Can you get all your kit from the UK

[Twodogs]

When relaxing in my tent one night in Norway I looked about kit that I had with me and felt a bit gilty how many people have all there kit made in the UK?
Can you get kit for our use without going army surplus mad that is. that will do the job as well as overseas kit?

Below is my kit list for the trip and the place it was made I think??( Hope ) .

Berghaus vulcan pack , UK
German army folding mat , Germany
US army moduler sleeping system , USA
Reindeer fur ( fantastic and fire reisistant ) , Finland
Helsport Veranger Larvvu 4/6 plus pole and pegs , Norway
Petromax folding candle lantern plus spare candles , Germany
Wash kit minamal , pine soap , tooth kit, foot powder , USA (soap )
Army arctic tent boots ( recomended for chilling out in ) , UK ?
Head torch , China

Cooking ,

Honey stove , UK
Trangia burner , Sweden
takonka billy Spain
Eagle products kettle ( brought in Oslo ) , Norway
Kuska Swedish army issue , Sweden
Spoon , China
Tinder box ( cotton wool , inner tube , lighter ) , USA (box)

Cutting ,
Knife ( sharp and pointy ) , UK
Laplander saw , UK?

Entertainment . ( Keep all battery kit warm )

camera , Far East
iPod , Far East
phone , Finland
Book , UK

Clothing ,

SASS ventile smock , UK
woolpower 20gm base layer ( Fantastic ) , Sweden
Swanndri extreme shirt ( Fantastic ) , New Zealand or China
Swedish army camo trousers , Sweden
USMC issue Danner boots , USA
Lightweight silva compass , Sweden
Whistle (tied to smock) , USA
red light stick , USA
mosie head net ( not used ) , ?
Summer sun insect repellent ( not used ) , Sweden
gloves army issue , UK ( I Hope )
hat barbour wax and wool hat back up , UK
betalight , Germany


The list above is a bit shocking bit its all good kit that I know will work .

How does your compare ? Can you get UK kit that will be as good ?

I havnt started this thead to start a cheap kit and expensive kit debate as thats been done to death Its just my own observation on kit .

Twodogs

 

[MartinK9]

Pretty much the same Twodogs, sometimes other Countries equipment is either cheaper,

better designed or is the only place you can get it.

 

[Twodogs]

Fair point there Martin , we need kit that will on the whole stand the fire thats not a UK camping thing .

 

[Shewie]

I buy what I think's going to be the best for me, unfortunately we don't have that many outdoor manufacturers in this country anymore so choice isn't always an option.
I have a pretty similar kit list to yourself and prefer to pick items based on quality rather than their country of origin.
Looking at some of my kit it comes from all over the place, quite a lot from Scandinavia, New Zealand. China and the US. In fact the only UK made stuff I have is probably my knives and a few bits of Snugpak gear.

Interesting thread

 

[John Fenna]

It is a sad fact that Britain makes very little these days!
Looking at my mountain of kit there is very little there that is made in the UK - even the stuff designed and retailed by British companies is made elsewhere.
I would prefer to support a UK manufacturer over some forign bod....but even if you buy Ventile (woven in Britain) or similarly iconic British product, the raw materials come from abroad!
Even Baked Beans are grown in forign parts!

In the global village Britain is becoming the sink estate on the edge of the town....

 

[Tiley]

I suppose that, with few exceptions, manufacturers in the U.K. feel that they do not have the market necessary to run a viable business making outdoor gear, particularly for the esoteric bushcraft community. My hopes rest with those few exceptions who make stunning gear, though often at a hefty, sometimes eye-watering price.

I think that the problem is a cultural one: nowadays, folk prefer to potter around shopping centres rather than get some fresh air in our beautiful countryside. I don't know what the solution is - or even if there is one - but I hope that those artists who make blades or clothing or other kit so well in the U.K. can keep thriving through the recession.

It all seems rather melancholy...

 

[Old Bones]

I had a look at the tent review section in Trail magazine the other day - every single one, no matter what the brand name, was made in China. Thats not surprising, considering the cost of making kit in the UK in comparison with China. I'm sure there are UK manufacturers, but I bet they are at the 'craft' end of the market.

On the other hand, Twodogs, you've got the best possible kit for your needs, at a reasonable price. Swedish, German and US companies all make excellent kit - being cold and wet, but patriotic and skint makes little sense.

Of course you can make your own kit, but I doubt that even the best of us is up to making our own LED's....! (Of course I'm going to be proved wrong now )

 

[johnboy]

It's in someways pretty sad that kit isn't made in it's country of design anymore...

I know when Macpac moved production from Christchurch NZ to Vietnam and China lots of outdoor folk were up in arms about the move and the loss of jobs and percieved downturn in quality... Now Macpac packs are 50% cheaper than they were the concerns about job losses and quality have been outweighed by the fact that the price is much cheaper so you can afford to replace the pack every 3 years rather than every 10.

The sad truth is the cost of producing quality stuff in a 'western' country is very high and as consumers the majority of us are just not prepared to pay the cost. So we'll shop where it's cheapest. Truth be told the Chinese do a pretty good job of making stuff as do the Vietnamese... What worries me is that Mr ong or Mrs Duc don't for the most part ( but not exclusively) actually have any empathy for what they are making.. When your kit was being sewn together in the UK there was a good chance that the machinest actually understood what the product was used for and could understand it's use and perhaps had experience of the mountains in the UK. The same is not true of low cost base manufacturing nations...

For a long time NZ had a system where import licences controlled what was brought into the country from overseas. This made the cost of foreign outdoor kit extremely expensive hence small companies like Macpac + Swanndri did so well for such a long time... Import restrictions have been gone since the mid 80's and NZ is the first 'western' country to sign a direct trade deal with China so the market is now flooded with lots of cheaper goods which means the traditional guys are forced off shore or they go under for the most parts consumers hign moral standards about where their goods are made are not backed up by their buying habits... Swazi to their credit stick to their guns and still make stuff in Levin and the price of it reflects this. But I fear they are really struggling with exchange rate problems and the fact It's possible to buy a Tahr copy from Ridgeline hunting in nasty tex for 50% of the cost of the real deal... and people here in NZ honk at the price of the Swazi stuff.

If I look at my bergen contents these days 70% of it will be made in Asia the rest is old kit that was made in the UK or NZ but when I come to replace it the replacements are likely to come from China or Asia...

 

[Matt.S]

Depends how you define 'made in the UK (or other specific country of origin)'. Take a certain BCUK favourite: the SASS Kit Ventile 'smock'. Assembled in the UK, designed in the UK, Ventile woven in the UK, but where does the cotton fibre come from?

It's certainly possible to have all of your kit made in the UK, especially if you make it yourself, but at some point you're going to have to compromise something. I want to make a copper billy at some point, but the copper has to come from somewhere, and there's precious little been mined and smelted in the UK for quite some time...

 

[Tengu]

Um, there arent many Vegtable Lambs in this country...

But my Vango Force Ten was made here.