Forum Index > Gear Talk > "20 game changer pieces that changed backpacking gear forever" from BPer Magazine
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Eric Hansen
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Eric Hansen
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PostMon Nov 21, 2022 11:19 am 
https://www.backpacker.com/gear/these-20-pieces-of-gear-changed-backpacking-forever/ Their 20 include the therm-a-rest, Nalgene bottles, Leki adjustable poles, Early Winters Gore Tex Jacket, MSR Whisperlite Stove and more Interesting, thought provoking - and memory provoking for some of us elders - list of game changing gear in the history of backpacking.

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pula58, RumiDude
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HitTheTrail
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PostMon Nov 21, 2022 5:35 pm 
Yeah, lots of nostalgia since I lived through all of those. It is true that nalgene revolutionized the water container and became a generic term for almost any backpacking bottle. But things have a way of moving on. It's an oxymoron to use nalgene in the same sentence as "lite weight", since it weighs half a pound empty. I can't believe how many people I see still carrying them when a smart water bottle is around one ounce and can be safely used at least several times.
Smart water bottle. Around one ounce.
Smart water bottle. Around one ounce.

Cyclopath, meck, Alpine Pedestrian
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BigBrunyon
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PostTue Nov 22, 2022 12:29 am 
Clearly it's JET BOIL. JET BOIL gives ypu the freedom to sodium-up in camp. Gives you a BOIL. JET BOIL remains the WAY 2 GO in the cook scene

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Worthington
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PostTue Nov 22, 2022 11:51 am 
HitTheTrail wrote:
It's an oxymoron to use nalgene in the same sentence as "lite weight", since it weighs half a pound empty. \
Smart water bottle. Around one ounce.
Smart water bottle. Around one ounce.
Nalgenes weigh 3.75oz, which is less than 1/4 of a pound.

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HitTheTrail
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PostTue Nov 22, 2022 1:59 pm 
Worthington wrote:
Nalgenes weigh 3.75oz, which is less than 1/4 of a pound.
OK, I believe your scale. But not all nalgene bottles are created equal. This gear lab review from this year says a wide mouth nalgene bottle is 6.4 oz. I ditched mine about 15 years ago after I got weight conscious and weighed all my gear. I know some of my old milky white nalgene bottles were around half a pound.

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texasbb
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texasbb
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PostTue Nov 22, 2022 4:20 pm 
HitTheTrail wrote:
Worthington wrote:
Nalgenes weigh 3.75oz, which is less than 1/4 of a pound.
OK, I believe your scale. But all nalgene bottles are created equal. This gear lab review from this year says a wide mouth nalgene bottle is 6.4 oz. I ditched mine about 15 years ago after I got weight conscious and weighed all my gear. I know some of my old milky white nalgene bottles were around half a pound.
The pretty, hard plastic ones are heavier than the ugly, soft, milky white ones. And they don't share the indestructibility of the ugly ones. Use the ugly ones.

uww, RumiDude, I'm Pysht
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Chief Joseph
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Chief Joseph
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PostTue Nov 22, 2022 7:45 pm 
I still use a 3/4 length Thermarest, sure it weighs just over a pound but is much more durable than the expensive ultralight items.

Go placidly amid the noise and waste, and remember what comfort there may be in owning a piece thereof.
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awilsondc
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PostTue Nov 22, 2022 8:30 pm 
What?! No Bluetooth speaker? No toothbrush with the handle cut off?! NOT ONE MENTION OF TRAIL SNACKS?!?!?! I dunno, man...

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Gil
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PostTue Nov 22, 2022 8:55 pm 
Memories, what memories. My Lowe Alpine Expedition lasted a couple decades. I still use my Early Winters Gore-Tex bivvy and Cascade Designs pad from the 70s. I never used a Magellan hiking, but it worked great on a Pacific crossing.

Friends help the miles go easier. Klahini
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Brian Curtis
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PostWed Nov 23, 2022 7:55 am 
There was a lot of fun nostalgia in that article. The one entry I disagree with was the Whisperlite Stove. Yes, we all jumped on that bandwagon at the time, but we hadn't gone from heavy, bulky stoves. Prior to the Whisperlite we were using canister stoves from Camping Gaz and now we are very happily back to using canister stoves. The Whisperlite was an unfortunate backslide along the way.

that elitist from silverdale wanted to tell me that all carnes are bad--Studebaker Hoch
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HitTheTrail
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PostWed Nov 23, 2022 8:12 am 
Gil wrote:
My Lowe Alpine Expedition lasted a couple decades.
In this photo I posted in picture of the day thread a couple of days ago shows me wearing my Lowe Alpine cold weather hat. I have had it for almost 20 years and love it so much I have done some mods/repairs over the years to keep it alive. I also have it on in my avatar photo.
Wildernessed, HitTheTrail and Steve on the Horse Lake trail 11/21/2022.
Wildernessed, HitTheTrail and Steve on the Horse Lake trail 11/21/2022.

RichP, Gil
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texasbb
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texasbb
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PostWed Nov 23, 2022 9:29 am 
Brian Curtis wrote:
The one entry I disagree with was the Whisperlite Stove. ... The Whisperlite was an unfortunate backslide along the way.
I wonder if the (so-called) waterproof down isn't in the same category. I've seen experiments putting down in jars of water, but no convincing evidence (nor, really, any unconvincing evidence) that treated down improves the situation out in the field. Seems like it solves a mostly contrived problem. I'm gonna keep my down garments and bags dry no matter what the mfr says about its down. And based on experience with waterproofing treatments for other materials, I need lots of evidence to believe the down treatment will last more than a few years. It's telling that the arguably best mfrs haven't jumped on the bandwagon. E.g.,
https://www.westernmountaineering.com/faqs/, accessed 11/23/2022 wrote:
We have found in our own testing that the performance enhancements of hydrophobic treatments on high quality down are widely overstated. High quality untreated down already has naturally water repellant oils on it left by the geese (makes sense since geese spend a lot of time in water). These oils help repel water and keep down lofted. More importantly is that these oils last indefinitely. Hydrophobic treatments wash out like a DWR and remove the natural oils during the application process. Because of this, and the water resistant capability of our shell fabrics, we feel that hydrophobic down does not provide a considerable impact on performance and could actually inhibit performance over the lifetime of our products.

Cyclopath
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Malachai Constant
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PostWed Nov 23, 2022 10:03 am 
Interesting list Magellan was a client of mine what the article misses is the real breakthrough in GPS for hikers came in 2000 when the military removed dithering in the horizontal dimensions. Before that GPS was only accurate to within 100m without military equipment or a differential signal. Garmin was formed later by former Trimble employees. I know Larry Penberthy back when he developed the positive clearance Ice Axe and popularized aluminum shafted axes by selling them below cost. His MSR stoves were spectacular until an early adopter burned his house down. You haven’t lived until you spent the night in a tent full of people who had been eating Power Bars made of oat bran. Those Early Winters Parkas were cool but instantly delaminated.

"You do not laugh when you look at the mountains, or when you look at the sea." Lafcadio Hearn
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Brian Curtis
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PostWed Nov 23, 2022 11:12 am 
Malachai Constant wrote:
Those Early Winters Parker’s were cool but instantly delaminated.
That they did. But they (well, probably Gore) replaced them when they did.

that elitist from silverdale wanted to tell me that all carnes are bad--Studebaker Hoch
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mike
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PostWed Nov 23, 2022 12:31 pm 
Re: Goretex. I thought that the Light Dimension came first? Right after the Omnipotent which was revolutionary as well. I used one of first ones and it clearly was way ahead of the typical REI type A-frames. I think that the NF domes were at about the same time. Mid 70's. But they were really heavy. A friend of mine who was leading trkking groups used them for base camp tents.
Light Dimension
Light Dimension
REI  A-frame
REI A-frame

Cyclopath
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Forum Index > Gear Talk > "20 game changer pieces that changed backpacking gear forever" from BPer Magazine
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