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bigpolar posted:Since there are so many hikers, I thought I'd post this deal here instead of the deals thread: Botach Tactical is one of those lovely businesses that claims everything is in stock, charges your credit card and then doesn't send you anything if it happens to be out of stock. The have absolutely piss poor customer service and page after page after page of complaints if you do a search. If you happen to order something they don't have in stock you're going to need to run a chargeback through your credit card company. To anyone thinking of commenting "I ordered from Botach Tactical and $product arrived just fine.", well, good for you. They had your item in stock. I don't think the risk is worth the few bucks you might save.
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| # ? Jun 20, 2012 03:58 |
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| # ? May 22, 2013 01:23 |
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Ceros_X posted:While we're talking about water and Camelbaks I recently picked up one of these things almost new without box for pretty cheap: http://www.tacticaldistributors.com...urce-25l-coyote I like that. It would be good for refilling out of my truck. Oxford Comma posted:I have one of these and its a pretty decent set-up. The only thing I dislike is that you have to stow your gear outside of the tent which kinda sucks in wet weather. But otherwise, thumbs up. Small items come in the hammock with me. Shoes are hung from the lines if it will rain. All other gear is stored in backpack and a pack cover is put over it for the night. When I camp I dislike spreading my gear around and only bring something out when I need it. Here it is with my old pack.  Alternate hang with my Cherokee. I no longer have it and need to figure out something for hanging in the bed of my truck. 
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| # ? Jun 20, 2012 04:10 |
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I found a $5 stainless steel water bottle at Rite Aid and promptly threw it in a fire: It boiled water just fine with no leaking seams or off-flavoring. I'll burn it a few more times to make sure it can handle the abuse and keep it in my day bag if it holds up.
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| # ? Jun 20, 2012 14:06 |
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MisterOblivious posted:To anyone thinking of commenting "I ordered from Botach Tactical and $product arrived just fine.", well, good for you. They had your item in stock. I don't think the risk is worth the few bucks you might save. I ordered an MS2 sling kit (MS2 sling, ASAP plate and RSA) from Botach Tactical and it arrived just fine ... ... after 3 weeks being "back ordered". They did send me an e-mail apologizing for the dealy, but then never replied afterwards. I did get the stuff, exactly what I'd paid for. So I think if you order from them, you will eventually get what you ordered, the question is whether it's worth the wait for you. In my case, it was because I was in no hurry at all and the price for all three pieces was good. But they wouldn't be my first choice for ordering things...That being said, if they really are selling that pack for 80.00 bucks, it may be worth my time to order one and wait through the inevitable Back Ordered Hell that comes with ordering from Botach.
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| # ? Jun 20, 2012 15:58 |
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bladernr posted:...That being said, if they really are selling that pack for 80.00 bucks, it may be worth my time to order one and wait through the inevitable Back Ordered Hell that comes with ordering from Botach. Yeah, I appreciate the warning, but I feel the same way. That is less than half the cost of that pack anywhere else, and it comes with an omega bladder. I'm in no rush, so we'll see how it goes. Although their order page now claims that they only authorize the card when you order, they don't charge it until it ships. They seem to have done that, so at least they are not just holding my money forever.
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| # ? Jun 20, 2012 16:14 |
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Excellent thread!shoognite posted:Have you done any hiking in Shenandoah National Park? Diver Dick posted:I imagine the response would be the same for open carry, though I don't think it's an option here in VA (concealed is OK in some areas).
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| # ? Jun 20, 2012 17:04 |
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For anyone still considering the motherlode on botach, they just sent me a shipping confirmation. I don't know if they have gotten any better, or if I just got lucky, but they still show the bag in stock.
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| # ? Jun 20, 2012 19:57 |
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Butch Cassidy posted:I found a $5 stainless steel water bottle at Rite Aid and promptly threw it in a fire I like your style. What other things do you buy and immediately throw into fires? 
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| # ? Jun 20, 2012 20:05 |
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Psion posted:I like your style. What other things do you buy and immediately throw into fires? Matches  I just made a spicy as poo poo...thing over my firepit in one of my billy cans:  - 1/2 cup rice - 1 cup water - Chopped chipotles in adobo - A bit less than 1/2 pound of hamburger, browned in a blued steel cake pan over the fire - A few scoops of canned maize - Salt - Garlic powder - A bit of black pepper All mixed in the billy and simmered over the fire until the rice was tender.
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| # ? Jun 21, 2012 16:21 |
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Goddamn I am going to try the crap out of that later. A guy I just moved in with has a firepit, a bunch of cast iron cookware (including a couple of stands for holding poo poo), and has been talking about our NEED to start cooking things outside. This is going to end deliciously.
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| # ? Jun 21, 2012 16:27 |
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Saint Darwin posted:Goddamn I am going to try the crap out of that later. A guy I just moved in with has a firepit, a bunch of cast iron cookware (including a couple of stands for holding poo poo), and has been talking about our NEED to start cooking things outside. This is going to end deliciously. Just don't wash that cast iron with soap and water. Wipe it out and oil it and leave it be.
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| # ? Jun 21, 2012 16:47 |
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QuarkMartial posted:Just don't wash that cast iron with soap and water. Wipe it out and oil it and leave it be. Head over to GWS for cast iron 'sperg-o-rama. We've got cast iron advice galore. Recipies too.
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| # ? Jun 21, 2012 17:00 |
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Is the Crisco/vegetable oil/coconut oil debate still raging? Or am I thinking of the wrong forum?
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| # ? Jun 21, 2012 17:02 |
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QuarkMartial posted:Just don't wash that cast iron with soap and water. Wipe it out and oil it and leave it be. The stuff is old and very well seasoned. I am confident he would literally shoot me if I got the things near soap.
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| # ? Jun 21, 2012 17:47 |
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I'll check it out. Well, I was going to say that there's about three things I've really used the most in my kitchen, but it kept growing up past five so I gave up. Cast iron skillets, crock pots, grills, knives, stand mixer.....
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| # ? Jun 21, 2012 19:12 |
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QuarkMartial posted:I'll check it out. Well, I was going to say that there's about three things I've really used the most in my kitchen, but it kept growing up past five so I gave up. Cast iron skillets, crock pots, grills, knives, stand mixer..... Cast iron skillet, cast iron pot/deep skillet thing, chef's knife, paring knife, oven. I'd say about 85% of my meals are cooked using just those, and 10% of the remainder represents poo poo I eat out of the house. edit: well, plus misc. other basic utensils. Wooden spoon, etc. No stand mixer as of yet though 
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| # ? Jun 21, 2012 21:28 |
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I use my cast-iron skillet for about 95% of the things that go on the stove top. Is it okay to rinse it out afterwards with warm water and a clean sponge?
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| # ? Jun 21, 2012 21:57 |
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Oxford Comma posted:I use my cast-iron skillet for about 95% of the things that go on the stove top. I boil some water in it to soften anything stuck to the bottom. Then I scrape below pan out with a spatula. After drying, I put about a teaspoon of vegetable oil in the pan and perhaps a tablespoon of kosher salt. Scrub the heck out of the pan with the salt and oil ( it acts like a scouring powder) and wipe out when you are done. You want a burnished in sheen of oil on all the metal surfaces.
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| # ? Jun 21, 2012 22:10 |
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NosmoKing posted:Head over to GWS for cast iron 'sperg-o-rama. It may be the simplest poo poo on earth, but a grilled cheese with bacon is elevated from "average" to "angel jizz" if cooked on cast iron over a wood fire.
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 00:13 |
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Everyone here knows how to tie a bowline, yes?
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 04:46 |
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Rabbit pops out of the hole, goes around the tree and jumps back down the hole. Spent so much time practicing it as a one-handed rescue knot I usually have to picture my body in the loop the first time I tie one in a while. The scouts never prepared me for a broken right arm though.
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 07:57 |
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Oxford Comma posted:Everyone here knows how to tie a bowline, yes? With one hand? This is important when camping with goons.
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 11:10 |
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MisterOblivious posted:Spent so much time practicing it as a one-handed rescue knot I usually have to picture my body in the loop the first time I tie one in a while. The scouts never prepared me for a broken right arm though. Yup. I have to stop to think for a minute no matter how many times I practice tying it two-handed because it is so ingrained as a one-handed thing. And my father regularly had me practice weak-handed, which I should start doing, again. Which reminds me that knots are very important and need to be practiced. Homework Assigntment #2 1. Cut a length of rope at least the length of your armspan*. Paracord, big shoelaces, and cotton laundry line work well for this. Laundry line is a pain to keep from fraying, however. 2. Demonstrate a taut-line hitch, bowline with two hands (bonus points for tying a bowline to yourself one-handed), overhand knot, and clove hitch. You can just show the completed knots. 3. Tie your length of rope into a chain stitch to store it because we will go over more knots next week. The knots need not be pretty, and you don't have to tie them quickly. I will get up a post talking about each knot and why it is a very important working knot in the outdoors this weekend. *I have carried an armspan of chain stitched paracord in my back pocket since elementary school. It has come in handy more times than I can count, even in everyday life. From blown shoelace, needing to secure the neighbors runaway dog in the street (again, and again, and again  ), moments where some cord would be handy, other moments where cord would be handy... . An armspan gives you an workable length of rope for most needs where shorter wouldn't be long enough quite often, longer would be cumbersome, and it is the perfect length for practicing knots.
Butch Cassidy fucked around with this message at Jun 22, 2012 around 13:29 |
| # ? Jun 22, 2012 13:25 |
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Does anyone make a small but not incredibly heavy cast iron pan for backpack camping?
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 13:58 |
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Butch Cassidy posted:Yup. I have to stop to think for a minute no matter how many times I practice tying it two-handed because it is so ingrained as a one-handed thing. Should do lashings, too. Fun way to make semi-permanent shelters.
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 13:58 |
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Scratch Monkey posted:Does anyone make a small but not incredibly heavy cast iron pan for backpack camping? Use carbon steel, instead: http://www.amazon.com/Paderno-Heavy...n+steel+skillet It won't work quite as magnificently as cast iron, but a cast skillet light enough to justify carrying was never big enough for trout...
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 14:10 |
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If I have to attach my rope to something and it cannot come undone, is a bowline with a stopper safe enough? Or is there a more secure way?
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 14:27 |
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What are you doing with the rope?
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 14:33 |
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I remember exactly 0 knot tying from Boy Scouts, poo poo. Guess I should put the YouTubes to work / take a free class I have access to
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 15:16 |
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Ms. Farnsworth, would you let Margaret know that I shall be tromping about in the meadows and perhaps reading a bit, this morning? Yes, yes, excellent. Did you procure my pilot bread from the kit..Ms. Farnsworth! I appreciate your concern, but fresh bread and butter will make my mind soft and midsection pudgy! If her majesty felt it fit to provide me hard bread for my years of service, surely it will do on my wanderings. It truly is a glorious morning, have the gamekeeper take his hound to the stream for a swim and a general romp. The beast has been worked steadily this last season and could use a bit of leisure. Splendid, Ms. Farnsworth, splendid.    
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 16:56 |
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I did the knots, though I did use two hands for the bowline. Should I post pictures?
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 17:09 |
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Ayup.
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 17:10 |
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What kind of bag is that?
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 17:36 |
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It is a waxed canvas Scout from Duluth Pack Company. I paid entirely too much for it, but I have a raging hard-on for both waxed canvas and envelope packs. Edit: And I am a raging fanboy of Col. Wheelen who was a big fan of basic envelope packs for day trips.
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 17:49 |
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Taut-line hitch: Bowline:  Overhand knot (This one gave me a bit of trouble ): Clove Hitch:  The chain stitch:  I redid the chain stitch, my first one didn't come out very well. The one pictured is I think the third one I made? I tied the ends together with a square knot and it's in my pocket. You never know when you'll need a fathom or so of cordage.
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 18:07 |
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Butch Cassidy posted:Homework Assigntment #2  I was always terrible at tying bowlines in Scouts and rock climbing class, but the one-handed method is really easy (I tied that one one-handed). Delivery McGee fucked around with this message at Jun 22, 2012 around 18:15 |
| # ? Jun 22, 2012 18:12 |
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Nice retro day pack. What is that you are carrying for your trail gun? Do you carry it in the pack, or on your person? It looks a lot lighter than my G29, but you probably don't have giant feral hogs to worry about in your neighborhood. Also, hiking out to find a quiet place to read is awesome, but as a book lover I'm hoping that is a reprint you are carrying around, and not an actual 90-year old book that could be damaged. I tend to grab used paperbacks for those sorts of trips myself.
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 18:20 |
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The pistol is my 32 caliber FN 1910, the copy of The Coming of Cassidy is an original, but lives on my bookcase. That stuff was just tossed together for the picture. The Flint and steel tinder box sees regular use, I do eat hardtack, the knife is my old Boy Scout knife, and the pack is my daypack. I'll get around to showing what I really pack it with once I get a minute free from planning my next pig roast. Edit: Taking a nature-walk to read under a shade-tree is one of life's greatest pleasures. All Quiet on the Western Front lives in the pack right now until I get a chance to read it. Butch Cassidy fucked around with this message at Jun 22, 2012 around 18:27 |
| # ? Jun 22, 2012 18:23 |
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bigpolar posted:Nice retro day pack. What is that you are carrying for your trail gun? Do you carry it in the pack, or on your person? It looks a lot lighter than my G29, but you probably don't have giant feral hogs to worry about in your neighborhood. Hahahah, you would hate me. I've got a cowboy adventure tale book ("The Law of the Gun" or somesuch) about Canadians killing racial steriotype shifty "mixed breeds" over cattle rustling scams sitting on the back of my toilet. It was published in 1915 or something. During the first half of WW1 at least. Old books are like old guns: Most are just that: old. Not particularly valuable or especially desired unless they are somehow iconic or desired by collectors. Go to any library sale and you'll find books printed in the early 20th century by the truckload that, if you don't bother to buy them for $1 or whatever, are going to be making a one-way trip to the recycling plant. That old early 20th C. pulp literature makes for some GREAT camping reading, though. The cloth covered hardbacks hold up shockingly well to being tossed in a bag and light moisture compared to the modern versions which are just compressed cardboard.
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 18:34 |
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| # ? May 22, 2013 01:23 |
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Ah, so the 1910 is clearly For Dogs Only wot wot!
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| # ? Jun 22, 2012 18:38 |
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