Dumbest outdoor gear purchase

I didn't buy it, but I went on a long trip with a friend who had one of those hand-held weather things (kestrel brand, I think). I really don't care if it's -2 now and the wind is blowing from the SW at 30km/hr. If it's cold, it's cold, if it's windy, it's windy. Putting a number on it doesn't change anything. I was so stoked when he lost it.

Tri-cams. I sold them the next season after placing them but a handful of times.

EDIT: 2nd dumbest purchase... old ice screws that took forever to place. Even sharp, they pale in comparison to newer ice screws with the more aggressive teeth.

Skate skis.

Really dumb not to rent them first to check them out. Sold them after 3 uses. Horribly boring and deceivingly difficult to do right. Much better ways to get cardio.

Handjammies. A few wraps of athletic tape works so much better and is also cheaper in the long run.

Some of my many gear acquisitions (especially the purchases) are too painful to recall. Here are some that I can bear to remember.

• climbing shoes a hundred sizes too small
• cheap (i.e. cold) plastic double boots
• cheap ice screws (i.e. clearly visible weld in the bore)
• any Tricam bigger than purple (2.0)
• non-keylock biners
• pudgy-nosed DMM Shield wiregate keylock biners (I should have waited for the Alpha Trad)
• synthetic -20°F sleeping bag (8 lbs and compressible down to about 50 liters)

Anything I paid full price for, especially sunglasses.

oh, and non non-stick cook wear.

EDIT: Yak trax. those things are useless for anything other than ice fishing, or shoveling the driveway. I bought micro spikes about 3 weeks after making this mistake.

FoamFinger wrote: +1 for a dumb piece of gear! For me its probably... those stupid yellow egg carriers that let you take eggs camping with you. Who the hell takes eggs with them backpacking?!

I do! When it is cold I take eggs. They're great. But I bought one of the egg carriers and found that they are just as likely to break in it as the cardboard containers.

SinRopa wrote:Hands down, my dumbest outdoor gear purchase is the battery heated vest I've got for sale here: mountainproject.com/v/fs-di… For you though, I think it might be the best purchase you've ever made. You'd be dumb NOT to buy it!

Hmmm? I think I might just be dumb enough to actually buy this from you. Could you provide a warmth warranty?

TheIceManCometh wrote:Tri-cams. I sold them the next season after placing them but a handful of times.

You realize there is a whole clan of folks out there who worship the tri-cam and think it is the overall best and most secure piece of pro ever invented.....don't let them find out you sold out to the devil .

Gore tex clothing

^ Soon to be David's dumbest outdoor gear purchase

I thought that's how they worked until you made that comment. Not sure how you would clean something like that though

This

Karl Henize wrote:Gore tex clothing

Not this

Matt Davidson wrote: I have a softshell with a hood. Dumbest jacket I own. Softshells only work in a light drizzle anyway...

If you haven't been able to capture the versatile brilliance of softshell you're doing it wrong. (hint: they're not meant to be water proof).

Actually the thumbloop pulls the bottom of wedge halves away from the barrel thus closing the gap. When you pull on the wire the barrel forces the halves apart I have used them in top rope anchors without any problem they just don't work in quarzite on lead they walk out everytime. I used one yesterday in sandstone in a flare and it locked in better than a cam. So maybe not so dumb of a purchase.

small hexes

Metolius anchor chain (not the personal anchor)

Trango alpine equalizer

Black Diamond nut tools

about those adjustable nuts...

What happened if the walls had grooves for the cylinder to sit in?

This would allow for adjustment before placing the nut in the crack and then holding a fixed position until removed.....

Mt. Hardwear Trango 2 tent. I don't think I'm going to Denali or Everest, ever.

BD Figure 8. It's anodized and pretty and shiny...and has never been used.

nOObiest purchase: after TRing awhile, I figured I needed to get some gear. So I bought a bunch of BD nylon slings of different sizes and a bunch of oval biners. Sling sizes made no sense at all, so I gave them away. Other than the oval on which I rack my nuts, all the ovals sit sadly at the bottom of my gear box-- where they've been since I bought them.

JVB Project wrote:about those adjustable nuts... What happened if the walls had grooves for the cylinder to sit in? This would allow for adjustment before placing the nut in the crack and then holding a fixed position until removed.....

The inside walls are smooth so the barrel can slide easily and there is a coil spring on the trigger loop to pull the barrel back to the pivot. So placing and removal is like a SLCD. Now that the patent is expired someone could tweak the design. I always wondered if the alloy is too hard to bite in smooth rock like quartzite.