Lightweight Gear Excluding Smaller Wallets

[Bryan Hoofnagle]

Indeed,

Thanks for the responses…
So anyone selling a used and efficient sewing machine?

This seems to be my only course of action.

[Douglas Frick]

Making your own gear usually has several positive results: pride in using something you made yourself; having something that is close to or exactly what you want; paying less by contributing your own labor (free, right?); and a better appreciation for the effort that goes into good commercial lightweight gear.

Ray Jardine wrote two articles on sewing that are apropos: Why Sew? and Sewing Tips.

My wife and I made a Ray-Way quilt that is exactly the size and thickness I wanted. I really like it and it is holding up well. I also have a Ray-Way tarp and net-tent that we have yet to make; hopefully by summer.

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

I own 3 machines and a serger ;-) You can never have too many sewing machines…..

[Ross Bleakney]

One of the great discoveries I made when I first started looking into ultralight gear was how affordable it is. While there are plenty of places that sell cutting edge, expensive equipment, there are just as many, if not more, that sell very light, inexpensive gear. A lot depends on how much you are willing to sacrifice when it comes to convenience and durability (as Neil mentioned).

The first ultralight piece of gear I bought was an O2 rain suit. These are very cheap and knocked several ounces off my old (expensive) Goretex jacket. BPL is selling essentially the same thing, with the option of getting it in bright tweety bird yellow (Yippee! — thanks BPL) for only $15 if you are member. They are very fragile, however, so be careful with it.

Another good money/weight saver is switching to an alcohol or esbit stove and beer can pot. You can buy titanium, but you aren't going to save much weight over that combination. Get a Lexan spork and you are lighter than most.

I'm not sure where you are starting from, so I don't know what to recommend. I'm not sure if you are looking to replace much of your stuff or are just starting out. Most of my clothes are the same as when I was a "heavyweight". I bought much of those at surplus stores. The only thing I might blow a bunch of money on is a puffy jackets and pants. The weight savings for most three season hiking is fairly minimal, however, so I wouldn't worry about it (you will be warmer in a puffy jacket, but fleece may be warm enough for you). For shoes, you will actually save money as you look for lighter, more mainstream trail running shoes (at discount stores).

A platypus weighs less than a Nalgene container and costs about the same. Water treatment options (like a filter without a pump or additives) are likely to be cheaper or roughly the same. A lot of the miscellaneous stuff falls into this same category. It is more about adjusting your technique and leaving it behind than it is buying new, more expensive gear.

Lightweight packs are usually less expensive than their heavyweight cousins.

Tents are usually expensive, no matter who makes them. However, some of the big manufacturers (Kelty and Eureka) make very affordable offerings at substantial weight savings over a standard tent. That being said, I would just buy a tarp tent (from six moons or Shires) and call it a day. Otherwise, you may decide (like I did) to buy the (slightly) more expensive tent a couple years later. Of course, if you want to go with just a tarp, you can save even more money.

For a sleeping pad, get closed cell foam (not inflatable). Splurge and buy the Gossamer Gear Evazote pad for $30.

OK, if you are keeping score at this point, you will know that you have saved a huge amount of weight and have spent way less than a normal REI shopping trip. The only big thing left is the sleeping bag. This is where you will get nailed. Down is simply more expensive than synthetic fill. You can go to REI and buy a North Face Cat's Meow bag for $160 (a nice bag, in my opinion, I own one). If you walk across the street, you can buy a very nice 20 degree bag from Feathered Friends and pay twice that much. You will save a lot of weight, but unless you are prepared to raise a bunch of geese, this is one area where you have to sacrifice money for weight. Still, there are probably a few places that sell nice down bags on sale, so if you wait a while, you might be able to grab a good deal.

Even with the expensive sleeping bag, I think you are spending a lot less money for lighter gear. The only reason some of the ultralight gear is so expensive is that those folks are catering to the fringe people (like me) who want to see really light gear, regardless of the cost. You don't have to buy a cuben fiber bivy sack (you couldn't three years ago) to save weight. But if you willing to spend the money, it is really nice that you have that option. I would much rather spend an extra $100 on gear that makes my backpacking experience more enjoyable than I would spending it on a nicer car ($100 doesn't buy much of a car upgrade). It is funny that spending an extra couple hundred dollars on nicer backpacking equipment is considered weird, but spending an extra 10 grand on a car is considered normal. Anyway, like I said, you don't have to spend a lot of money to go ultralight (but it's nice that you can).

[Brett .]

It is difficult to add anything else to the great posts in this thread, but here are two more tips. Forgive me if they are obvious.

1. Create an excel spreadsheet, rank your items in descending order of weight, and start researching replacements at the top(heaviest) end of the list. Make a list of the $ and weight of each candidate that still meet your performance requirements (example 20'F bag, 2000 in3 backpack, etc..)

2. Watch froogle.com, steepandcheap.com, brick & mortar sales, and gear swap forums for your 'candidate' items, or something even better. I scan these sites every morning before work, and Ive bought several items at steep discount.

Most of my LW gear is cheaper than my old heavy gear. Even my down sleeping bags are cheaper than my old synthetics. You can recoup some of the cost by selling items to others who are a little behind you in the progression to LW.

Having the skills to keep down bags dry, thin nylon un-torn, thin poles un-bent, etc.. will allow you to go lighter and lighter without compromising safety.

If you have spare time, certainly make what gear you can; stoves are a very interesting item to start with.

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