View Full Version : Archaic gear still in use
Curious for responses from folks still using old gear, e.g. Jansport D2 or D3 packs, old Svea stoves, etc. A little bit of nostalgia for the over 40 crowd.
JimSproul
11-22-2003, 00:45
I still have my old Svea (pre cleaning needle version circa 1970) but it pretty much stays on the shelf. My kids thought it was neat but it just too heavy!
I still have and use my 1967 vintage Octae Open Cell Foam mummy bag (no zipper). In VERY cold weather I leave the Thermarest at home, take the old bag as pad and additional layer and stuff my modern 20 degree summer weight bag inside. At 4.5 pounds it is pretty heavy but I don't have warmer bag in the budget and there just isn't much need here in Texas.
Also I still have a Camp Trails "Moose" on an Astral Cruiser frame but it is not close to the comfort of a modern rig.
Alligator
11-22-2003, 00:51
Up until three years ago, I was still using my Coleman Peak I stove. Couldn't afford anything else. It's now 16 years old. It still works great, but I have a lighter stove. I keep it for canoe camping as a second stove, and also as a spare stove for my Westfalia. Still a great stove for simmering, but a pig on gas.
How about a Sigg Tourist cookkit? At one time it was cutting edge.
Kerosene
11-22-2003, 11:09
I have a ton of my 1970's era equipment packed away, but I rarely use any of it. Things like an Optimus 8R stove, an old down/feather nylon mummy from Sears, one of the original Kelty Tioga packs, even some ancient aluminum cookware that my grandfather gave to me when I was a Boy Scout. I just threw away a bunch of outdated freeze dried Mountain House food that had to be close to 25 years old!
Rain Man
11-22-2003, 12:33
I still have my 25-year-old all brass (?) Optimus 00 kerosene stove. Sounds like a jet engine once it gets fired up good. It will simmer! Has three short folding legs, so you can use one, two, or all three, depending on how level the ground is or isn't.
Requires priming with denatured alcohol. Weighs a tad more than my Anti-Gravity Gear alcohol Pepsi can stove!
Just retired my 25-year-old Vasque all-leather, HEAVY hiking boots this year, after the inside heel leather wore through at last and started giving my heel blisters. Now I have Lowa Renegades.
BTW, all my old gear was for caving, not backpacking. :)
Rain Man
My 23 yr old Svea stove still works great. took it out last weekend in the cold Maryland weather.
It doesnt let me down in hot or cold weather.
ITS NOT HEAVY - IT'S MY SVEA
Two Speed
11-22-2003, 14:29
Still have my Peak 1 Multi-Fuel. Believe it or not, it still works. One thing I've realized recently is that I've spent more on parts like generators, pump cups, etc than I did to buy the dadgum thing new. Something like $65 at Georgia Outdoors in the early '80's, something like $85 or $100 over the past 20 years for bits and pieces. Despite all it's faults, it still is the stove I take if I'm expecting really tough weather. Lights like a bomb going off, puts out gobs of heat when set on "high," best distribution of the heating area of any stove I've ever seen, reliable if you know how to treat it just right and I still think it's king when simmering is required. If it just didn't weigh so darn much. Maybe Coleman will make a mini-titanium or something one day . . .
CanoeBlue
11-22-2003, 15:36
I still use - for winter camping - an Eddie Bauer Down mummy bag good to - 35 degrees. It was made by Bauer when they were still really outfitters (1963) It is heavy - 3 1/2 lbs of down - triangular baffel construction - a bit tattered but the loft is still good (I do not store it "stuffed") and it is still very warm.
Also a vinyl wash basin that I purchased during my Scouting days for a trip to the Nat. Jamboree in Colorado Springs in 1960. It is compact, easy to clean, and as light as anything on the market today.
Still have my Peak 1 Multi-Fuel. Believe it or not, it still works. One thing I've realized recently is that I've spent more on parts like generators, pump cups, etc than I did to buy the dadgum thing new. Something like $65 at Georgia Outdoors in the early '80's, something like $85 or $100 over the past 20 years for bits and pieces. . . .
I havent spent a cent on my Svea! The Svea is more economical than all the others except alcohol soda can stoves. Reliability over weight factor. How good is a titanium weigh nothing expensive stove if it don't work when you freezing your butt off and need a hot drink & meal?
Its the peace of mind that allows me to carry it.
(Nothing against you Two Speed but I think the manufacturers and national magazine have people duped. Make sure its a tired & true product before you risk your life or sanity on it.)
Curious for responses from folks still using old gear, e.g. Jansport D2 or D3 packs, old Svea stoves, etc. A little bit of nostalgia for the over 40 crowd.
I still use my 10 year old Jansport full frame backpack. weight of just the pack is 4.5 Lbs. I hope to retire it soon, well as soon as I can afford a new P2 from ULA.
My Dragonfly is still within easy reach, but it is for all intents retired.
And all of my previous cooksets are retired.
My sleeping bag is about 15 years old, still keeps me warm down to about 30, which is what it is rated at. And I have slept in it down to 17, but neither it nor I are up to that anymore :rolleyes:
I guess almost all of my old (read: heavy) gear is retired. My tent might still be used, by my son, but he is looking to buy a hammock as soon as he can afford one.
Doctari. :dance
smokymtnsteve
11-23-2003, 18:20
I just love my old 70's model synergy works backpack...still use it in colder weather and other times when I need to pack larger heavier load...
and I like my sigg fire jet too...
asmtroop3
11-23-2003, 18:50
I'm still using the same damn legs N feet I've been hikin' on for 46 years.
they're worn thin and the cartilage is gone around both knee joints & one of the ankles. Pretty banged up as well with a 7 inch puncture to the right calf & a huge ding on one shin.
Tried to get a couple of bucks on E-Bay for 'em but no takers.
Guess I'm stuck with 'em awhile longer.
Any ideas what an update would cost and what's the best model for mostly section hikin'?:D :jump :D :jump :D :jump
I also still use a Peak 1 Multi-fuel. I have not had to spend a cent on it in the almost 20 years that I've had it. Lights fast, burns like a house on fire, and is reliable in all conditions (even ice fishing). Yes, it's heavier than other stoves, but it's just so darn good. Call me stubborn, but I'll stick with it for a while longer.
chowhound
11-24-2003, 18:18
I've just retired my 1982 REI polarguard bag and 1976 Hine Snowbridge internal frame (X stays) pack. I must admit though that they didn't see much backpacking use from the early 80s until last year. Marriage, mortgage, kids, dogs, travelling job, etc. left little room for a hobby that no one else in the family shared. I've got the bug again though (trips to Isle Royal and Great Smokies Natl. parks) in the last year, so I'm buying stuff again. The bag and pack did OK in Isle Royal though, and I was sleeping warm into the low 30s.
chowhound
I'm still using the same damn legs N feet I've been hikin' on for 46 years.
they're worn thin and the cartilage is gone around both knee joints & one of the ankles. Pretty banged up as well with a 7 inch puncture to the right calf & a huge ding on one shin.
Tried to get a couple of bucks on E-Bay for 'em but no takers.
Guess I'm stuck with 'em awhile longer.
Any ideas what an update would cost and what's the best model for mostly section hikin'?:D :jump :D :jump :D :jump
Not sure of the cost, but I think an 18 YO weight lifter would be the best place to look for replacement parts. Next best a similar aged runner.
As to repair of the existing equipment, I take Glucosamine on a daily basis & it seems to ease the pain of arthritus. Drawbacks are: it takes about a week for the benifits to "kick in" and you must take it daily, forever. And it is darn expensive.
Doctari.
wjseaman
11-25-2003, 09:50
I've still got and use my Svea 123 stove bought, well I forget, sometime between 1970 and 1972.
I currently am heading in the ultralight direction myself, what with my old knees and all. I use a Kiskil Mithril pack (awsome!) and have recently replaced my 1-3/8 oz. cat stove with a 1/2 oz. photon stove. But when it gets cold and windy below 30 degrees, I pack my trusty 25 y/o Svea 123. It's da bomb!