Thread: Lightweight touring setup

Easy,don't fit it out with 10K's worth of ARB gear. Pat

G'day Simon.
I think you are on the right track by starting with your lightweight walking gear. add to that some additional creature comforts (Swag/ Small fridge etc) and you will save 000's of kgs.
By keeping your kit small, you can place it in the vehicle to better balance it.
Along these lines, I am fine tuning my geaar 'layering'system.
In the Army, you start with your pockets
Webbing
Pack
Vehicle
Just adding layers of additional gear but still having your necessities that you use no matter what the context or operation.

I think it may have been Xtreme who made the point several years ago that you can save a lot of weight by taking only items that can be used for more than one purpose.

Yeah I think not adding unnecessary items and keeping it compact, lightweight and multi use is the key.

Smart planning leads to effiecient traveling. I use a 1,2,3 system;
1= i need it eg water and fuel

2= handy to have/ insurance. Some tools , spares, etc

3= luxury, not really necessary. Eg awning, roof top tent, etc

For the stuff i do a tarp is great. Its light weight and i can mount it how i like, not heavy like an awning.

A swag suits me fine. Easy to put up and no where near as heavy as a roof top tent.

Etc....my 2 cents

The first question you need to ask is do I want to travel light due the area I will be travelling to or can I sacrifice some light weight items for comfort in the long term. Whilst it is true that keeping weight to a minimum provides less stress on the vehicle and ultimately the environment, I do not think that saving weight by leaving out items that could ultimately make a longer trip more comfortable is really worth it in the long term. this is also true of who is travelling in the vehicle A happy wife is a happy life is a saying that comes to mind
Being sensible about what you take and not overloading a vehicle or knowing that you may be undertaking a particularly hard track for the weekend, would certainly see me packing differently than say an extended trip to Cape York or other outback location
Not fitting a winch and then ultimately being stranded for a few days or having to abandon a trip due to poor equipment choice would not be the sensible approach to off road driving.
If travelling in a convoy, then sharing equipment and discussing who will carry what item of equipment should be a part of your trip planning.
There are certainly items of equipment that may be substituted for lighter items such as not taking a cast iron pot and replacing this with an aluminium alternative, however, once again, provided the vehicle is not overloaded, which is also slightly different to being over gvm, then all should be fine,
i have often stopped and purchased fresh food and vegetables as opposed to carrying groceries from my point of departure in a fridge, this once again is subject to good trip planning
i have led expeditions and run training courses all over the world including remote areas of Africa, China and Australia and knowing where you are going and what you can find along the way, including choosing a vehicle that is easily repairable and has readily available spares is once again paramount to your planning.
Africa was traditionally an area traversered and serviced by Land Rover and no expedition leader would have thought of travelling in anything but a Land Rover. Today, is a slightly different story and the vehicle of choice is a Toyota Hilux
I hope that this information is useful
Regards
XDrive

Originally Posted by PAT303

Easy,don't fit it out with 10K's worth of ARB gear. Pat

Yeah but 10Ks worth of ARB gear looks really cool !!! Lol .

Good idea to aim for. A mate refuses to have a roof rack as allows more gear than necessary. Also doesn't take a fridge as too heavy and bulky. The family is strictly limited in what they can take, yet are still keen on camping.

Punting the fridge is going a little to far but I like the idea.