Choices in equipment.

[Echo2]

Heck...I didn't even know you could buy the stuff new until I got a job....:)

[PT945]

Heck...I didn't even know you could buy the stuff new until I got a job....:)

LOL I know what ya mean, if it wasn't for having an older brother, when I started out I'd of had a plastic knife taped to my belt.

[CountryGuy]

Great thread... and agree in quality vs quantity and that price doesn't necessarily dictate quality. To me why waste money buying the $5 blanket when it won't do what you need when you need it. As Omegaman and PT said, it's about priorities. Skip the McDonalds trip, add it to your $5 and buy the $20 dollar one.

One underlying theme I think all of have u have said either directly or indirectly is USED. I've found great quality used stuff for a fraction of the new price and many times less than a low quality, cheap "me too" brand. Craigslist, local ad mags, e-bay, gear trade web sites, yard sales, and even auctions are great places I find things. Example - yrs ago, right after I was out of the service, I picked up my first pistol, a fairly abused piece for $280 at an estate sale. No one wanted it because it looked like it'd been tossed down the road and the slide and grips were dinged and scratched. All I knew was that it was a .45ACP and despite the cosmetics seemed to be a very solid well built piece. I shot it and flogged it for several years, several 1000's of rounds thru it, all the time enjoying it's accuracy and goes bang every time reliability before I investigated what it even was. I was curious as it had 2 brands stamped on it. One side Browning the other side Sig Sauer W. Germany. Turned out to be the original Sig 220's imported to the US by Browning. Has the European mag release which took some getting used to. It's still my favorite! A few years back I stripped the slide, stoned and polished out the scrapes and gouges and cold blued. cleaned up the grips, added a Hogue sleeve, new recoil spring and ohh baby just like new.

Lots of time you find people that thought they were gonna be outdoorsman, campes, hiker, or even "survivalists" that many times bought top quality, over priced gear they never used it. Now they decide to dump their gear after sitting unused for years and it goes for a fraction. Also families that had loved ones into the above have no clue about it after a person passes and sometimes even gives it or tosses it away (I got a great old school Coleman gas stove and lantern years ago for free because of this). Also Y2K types dumping gear that's sat unused on a shelf or in a basement. Brand new, sometimes just a little TLC to refurb seals or the such and it;s like the day they brought it home.

Many alternatives to settling for the cheap junk that Wally world and the Academy types put out there.

[TennOutdoors]

check your local pawn shops. I cant tell you how many times Ive bought good tents, stoves, packs or what have you at a Pawn shop.

some times you can find good gear at flea markets to.

[maric]

I'm right there with ya. I like Gerber knives. The quality for the cost is good. But so is mora, and some cold steel.

We love, love did I say love our Mora knives.. great quality, very inexpensive! I also carry a Gerber multi-tool. Sure its not the same quality as the Mr's SOG, BUT it works great for my needs, and a whole helluva lot cheaper. I agree.. its education, and quality- not price.. I will buy a cheaper pack, which I did on Amazon, after much much, review. I got it for $44 bucks. Its exactly what I need. I saw many others, cheaper, sure, some maybe better.. but it worked for me.And I saved. Its all about knowing what you need, educating yourself and shopping around! Kudos to Omegaman for taking the time to actually show people, ket then get a "feel" for what will fit their needs. Ill post some pics, of the pack and knives, it if I can ever compress these darn pics.. Im working on it.

[Snow Walker]

My first priority isn't looking for the cheapest route. In many cases you do get what you pay for.

Ex. Your rifle is only as good as the sights/scope on it.

90% of the time if you get quality once it will last.

I do like my Mora knives I carry as a back-up though!!!! :D

[maric]

Its kinda like peoples personal.. taste? Like I know it was mentioned in a food forum, how some people like the Mountain House premade food packets.. I cant pay 5 bucks for those. Not worth it to me. Ill prepackage my own, or eat an MRE. BUT, its personal preferance. To some, its quality, or a good deal.. Its good we all can chat and compare, respectively!
Now, I want really good sleep gear. think its a necessity. However, its not top on my priority list.. Gotta take care of other things.. so for now, I use a cheaper sleeping bag. works ok.. dont want to use it forever, but it'll do. I will save for a better system, that I have reviewed, and it will be worth it to have what I want! To me, having the right gear, for comfort, for utility, and practicality is worth it.. quality to last .. more bang for your buck.. lol.. etc.. :) Good stuff... Mrs

[cbprice797]

OK don't come hunt me down and torture me for what I am about to write.... This is a reply for Omegamans $150 gun quandry.

I have eprsonal experience along with a couple of other friends with a company named Hi-Point. They are an inexpensive but well made gun. When they were first relesed they SUCKED. There were all kinds of issues with them. The company got their act together and now they do make good weapons.

I have had one of their little 9mm carbines for over 4 years. Have put between 3 and 4k rounds through it with nary a problem. I have never owned their handgun but got a longtime friend that has a 9mm and their 40. I have shot them and never had issues and last time we talked about them he had not had any problems when he was shooting them either.

The carbines go for 200 to 250 depending on whether you get the 9mm or .40. The 9mm handgun goes for 169, the .40 for like 180, and the 45 for around 200. ALL their weapons have a lifetime warranty. Not on the purchaser but the weapon itself. If you happen to be the 5th owner and something goes wrong contact compant they will tell you to send it in. They will either repair it to factory specs or REPLACE the weapon. I know someone that atually got a new 9mm carbine afteracidentally running his over with his truck(long story but funny). So while prie does very often indiate quality of a firearm, that is not always the case.

Now would I trade my Glock 17 for a Hi-Point 9mm?? No way in hell. But I would buy one to play around with.

[Echo2]

someone did a insane torture test on one here a while back.....freezing.....mudding....barrel obstructions....you name it....they finally got it to fail.

I'll keep my Glock though.....those things weigh a ton....

[CountryGuy]

Think you and your friends are the lucky ones. People I've known with them have had many issues. I can't speak to the carbines but the ones I looked at out of curiosity were very heavy and had very poor finish and quality of manufacture. I do have to admit I broke down and bought a KelTec Sub2000 in .40S&W that's been a blast. Was dirt cheap at a shop going out of biz and it used glock mags; double bonus!

On the Hi-Point pistols, my closest encounter was with a young guy I worked with. He wanted to buy his first pistol but was too eager to wait for a few of us guys he worked with to go out shopping with him to guide him. He must have the worst sense of direction on the planet as he of course ended up at the one area shop I wouldn't even send my enemies to. The type of shop where the employee are rude, the guns are low quality, and the prices sky high. Their inventory leaned towards the cheap and low value brands. He picked up one of the Hi-Point 9mm models and from day one nothing but problems... feeding, trigger, eject, sights, etc... we cleaned it several times lubed it, and no success. He struggled to put 3 or 400 rounds through it in hopes it'd break in...it never did. he finally traded it, took a loss and picked up a decent 1911. This was maybe 4 or 5 yrs ago so maybe as CBPrice says they've improved.

[Omegaman]

In most cases cheap guns are cheap for a reason, it does not make them a bad gun but they had to cut corners some place to get keep their price down. Compare Ruger MKll with Smith & Wesson 22A. The rugger is all steel construction were the 22A is cast white metal. Now drop both of those guns and tell me which one the slide breaks on, ask me because I did it twice and both times the 22A slide failed. Now the difference in price is the ruger even used is close to $200 more. Now did I ever have any other problems with that 22A? nope , oh other then replacing the plastic buffer twice a year and the guide rod once. So is that 22A a good range gun? You bet at$225 brand new it is a good little gun. Would I want it to be my end of the world gun? No way.

[CountryGuy]

I was thinking on this some more today and one place where some of these cheap guns might come in handy to have in the safe is exactly in a SHTF situation. Not for our own use but for all those people that haven't prepared, those that thought the cops would be there and never thought about self protection. These could be very good barter items. Who knows, maybe a 9mm Hi-point with a box or 2 of ammo would be worth say 2 head of beef, fuel, food, etc... who knows what someone might have you'd like to trade. Many people will be desperate to have any type of weapon or firearm when they see what starts happening. Even cheaper knives might be in demand.

[monet861]

Just remember to never arm potential enemies...

Most good brand names make [email protected] too. I have a number of Smith & Wesson firearms that I would swear by, but I also was given a SW380 that is the biggest POS I own. Not sure if there is more than a gram of metal in the pistol. When I talked to my dad about it, he said it's the type of gun you shoot a couple of hundred times, then throw away...

Also have a Randall knife that was a gift and carried all over the world when I was still active Marine and have carried 20 more years, beat up as hell, but sure is a great knife...

[Railman]

To both sides of the discussion, I've always purchased what I could afford. If it served me well, then I kept it. For instance, my first real handgun purchase was a Bersa Compact Thunder in .45acp for $250 new in the box. It has been a great gun and I have never, not once had a problem with it in any way. I have since purchased a few others of various and considerably more expensive brands that I can honestly say have provided no less than and nor more than the same level of service. I believe in most cases, something is better than nothing. I prefer .45 calibers for obvious reasons but if all I can get is a .22 rimfire.... I'll take it! Even a sharp stick and harsh words if nothing else! lol