Bad Kit/Ideas

[JimH]

Worst buy you will make will probably be a knife, lots of money for something that you might end up not liking. I guess everyone here has a lot of knives that is collecting dust in a drawer.

No comment.

Actually, I quite liked, and used, all my knives(at time of purchase), I just like the later ones better[1]

Same with axes, rucksacks, stoves, tents....Cont. P94.

Jim.

[1] Apart from the Frost's Clipper and an Eriksson wooden handled Mora, which are (if I'm honest) my main users.

 

[tenbears10]

Anything Gore-Tex

Biggest waste of time and money ever!

I'm not sure if you are refering to bushcraft or wearing around the campfire but this is a very general comment.

I totally disagree, if you have ever been mountain climbing in anything other than summer sunshine you will realise that a gore-tex jacket is the difference between being warm and dry and getting hypothermia.

 

[JimH]

I'm not sure if you are refering to bushcraft or wearing around the campfire but this is a very general comment.

I totally disagree, if you have ever been mountain climbing in anything other than summer sunshine you will realise that a gore-tex jacket is the difference between being warm and dry and getting hypothermia.

Ditto.

For all my railing against it as a boot-liner, I wouldn't do without my Berghaus Lightning 3 layer, or my MOD bivi bag.

I find the benefits of xcr and other light/super GTX fabrics a bit thin for the price diff, mind you.

Jim.

 

[leon-1]

Well here are a few in my opinion of course:

BCB Firesteels.
Camping Gaz Bluet Stoves (useless in cold weather and not very robust).
Meraklon gloves.
Cheap map cases (you may as well spend the money on Fablon and waterproof the map).
Mini Maglites (not very good light and short battery life).
Maglite solitaire (as above, far better of with small LED).
Plastic button compasses (most of the time have bubbles in them and aren’t accurate).
Wire saws (have a tendency of getting stuck or snapping).
Survival tins (you are probably better off making up one of your own which is slightly larger).
Bergan liners (most aren’t that much cop and you are better off with a canoe bag).
Pertex field towels (what exactly are you supposed to be able to dry with them).

That should cover a few bits for now

 

[innocent bystander]

I did buy the worlds worst wire saw when i was a kid. instead of the many stranded wire type, it was a single wire with nick's cut out of it. Used half a time before it snapped.

 

[Justin Time]

I like Meraklon gloves... great if you're moving fast or working hard.. although more for the difference between comfort and discomfort rather than as life savers but then my hands tend to be hot if hill walking. They're cheap and scrunch up small so easy to have a pair in every coat ( meraklon gloves I mean, not hands...). Of course I never actually wear them as liners...

 

[PC2K]

bcb ferrosium rod are ok, but require's are slightly diffrent way of use. Wenn you get it, it will become quite easy. Although not as effective as a full sized millitary firesteel, but that due to the size.

 

[leon-1]

bcb ferrosium rod are ok, but require's are slightly diffrent way of use. Wenn you get it, it will become quite easy. Although not as effective as a full sized millitary firesteel, but that due to the size.

I used them for over 15 years before going onto the current ones (swedish army firesteel, which I have been using for over five years) and they do not compare, you are far better off saving the money you would spend on one and buy one of the ones from the trading post, they cost a little more last a lot longer and are far more effective.

Simply put the BCB ones are not worth the price as better can be had for just a little less that will last longer .

 

[Scally]

mine was a cheap folding saw ( I now own a laplander) its had a lot of use and still going but the one i bought before lasted one weekend and 1/2 pint blood when the catch broke and i caught my skin in it .

 

[Doc]

Just to add annother tuppence worth to the above:

Coolmax/dryflo baselayer: I genuinely find these quite good from late spring to early autumn. In terms of er, body odour, they are better than cotton and propylene (eg 'SmellyHansen') but not as good as wool. But very good at keeping you dry. You do need to protect from fire- a tiny spark mkes a quarter inch hole.

Goretex: Is good, but not as good as the hype.

Goretex lined footwear: I agree - make your feet intolerably sweaty/smelly. However, my new boots are eVent lined and so far, I'd say it is far better than goretex and fully waterproof.

To be honest, the old rule 'you get what you pay for' still applies. Occasionally you still get things that are good-but-cheap, eg:
- military surplus
- Lidl, Aldi, occasionally Argos kit
- budget kit from quality makers eg Craghoppers
- Mora knives
-good but unfashionable brands eg Wetterlings, Hi-tec
-small makers like K&M Matchcases, Kathmandu Trekking

 

[rapidboy]

I use the Light My Fire firesteels and the ones Gary sells(for £5.00) and they both appear to be the same and very good.
What is a BCB firesteel ???

 

[leon-1]

rb I will see if I can get some pictures of one, but effectviely it is a smaller diameter firesteel supported on one side by a thin metal casing with an eye in the top. They normally come with a peice of hacksaw blade attached to them on a bit of cord.

 

[Ahjno]

rb I will see if I can get some pictures of one, but effectviely it is a smaller diameter firesteel supported on one side by a thin metal casing with an eye in the top. They normally come with a peice of hacksaw blade attached to them on a bit of cord.

Leon,
Is this the one (top one in the pic) you meant mate?

Piccy from www.bcbin.com

 

[HuBBa]

NEVER use a net-hammock for sleeping *rubs sore back & bruises*

 

[Motorbike Man]

My first proper survival knife. It was one of those things with the hard plastic sheath which contained things like catapult elastics for the fold out catapult on the sheath. These were unbelievably accurate, but only at getting your eye when the elastic pinged off, there was a so called harpoon which you were supposed to fix to a spear with the 6" of nasty nylon string but was so blunt it would bounce off of a block of butter, and to top it all off, you could attach the blade to the sheath and use it to cut wire, or at least toffee. If you were lucky

 

[rapidboy]

 

[Motorbike Man]

You too?

 

[rapidboy]

No way mate but your a bigger man than most for admitting it.

 

[Motorbike Man]

No way mate but your a bigger man than most for admitting it.

Well, I was only 15 at the time

 

[rapidboy]

I remember my mate had one with a little crossbow on the sheath.
We got into a lot of trouble for firing it across the classroom in school.