Latest and greatest or "old friends"

[MonadnockVol]

When it comes to gear, do you constantly upgrade to the newest latest stuff, or do you stick with the same gear until it wears out no matter what technological improvements come along?

 

[TrishandAlex]

Wish I had the money to constantly upgrade, but I don't.

 

[Tom Rankin]

I upgrade some things, especially if lighter, once in a while.

Some things though just have to wear out!

 

[Jay H]

As I get older and slower, my gear gets younger and lighter.

Jay

 

[Lawn Sale]

I constantly upgrade, but only if the cost is minimal. If I can find something better than what I have for short money, then I'll get it and put the old stock on the shelf. Otherwise, I'm much older than my equipment, so it's still new compared to me.

 

[leaf]

not sure what there is to upgrade? besides my ice climbing tools (which i'm not upgrading since i modified them).. not sure what i have that's worthy of upgrading?

tent? - that lasts forever unless some yeti comes and rips it apart.
stove? - unless it breaks.. no point in buying a new one.
backpack? - i guess you can buy a lighter one.. but i haven't seen any reason to.
clothes? - see above yeti comment (or crampon attack).

please inform me.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

I'm married. I have two kids that will want to go to college. I keep all my stuff as long as it is still functional.

Tim

 

[dug]

Tough to answer. I will probably be buried in my winter tent. My pack is a dinosaur, but I love it, and will hold it for a few years.

But, I've been through about a dozen headlamps in the last few years. I go through jacket layers often enough, based on newer improvements.

I'd say the more expensive the item, the less likely I am to chase after the latest and greatest.

 

[DougPaul]

When it comes to gear, do you constantly upgrade to the newest latest stuff, or do you stick with the same gear until it wears out no matter what technological improvements come along?

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. And sometimes I do something different from the above.

Doug

 

[blacknblue]

I generally use stuff till it wears out, or even after it wears out. Hence, the duct tape on the behind of my hiking pants, on the crampon zone of my gaiters, etc. I can only think of a handful of items that I've upgraded straight up; most new stuff is bought because it has different functionality than the old (e.g. a sleeping bag with a -15 rating to "replace" one with a 0 rating).

Stuff like tents and sleeping bags and crampons seem to last forever. The only stuff that requires regular replacement because it wears out is boots, socks, maps, and raingear, and that's only every 5 years or so. I think I've even had the same bag of trail mix in my backpack for a few years.

 

[erugs]

Sometimes my size changes. At least that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. I do like to try new things and have been nicknamed "gear-girl" by some.

 

[wardsgirl]

I chose all of the above.

Some things are a matter of accessibility. My father-in-law is a sourcing agent, so we get a lot of gear before it hits the market.

Some stuff, like my supergaiters on my Koflachs will outlast me.

I happily traded in my MSR whisperlite in favor of a homemade alcohol stove.

And I do have socks that are older than many of you!

 

[erugs]

I bet my EMS gaitors are older than most of you and wonder if anyone else has anything like them. For many years I had no idea what they were for...

 

[Quietman]

You need to add another choice for:

"I wait for everyone else to upgrade and then pick up the discards really cheap, or free"

That's me!

 

[MadRiver]

I have a Sierra cup circa 1960’s.

 

[Snowflea]

Happy to say that I have actually "worn out" a tent, sleeping bags, stove, backpacks, snowshoes, crampons, and a few pairs of gaiters. (And if you happened to looked at recent photos on another thread of my ugly yellow, duct-taped Mtn. Hardwear gaiters, they are in dire need of replacement.)

Am frugal but update when the fancy strikes, especially as gear gets lighter 'n lighter...

 

[Chip]

I bet my EMS gaitors are older than most of you and wonder if anyone else has anything like them. For many years I had no idea what they were for...

) There aren't too many fun things about getting old...er, but this is one of them...)

- a few years ago I finally retired Frostline kit gaitors I sewed myself in probably 1972

- I use on every overnight a North Face nylon bag cover and a pair of down booties bought in '74 or '75 at the EMS in Ardsley, NY (no longer there) and Lake Placid (the OLD store).

- I have 2 functional Optimus 8R's from that period that I no longer carry but will never throw out.

- I have a small fuel bottle I always use with a regular cap and a filler cap that are connected by a nicely tied rawhide lace my hiking mentor tied for me in about 1974 so I wouldn't lose either.

- I have a rectangular down bag that gets occasional use that my parents bought me for boy scouts for $50 at Caldor in probably 1971. I was the only kid in my troop with a down bag, even though we did year round camping.

- I have a Kelty external frame backpack that I use around here that I bought used (rental) from EMS in about 1980.

I'm sure there's more, I'll need to review the gear racks.

 

[Paradox]

I am pretty much in the middle of the road. I have a few old favorites such as gaitors, and shirts. Occasionally, replacing some older heavier stuff with something lighter, such as my new Lowe Alpine Centro daypack. I seem to be aquiring too many hiking poles. I am still looking for the perfect hat.

...
I happily traded in my MSR whisperlite in favor of a homemade alcohol stove.
...

This has me intrigued any more info or plans on this?

 

[Chip]

I have a Sierra cup circa 1960’s.

I have one somewhere in the bottom of the gear. Probably one of the first "real" (non-boyscout issued) pieces of gear I ever purchased. I even would hang it off my pack, back in the day, like you saw illustrated in the magazines. Problem was the first, and probably only, time I ever used it; That freakin metal conducts heat so well I burned my lips trying to drink out of the stupid thing. Oh well. Plastic works.

 

[Bobby]

I have a thirty-something year old EMS down sleeping bag that weighs in excess of four pounds- that will be my next upgrade. The canvas boy scout pack from my first hike in 1968 is still hanging around in the basement. Somewhere in a gear box is an old Svea 123 "blast furnace" stove.

Some stuff gets upgraded as things wear out, or more likely, lost.