the stuff is still usable, I guess, but too situational to be useful outside of contingency situations. Nobody needs blast matches and laplander saws in national parks. The e-tool was a dumb buy though, straight up.
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Nov 9, 2020 05:42
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on the opposite end of the spectrum, a friend got me one of those 'deuce' camping trowels "for pooping". he intended for this cheap gift to be taken as a joke, and I indeed took it as one. "who needs a trowel??" I thought to myself "I will just continue to dig with the sticks I find." well... it kind of slaps. it basically weighs nothing and makes hole-digging a breeze. now activities that I used to consider a luxury, like making a dakota fire hole, are super easy. can't believe I went this long without one really. as for an actually silly gear item, i got one of those "tent" bivys with the standing poles to keep the fabric off your face. i bought it to use whenever i was feeling in an "ultralight" mood, but it's really impractical for anything more than one uncomfortable alpine night as a standalone shelter. i'll probably bring it along w/o the poles in addition to a tent for extra warmth on super cold trips, but i will never use it by itself.
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Dec 8, 2020 16:49
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yeah i'm gonna push back on the camp trowel, ESPECIALLY when camping in national/provincial parks. primarily for working the fire pit; very rarely have i gotten on site and the fire pit is not full of absolute crap a small trowel turns a 20 minute job into a 5 minute job.
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Dec 8, 2020 21:15
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Might have to revisit that one...I had a normal sized plastic one and found it didn't get used often enough that a pointy fire-hardened stick wouldn't suffice. Maybe I don't go camping often enough (zero times this year between rona and work :sadtoot:)
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Dec 8, 2020 22:46
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Impulse bought a glock field knife today. Heard good things about them for years but never felt like owning one until I saw them on sale for $30 on amazon. It will replace the ostentatious BK7 that idiot recruit me bought at a PX to take on the entire Taliban, and was only ever used on a two week field course. Yes, the instructors laughed at it.
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Dec 10, 2020 04:01
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Well, thanks to maybe a glass of Talisker too many, I now have one of these ordered because, hey, surely everyone needs an...Afghan campfire pressure cooker?
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Dec 12, 2020 17:48
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Clayton Bigsby posted:Well, thanks to maybe a glass of Talisker too many, I now have one of these ordered because, hey, surely everyone needs an...Afghan campfire pressure cooker? This is Excellent. I had no idea these were produced new. Yet another thing to add to the list.
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Dec 12, 2020 19:36
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cursedshitbox posted:This is Excellent. I had no idea these were produced new. Yet another thing to add to the list. They seem to be available all the way from 3 liter to 50 liter sizes ( just look for Kazan pressure cooker). Bought mine from Latvia as I found out this morning from a cheerful order confirmation email. Found out about 'em from "Simon, a bloke in the woods" Youtube and I will happily admit it's not the first time that dude's convinced me to buy a piece of gear. Last it was the mini fire grill anchor from TMJ Metworks but I gotta say I've used the poo poo out of that thing, it's bloody brilliant (and cheap for a handcrafted piece of gear like that). https://www.tjmmetalworks.co.uk/store/The-Original-Mini-Grill-Fire-Anchor-p224518272 Clayton Bigsby fucked around with this message at 20:30 on Dec 12, 2020 |
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Dec 12, 2020 20:15
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My girlfriend signed me up for one of those monthly subscriptions where they send you some assortment of mostly useless hiking/camping stuff that I would never use or already had. I know she had good intentions but I if I needed something I just went out and bought it and didn't wait for it to come in a once a month box by random chance. I have a bunch of stuff scattered throughout the house now that I'm not sure what to do with. That said, I found this portable fire starter to be super cool It's the only thing I take hiking with me from everything that was sent. This light and power brick were about the only other things that I had any possible use for  
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Dec 13, 2020 02:16
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MA-Horus posted:yeah i'm gonna push back on the camp trowel, ESPECIALLY when camping in national/provincial parks. For a trowel I just use an aluminum tent stake meant for snow camping. Super light, packs away easy and gets the job done.
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Dec 13, 2020 05:32
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I've found over the years that I'm almost immediately skeptical of anything labelled "X.X Survival tool".
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Dec 17, 2020 18:57
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wesleywillis posted:I've found over the years that I'm almost immediately skeptical of anything labelled "X.X Survival tool". I generally agree but will make an exception for the "survival shovel" which even in its cheaper form manages to be a fairly useful tool to toss in the car. My dad gave me a cheap chinese made one a few years ago and it's surprisingly durable and capable.
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Dec 17, 2020 20:25
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Shovels are very useful for road rage incidents. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqGceLttmq8
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Dec 18, 2020 18:03
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Well, a mysterious package arrived today. If I don't post for a while, I am probably dead in the woods with shards of aluminum embedded in my corpse. Wish me luck.
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Dec 22, 2020 20:09
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It's got a safety overpressure valve, so you should be fine. Seriously though, it looks awesome. I wonder if you could use it like a popcorn cannon
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Dec 22, 2020 21:13
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God Hole posted:
I have one of those too. I can't really ever see bringing it on an overnight hike as its only a bit smaller than a hammock + tarp if I'm going super-light and it doesn't have the appeal of being able to like... relax in it. That said it is super useful for work, where it is not unheard of for me to need to spend a night in the field and arrive at where I'm going after dark. Simply being able to roll it out and stuff myself inside in a pinch is so much better than trying to put up a tent / find useful trees in the dark.
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Dec 29, 2020 05:23
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I’ve used waterproof bivy sacks to keep snakes and scorpions out of my bag/boots while spending the night out in the Mojave without a tent a few times. Felt a little exposed to possible coyotes, but better than nothing.
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Dec 29, 2020 05:31
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An alpine bivy and wiggy's bag can be surprisingly comfortable in calm sub-zero conditions too, in the event your section can't be assed to set up the 10-man tents after dark 
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Dec 31, 2020 23:44
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| # ? May 5, 2024 18:34 |
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I got given some Yeti "camping" mugs which are way too heavy to actually take camping. Really great for working from home though, they keep my tea warm for ages!
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May 11, 2021 08:57
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