General Gear Questions

[FooFooCuddlyPoops]

Hey guys, sorry if this is in the wrong spot.

What are the aim for weights of your gear?

Like, Hammock Vs Tent Weight.

Sleeping back weight. (Down vs Synthetic plus how much fill to aim for when it comes down to down.)

Cooking Gear Weight.

Etc.

I am in the process of gear shopping/planning. I keep going to more expensive gear to get a base weight and than research cheaper versions to balance the two. lol

Another question: Anybody hear anything about Roxx Flat Iron packs? My father brought one home and I can't seem to find anything about these type of packs. I think it might be discontinued? The pack was found in an old boat my dad was tearing apart at work. It still had a Tag for SNP and a Plane Ticker to Alanta Ga. Makes me wonder how many miles this pack has seen over the year and if this person tried to hike the At.

[Stubby]

What are the aim for weights of your gear?

Securr-ity! We have a complicated question! (reference to Mad TV Bon Qui Qui...)

Simplest way I can think to answer... I have multiple targets for different seasons.

I have a 3 season pack, and a cold weather pack.

My 3 season pack is a Osprey Hornet 46, weighs 19 ozs. But its really more of a 6 month pack. For colder gear, I use my really old external frame kelty beast. Cause I don't care how much weight it takes to stay warm.

But, for bags, I look for temperature, then find the least weight I can afford for a given temperature.
First, you have to decide if you want to go down or synthetic, which is to me a question of how confident are you that you can keep a down bag dry?

The next question is hammock vs tent. And if tent, 1 or 2 man.
I have an Eno (I know they get dissed a lot, but hey, it was a gift). I switched out the heavy carabiners for lightweight climbing carabiners, and replaces the fat ropes with strong but thin ropes, and bought a cuben fiber tarp from MLD on closeout... but I haven't spent to dough on a down underquilt yet, so its a summer only option.

All that to say - I would aim from under 1.5 lbs for each of the big three - bag, shelter, and pack. And then back up the weight to what I could afford. knowing that summer gear I could probably hit the under 1.5, and for winter I won't.

[FooFooCuddlyPoops]

Ek! I considered the difference between winter and summer. I typically hike in the summer but I would like to eventually get gear to hike more towards the colder times that you know..get 20-30 at night. Any more and I am a big baby.

[FooFooCuddlyPoops]

Oh! But I figured the winter gear would be extra. A under quit, etc.

[bigcranky]

I started with a 65 pound pack, total weight for a 3-day weekend. This is 25 years ago, of course. Probably 50+ pounds of that was "base weight" - everything except food, water, and fuel. It felt pretty good considering I was younger and just out of the military.

When I got my base weight to 40 pounds, it felt even better. Then sub 30, then sub 20, etc. I've been buying and selling (or giving away) a lot of gear over the years. These days I have my base weight to ~15 pounds for a long weekend hike in warmish weather (lows down into the 30s). Add food and a couple of liters of water and it's right at 25 pounds. This is a pretty good target -- not superduperultralight, but light enough that it makes a nice difference in how I feel at the end of the day. It's also not that expensive in terms of buying gear, and there are a lot of choices.

I'd look for a 2.5-3 pound internal frame pack in the 50-60 liter range - lots of those out there. There are plenty of tents in the 1.5-2 pound range that don't cost that much (depending on how one's wallet is equipped, of course). A closed cell foam pad is light, cheap, and indestructible, while a good inflatable pad is comfortable and can be pretty expensive. I go for a pretty minimalist kitchen, really just a mug and a canister stove - but this depends on what you want to cook. But my whole kitchen is well under a pound.

The sleeping bag is where you can spend a lot of money, and in my experience it's worth it. A high quality down bag or quilt in the 25-30F range will provide a lot of sleeping comfort in a wide range of conditions, and with minimal care will last pretty much forever. Synthetic bags don't last more than a few seasons without losing loft, in my experience, plus they are heavier and bulkier for the same warmth.

If I were buying from scratch, with no gear, and wanted to buy good quality stuff but not go crazy with the budget, I'd get:

ULA Circuit pack
Tarptent Notch (uses trekking poles, but then so do I. Moment tent if you don't use poles.)
A good 30F down bag or quilt, maybe a Marmot Helium on sale, or spend the bucks on a Western Mountaineering Megalite
Neoair pad (expensive) or Ridgerest (cheap but less comfortable for old guys)
Jetboil, long handled spoon
Sawyer filter, a couple of Gatorade 1-liter bottles for treated water

Clothing is a whole 'nother post. So is hammocking :)

Sorry, never heard of that pack.

Good luck.

[q-tip]

I have a number of detailed gear lists ul/ltwt/summer/jmt with weight, cost. If interested send pm with email.