What's the craziest thing you've ever used your gear for that had nothing to do with the outdoors?

Macchina

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jan 16, 2015
Messages
121
Great Thread!

I have used my Zebralight Headlamp for all kinds of things around the house, repairing sinks, water heater, pulling slivers out of my girls fingers, etc.

I have used my climbing sticks and linesman belt for branch removal a few times. Works perfect and let's me practice in the off-season.

My cell trail cam pull double duty as a security camera at my cabin, I keep it going year round for that reason.

I use onX whenever I'm in the woods and have used it to remember the neighbor's names a few times.

I found keeping all my old gear is starting to pay off with my 2 daughters who are 4 and 6. We do campouts, they like having a small shoulder bag when we hike, water bottles, old saws, etc all gets donated to them. They don't realize they are camping in thousands of dollars of gear when we do an overnight in a field but they are warm and cozy!

I keep my Helinox chair in my truck, that has come in really handy several times when we eat in the park.

A bino harness is really handy when hiking with kids in a carrier. I may look like a dork, but I had water, snacks, and diapers on me at all times!
 

Oregon

WKR
Joined
May 15, 2018
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828
Location
Oregon coast
Exact opposite. Used a garden tool for outdoor stuff.
Be patient.
Had Coon traps by garbage cans. Way out in nowhere, but road in front of house dead ended at work where I was boss.
I was standing in front yard staring up at tree. Kid heading to work sees me. Stops. Says "Chief, what you doing?" I say, "coon pulled anchor, now wrapped up in tree, can't get it out".
He says, " I got my bow, I'll arrow it and it should fall". Seemed logical.
Field tip. Sticks it. Coon dead. Coon still in tree.
Tell him go to work and get extension ladder and one of those long trimmers that have a rope. You pull and it shears/cuts.
I shimmy up. Grab arrow with tree trimmer thingy. Pushing/shoving to get Coon out tree. I inadvertently pull arrow out Coon. Gut shot. All Coon juice falls directly on me. In my mouth, eyes everywhere. Had a tree climber get Coon 2 days later after I took 36 showers.
 

TheGDog

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Jun 12, 2020
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OC, CA
Had to use the little 11oz Elk Ridge lil mini Hatchet thing to cut a hole thru all the limbs of this blown-down tree that covered the trail at this spot where, to walk around this blown down tree either subjected you to insane exertion to climb up and around.. or extreme risk on the downhill side of it. And I was going to be for sure coming back there more times in the season... so between the hatchet and buncha hard boot kicks to snap off stuff... made a decent passage way thru the limbs.

And then at each successive return trip after that it was interest to see the progression of how the critters and other hikers going thru that choke point quickly helped breakdown more and more of the limbs and branches. Until Forrestry people could eventually make it back in there to clear it in the cooler seasons.
 

DuckDogDr

WKR
Joined
Aug 24, 2019
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714
Sleeping bags get double duty when power goes out in the winter, although I have a really really nice wood heater .. so I’ve been set the past 3 years.

My CC pistol turns into a possum terminator when the chicken coop is raided at night

Coolest thing by far I’ve seen (was on the trip when happened but not my idea)
One of my dive instructors has a trip he runs 2 times a year, comes with solo certification. Drove 8 hours and get to storage facility and the boat trailer has a flat tire. We start rummaging around in his SUV for a jack.. he says F that .. too much work.
In his “save a dive “ kit he had the end of a tire inflator he had rigged a hose to. Grabbed one of the scuba tanks, hooked up his contraption and in 3 minutes had the tire inflated and a plug in the tire and we went diving .
 
Joined
Apr 8, 2019
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1,995
I used my outdoor cooker/fryer to heat up the ring gear for the front axle of my Jeep when I regeared to 4.10s....worked perfectly...Wife said after all the heads and the ring gear that I needed a new pot for things we plan on eating...:ROFLMAO:
 

TheGDog

WKR
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Jun 12, 2020
Messages
3,421
Location
OC, CA
Funny you should ask, I just used my reloading digital calipers to measure my wife’s nipples for a “correct sizing” on breast pump flanges.

Maybe she’ll let me justify buying more primers next.
And.. at least now she knows her sizing for buying those Gel Petals for covering the nipples when wearing certain dresses.
 
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Macintosh

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Feb 17, 2018
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2,877
definitely have used climbing gear around the house.
Before we re-did the roof, I tied a rope to my truck hitch and threw it over the roof, tied into it with a prussik to avoid the 3-story tumble off the other side, crampons to stay upright, and an ice tool to get rid of the rather large ice-dams.
Have used the climbing rope thrown over the roof many times to shovel-off big snow drifts and avoid taking the big ride, as well as to sweep my chimney every fall.
old static rope and sligns around trees to fell some dead trees that were threatening the house...helped ease my mind to pull them away from the house!
Years ago was on a road trip with my then-girlfriend in her 1978 mercury zephyr. On the long dirt road into the buttermilks outside of Bishop, CA, the muffler detached from the exhaust at the front end...which buried into the sandy road, and wrapped around the axle before we could stop. Having just come from Zion, and on our way to the Valley, I ws able to use a piton hammer to beat the muffler off so we could continue. Did I mention it was friday of the annual "mule days" festival? We were forced to stick around for the weekend and watch mule races, mule shows, mule auctions, peruse mule paraphernalia, mule memorabilia, etc until a repair shop opened on tuesday...of course by that time we'd lost brakes up at the top of the hill too, that was exciting getting back into town. Oh, and I got a speeding ticket, and since they only mailed their tickets and I was in AK for the summer, by the time I got mail I had an active arrest warrant in inyo county. For a speeding ticket. But, boy, was that pin hammer useful.
 

Vaultman

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Mar 30, 2019
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OREGON
I used my extra socks for toilet paper because I left mine in the truck
I was mountian biking in college with some buddies, and the previously unnamed trail we were on was then named "socks" percisely because my socks were left for this reason. Some were underclassmen, and I would not be suprised if that trail still has that name with the college kids.
 

NEPkaspot

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jan 6, 2020
Messages
148
Location
South Central NE
Forgot one…had a water issue in town so no fresh water at school. Used my Dromedary bag and Aqua Mira tabs to treat water during the work day. Good “practice” that other thought was a little out there.


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S.Clancy

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Joined
Jan 28, 2015
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Montana
I slept in a sleeping bag on a bed for yrs of my adult life. Between the woods and my bed I spent several thousand nights in that thing. I miss it dearly
 

Clarktar

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Joined
Aug 30, 2013
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AK
We used to have a no heat and only two lights on at a time rule in my first apartment. Used all my cold exposure clothes and sleeping bag and never was happier. Also used a headlamp.

Never could get a gal to dress down in that apartment come to think of it now.....

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