Topic
Become a member to post in the forums.
This is the inverse thread to the currently running "Unusual (and expensive) item that you consider worth it" thread. What are the most useful inexpensive items you carry?
For me it would be:
– Oven Roasting Bags as stuff sacks, $1 each
– Plastic coated Twistees, free with electronics gear.
– Heat-sealed drinking straws to hold small amounts of ointment, free at In N Out
– Reflectix Pot Cozy
– Home Depot braided mason's line
Plastic Spork. Free with whatever I get at Taco Bell.
Aluminum Foil
1) Baking/cooking
2) Pot lid
3) Wind screens/heat screens
4) Water scoop
5) Reflecter & holder for candle stub
6) Pot cozy (coupled with my hat)
7) Fishing lure
etc.
socks
Garbage bag ground cover – 43g, think I paid around 3 bucks for a roll of 10. One lasts me about two years of use, circa 40 nights out.
Pie pan wind screen and ground cover for stove – 7g and 2g, one pan costs around a buck.
Recycled #2 plastic water bottle – 33g, 3 bucks plus comes with fruit juice.
Waterproof maps – around 7g each, print off internet and cover with clear tape.
Mixed plastic containers for soap, hot sauce, rubbing alcohol, sunblock, etc. – Free from hotels, free samples at drug stores and girly shops that sell skin lotion and such, etc.
Mini toothpaste tubes – Free at dentist's office, and I am not shy to ask for several.
Wind pants – 155g, Nike running pants on sale for around 10 bucks at sporting goods store.
Foam sit/kneel pad, also backpack frame and torso sleeping mat – 40g, MYOG from leftover piece of foam mat from trimming a regular foam mat down to 2/3rds.
Small packs of salt, pepper, ketchup, sugar, etc. – Free from fast food joints.
Alpaca gloves and socks – 28g/45g, I paid about 5 bucks for both plus a hat (I wear the hat but not backpacking–other hats are better/lighter for BPing) while traveling in Bolivia, and these are my favorite/softest gloves/glove liners and sleep socks.
Compactor bag
One Wrap velcro wire tie (used to hold my goose necked compactor bag closed.)
A soda bottle lid with a bunch of holes drilled in it. Used as a water diverter for showers, dish washing, hand washing etc. Fits on an Evernew water bag.
My Princeton Tec Scout headlamp (now discontinued) is the "coolest" inexpensive item that I carry 3 seasons. It uses 4 lithium coin batteries so spares are very light weight.
The next most useful and inexpensive item I carry is my canister stove windscreen & its support. It is a MYOG thing I invented and it works much better than expected. I'll post a photo of it in a separate thread.
Rubber bands and Ziploc bags.
+ 1 rubber bands.
After losing one of the tensioners on my tent and doing a field repair with a rubber band (that I had just picked up as trail trash!), I ended up swapping out all the tensioners for rubber bands when I got home. Lighter weight and they perform way better.
imagination and creativity
Head Net, Glasses and a Wide-Brim Hat.
I like your thread.
I don't know if it counts as inexpensive, really, but I like my homemade climaxshield vest… It is simple and it has been really handy.
I gather you are looking for little knick-knacks like the cap with holes in it. That sounds like a useful thing. I don't have any good ideas like that, though.
– – Yeah, I carry earplugs sometimes.
Didn't think about them!
Yeah, carry old soda bottles as well
Extra ziploc. Probably already said. I got nothing…
Foam ear plugs–such as these:
Worth their weight in gold–when you have to sleep at a high wind campsite.
Window film groundsheet
Small repackaging dropper bottles from US Plastic
Tiny (2×3 and 4×6") ziplock bags
Homemade maps from Hillmap.com printed on 11×17 paper at Kinkos for $1/sheet
Mini bic lighter
$5 baseplate compass that I pulled out of the closet 10 years ago
Aloksaks (first aid kit, camera, fishing stuff, etc.)
$3 polycotton button up shirts and running shorts at goodwill.
Smart water bottles. Lightweight and I love the cap. Even better that they work great with my Sawyer Squeeze.
Mini Bic. Light enough that I carry two. One in my cookpot and a back-up in an Aloksak with some fire starter. I've never had one fail.
On the more expensive side, I resisted buying a Buff for the longest time but now I've got two, an Original and a UV Half Buff. The Original is so useful, it can warm your head, your neck, your face, or any combination of them, it can keep sweat from running in your eyes, it can wipe condensation off your shelter, and you can use it to pull a hot mug off the stove.
Adam
I think the sandwich could be listed in this thread as well. Both unusual and useful.
1.25 L rocket-base PET bottles – originally fizzy mineral water bottles.
Cost: $0 after we have drunk the fizzy mineral water.
Weight: about 43 g each, inc cap (lighter than most any other option).
Use: 2 – 4 of them as water bottles. The small caps do NOT leak, and the bottles last for several years at least.
Cheers
Vaseline soaked cotton balls. They burn great and I'm always surprised by how many backpackers haven't seen them used before.
Empty Gatorade bottles (found not bought) and bread bags (to put over my clean dry socks at camp.)
The bags only last a night or three but are free and only a few grams each.
Several of the ones above too.
*Thrift store dress shirt: Light, dries quickly, sun and bug protection
*Surplus wool liner gloves: Use them in all four seasons. Pair with a shell only $4 a pair
*Boonie hat: $10 for sun, light snow and rain protection
*C9 Brand (Target) running socks. Still my go to sock; 3 for about $10
bread bags??? I wouldn't like to wear them where we go lol.
Just about to sacrifice the bottom bit of my closed cell foam pad to make some inexpensive light camp footware :)
"bread bags??? I wouldn't like to wear them where we go lol."
They are not for walking just to keep your feet dry at camp.
Here is the sequence.
Arrive at camp
set the tent up
have a full wash (wet cloth wipe down)
put "night clothes" on (that is socks , T shirt and longs or clean underpants)
Put bags over clean socks.
Put wet day socks over bags.
Now you can use your wet walking shoes and keep your feet dry.
5 gallon mesh paint strainer bag for clothing stuff sack. 0.5 oz, 2 for $3
Rubber bands # 64
Turkey bag as waterproof / smell resistant liner for food bag
For the MYOG crowd:
– no-see-um, silnylon and mesh stuff sacks from leftover scraps
– wind shirts and pants from 1.1 ripstop on clearance (so what if the color is weird!)
– hiking and x-c skiing gaiters from leftover WPB scraps
– kayak deck bags from inexpensive heavy mesh and leftover buckles and webbing
Become a member to post in the forums.
Pro-Grade Water RepellencyPolypropylene face fabrics: see the future of raingear.
© Beartooth Media Group Inc.
Loading...
