Bushwalk Australia

If you've seen my previous two topics in this forum, you can see that I've recently been putting some effort (and money) into reducing the total weight of my bushwalking kit. So far this is mostly by replacing (or augmenting) my large group-share-sized tent and stove with single person smaller items, but also because the technology has improved somewhat since I bought the older items a long time ago.

Here's how my improvements in weight have worked out so far (all numbers are in grams... old-weight - new-weight = weight savings):

SLEEPING BAG: 1600 - 1000 = 600
TENT: 2800 - 1400 = 1400
STOVE: 1500 - 136 = 1364 (1 billy); 1500 - 346 = 1440 (2 billies)

TOTAL SAVINGS: 3364

The new stove is without a windshield, but I'll use an alfoil baking tray style, so the weight of that would be negligible for my rough estimates here.

I'm yet to replace my very old original Thermarest 3/4 mat one of these days with something full length, but hopefully somewhat lighter some time in the not too distant future.

So this would bring my total kit weight improvement to around 3.5 kilograms - I reckon that's a pretty decent improvement for just 1 year!

(I've no idea what the total weight of my kit is, either before or after improvements, as I generally don't actually weigh items or the full pack - the figures above are taken from product specs.)

Content removed by poster

I've made some effort to avoid compromising anything significant to me while reducing weight. And yes, I agree with your sentiments about people not sharing so much these days. It confuses me a bit, as I'm still keen to share when walking with others.

Now I'll not be sharing any less than I was before. I'll still be taking the heavier kit with my wife or anyone else willing to share. However I'm getting tired of carrying the same heavy kit when all by myself which is the problem of late. I've been finding that I've been doing more and more solo walks and walks with people who are unlikely (and even unwilling) to share with me. It's great to share when possible, but lately I've been doing more self-catered walks than I used to.

Eg, On BWT strollers walks, most people take all their own stuff rather than share, because it's just easier to organise that way.

On my last walk with two other mates, I recommended that two of us should share a tent but nobody else wanted to. And when my one person tent weighs exactly half of my two person tent, it doesn't really matter in terms of weight. And I've still got the two person tent for when somebody else does want to share or doesn't have their own. As for stoves we did share the one stove between the three of us and will continue to do so for future walks where the new stove doesn't have the capacity for the number of people who want to share.

So the changes to my kit don't really affect anyone else who might walk on my group as now I have the choice. It only affects me when walking alone or self catered - to the tune of well over 3kg.

It does point out that the additional 3kg was mostly due to inappropriate gear (eg, two person tent for one person). The sleeping bag being the main exception. When I say 'inappropriate', I don't mean that it was bad gear for the types of walks or conditions, but merely that it was not the best gear for solo or self-catering walks, which I've been doing more of than I used to.

PS. No I've not weighed the tent myself. I'm not really that worried about what the weight actually is, so long as it's substantially less than my old tent. By the way the Vela includes two sets of pegs. Leaving the heavy 'hard ground' set out might account for the difference.

That's an impressive weight loss SOAB. Much easier than losing 3 kg at the gym

Just think, going back your previous kit would be like carrying an extra 3 litres of water all the time - that's a big change. I think your approach of replacing (when you want or need to, and can afford to) existing gear with gear of the same quality and comfort but less weight, is a good approach. Gear will continue to get lighter and stronger as materials improve, so just keeping up with recent technology will, over time, reduce everybody's pack weights. One day we'll have a tent as strong as an Olympus that weighs half a kg and the youngsters will look at our 2kg tents and point and laugh

Cheers,
Alliecat

alliecat wrote: One day we'll have a tent as strong as an Olympus that weighs half a kg and the youngsters will look at our 2kg tents and point and laugh

Cheers,
Alliecat

I cant wait till the Auto-Weather Shield Pods come out. At the touch of a button on a small plastic disc weighing 50 grams a plasma shield dome comes up around you and protects you from the prevailing weather conditions. They also have an inbuilt temperature control unit and a kitchen sink!




What breed and model is the 600gram bag youve got SB?

My bag is 1000g (the 600g is the weight saving difference between the old bag and the new bag).

The old bag was a J&H Winterlite, the new bag is a One Planet Zephyr.

Just out of interest I thought I'd put my Fairydown Everest (c.1976) on the scales. Can't tell you its weight because the scales only went up to 1.99kg. I can't believe they now make bags at half the weight? But then I have never been cold in it ever! Anyway we were all young back then and weight never seemed such an issue. ( Save for one 16 day trip in Tassie but that is another story...)

Son of a Beach wrote:Here's how my improvements in weight have worked out so far (all numbers are in grams):

SLEEPING BAG: 1600 - 1000 = 600
TENT: 2800 - 1400 = 1400
STOVE: 1500 - 60 = 1440 (- windshield, billy, prondonicles)

TOTAL SAVINGS: 3440
(- windshield, billy, prondonicles)

Is that 1600 minus 1000 equals 600
or
From 1600 to 1000 saving 600?

Son of a Beach wrote:My bag is 1000g (the 600g is the weight saving difference between the old bag and the new bag).

So, just to translate this properly (I think),
SLEEPING BAG: Was 1600, now 1000, saving 600
TENT: Was 2800, now 1400, saving 1400
STOVE: Was 1500, now I ge confused what is what... - 60 = 1440 (- windshield, billy, prondonicles)
Does your new stove weigh 60 grams?

Re changes in kit weight over time... My new camera is heavier than my last one, which is heavier than the one before that which was heavier than the one before that.
My lenses are heavier too.

On topic, the only item I have replaced which is lighter in weight than what I might have purchased before reading lightweight topics on this forum, is the Hilleberg Nallo2 tent. I would not have considered a tent in the Ultralight class before reading such topics.

I did my research for buying that tent on the net in general, before much was said about it here on the forum.
Though Hilleberg had been mentioned.
There was one manufacturer of UL tents in the UK, but you have to put the inner up first then the outer, not put up together. It was looking interesting until I learned that.

What I would like to be able to reduce in weight? All of it, so long as it did not compromise safety or durability.
We now have titanium mugs, which are heavier than our old plastic ones, though at least they do not taint the taste.
I tried a titanium spoon but don't like the shape, so for the little extra weight I've gone back to my stainless one.

I've heard good things being said about some of these lightweight bags coming from USA, though they sure feel thin.
I suppose justifying the cost to give it a go is the next step.
Crossing the mental barrier of buying something you already have...

Yes the new stove is 60 grams. . A Kovea Supalite.

I agree that cost has always been the major barrier for me. Even in cases where the lighter items are nomore expensive, replacing something that you already have is much more expensive that just keep using what you've already got.

{quote ]

We now have titanium mugs, which are heavier than our old plastic ones, though at least they do not taint the taste.
I tried a titanium spoon but don't like the shape, so for the little extra weight I've gone back to my stainless one.

.[/quote]


MSR do have a proper spoon shaped spoon a tad small in the bowl but a proper spoon if you dont like the long handled ones
corvus

kanangra wrote:Just out of interest I thought I'd put my Fairydown Everest (c.1976) on the scales. Can't tell you its weight because the scales only went up to 1.99kg. I can't believe they now make bags at half the weight? But then I have never been cold in it ever! Anyway we were all young back then and weight never seemed such an issue. ( Save for one 16 day trip in Tassie but that is another story...)

WOW! another original Fairydown Everest on the forum. I bought mine in 1970 and have never been cold in it, and it's still going strong but definitely looking at a half weight alternative now I have my "Seniors Card" Photo of it here viewtopic.php?f=15&t=2181&p=21031#p19810

Yeah mine is still going strong too. Picked it up in NZ. Made by Arthur Ellis and Co. Beautifully made. I have seen down escape through the walls of other bags but never this one. I reckon It will outlast me. Just like my Paddymade tent. Trouble is none of the kids have shown any interest Maybe the grandkids

The good thing is that the US dollar exchange rate is making me think of purchasing some new gear from there.

I received my new titanium pots (less than a week after ordering them - that's very fast service). So I've now updated my original post in this topic to reflect the actual weights rather than the guestimates. NB: These are manufacturers specs, as I've got nothing to actually weigh them with, myself.

My total weight savings now from replacing my old tent, sleeping bag, and stove/pots is...

TOTAL SAVINGS: 3364

Wow... Including pots and pans, my new stove and pots for one person is LESS THAN ONE TENTH the weigh of the old stove and pans (old stove is good for four people, or more with addition of a large wok).

NB: I'll still be using my old tent and stove pots for trips where I need to share a tent with somebody else or when cooking more interesting food for 3 people or more.

I could still do with a new sleeping mat, as my old one is probably a bit heavy by today's standards, but the old Thermarest is still working well (never had a leak yet), so there's no point in replacing it until it springs a leak I reckon. I needed to replace the sleeping bag, as it was broken, and the tent and stove/pots are supplementary items rather than replacements, using the new/smaller/lighter gear when solo or self catering, and the old/larger/heavier gear when sharing.

I've also replaced my steel cutlery with titanium. I have no idea of the weight difference, but it is significant (for such small items). I've got knife, fork, spoon for walks where I have a more interesting variety of food (most walks I do), and a spork for walks where the food requires nothing more than that.

I can't believe how little all this stuff weighs! It's like carrying paper. When my wife picked up the package from the post office, she was concerned that the box might be empty or missing half the stuff that should have been in it, because it just didn't weigh much at all.

Like a lot of you, I have accumulated "what I could afford" for myself and my family, and having to buy for three means that going light really does pinch the wallet. Here's my hopeful savings this year, if I can avoid spending money on camera gear. I plan to suppliment my "group" gear with stuff that I'll use on my own in some cases:

Nallo 4GT to Hilleberg Akto: 3.2kg to 1.2kg = 2kg

The Northface Mammoth Sleeping Bag to Montbell UL Spiral Down Hugger #3: 1.7kg to .6 kg = 1.1kg

Downmat 9 (oh sweet luxury) to PO Uberlite: 1kg to .24kg = .75kg

For a savings of barely 4kg! That'll make me want to hit the trail solo with a bit more frequency.

Or, like Adam, that means I can add another 4kg of camera gear including that big telephotozoom lens......

Akto at 1.2kg ? Really ?
Franco

I stand corrected. That makes the new Tarptent look a lot more interesting.

Drifting wrote:Like a lot of you, I have accumulated "what I could afford" for myself and my family, and having to buy for three means that going light really does pinch the wallet. Here's my hopeful savings this year, if I can avoid spending money on camera gear. I plan to suppliment my "group" gear with stuff that I'll use on my own in some cases:

Nallo 4GT to Hilleberg Akto: 3.2kg to 1.2kg = 2kg

The Northface Mammoth Sleeping Bag to Montbell UL Spiral Down Hugger #3: 1.7kg to .6 kg = 1.1kg

Downmat 9 (oh sweet luxury) to PO Uberlite: 1kg to .24kg = .75kg

For a savings of barely 4kg! That'll make me want to hit the trail solo with a bit more frequency.

Or, like Adam, that means I can add another 4kg of camera gear including that big telephotozoom lens......

To refine it further- for my daughter and myself hiking alone:

Nallo 4GT to 4 season TarpTent w/ crossing poles 1.6kg

Northface Mammoth and Northface Blue Ridge to Montbell UL Spiral Downhuggers 1.6kg

Downmat 9 x2 to PO Uberlight x2 1.5kg

Total savings for 2 of us, off of Daddy Mule's Back: 4.7kg