What's the Worst Piece of Gear that You Own???

[Terminal_Gravity]

I like Thermarests.

[Rodchester]

Intersting one...well....years ago someone gave me a candle lantern. At the time I thought...cool. Now I am not saying it is the worst piece...but I never use it. For climbers and mountaineers I say it is worthless.

[chucK]

Thermarests suck for weight, but not for space.

Much easier to thrash through slide alder with a thermarest tucked inside your pack than with one of those bigger foam pads strapped to the outside of your pack catching on all that stuff.

Thermarests also good for when taking shit on the plane, like a trip to Red Rocks.

My biggest POS piece is this rock-warrior cam. It's just about all frozen up after owning it one year, and placing it about 3 times.

Chuck

[glacier_dup1]

Lowe/Camp Tuber - inadvertant self-locking belay/rappel device.

Petzl ball-lock biners - annoying lock and collar. I actually use it as my belay biner 'cause it's such a pain to open and close, I know that it's locked.

Wired hexes - may make nice aid pieces or if I'm lucky, I'll find some route where I want to leave them fixed and abandoned

I don't own a thermarest - from bushwacking experience in the desert, I can tear quarter-size holes in my foam pad, and it will still keep me off the ground.

[Cpt.Caveman]

quote:

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Originally posted by philfort:

They're being clever, saving weight and relying on you.

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Yes I did think of that one. I got my stash in the Enchantments now! I dont have to carry a stove or coffee since Crack stashed his heheheh.

[Wopper]

Ditto on the camel back/platypus. I only use mine for day hikes as well. My wife took hers up Hood and the tube ended up freezing and the things are a pain in the ass to fill when melting snow and pouring from a MSR pot.

I will also never buy another 36" runner. To big to sling around the body and to small if you double it over. IMHO 24" and 48" are much more user friendly.

[Cpt.Caveman]

I dont know why anyone would want wired hexes. If you like them and free climb with them please elaborate why you think they are better than slung hexes. Who was the idiot that decided on that design at Black Diamond? Now Wild Country and others will get their business

[Dr.E]

Don't own any bad gear. If it sucks, take it back to REI and get a refund. Heh.

I love thermarests. Any version of the suck tube does just that. Always a hassle on the trail except of course when it leaks all over your gear in the truck or pack before you hit the trail.

Come to think of it, I have a batch of booty beaners that are worthless but I can't make myself throw away. I wouldnt trust them to rap off, who knows their history? But a guy can only use so many keychains.

[epb]

Terminal G...what's up with OR gear sucking? I've never owned any, but everyone I met that does raves about. I've bever heard a single person complain about it, before you that is. What's up?

[Richard_Pumpington]

OR's standard gaitor is ok, but I must agree that

the rest of there stuff is junk. Is anyone out there willing to admit that they were a big enough

idiot to buy one of their 'Seattle Sombrero's'.

OR stands for Overlooked Research.

[dan_e]

Thermarests - Depends on which model you have. I have the old model of the ultralite. It packs MUCH smaller than a ridgerest or foam pad ever could. It may weigh a bit more, but I find it to be a better insulator. I still use just a 3/4 foam if it's for a bivy.

BD Switchblades - I total agree, they suck big time, I had the first model. Screws came loose, they rusted, and the bails were recalled! However, they may have finally produced a decent pair of crapmons, the new Bionics look sweet!

Bluewater Ropes - Not that bad, but tangle too much and absorb water more than others.

Hydration Units (any) - You must be crazy if you don't like them, especially when going solo! No more removing your pack (especially the big ones) to drink, easier to drink more often, they hold more water, ect. ect.! I started to use them mtn. biking and I would never carry a water bottle on a bike again. True they are not as useful in winter, especially multi-day, but you can insulate the bag and the tube or buy the snow version if you wish. I've never had a bite-valve drip, camelbak or Platypus.

[ 12-13-2001: Message edited by: dan e ]

[Figger_Eight]

I have this solar powered flashlight that only works in the daytime...

[headmasterjon_dup1]

Dude... Candle lanterns are invaluable when winter camping. In a tent, or snowshelter just 1 can raise the temperature like 10 degrees! Clown!

[ 12-13-2001: Message edited by: headmasterjon ]

[wdietsch]

The worst piece of gear I own is an old #7 SMC Camlock, ranks right up there with tube chocks. Hangs in the back of the closet collecting dust.

The thermarest thing.... I'm with Dru, much warmer in the snow, I never carry it in the summer. As for bulkier foam pads cathing on shit when strapped to the outside of your pack, use them as a liner/frame around the inside circumferance of your pack, works like a champ.

RP... I own a Seattle Sombrero and OR Croc's suck the big one.....

[Lambone]

Thermarests are great unless they have a hole in them...and mine allways has a hole in it.

Other worst piece of gear: MSR's version of the camelback, the purple water pouch thing. Mine leaked a full two litters of water into my pack (down coat+sleeping bag soaked)...that fuckin sucked big time. We were a week out into the Winds and it wasn't warm.

[Retrosaurus]

quote:

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Originally posted by dan e:

Bluewater Ropes - Not that bad, but tangle too much and absorb water more than others.[ 12-13-2001: Message edited by: dan e ]

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HA HA HA HA HA!Blaming rope handling on the rope.

[Cpt.Caveman]

quote:

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Originally posted by Figger Eight:

I have this solar powered flashlight that only works in the daytime...

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Nice. Who bought that?

[freak]

I personally hate tricams, I had one but after much fanagaling I realized I would never be talented enuf to get one of those things in on lead,

[W]

OR makes a good ankle gaitor made of stretchy stuff; other than that, I've had many of their gloves fall apart on me, literally. They have lots of good designs and ideas, but many of the products I've owned by them have had generally poor construction and quality control. OR stands for "Ol-ready Ripped".

And as for the Seattle Sombrero...er...never mind. I won't go there.

[Dru]

quote:

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Originally posted by Cpt.Caveman:

I dont know why anyone would want wired hexes. If you like them and free climb with them please elaborate why you think they are better than slung hexes. Who was the idiot that decided on that design at Black Diamond? Now Wild Country and others will get their business

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I used a couple wired hexes of Beckey's in the Valhallas and I thot they rocked for placing above your head in big irregular cracks. Hexes on Spectra cord (THE HORROR!!!! Ibex!) always end up getting placed pretty much shoulder height or lower.

That was the last time I ever used hexes though, 2 or 3 years ago now. In general hexes are pretty irrelevant except for going light on broken 5.5 alpine ridge routes.

[Dru]

quote:

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Originally posted by Cpt.Caveman:

What is with partners that dont bring enough food water and toilet paper

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In logging camps they call that "bush money". So ya didn't bring your bush money, huh. That will be 2 $ a square!!!

[Drederek]

Wait till my friends in Mill city hear Canadian loggers use TP! Is that one of their 10 essentials? The biggest piece of shit gear I own is the first poop tube I made for my first trip to Yos. I used 3" PVC instead of ABS and it was too brittle, cracked on the third haul and the bottom fell off as we bailed from the top of the hollow flake in the pouring rain. Or maybe the sharkfin tube belay device I found at the bottom of green giant buttress. Besides being an unknown quantity it hangs up and makes for a jerky lower.

[Dru]

actually on reflection i think that term, and also "shit ticket", is used more by miners and exploration ground crew than loggers. ya know, up there in the frozen North, beyond treeline, not many bushes or plants grow with soft absorbent leaves, and it is hard to wipe your ass on a Caribou...

[chucK]

I generally agree about the suckiness of hexes.

Some here are implying they are good for "going light". That's incorrect for the big sizes according to the weight data from the respective companies (see http://home.attbi.com/~cspieker/misc/sizerang.htm ).

Friends cover more ground and are essentially the same weight in #10-11 hex size. Once you get to smaller sizes the tri-cams kick but in the weight category, but of course tri-cams have their own problems.

Chuck

[Dru]

so you take 1 set nuts, hexes #5-9, and a big DMM cam.