tigger
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Post by tigger on Nov 17, 2016 20:58:07 GMT -8
I carry a small, light cheap pocketknife with a single 1.5" blade. I don't need any tools. Multi-tools are heavy. I keep one in the car, but not backpacking. For me, this is it. I don't have any stoves, or packs with any complicated anything. I have literally nothing that needs a tool. If anything, I need a sewing needle, patches, duct tape, paracord, and seamgrip for pretty much everything I carry. |
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rebeccad
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Writing like a maniac
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Post by rebeccad on Nov 17, 2016 21:03:54 GMT -8
If anything, I need a sewing needle, patches, duct tape, paracord, and seamgrip for pretty much everything I carry. Yeah, that. I do carry a little sewing and repair kit in a film canister (remember those?). Buttons, safety pins, a bit of nylon fabric and a bit of stick-on nylon fabric, and a needle with a few yards of thread. And, of course, there's always duct tape  |
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daveg
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Michigan
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Post by daveg on Nov 17, 2016 23:21:45 GMT -8
I prefer dedicated tools to a multi-tool. I carry: Small single blade folding knife. Small tweezers. Small cuticle scissors. Tiny screw driver and extra screws for my glasses frames. The Powerlocks on my Komperdell poles use a screw with a phillips/slot combination head. I made a small screwdriver out of a triangular piece of aluminum and flattened the point so it fits the slot (think guitar pick). Needle and thread. Short lengths of duct and tenacious tape. Sil Net if I'm taking a silnylon shelter.
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jazzmom
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a.k.a. TigerFan
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Post by jazzmom on Nov 18, 2016 4:26:00 GMT -8
One small cheap Gerber folding knife, in the 1.5 oz range. I also carry one of those teeny-tiny tweezers that comes in a Swiss Army knife in my first aid kit.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 18, 2016 5:33:23 GMT -8
The tools I carry is a skeletool, a pocket knife, duct tape, needle and dental floss, sleeping pad repair kit, and Cuban fiber repair tape.
I have used the Cuban fiber repair tape once to repair a hole we put in the bottom of our tent.
I used the sleeping pad repair kit once to repair a puncture in a water bladder.
I have used the needle and dental floss a lot of times to repair various rips over the last 6+ years.
Over the last 6+ years duct tape proves its worth as weight to carry around.
I find that when I am away from my pack is when I want/need a knife for something so my wife and I carry pocket knives in our pants pockets. A pocket knife is a priceless piece of gear.
My skeletool, mostly, remains clipped on my backpack. I have used it to tighten trekking pole locks and squeeze a zipper tight, but the most use my skeletool gets is as a roach clip.
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Post by hikingtiger on Nov 18, 2016 8:07:06 GMT -8
I used to carry a Skeletool. It was heavier than necessary, but I liked it. Then it disappeared at a weekend campout. :(
Now I carry a small pocketknife and a Leatherman Micra. Tweezers if ticks are out. Occasionally, the Mora (classic 1) tags along, depending on the when/where of the trip.
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tigger
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Post by tigger on Nov 18, 2016 8:10:50 GMT -8
Fingernail clippers - That is one tool I do bring. Nails and hangnails on long trips have to be cut.
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rebeccad
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Writing like a maniac
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Post by rebeccad on Nov 18, 2016 8:33:46 GMT -8
Fingernail clippers - That is one tool I do bring. Nails and hangnails on long trips have to be cut. Good point. I carry one, too. I used the sleeping pad repair kit once to repair a puncture in a water bladder. I've used ours in the field twice in 30 years since getting my first Thermarest. Once was car-camping in the AZ desert, the other was just last summer in the Ansel Adams Wilderness with Eldest Son's pad sprung a leak. The hardest part was standing in a lake with snow around the edges immersing the pad to find the hole! |
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Post by ashepabst on Nov 18, 2016 9:43:41 GMT -8
I carry a Leatherman Micra that's like an ounce and half or something. the scissors have come in handy (one time I forgot to trim my toenails), and the bottle opener has been nice to have.
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Post by High Sierra Fan on Nov 18, 2016 15:21:22 GMT -8
Once I stopped using an external frame pack any need for "tools" also was left behind. Just nothing really mechanical in my kit I would use them on. I carry a fixed blade when fresh food prep is in the plan. otherwise just a simple folder, Buck Stockman or such.
Look at the need: go from there. Everyone is different.
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reuben
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Gonna need more Camels at the next refugio...
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Post by reuben on Nov 18, 2016 15:31:27 GMT -8
For those of you who've mentioned the Leatherman Micra - how does the "Flat/Phillips Screwdriver" work? My real reason for asking is because I may need to tighten trekking poles with the phillips head. Does it really work? Does it really matter? Could I make do with just a flat head screwdriver and brute strength?
All I really need are:
Something to tighten trekking pole flip locks (phillips)
Something to cut meat (salami/pepperoni/soppressata)
Toe nail clippers (could be a knife if my aim and dexterity pass muster, otherwise were talking about a FAK)
Tweezers (rarely)
Corkscrew and bottle opener are nice to have but where there's a will there's a way, and they'd be most likely used the last night the end of a trip...
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texasbb
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Hates chicken
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Post by texasbb on Nov 18, 2016 19:00:07 GMT -8
For those of you who've mentioned the Leatherman Micra - how does the "Flat/Phillips Screwdriver" work? So-so, at least with my little Squirt. I wouldn't want to have to open something screwed down tight, but it's fine for my flip locks, as long as I'm well braced and can put a bit of pressure on it. Much better than a flathead. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 18, 2016 19:25:01 GMT -8
For those of you who've mentioned the Leatherman Micra - how does the "Flat/Phillips Screwdriver" work? My real reason for asking is because I may need to tighten trekking poles with the phillips head. Does it really work? Does it really matter? Could I make do with just a flat head screwdriver and brute strength? It works through the application of angular momentum. I find the flat Phillips works well with the tightening of trekking pole locks. |
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reuben
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Gonna need more Camels at the next refugio...
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Post by reuben on Nov 19, 2016 3:24:37 GMT -8
It works through the application of angular momentum. One cannot apply angular momentum. However, one can exert a force which results in angular momentum. In this case, it's actually torque. Where's Little Spoon to back me up? Harumph. |
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Post by JRinGeorgia on Nov 19, 2016 4:10:19 GMT -8
I've found I need scissors more than a knife (I don't chop/prep food on the trail). For tools I carry Westcott mini sewing scissors, Uncle Bill's tweezers, a single-edge razor blade, a tick remover, and a tiny screwdriver for tightening eyeglass temples. Collectively weighs the same or less than a mini SAK with better functionality. For "tools" I'm not counting duct tape, needle and thread, etc, but only what provide the functions that might be found in a multi-tool.
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