Budget Kit for Bush craft, Hiking and Camping.

[Erbswurst]

British N.A.T.O-issue Sleep Mat. Used/Graded. Olive Green.

Genuine issue through-the-system premium quality sleeping pad. Critically important to the performance of your sleeping bag. Kev says: "Individually graded by us for guaranteed condition - we don't just pick 'em off a stack!" Colour: Olive green Material: P.F foam Origin: U.K Size: 190cm × 60cm...

www.endicotts.co.uk

The British army roll mat is generously sized. That's good.
Here currently sold new old stock pretty cheap, otherwise one also could buy a really used one. It doesn't matter. Here you can easily save money.

The younger Dutch ones are really thick and warmer but less wide. I think it's better to get a second British one should you plan arctic expeditions.
I prefere wider mats.

Put it under the flap of the rucksack.
No extra straps needed for now.

I personally find air mats everything else than convincing. A closed cell foam roll mat is the superior idea.
Well, they aren't so soft, yes I know.
But the forest ground and the meadows are soft. You just have to think about where you decide to sleep!

I use my airmat exclusively on top of the closed cell foam mat if I sleep directly on stones, what can happen on camping grounds in south France.

In German forests I don't use an airmat!
But OK, I am just 51 years old. Perhaps I think differently in 20 years.

 

[Erbswurst]

Special Forces 2 WGTE

The Special Forces 2 WGTE Sleeping Bag can be used on its own or bought as a set of two, which can be zipped together to create an extreme bag for temperatures -15°C. The bag also benefits from state of the art fabrics to keep you dry, comfortable and warm. Available for purchase as a whole...

www.snugpak.com

If you buy a used army sleeping bag you risk to get one with overaged broken fibres inside. You can't see that from outside if you are no expert.

The old sleeping bag kept its weight but lost most of its ability to retain body heat.

If you can afford it, take a new one if you move on foot! During the summer also one or two old blankets will do the job. The Sting is large enough to carry them.
It's worth to save up the money.

If you don't walk longer distances anyway and just go for summer camping in the warmer month a used army sleeping bag will do the job too.

The Snugpak Special Forces 2 is surely the best choice. It's part of the modular sleep system. That keeps open interesting options for the future.
That's one of the best sleeping bags in the world. I think it's the best for British weather conditions. Handmade in Britain and surprisingly cheap. Issued in the British, Australian, Latvian and US army. Not everyone gets it though.

The direct competition is the Carinthia Defence 4. This has no warmth collar, what isn't good for civil users.

I wrote half a kilometre about both systems in other threads of this forum and don't repeat it here.

You don't need a rucksack liner. Your sleeping bag is protected in the bivvy bag. You just stuff both to the bottom of your rucksack and don't need a compression bag in the beginning. As long as it fits well, that's the best option. And following the packing list above it fits easily.

Your clothing you put into a dry bag and use that altogether as a comfortable pillow, what's the best option anyway.

 

[Erbswurst]

Modern looking glued boots usually fall in pieces with their eighth birthday.
It doesn't matter if you walked in them or not. That's why the shops sometimes try to get rid of them.

Sewn leather boots need every 10 to 20 years a new sole and every shoemaker master can replace the sole for a relatively low amount of money.

If you walk a lot and own no others they will of course not become that old, but otherwise they can last you for decades if you care for them. Shoe maintenance is worth the effort.

Really durable boots have to look like the Meindl Perfekt or the Meindl Ortler.
There is a lot of competition also in the traditional design. The makers are just less noisy than the sellers of glued boots.

The Schladminger model 100 are relatively cheap. Sold via only one Austrian shop but handmade in Italy.

Such boots become really comfortable after the first 300 to 500 km.
I recommend to wear them at first in daily life.

You can save money at all and everything but not at the boots if you want to go for hiking.

At 160 € these are already a bargain:

Schladminger Art. 100 Zwigenäht | Schuhjäger - Experte Für Berg+ Wander+ Jagdschuh

Ein echt langlebiger und extrem hochwertig verarbeiteter Wanderstiefel. Echtes Rindsleder aussen und feines Lederfutter vereint mit einer zwigenähten Machart zeichnen diesen Schuh aus. Eine rutschfeste Gummisohle rundet diesen tollen Schuh perfekt ab.

schuhjaeger.at

 

[Erbswurst]

The for bushcraft use best ever developed military mess kit patterns are

1.) Swedish mess kit
2.) Canadian air force pot, available as modern copy, the Pathfinder Bushpot 64 oz / 1800ml
3.) The German army mess kit

The current Bundeswehr mess kit has a manufactured kind of dent in the bottom that doesn't make it easy to use with gas stoves. All others have a flat bottom: Germans before approximately 1965, Old Austrian, Russian, Rumanian, NVA / east Germany, and so on.
They all copied sooner or later the German mess kit. Only Brits, Americans, Dutch and French use different patterns in the western world. And the swiss had originally the idea but the old pattern is too tall to work comfortably.

I never had a Rumanian one in my hands, but they look good and are surely worth a try. They are currently offered cheap on the surplus market, but the others can be found as well.

There is a 750 ml stainless steel mug with bail and butterfly handles made by Lixada, that can be found pretty cheap in the internet, it's the minimum size. But also worth a try. It nests with the Nalgene Everyday 1 litre bottles and their cheaper copies and the relatively expensive Primus Power Gas cartridges of 100g content.

If it's not exactly the same, The Bushcraft Store in London offers a very similar mug.

The last post just to complete here the not obvious points in my list above for others who read this later.

If you already have the Stanley kit and two stoves you should use these of course.
I don't recommend to buy them but I recommend to use them.

One should use what's already there, off course!

 

[cbrdave]

You seem to be off to a good start.

A First Aid Kit should be next on the list...you can get basic ones in the garage.

some string? (Paracord is nice but costs more, maybe get some for heavy use.)

Have you got local maps?

A compass?

Got some stuff for xmas, first aid kit and paracord, got to get a compass, have a local os map, just need to find where i stored it.

 

[TLM]

Erbswurst apparently had a sleepless night and decided two write "The complete short guide to military surplus in bushcraft." Not much to add there!

Just a note to choosing and using things: all of us develop some semi fixed patterns of using equipment, depending on a lot of personal and surrounding factors. On most things there is no "right" way. (As long as one survives and stays mostly dry. )

 

[cbrdave]

Not much to add, but it’s good to see your username again. My sympathies for your health issues, I’ve had a few real show stoppers myself in recent years so wish you well.

Many thanks, heart attacks are a massive shock, specially when your fit , healthy and your told heart and arteries are amazingly clear and on paper your a 25yr old athlete, reality 49yrs old, then an artery wall tears a flap that restricts blood to heart causing an attack, they dump you on loads of pills and forget about the follow up scans for 2years, Gp doesn't want to mess with pills the specialist put me on regardless of side effects, hope to get something sorted soon.
Hope you are better mate.

 

[Erbswurst]

Bundesheer Feldschuhe I (leicht) Feldstiefel, neu - Army-Warehouse GmbH

army-warehouse.com

If you prefere high boots, the last model of the light Austrian army boots is a bargain.
They are still made in the classical durable way, that was the standard in the cold war era in other NATO armies too.

Nowadays other armies issue comfortable throw away boots that enable you to put them on new and start marching immediatly. The armies nowadays are convinced about that they always will be able to deliver new boots if needed. In the cold war era they issued boots that would last for years. The Austrian army boots above are still such very durable boots. Also here every shoemaker master in Europe can easily replace the soles for a relatively low amount of money.
Because they surely last far longer than glued modern boots you save here much more money than you realise in the first view.

The shop offers also the heavier version, but they don't have them always in all sizes. These are really indestructible and the even better choice if we try to get the best value for our money.

These were constructed to defend the Alpine fortress against a Red Army invasion for many years.
In civil use in flat country they last a lifetime for sure.
If they seem too heavy, you are too weak and have to train marching!

Bundesheer KAZ03 Kampfstiefel schwer, Feldschuhe schwer - Army-Warehouse GmbH

army-warehouse.com

They recently got the fantastic idea to issue in their conscription army disposable training boots instead of issuing used boots to the recruits.
A lot of these boots did fall in pieces already after the first few days in the first manoeuvre. The Austrian recruits run immediately to buy privately the old model!
The rubbish will hit the surplus market pretty soon, so pay attention and have a second look before you get the glued garbage!

The Army Warehouse internet shop here is a fantastic vitrine if you want to have a look at the plain olive green Austrian field uniforms. The Austrian army is called Bundesheer (instead of the German Bundeswehr) and what's offered here under that headline is original equipment.
But these uniforms you often can find somewhere else even a bit cheaper, also in Britain.

Clothing that you can also wear in daily life and not only in the woods saves you money of course. That's why cheap camouflage pattern trousers or whatever aren't always the best choice for everyone.
Other armies issued also plain green uniforms but usually they are 100 % cotton. The newer Austrian ones are usually made of a fast drying modern polyester-cotton blend fabric.
But attention! For hot weather parts of the same green uniforms exist in 100% cotton versions too. They are rather rare though.

Other field uniforms are also worth a look and if you prefere a civil stile have a look at Solognac clothing. That is very similar to NATO issued uniforms but the cuts are different. The Austrian uniforms are more protective than the Solognac clothing because the Austrian army also counts with pretty unpleasant weather.