Recommendations for gear to start my bushcraft journey!

[Eros]

Hi Guys, you may have seen my introduction post earlier today - as stated I am new around here and new to bushcraft, but I LOVE the concept and the freedom that seems to come with it. That being said, I would love some recommendations from experienced bushcrafters with gear to start me off.

- Doesn't have to be 'low budget'
- would rather spend more to last longer

I would need everything from my knives/axes to tarps and things of the sort. What items do you guys own that you would never go on a journey without! Is there any specific brands you guys like when you look for clothing/tools etc.

Thanks in advance! I look forward to hearing what you guys recommend!

 

[Robson Valley]

Welcome. You need 4 lists of suppliers with options:
1. Food(includes fire)
2. Shelter (includes fire)
3. Clothing
4. Tools (a known black hole for money)

A lot of the food & (knife) tools, you can experience in your own home. About all I learned over the decades was that the food that tasted like heaven in camp was brutally disgusting in my kitchen. I never learned if that can be fixed but travel with the best.

 

[C_Claycomb]

No fear, Erbswurst will soon be here! He enjoys this question.

Hello

Hello everyone my name is Kyle, I’m 25 years old and I live in cornwall UK, I’m quite new to Bushcraft and I am quickly beginning to love it, great to meet everyone Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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“The more you know, the less you carry.”
Mors Kochanski.

Remember, “bushcraft” is really about skills rather than gear. However, many do like gear!

No time right now to write more.

chris

 

[SaraR]

It depends so much on what you want to do, but since ittendsto involve more sitting still/pottring around and "playing" with fire, warmer clothes (compared to hiking/walking) in natural fibres are preferable. Wool doesn't burn and tighly woven cotton is also easier to deal with if getting singed.

 

[Athos]

You can really go down a rabbit hole here. I’m more active in my outdoor pursuits, sitting by the fire is something I do once the day is done and this is reflected in my gear preferences.

Here are a few things I’ve had for many years that have either stood the test of time or I’ll replace like for like should they break:

Buffalo Shirt (20 years old, still going strong)
Icebreaker Merino Wool t-shirts
Fjallraven Vidda Pro trousers (I like the ventilated version as it has stretchy inner thighs, great trousers for hiking and bushcraft)
Shemagh
Marks & Spencer’s Merino Wool socks (3 pairs for £15!)
Boots - leather Meindl’s for the cold and the wet, Arcteryx for warm weather or high mileage.
Good leather belt and good leather work gloves. If you get cold hands, buy merino wool liners.
Nice warm hat!

Nalgene 1l wide mouth water bottles
Zebra Billy Can
Titanium spork
Trangia Burner
Littlbug Stove

British Army Goretex bivi bag (15 years on mine, still does the job)
Snugpak Softie 12 (still good after 15 years)
DD tarp - there are far better tarps out there, but for the money these are perfectly adequate.
Multimat Trekker 25

Granfors Bruks Small Forest Axe
Bahco Laplander

Knives and packs… you could get a Mora and a PLCE Bergen and be perfectly happy. Or you could spend a small fortune and also be perfectly happy. Horses for courses.

If I’m staying fairly static and carrying a lot of kit then I’ll take my issued PLCE Bergen. They do the job admirably. If I am on the move a lot then I’ll travel a bit lighter and take a Mystery Ranch or Hill People Gear pack. You get what you pay for here. Cheap, lightweight or durable - pick two of these qualities as packs with all three do not exist.

Knives. A Mora will do the job. Will you love it and form an attachment to it? Probably not.

Buy something practical that you like. 4-5” blade, 3-4mm thickness, “Scandi” grind, full tang. These are good places to start. O1 tool steel or 1095 are cheap, easy to sharpen in the field and will require maintenance to keep corrosion at bay. Being able to sharpen and maintain a knife in the field is an extremely valuable skill. There are plenty of great knives out there - something for every budget. Esee, Bark River, Fallkniven, Casstrom, Lion Steel are good manufacturers (to name just a few!)

Hope that helps.

 

[Decacraft]

I started years ago,and at the time prices were very different.

Knowledge is key, as is practice. You can have all the gucci gear, but with no practice or concept then it's all pretty useless.

Use hand me downs, second hand items, freebies until you develop your own system, but don't let it cost you the earth.

Too many times I have heared people express how much they would like to take it up, but its the expense of all the kit that puts them off.

What would you like to achieve- try and get things based on that. If you want to go out and make a brew/cook a meal then get some basic cooksets. If you want to carve, get some bits, that kind of thing.

All im saying is there's no point having a bergen full of things that's going to possibly overwhelm you as a beginner, when you really want to be enjoying things and learning about what you want from it.


I like camp building, so have got more tools towards that. I dont like carving as much so I don't have so much for that kind of thing.

 

[Great egret]

If you can, try to borrow some kit and see what you prefer. You can try sleeping in a hammock, a tent, under a tarp etc. before buying something.

 

[Eros]

You can really go down a rabbit hole here. I’m more active in my outdoor pursuits, sitting by the fire is something I do once the day is done and this is reflected in my gear preferences.

Here are a few things I’ve had for many years that have either stood the test of time or I’ll replace like for like should they break:

Buffalo Shirt (20 years old, still going strong)
Icebreaker Merino Wool t-shirts
Fjallraven Vidda Pro trousers (I like the ventilated version as it has stretchy inner thighs, great trousers for hiking and bushcraft)
Shemagh
Marks & Spencer’s Merino Wool socks (3 pairs for £15!)
Boots - leather Meindl’s for the cold and the wet, Arcteryx for warm weather or high mileage.
Good leather belt and good leather work gloves. If you get cold hands, buy merino wool liners.
Nice warm hat!

Nalgene 1l wide mouth water bottles
Zebra Billy Can
Titanium spork
Trangia Burner
Littlbug Stove

British Army Goretex bivi bag (15 years on mine, still does the job)
Snugpak Softie 12 (still good after 15 years)
DD tarp - there are far better tarps out there, but for the money these are perfectly adequate.
Multimat Trekker 25

Granfors Bruks Small Forest Axe
Bahco Laplander

Knives and packs… you could get a Mora and a PLCE Bergen and be perfectly happy. Or you could spend a small fortune and also be perfectly happy. Horses for courses.

If I’m staying fairly static and carrying a lot of kit then I’ll take my issued PLCE Bergen. They do the job admirably. If I am on the move a lot then I’ll travel a bit lighter and take a Mystery Ranch or Hill People Gear pack. You get what you pay for here. Cheap, lightweight or durable - pick two of these qualities as packs with all three do not exist.

Knives. A Mora will do the job. Will you love it and form an attachment to it? Probably not.

Buy something practical that you like. 4-5” blade, 3-4mm thickness, “Scandi” grind, full tang. These are good places to start. O1 tool steel or 1095 are cheap, easy to sharpen in the field and will require maintenance to keep corrosion at bay. Being able to sharpen and maintain a knife in the field is an extremely valuable skill. There are plenty of great knives out there - something for every budget. Esee, Bark River, Fallkniven, Casstrom, Lion Steel are good manufacturers (to name just a few!)

Hope that helps.

Great list! Thankyou so much for taking the time to write this. I will be looking into all the items listed and see which is to my liking!

 

[Eros]

I started years ago,and at the time prices were very different.

Knowledge is key, as is practice. You can have all the gucci gear, but with no practice or concept then it's all pretty useless.

Use hand me downs, second hand items, freebies until you develop your own system, but don't let it cost you the earth.

Too many times I have heared people express how much they would like to take it up, but its the expense of all the kit that puts them off.

What would you like to achieve- try and get things based on that. If you want to go out and make a brew/cook a meal then get some basic cooksets. If you want to carve, get some bits, that kind of thing.

All im saying is there's no point having a bergen full of things that's going to possibly overwhelm you as a beginner, when you really want to be enjoying things and learning about what you want from it.


I like camp building, so have got more tools towards that. I dont like carving as much so I don't have so much for that kind of thing.

This is a very good point. I will have a think into which aspects of it appeal to me most and cater myself towards that kind of setup. Thankyou!

 

[Tiley]

The things that I would never leave home without include my Savotta Jaakari L pack, my stainless steel Crusader cup, a firesteel, my Silky Pocket Boy saw (the longer one...), a small 'cuts kit' and my knife . The last is, perhaps, the bottomless pit of bushcraft and everyone has a variety of opinions about which is best; the ideal is to start with something reliable and inexpensive and then, as you get better/more deeply interested, think about a cutting tool that is the next step up. With that in mind, a Mora is a great starting point and will serve you extremely well.

Beyond the essentials listed above, things like a billy can (my preference is for a stainless steel Mors-style pot, 1.8 litre capacity) and a tarp (hugely versatile and there are many good options out there).

After that, you'll find yourself swept down into the vortex of choice and possibility but, with those things, you've got a starting point. As has been said, it is practice and experience that really matter in bushcraft - and both of those things happen to be the very best bits about it!

Get out there and enjoy it!

 

[Broch]

Everybody is different in what they spend their time doing, how much they're prepared to pay, how often they get out, what weather and temperature extremes they deal with ....

I have, as I'm sure most on here have, different kit for different activities - hill walking and lightweight camping, canoe camping, vehicle camping, and working and living in the woods.

For the working and living in the woods stuff, using knives, saws, and axes, open fires, etc. I prefer to use robust country sports gear rather than lightweight backpacking equipment. I am always pushing through thorn, bramble, and other scrub as well as catching my clothes on twigs and branches. If that's more your thing, have a look at the stuff from Percussion - good solid clothing at sensible prices.

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[SaraR]

Also, you don't have to go anywhere! You can do a lot in the garden/indoors /on a patio.
Using what you have already is a great way to start and then figure out what you want /need.

 

[McCallem]

Doesn't matter I am on a journey or just messing around in the garden I always keep my pocket knife in the back pocket of my jeans. There are two reasons
I like it
Gifted by my wife

 

[Wander]

Don't start with all the big stuff until you know what you want to do and what you like doing.
Enjoy being outside for the time being.
Get a simple stove and mug. The dodgy weather is coming up, so maybe a basha/tarp to stay dry.
Go out for the day, enjoy where you are, have a brew and a bit of lunch, take in your surroundings. Become part of it. It's not just a physical thing, but a psychological investment as well.
Let it evolve naturally. You'll start to think, 'I fancy doing...' and then buy what you need to do that.
Don't rush out and buy an axe and umpteen knives until you know what you want them for. If, indeed, you'll need them. Not forgetting, of course, that you have somewhere to go where you are allowed to use them and allowed to light a fire - you're in a potential legal nightmare with some bushcraft activities, so be warned.
What do you mean by 'bushcraft'? I'm not sure what 'doing bushcraft' would even involve. It's a series of skills/activities, not one monolithic activity in its own right. So you need to find out which of those activities you are interested in doing (and, again, have access to land where you can practice them).
So let it gestate and find itself. Get used to going out and being outside in the natural world, and you'll soon start to realise what it is you want from 'bushcraft'.
Then purchase accordingly.

 

[Athos]

I forgot one other vitally important bit of kit - a good headtorch.

Can’t go wrong with a Petzl Tikka but I’d recommend a Nitecore HC65 if you think you’ll be out at night a lot.

 

[gra_farmer]

One recommendation, ray mears has been known to gift helle knives, and I can see why.

I would start your knife journey with mora of your liking and a helle.....the rabbit hole gets deeper after that....

 

[Tengu]

Like with crafts, two ways of approaching this.

a) Start with a basic kit. (but some basic lists are very long).

or

b) Start with a project and get the kit you need for that.

I spent the summer doing leatherwork and it was surprising how few of my tools I used in spite of me having a full box.

Some folk go out with loads of kit, a list, and when they come back they divide things into;

Stuff used.
Stuff not used
Stuff not present and would be useful.

Which sounds terribly fussy but for planning is a great idea.

Tengu. (Long term idiot and clueless bushcrafter who isnt exactly affluent either, but has managed to get some nice kit).

 

[TLM]

While I can't disagree with any of the previous posts, I think at first one does not really NEED much. OK: map and compass, small backpack with water and something to eat. Next comes sharps (ie. tools) and heat source and pots. Then it kind of explodes.

Proper shoes make things a lot more comfortable but I have seen people climb Greek mountains in flipflops (still kind of hurts). Proper clothing again makes things more comfortable but in the summer and lowlands nothing special is needed.

 

[Kav]

‘I see by your outfit that you’re a bush crafter. I see by your outfit that you’re a bush rafter too. We see by our outfits that we are both bushcrafters. If YOU get an outfit, you can be a bush rafter too. ‘
There are many ‘ classic’ items in this hobby, many surplus. Please understand, those Swedish cook sets, Polish cape/tents , LK 35 rucksacks AND future classics have a window of availability. What sold for a few dollars/quid will become ridiculously overpriced. We thrived before they became available and can after gone. * Vladimir, I have some plash palatkas you can have back for your 300,000 @$250.
Same opinion with braided paracord bracelets, Saami Kuksa cups and the SFA by Grangors Bruk. Sorry guys, my Hults Bruk Akka is just as nice ( and little used in California.) I bought it with the same Magpie Mindset.

 

[Paul_B]

Oh dear. If we're talking gear then a lot of it is personal choice. Upthread someone mentioned buffalo shirt. Whilst I've got one I wouldn't recommend them. There's better, more modern and effective synthetic tops out there nowadays often for less money in my opinion.

Clothing - whatever you have for the outdoors. Warm when cold, dryish when raining but above all comfortable. Most decent outdoors shops will help you there.

Shelter / overnight kit - depends on what you want to do. Work that out and ask for specific advice on here and/or other outdoors outdoors forums. Lightweight or base camp? Latest designs or tried and tested? Comfort or can you manage with a bit less comfort? Are you a swinger or ground dweller? Where to camp out? Campsite or mountainside? There's a lot of choice out there but a bit more information will possibly reduce that to a few good options. Also a personal choice.

Tools - knives are about choice and money. You can get cheap Mora knives that are OK. Depending on what you're doing you could simply need an opinel. Folding saw, axe, etc might also be needed. Then you can go from there and get all sorts of stuff.

I guess the main point is work out what you want to do then you'll have the beginnings of a filter on what you really need.