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What's your oldest piece of kit?

Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Pastychomper » Fri May 11, 2018 4:21 pm

Mine is probably my meths stove, bought at a jumble sale in the early-mid nineties so it's at least 22 years old. Still works famously, but the top of the burner is starting to rust through.
There's a chance my boots might surpass it, they were bought as army surplus in '99. Unlike the stove they showed some signs of prior use, but I don't know how long either was stored.
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Sgurr » Fri May 11, 2018 5:02 pm

Husband won't throw away, but no longer wears knee length climbing breeks. Found a photo of 1973, but he probably had them since about 1969.
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Mal Grey » Fri May 11, 2018 5:35 pm

Sgurr wrote:Husband won't throw away, but no longer wears knee length climbing breeks. Found a photo of 1973, but he probably had them since about 1969.


He wins! Though my knees are a little older, well just a year or so, they feel like the oldest part of my kit!
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Sgurr » Fri May 11, 2018 6:18 pm

Image

Good to see hewas forgetting things even then (hat) we had put it down to years.
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Mal Grey » Fri May 11, 2018 6:39 pm

Sgurr wrote:Image

Good to see hewas forgetting things even then (hat) we had put it down to years.



See, one day, that will come back into fashion. Or not.... :lol:
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Sgurr » Fri May 11, 2018 8:29 pm

I suspect not, :D :D
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby old danensian » Mon May 14, 2018 12:17 am

My 1969 Silva compass was retired from active service only last year - and the Lake District OS map, bought with a price tag of 8 shillings at the same time, still gets the occasional outing.

Otherwise it's a pair of Salewa crampons and a Stubai Manasalu ice axe purchased with what was left of my grant at the end of the autumn term of 1976 while at university. On An Teallach a couple of years ago with some WHers someone expressed with surprise "they're older than me."

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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Caberfeidh » Mon May 14, 2018 4:16 pm

I have an wooden-shafted, wrought-iron headed Alpenstock for winter mountaineering, a helmet from the Vietnam war which is more of an ornament these days, but used to be used when climbing, and a Primus stove which looks like it may have seen service in the Crimea. Or possibly the Somme. In more normal terms I have a tartan shirt I bought in the mid 1990s which still gets a lot of use, it's like a uniform for me now.
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby johnstuartross » Thu Oct 22, 2020 2:39 pm

It looks as though this thread is now dead, but I found it very interesting. My oldest piece of kit is an Andelmatten ice axe bought for pennies in the Exchange and Mart curio shop in Shrewsbury around 1963. The Andelmatten brothers, Florinus and Severin, commenced making ice-axes c.1918, in their home village of Saas-Almagel, west of the Mischabelhörner, Switzerland. Mine is pre-1930 as indicated by the markings. Originally with a long ash handle, I had it shortened by a blacksmith to walking axe length and used it for hillwalking for many years. It now adorns my study wall. My second oldest is a Silva compass from 1968, still in regular use.
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Caberfeidh » Thu Oct 22, 2020 4:22 pm

I forgot my Buffalo outer sleeping bag purchased in 1989 and still in very good nick, also an O.S. map of the Eastern Cairngorms which my dad used in the 1960s and 70s when driving us around the highlands in a big old Rover 2000, the kind with big wheel-arches, running boards and a slot windscreen, with red leather back seat with no seat belts. :shock: I also have a helmet liner from the Gulf War (1). I seem to have collected a whole heap of crap over the years...
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Skyelines » Thu Oct 22, 2020 5:48 pm

My oldest piece of kit still in possession but not used (thankfully) is a climbing rope from 1969.

Oldest still in use are a Silva Ranger compass and Optimus paraffin stove from circa 1973.
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Sgurr » Thu Oct 22, 2020 8:28 pm

Skyelines wrote:My oldest piece of kit still in possession but not used (thankfully) is a climbing rope from 1969.

Oldest still in use are a Silva Ranger compass and Optimus paraffin stove from circa 1973.



I thought I could use our old climbing rope (C1972) for getting the bed downstairs when the Occupational Therapist said a downstairs bed was a prerequisite for getting husband home after broken hip and hospital acquired Covid. (Apparently they don't do that sort of thing, nor did the volunteers because of social distancing).But first I managed to roll the (double)mattress downstairs and got stuck behind it, so called the police. When I told them the rope plan for the base, which was in 2 bits, , they immediately said "NO!" and did it themselves, so still don't know if it would have been strong enough.
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Sunset tripper » Thu Oct 22, 2020 10:58 pm

johnstuartross wrote:It looks as though this thread is now dead, but I found it very interesting. My oldest piece of kit is an Andelmatten ice axe bought for pennies in the Exchange and Mart curio shop in Shrewsbury around 1963. The Andelmatten brothers, Florinus and Severin, commenced making ice-axes c.1918, in their home village of Saas-Almagel, west of the Mischabelhörner, Switzerland. Mine is pre-1930 as indicated by the markings. Originally with a long ash handle, I had it shortened by a blacksmith to walking axe length and used it for hillwalking for many years. It now adorns my study wall. My second oldest is a Silva compass from 1968, still in regular use.
original_025fadd7-32ad-4fbe-861a-9ddbc3e48571_IMG_20201022_143541374.jpg


I was once given a shot of an axe just like that and took it to climb A'Mhaighdean & Ruadh Stac Mor. While climbing the steep frozen slopes I was convinced if I had to use it I would be hurtling down the hill with just the detached bit of wood in my hand. :shock:
Thankfully it was never used in anger but I got some funny looks all the same :D
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby Caberfeidh » Fri Oct 23, 2020 9:09 am

Sunset tripper wrote:
johnstuartross wrote:It looks as though this thread is now dead, but I found it very interesting. My oldest piece of kit is an Andelmatten ice axe bought for pennies in the Exchange and Mart curio shop in Shrewsbury around 1963. The Andelmatten brothers, Florinus and Severin, commenced making ice-axes c.1918, in their home village of Saas-Almagel, west of the Mischabelhörner, Switzerland. Mine is pre-1930 as indicated by the markings. Originally with a long ash handle, I had it shortened by a blacksmith to walking axe length and used it for hillwalking for many years. It now adorns my study wall. My second oldest is a Silva compass from 1968, still in regular use.
The attachment $matches[2] is no longer available


I was once given a shot of an axe just like that and took it to climb A'Mhaighdean & Ruadh Stac Mor. While climbing the steep frozen slopes I was convinced if I had to use it I would be hurtling down the hill with just the detached bit of wood in my hand. :shock:
Thankfully it was never used in anger but I got some funny looks all the same :D


I have an old long alpenstock, bought at an auction. I saw a thing on telly where Hamish MacInness told of the making of the first all-metal ice axes, after which they had no more accidents involving the breaking of axe shafts, a common occurrence previously when wooden-shafted axes were the norm. I use it but only as a glorified walking stick, not for serious climbing. I also have an old (Second World War) grappling hook on a hemp rope, purchased from the dark recesses of Mackays in Aberdeen, alas now gone, once an emporium of all that is weird and wonderful. I even bought a pith helmet there for use in the tropics. I am currently in Kuala Lumpur, and my trusty pith helmet is with me!
122494010_692796288005779_1653145771121557037_n.jpg
Taking the pith...
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Re: What's your oldest piece of kit?

Postby mynthdd2 » Fri Oct 23, 2020 10:33 am

My legs are nearly 65 years old....
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