where online for good kit. not pricey.

[darren]

hey as some of you already know i'm embarking on an expedition in 2007 to go to asia in the himalayas, i'll be going for a month but i need to get my kit and i need to raise the money so if you could post where you got your kit from i.e packpacks etc. dont bother with knives because artic hobo already pointed out i prob wont be allowed to take on the plane and out to asia. the kit shouldnt be to expensive. for a backpack i'm willing to pay up to £100 for a good rucksack. i'm thinking i need a 100L bag because i have to carry all my stuff for the whole month, a rucksack with a bottom entrance would be good, and one that i can attach a large sleeping back to on both the top or bottom of the bag. anywhere that does bulk discounts would be great because theres about 20 to 30 people going. If anyone owns a rucksack place thing or works in one could you get in contact if you would be willing to do a discount etc, we are going for charity and are working in a school doing much needed work on the delapidated building, its not just a fun trip.

thanks for the help
darren.

 

[The Joker]

hey as some of you already know i'm embarking on an expedition in 2007 to go to asia in the himalayas, i'll be going for a month but i need to get my kit and i need to raise the money so if you could post where you got your kit from i.e packpacks etc. dont bother with knives because artic hobo already pointed out i prob wont be allowed to take on the plane and out to asia. the kit shouldnt be to expensive. for a backpack i'm willing to pay up to £100 for a good rucksack. i'm thinking i need a 100L bag because i have to carry all my stuff for the whole month, a rucksack with a bottom entrance would be good, and one that i can attach a large sleeping back to on both the top or bottom of the bag. anywhere that does bulk discounts would be great because theres about 20 to 30 people going. If anyone owns a rucksack place thing or works in one could you get in contact if you would be willing to do a discount etc, we are going for charity and are working in a school doing much needed work on the delapidated building, its not just a fun trip.
thanks for the help
darren.

Andrew at www.outdoorcode.co.uk very helpful guy

 

[Motorbike Man]

Hi Darren,

I was going to say ODC as well but got beaten to it

As for carrying a knife, there should be no problems at all so long as the knife is packed in your hold luggage and not your carryon luggage. It would be advisable to ensure it is well wrapped and in a locked bag, but it's perfectly acceptable to carry knives in your hold luggage. If you are worried, you can give your airline a call and ask.

 

[tomtom]

Darren, try the search function you will find many links and info for kit..

what are you looking for specificaly..

for main streem camping gear try www.cotswoldoutdoor.com or www.fieldandtrek.com

for some special bits, knives and quality kit look at www.extremeoutdoorgear.com or www.outdoorcode.co.uk

and for bushcraft kit try www.trekdirect.co.uk there

these are just some of the top of my head that most people will be familuar with, let us know what you looking for!

for backpacks look at macpac and karrimor (PRI) these are expencive but it is hugely important that you get ones which will stand up to some abuse and is comfortable as you will be carrying a LOT for a long time!

 

[darren]

i'm hoping to get some stuff free like i'll ask my resistant materials teacher if he's got any flint etc but i'm look at these packs at the moment:

http://www.fieldandtrek.com/cat_id/EQUIRUCKLARG/product-Berghaus-C7-1-Series-13569.htm

http://www.fieldandtrek.com/cat_id/EQUIRUCKALPI/product-Macpac-Pursuit-50-13535.htm

those two are in a sale at the moment and are going for under £100

the 6th one down on this page the Tatonka Lastenkraxe Backpack
http://www.trekdirect.co.uk/acatalog/Online_Catalogue_Trekking_Packs_57.html

 

[Goose]

A few mates did an expedition in the himalayas earlier this year, one of the things you will have to be carefull of is the air travel as the baggage weight limit is 15Kg!
This is fairly rigid by all accounts due to the aircraft used and the conditions.

 

[philaw]

I've flown to China twice and back once all with lufthansa. On two of those three flights I was way over the luggage limit, and on one they even asked if I had any more luggage; all with no surcharges! My bro went with KLM and got charged a fortune for carrying less. Maybe if you ask around you'll find that the better airlines consistently let people take more than the allowance. Just a thought.

 

[scanker]

I'd recommend http://www.gearzone.co.uk, http://www.towerridge.co.uk/index.htm and http://www.facewest.co.uk/ too.

 

[Goose]

I've flown to China twice and back once all with lufthansa. On two of those three flights I was way over the luggage limit, and on one they even asked if I had any more luggage; all with no surcharges! My bro went with KLM and got charged a fortune for carrying less. Maybe if you ask around you'll find that the better airlines consistently let people take more than the allowance. Just a thought.

I was on about internal flights more, small planes small runways!

 

[arctic hobo]

Baggage allowance is notoriously unreliable, you can get hammered for having over 15kg, or you can take 40kg without any problems at all. It doesn't seem follow any pattern at all (in my experience), often I have been burned by allowances that others have recommended, other times nobody has taken any notice.
What are you doing about food? This is the crucial (and most difficult) question. Without food there is no way your kit should be more than 10kg - if it is, cut it down, or you'll really regret it - especially because your area will probably be fairly hilly!
Food weighs a ton, and you ideally should have your diet properly designed. You don't have to employ someone to do this - books like Sports Nutrition by Anita Bean are an excellent introduction and have enough info to get going.
Dehydrated food is tricky because it's very very expensive to buy, and also needs rehydrating over the day, which can be tricky in a rucksack. You could look into doing it yourself, but watch you do it properly or one case of food poisoning and the trip's over - because you don't know how good the rest is.
Not sure how relevant what I'm saying now is. If you want to talk food, drop me a PM and I'd be happy to help.
Certainly consider obtaining it when you get there.
If your baggage weighs absolutely loads, because you've a basecamp type setup, use one of the excess baggage companie eg http://www.excess-baggage.com/
Keep gear to an absolute minimum. Make a list, then cut off exactly half of it. Imagine your day, to help make sure you don't miss anything out (the last minute kit remembered often adds up to a lot of weight). Then get it all together, pack it, and weigh it (remember the bag will be between 1 and 3 kilos itself). If it's over 10kg, cut out more. Things like loo roll just aren't necessary, nor is a total change of clothes (think about a change of underclothes, trousers, and top, and always take at least one pair of spare socks! Hygiene only needs to be toothbrush, toothpaste, razor, and deo stone. Eating only needs to be a tin mug or billy, and a water bottle. Etc, etc. I'm rambling again, PM me if you want more of my lengthy opinion
www.ellis-brigham.com do a lot of hiking gear at pretty good prices. Since you're hiking rather than bushcrafting, I'd suggest you go to a hiking shop rather than mil surplus or similar.
Outdoorcode has already been mentioned
Cheers
Chris