Post Up Your NEW Gear ...

Nice haul, Owen. My Zpacks CF stake bag proved surprisingly durable. I may pick up a CF stuff sack for both my quilt and jacket soon. The last trip I just used my CF pack liner, and was pleased at the simplicity, efficiency of filling pack volume, and dropping the albeit small stuff sack weights. But sometimes I think I should double up the water protection for my insulation, so I'll probably give the stuff sack a try and see how I like it.

And you know I'm keenly interested in the multi-pack, let us know how it works out in use. One thing that has been holding me back is how much harder adding and stripping layers may become. I'd like to modify it to wear it directly on my body as a chest pack. Something nicely fitted and on the smaller side like the HPG Runner's Kit Bag, but in cuben and with Joe's construction would be great.
 
REI dividend and 20% coupon time; you know what that means :)

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I will cut down the 3/4 Zlite, take 4-6 panels to use as a frame and sit pad in my Ohm 2.0 when using the Neoair as my pad instead of the full length Zlite I have, or when day-hiking with the Ohm 2.0. When it's cold, I can still use the full length as a pack frame and bring the Neoair; together they'll have an R-value above 5. Weight penalty, but I'll make up for it by losing the MLD Solo Inner I'm using with my Duomid because I won't need bug protection.

Codger, I looked for the instaflator today and couldn't find either one I bought. I must have gotten rid of them. Sorry :o But like you said, they are cheap:thumbup: I'm contemplating getting another myself to try with the Neoair, see if I can get it to work better the second time around...
 
Nice Mano. I have the exped UL but must admit that I've been eyeballing those Neoairs and Xtherms. Thats a great idea about the Zlite and padding for your Ohm. I might do the same thing.
 
A good friend gave me an Amazon gift card as an early Easter gift, I thought I'd put it to some good use.
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MSR 1.1L stowaway pot
18oz hydroflask, mainly just to use and carry everyday, maybe accompany me on some day hikes
Exoficio boxer briefs, I've never heard anything but great things about these, can't wait to try them
Outdoor Products dry sacks, I've had some of these before, they do a pretty good job
Coghlan's Y-shaped tent stakes, basically just MSR groundhog cheapos but they had good reviews so I thought I'd give them a try
 
I used those ground hogs for a bit before eventually moving to Easton 8 inch allum stakes. The ground hogs are really nice though.
 
milani74 said:
Nice Mano. I have the exped UL but must admit that I've been eyeballing those Neoairs and Xtherms. Thats a great idea about the Zlite and padding for your Ohm. I might do the same thing.
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I almost went with the Xtherm today instead of the Xlite, but I'm a warm sleeper and don't do many winter trips yet, so modularity (Neoair or full-length Zlite alone for 3 season, Neoair + full-length Zlite for winter) won out over a lighter, single pad option (Xtherm) for year round use.

Now that that's finally out of the way, I've completed the overhaul of my Big Three, with it all being sufficiently modular for year round use. Later, I'll pick up a 0* quilt and Downmat or something for winter camping, but for now, supplementing with clothing should keep me fine for the temps I expect to encounter.

The only big ticket items I have left for this year: Montbell UL Down Parka, Evernew Ultralight 1.3L Ti Pot (now sold out in most places, inventory slow to rebuild after the earthquake in Japan probably), BearValut 500, and Inov-8 TrailRoc 255s. I'd love to pick up a TiTri Sidewinder to nest in my 1.3L Pot and a Patagonia R1 Hoody for next winter, but we'll see... I'll probably rather start putting money back into traveling out farther for trips again.


Crone, score :thumbup: The Ex Officio boxer briefs are awesome, it's all I wear hiking/backpacking now. Well, and other clothes...
 
HikingMano said:
REI dividend and 20% coupon time; you know what that means :)

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Wish I would have known. I have a regular sized Z-Lite that I bought last year. Used it once and didn't like it. Been sitting in my closet ever since. Would have sent it to you for just the cost of shipping.
 
Dang, oh well. If you want to get rid of it, I'd still buy it off you for price of shipping. Been thinking about other things I could make with some closed cell foam (camp slippers, etc). Or it'd make a good loaner.

ETA: You should put it up on the exchange, you could probably recoup most of the cost since you only used it once.
 
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HikingMano said:
Crone, score :thumbup: The Ex Officio boxer briefs are awesome, it's all I wear hiking/backpacking now. Well, and other clothes...
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Thanks. Would you or anyone else happen to have experience with any of their other clothes, specifically the t-shirts they offer?
 
HikingMano said:
Smtihhammer, do you still own a BRKT Ultra-Lite Bushcrafter? If you do, how do you like it?
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I do, and it's one of my top EDCs. Really versatile design and I love the ergonomics. It's just a perfect size for so many things (3.2" blade, 7.4" overall). Bark River hit it out of the park on this one:

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If you find it to be a good EDC, I imagine it's a nice backpacking knife? How do you like the "convex-scandi" in use? If it's not asking too much, is there any chance you could take some in-hand shots and maybe comparison shots with a Mora or something?

If the knife works out as well for me as I think it might, it may become my go to bping fixed blade. I really like the design, weight, and thinness, and solid stainless.
 
Can never have too many of these, I suppose :D

I always end up giving em away as gifts to deserving friends, I really need to start keeping more for myself.

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HikingMano said:
If you find it to be a good EDC, I imagine it's a nice backpacking knife? How do you like the "convex-scandi" in use? If it's not asking too much, is there any chance you could take some in-hand shots and maybe comparison shots with a Mora or something?
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I think it's a great backpacking knife as well, at least for just about everything I need a knife to do on a backpacking trip. But I also don't tend to rely on my knife for larger wood-processing - I'll bring other tools if I'm going to be doing that. If you're the opposite, then you may want to go with something larger, like BR's full size Bushcrafter.

The Scandivex is excellent - a thinner blade profile than a full, flat convex grind typically has, but with a more durable edge than a modern Scandi, imo. I'll take some "in-hand" pics with it this weekend when I get a chance....
 
No, I'm the same. For a little cook fire or something small for ambiance, found wood, tinder prep by shaving and scraping with small knife, and sectioning bigger pieces with leverage breaking or burning is the route I go. And if i wanted to build a big fire or a improvise a shelter for emergency use, I'd make it work. A saw or hatchet would make it easier/faster/more efficient, but I don't bring either unless I know I will definitely have to process wood.

Ah, yes, Scandi-Vex, that was the term. I remember Talfuchre gave a some good thoughts on the grind a while back. I think that grind should work well at that thickness.

No rush on pics, I won't be getting one until a month or two from now.
 
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