Bushwalk Australia

If you weigh your gear what type of Scales do you use and can you get down to less than 3g and up to 5kg accuracy.
Just another thread for conversation in light of the under 10 kg debate and the declared weights from manufacturers on many items.
To date I have found the stated weights on non stove Titan cooking type products to be very accurate but be aware if they have a storage bag that can add hidden grammes and they all add up
Tents often state their weights without the required items needed to use them (try using a tent with minimum wire stakes/pegs in wind or no carry bag for tent or poles/pegs especially when wet) it will be a real pain.
So if you are trying to reduce pack weight double check you scales

Scales!
I use a cheap digital set from some kitchen store...$30 or so it cost me.
Max weight 2 kg, minimum weight 1 gram.
A good way to test scales is by using a coin...or three....
Heres a link to coin weights:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coins_of_t ... ian_dollar

Mine says:
50c 15gms
20c 11gms
3 x 20c = 34grams.
Good enough result for me.

Earthling wrote:Scales!
I use a cheap digital set from some kitchen store...$30 or so it cost me.
Max weight 2 kg, minimum weight 1 gram.
A good way to test scales is by using a coin...or three....
Heres a link to coin weights:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coins_of_t ... ian_dollar

Mine says:
50c 15gms
20c 11gms
3 x 20c = 34grams.
Good enough result for me.

I don't usually weigh anything for bushwalking, but that's a great testing method for if I ever feel the need. Thanks for this pointer, Earthling.

You must way every piece of gear you own! It is extremely important for everyone who walks to know precisely the actual weights of what they carry on your back. A few hundred grams here and there really add up to heavy, heavy kilo's on your walk. I was lucky enough to use some digital scales for work that were extremely acurate.

A few months ago I did exactly this and was amazed at how it all adds up. Many products listed weights were off, not taking into account cases, stuff sacks and the like. I could not believe the difference in weights from say rain pants (my girlfriends bottom of the line pants were 200g lighter then my top end gore-tex ones).

Once you have all this info it can really help cutting down luxury items down to essentials. The one thing this hole exercise taught me was that everything going in my pack must be as light as possible without sacrificing my safety or well being.

In the end you become obsessed with counting grams, but and the end of a week long trip you will be much happier.
nic

You know, I don't remember weighing anything much except the loaded pack when I first started bushwalking, now everyone seems obsessed by it. I can understand it with some of us older more worn out type people, but you younger ones? I'm really only interested when there is a significant difference such as between a two person Trangia and a Kovea stove, or between sleeping bags or tents.

Devon Annie wrote:You know, I don't remember weighing anything much except the loaded pack when I first started bushwalking, now everyone seems obsessed by it. I can understand it with some of us older more worn out type people, but you younger ones? I'm really only interested when there is a significant difference such as between a two person Trangia and a Kovea stove, or between sleeping bags or tents.

I was much the same as you when I first joined the backpacking phenomenon. Now I weigh. The reason being, exactly what you said "I can understand it with some of us older more worn out type people..." . As society has evolved, many people start caring more for their bodies at a younger and younger age. Some of us have come to realise, that the sooner you start looking after yourself, the better quality are you later years. This includes carrying 20+kg on your back....

Also, its definetly a higher quality experience out bush, when your not weighed down by gear.

We are lucky as we have electronic scales called Wedderburm model: 5000 it weighs 5kg in 1gram increments. Used to have a hotel and got serious on ingredients and standardising meals and costs and bought them then - they are fantastic.

The sticker on the side says Hobart 6239 3046 but it was 10 years ago and can't remember what they cost. Might get a set at a catering auction or similar or on ebay.

I am big on weighing - have everything in a spreadsheet and a column for each person (usually my wife and me but sometimes brothers etc.) and I try and work it out so each person loses some weight with food as it is consumed etc. Have all gear that we own and can borrow in there. Have the item then weight then a column that puts in the quantity (which is usually a 1) that adds the item to the persons column. It all totals in a static area at the top split into Main Gear, spare clothes, Extras, Fly Fishing gear, Fresh food, Other food. And works out what they will start each day carrying. Also have lists for the car to remember to have water there and change of clothes and 1st aid kit etc.

Cheers,

Andrew

Take one set of bathroom scales. Stand on the scales and note the reading. Put on your pack and stand on the scales again. Note the reading and subtract the previous reading to get the weight of your pack. Any change that the scales cannot detect will not make any difference anyway

Earthling wrote:Also, its definetly a higher quality experience out bush, when your not weighed down by gear.

I’m not sure that the lightest possible pack necessarily correlates with a higher quality experience. Sure you can do Federation Peak in a day with just an orange in your pocket, but is that a higher quality experience? OK my pack is heavy, my feet hurt after a while, and at well over 50 I’m not so fast any more. So I just walk shorter sections each day and spend more time looking at and enjoying the wilderness. The quality of my experience in the bush is higher than it’s ever been.

I've got a set of 'Morganware' digital scales from Harris Scarfe for about $30 at a huge discount of course. They only go to 3.3kg which is annoying but I just just ran a check using the coins as shown above and it came out spot on! Not too many things are over 3.3kg anyway.

Having just weighed my day pack and all contents on returning from a day trip to Pelion...via Arm Track...I was quite surprised that it came in at just on 7kg...yet looking at what was taken...there's nothing I'd choose to leave behind...especially when safety is the highest priority. Having looked at others gear list with weights taken direct from manufacturers specs...all I can say...most will get a rude shock when weighing the same gear in real life. I'm in the process of getting accurate scales...so at this stage wont publish the differences I've already found...but preliminary findings are that most stated gear weights are understated by 10-20%....and yet to see any that are over stated. From what I've seen so far there's a definite trade off with weight and safety...and one I'm not prepared to take. For those extra tips...http://www.backpacking.net/tips.html
To what lengths do you go???...cutting off labels...trimming boot laces..cutting off tooth brush handle...trimming straps???....and what safety gear do you go without????
As a general rule of thumb....pack weight should not exceed 1/4 of your body weight...How does yours compare???....http://www.whitemountain.com.au/fitting ... ading.html
Cheers...sT

sirius Tas wrote: From what I've seen so far there's a definite trade off with weight and safety...and one I'm not prepared to take.

Some of the things written in some of the posts in this forum might well lead you to that conclusion. It should not be like that at all.

The first thing people should do is make a sensible list of the essential things they need to take to survive the planned walk, including food & water. The second thing to do is find lighter alternatives (if possible) to all the essential things without compromising quality of safety. That is your base weight. The stuff you can't walk without. Share it equally among all walkers. Then, if individuals like, they can add luxuries or niceties to their individual load (up to a maximum of 25% of their body weight).

sirius Tas wrote:As a general rule of thumb....pack weight should not exceed 1/4 of your body weight...How does yours compare???....
Cheers...sT

Which allows me 13kg! Luxuries? Niceties? I don't think so

Devon Annie wrote:Which allows me 13kg! Luxuries? Niceties? I don't think so

No problem, just hire some porters. Or don’t take any food.

Colin Chapman (founder of Lotus Cars) once said: “rules are for the guidance of wise men and the obedience of fools”. The thing is to know your own limits and work within them. Forget the rule book and the microbalances, use your common sense and listen to your body.

Devon Annie wrote:Which allows me 13kg! Luxuries? Niceties? I don't think so

Which is fine is you know you have everything you need to walk safely and to get home safely. If you wanted the Ritz you wouldn't go bushwalking. The 25% bw is only a heuristic that you should modify with your own experience. Personally I think 20% bw is a better target for me.

The above comments are all spot on.....but BW ratio of 1/4 is generally a good guide...bot obviously varies. My knees and back are a tad dodgy so trying to keep weights down to a minimum without compromising safety. Just interesting topic as I've never seen anyone refer to this before....so guess most people just load up and head off...and buckle at the knees at some stage later. Some where in the forums I've seen pack weights of 25kg...to me that's getting close to needing a mule....4 legged variety...