Vaude daysack from 1987. Very 80s colours- purple and emerald green. The elastic bits are knackered but it still gets used a bit. Been all over- Dolomites, Spitzbergen x 3, done several mountain marathons, which I no longer could
I have a montane featherlight smock that is about 18 years old, there's not much to fail on it but it still does its job.
I've still got my Karrimor Hot Rock sac as well, again probably nearly 30 years old, couple of buckles busted, but otherwise going strong.
I’ve a few 20 yr old Lifas still going strong.
A sleeve tore off one of mine which is probably much older. Made it into a short sleeve jobbie. It needs throwing in the bin obvs and I wouldnt normally resort to such penny pinching but at 56 I have been running in HH Lifa since I was a teenager. Watched all the new expensive fabrics come along with much higher price tags and still bought the odd HH, every 10 yrs or so. Not without fault the old ones smelled and you couldnt get the smell out but as next to skin layer in high intensity exercise then they cant be beaten.
Threw out a pair of Hoka boots that i got for my 50th and replace with a new pair. Over those 6 years left my Scarpa and Inov8 boots in the shed. Hoka the most comfortable boots I have ever had.
Phoenix Phreerunner gore-tex tent, circa 1984 vintage and a 1982 Berghaus AB65 rucksack.
i went through a few cheapy hydration packs when i was at uni. Maybe 3 or 4 over the 3 years.
When i left, on the last "uni" trip, i treated myself to a proper Camelbak Mule.
(also proceeded to then accidently drive over it when it got tucked under the back of the car in the Coed y Brenin carpark)
Still going strong, 12 ish years later.
I've got a Camlebak Blowfish from 2004. Other than a bit colour fade its still as good as new which is pretty impressive considering all the crap its carried and been dragged through over the years
I don't really have anything that old, bar a few lifas. I sell old stuff on Ebay and try new bits of kit (bit of a gear freak). For every jacket I have, I probably bought and tried 2 or 3 and sold them on, most only used once or twice.
These ancient leather Skywalk boots:
Had them for at least 20 years!
Been re-soled a couple of times and they do look pretty beaten up, but if it’s wet and muddy out I’d reach for these over modern fancy boots every time.
Full leather with the tongue sealed in all the way to the top so they are effectively ankle length leather wellies. And very very well broken in. 😃
Several pairs of Bridgedale socks that are daily wear through the winter which are a least 10 yrs old. Scarpa walking boots, 21 yrs old, still look like new ish! Lowe Alpine ruck sack 25yrs old, that both kids have used for DoE in the last few years. But my best buy ever, Rab Batura, about 14 yrs old. Granted not the oldest on here, but pound for pound my best purchase ever.From wet and windy football grounds to the winter olympics in South Korea, it has served me well.
Another question for you all, is there anything bought in the last few years you'd expect to last similar amounts of time? I know my answer.
Another question for you all, is there anything bought in the last few years you’d expect to last similar amounts of time? I know my answer.
Kit is a *lot* lighter than it used to be, which I think is a big improvement, travelling super light over the fells is really easy now. Obviously, it won't last as long - but I prefer light weight stuff. Eg I only walk in fell / approach shoes now which weight half as much as walking boots, but the soles wear through faster (softer, sticky rubber) but you get much better grip on rocks etc.
I have a pair of Mavic Alpine (XL?) shoes from around 2012/13. They've had a lot of use and I bought another pair some years ago in anticipation of them wearing out. I sold the new pair when the originals refused to wear out. Roll on another couple of years and I've inspected them - still going strong, despite looking battered. Now my feet seem to have spread, or the shoes shrunk, so I've had to buy a different replacement pair of shoes. The Mavics are still waiting there waiting for their chance to be work out in warmer days of thin socks. Great shoes, very comfy and do the business on the bike.
CamelBak Mule 3L from around 2000 which has been on all my MTB rides. This might be its last year as the rubber on the expansion pocket is starting to deteriorate, which is a shame as the rest is near perfect.
I've still got a Karrimor base layer that my parents bought me to do my D 0f E expeditions in back in 1988 ish, still going strong and still gets regular use.
Another shout for Buffalo Special Six shirt. Used every winter since about 1994. Its stood up to serious abuse. It needs to go away for a zip repair, first issue I've had with it in 26 years.
It does seem to have shrunk around the stomach area though....
It does seem to have shrunk around the stomach area though….
Yeah that happened to a lot of my gear during lockdown.
Another purple Karrimor Hot Rock here. I think I got it in 1993/4. I got a Vaude Hogan a year later and it's still going strong.
Also a mid 90s pace fleece and a 20 year old Buffalo windshirt.
Mountain equipment snowline sleeping bag from 1996. I suspect it will last for another 20 odd years too. I just need to go somewhere cold enough to use it again after a few years of not getting out that much in the mountains
Another question for you all, is there anything bought in the last few years you’d expect to last similar amounts of time? I know my answer.
Good question.
I have a 10-year-old Patagonia softshell which I wear all the time on the bike, they did a free repair when the zip failed and I hope I'll still be wearing it in 2031.
Baselayers and don't really wear out - so I expect I'll have a few of those for the rest of my life. And probably a Finisterre synthetic down vest which I wear loads and seems really durable.
That reminds me I’ve got a Mauser/swiss army pen knife that’s 31 years
Hah - I have a Victorinox one that is (almost) 31 years old too - bought in May 1990 to be used during my summer InterRailing in Europe and the Greek islands under canvas (well lightweight nylon). Still pretty well as sharp as it was when I first bought it.
I have a Gore mountain bike smock I got in a sale about 18 or 19 years ago. It's stood up to wind, rain, snow, hail and just about every other type of weather (maybe not sunshine). It's had countless encounters with rocks, trees, bushes, ice, mud etc (which sadly probably tells you a lot about my riding ability). It's only ever been reproofed once.
It still performs brilliantly. Okay it's not the most breathable jacket, but as it's mostly used between September and April in Scotland that's not a major issue. Best value bit of bike clothing I've ever owned.
Coleman stainless steel flask still keeping drinks hot after 27 years, I have a pertex/pile hat with a wired brim still warm and waterproof after 18 years -cost about £8 at the time, and an Abus padlock which is 13 years old that cost about £50 in 2008.
For me there are a few bits of kit that just seem to go on and one with little signs of the abuse I've given them.
Lowe Alpine Snow Peak 50l, around 20 years old. Still showing no significant signs of wear despite being used year in year out.
Berghaus Goretex Gaiters, bought in Perth from a wee outdoors shop on South Street. One of the rivet tips has rusted off but it's still holding strong.
Swiss Army "climber" knife bought in Tiso on Buchanan Street 25 years ago. Only issue is that the spring from the scissors has broken. Blades are still pretty sharp.
I have a load of old stuff from the 80s and 90s, none of which I actually use any more because, guess what, modern outdoors kit - like modern mountain bikes - is rather better unless your absolute priority is durability and/or you enjoy carrying excess loads around the hills while sweating a lot.
I do have some stuff I'm very fond of because it's bound up with memories of good place, times and people,
Refuses to die? My late 90s MSR XGK expedition stove which is half burner and half cockroach and my hot tip for any dystopian, post-pandemic future when your existence depends on being able to burn any sort of notionally flammable liquid syphoned from the abandoned SUVs of dead people. I don't use it much, but keep it just in case 🙂
Some more to add:
NovaCraft SP3 canoes. A proper 'savings bank of plastic' - they hold value and refuse to die. Come the zombie apocalypse, my choice of transport.
Vaude bike rucksacks, mine was binned in 2020 after being bought in 1996 and used almost daily.
Yellow Karrimor Karrimats.
