Vintage Camping Gear.

[DanielJones]

Who here uses some vintage camping gear on either their hikes or camping trips? Maybe a canteen, a stove of articles of clothing. Military surplus items count too.
I have an old camping lantern that my Pop has had since the late 1950's. Still gets housed in a wooden box. I'll see if I can get some pics of it, right now it is housed in my sister's barn. I think I'll need to free that one here soon. I also have been using a down US Army sleeping bag from around the 1950's. It was never used, just warehouse stored. Had it dry cleaned and it is fantastic. Sometimes it is way too warm as it is rated for 30 below but does a bang up job in the winter.
I have been throwing around the idea of getting a Swiss Volcano Bottle for day hikes. It is a military surplus item. Some times it is nice to have a small warm meal when you reach a good breaking point in your trip. Does anyone here have one of these? What do you think of it?


Do you use canvas tentage like the ones from Panther Tents, & other vintage or vintage style camping gear, and how do you haul it to your camping site? Does anyone here use the teardrop campers? Please share your gear & experiences here.

Cheers!

Dan

[DanielJones]

In my searches this evening I also had found a modern alternative to the Swiss surplus volcano bottle/stove from a company called Kelly Kettle. http://www.kellykettle.com

It does have a different look to it but I think it is essentially they same.


The Kelly Kettle also has a full cooking kit option as well.


Does anybody here have one of these? What are your thoughts on it? Please share your experiences.

How do you think they compare to a Swedish Mess Kit Trangia?


Cheers!

Dan

[Doug Palumbo]

What a great idea for a thread! I have a stainless steel Swedish mess kit...complete with the Trangia stove. Yet to use it in a real world situation...maybe we should go camping as a group using as much vintage/surplus gear as possible.

[DanielJones]

Ok, I found a pic on line of the Lantern that My Pop has. It is a Bernz-O-Matic Lantern. There is also a camp stove that is similarly designed and took the bottled propane. The same bottles that one would use for a small torch for soldering.


I'm going to have to go digging through my sisters barn. I have a good idea where it is because I've seen the wood box they're in out there. They should be in excellent shape.

Cheers!

Dan

[DanielJones]

What a great idea for a thread! I have a stainless steel Swedish mess kit...complete with the Trangia stove. Yet to use it in a real world situation...maybe we should go camping as a group using as much vintage/surplus gear as possible.

What other gear do you have Doug? It is surprising to find out what kind of gear we've collected over the years or have inherited from our folks that is vintage but is still really useful.

Cheers!

Dan

[Super Ordinary Guy]

my idea of camping or roughing it is staying at a motel that has black & white TV....

I've done my share and love my comforts now....

[n11pilot]

my idea of camping or roughing it is staying at a motel that has black & white TV....

I've done my share and love my comforts now....

Agreed, nothing takes the shine off of camping out faster than when you have to do it with the US Army. I've always said that my idea of a field problem is a hotel with slow room service. Say, does a geriatric bell hop count as "Vintage" equipment?

[DanielJones]

Alright, for those of you who still have a modicum of enjoyment left in you for camping, what gear do you use? Is there any vintage hand me downs or surplus gear in your kit? Is there anyone here that uses a tear drop camper, vintage or new? I imagine they are a sight better than sleeping on the ground in a tent but you can still rough it a bit.


How about folks that do day hike, or vintage or historical walks? Are there any in our growing family here? What kind of gear do you take along for those day treks?

Cheers!

Dan

[DanielJones]

My parents used to have in their camping stuff in the trailer some camping/picnic cups. This was our official camping gear & they had it around for years before I ever came along. When My Pop sold his property the camping trailer went with the property, and I believe sadly so did a lot of his camping gear like the cups. I may have to take a trip over to the old house to speak with the new owners and see if they may have kept those cups around & if they would be willing to part with them. Heck, I'd even pay for them just to get them, lot's of fond memories surround them.
If they don't I suppose I can try & find them in an antique store or on-line. Some research I've done pointe me in the direction of melamine or melmac cups. But nothing like we had. These particular cups were a salmon pink color, and they had three little ridges around the middle of the out side of the cup so you could stack them flat.
It looks like this one, but like I said, salmon pink.


If any of you know of a source of these could you point me in the right direction? Thanks!

Cheers!

Dan

[DanielJones]

Well, I finally won a Swedish Trangia mess kit on ebay. Who knew it could be so hard to win one of those or that the market seemingly dried up? It's like I wanted one so all of a sudden they became overpriced and scarce. When I first looked without interest they were all over the place. Luckily because of an odd listing this one was not on the main search list and it was an accident I found it. Only one other bidder. Managed to get it for $24. So now I can give it and the Swiss volcano bottle a go and see how they perform. Hopefully it's all it's cracked up to be.

Cheers!

Dan

[Doug Palumbo]

I would love a teardrop camper big enough to sleep four comfortably. With the ability to add on a side tent room. I love the style and functionality of teardrops.

[Eric Renderking Fisk]

I love this thread and it's inspiring me to dig out my own gear and show off, but I'm afraid what I have isn't that vintage. Unless you consider late 80's early 90's vintage.

[DanielJones]

And i finally found the pink melmac cups on ebay I was looking for,that my folks had so many moons ago. Now I can add that to our camping gear and feel nostalgic about camping with my folks as a kid.

Can't wait to see what you've got Eric.

Cheers!

Dan

[DanielJones]

I did manage to test out the Swedish mess kit & Swiss volcano stove respectively with their Trangia alcohol stoves. They do a phenominal job of heating water within 5 minutes. I will have to see what the heating time will be in colder conditions and higher elevations. So far so good.

I also managed to get my Pop's lantern. Thank the heavens that was still roaming around. I'm still looking for his little camp stove though. I'm afraid that may have gone on a junk pile or a garage sale. Bummer if it has.

Cheers!

Dan

[emmet]

Alright, for those of you who still have a modicum of enjoyment left in you for camping, what gear do you use? Is there any vintage hand me downs or surplus gear in your kit? Is there anyone here that uses a tear drop camper, vintage or new? I imagine they are a sight better than sleeping on the ground in a tent but you can still rough it a bit.


How about folks that do day hike, or vintage or historical walks? Are there any in our growing family here? What kind of gear do you take along for those day treks?

Cheers!

Dan

I want to have a teardrop camper like this one. I have seen a lot of models and I really like it's vintage look. I think this is the one of the vintages that I desperately want to have. I already have a vintage cooking kit, similar with that kelly kettle, a vintage lantern and so on. I want to go camping someday with a full blast vintage