Wilderness Equipment - Bush Gaiters

[lefroy]

Quick mention of the canvas bush gaiters from WE. Took these out from brand new for 4 days in Tassie's southwest for their first adventure. By day three, the bungee cords under the boot was completely shredded. 2x days of buttongrass/gravel and one full day on scrub and rock. They come with a spare set of cord, which I expect would get someone through a heavy six days. Then back to the shop to buy new cords. To me, these don't belong in Tassie unless you're on duckboards or a cute leafy trail. Disappointing. Took them back for a refund and went back to the S2S Quagmire with leather straps over bungee cords. The WE gaiters are comfy but until they swap out the cord for a strap they are useless for bushwalking in TAS. Zero stars

[WestcoastPete]

I have an old pair of S2S Quagmires (I think) that I’ve used an old boot lace on. I tie it in under the heel so it doesn’t touch too much. That boot lace has lasted ages. It broke once but I just tied it together. I keep thinking I should replace it with something else but it’s been pretty reliable.

[Moondog55]

I use a short section of tubular webbing over the bungy cord, when it started to wear though I turned it over and then added a short section of gaffer tape as reinforcement
.

[lefroy]

Yeah my first set of S2S lasted about 9 years. To be on day 3 and the WE looking like death I knew they weren't designed for bushwalking. Hiking, or tramping sure. Bushwalking? Nope

[ofuros]

On any new gaitors, i replace the original underboot cord with a 1.5mm dyneema cord/rope...it lasts for years.

[Son of a Beach]

The One Planet RFG gaiters have a tough strap underneath that seems to last a very long time (I don't walk as much as I used to, but mine have lasted several years and no sign of wear). I know that the RFGs were originally prototype-tested by some members of this forum who did a lot of walking in SW Tas, and they reckoned they were superior to the Quagmires.

[lefroy]

Good to know soab. I'll keep an eye out for them in a few years!

[Avatar]

That is unusually fast wear. 3mm Bungee cord is cheap.
I found some at a Sunday market being almost given away. Various diameters available.
Glue the ends with PVA. They last for many days but I do take a spare pair.

[bernieq]

I use 2.5mm venetian blind cord or 3mm utility cord. Both last for a long time, both are cheap (30m for less than $1/m) and, as it's light weight, I take a spare pair if the current ones are showing signs of wear. I imagine that, if you wear flat-soled boots/shoes, any strap/cord won't last long. With heeled boots/shoes, the 2.5mm cord last 100s of km across all terrain.

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[chippy]

I've had several pairs of WE Bush Gaiters, and on every one I have removed the elasticated stirrup before use, as it obviously won't stand up to even modest use, let alone off track or sharp rocky scree. I find because the cut and of the bottom of the gaiter is designed to sit quite low, combined with the stiffness of the non-elasticaden nylon, it stays on fine simply by attaching the hook as low on your boot laces as possible. I've never had mud or debris getting into my boot doing this, and as long as that hook stays on you're invulnerable.

I have also had several pairs of S2S Quagmires, but find they simply don't last as long. I'm currently still using some TasGear gaiters (I believe he no longer makes them), which are by far the best gaiters I've ever used. The stirrup on these died long ago, but the body is still lasting well and similarly to the WE Bush Gaiter, it stays adhered well with only the hook.

I find a benefit of not using any stirrup is that there is one easy bit of rubbish not to leave behind. The amount of gaiter stirrups you find on more popular track is surprising, and none are made of very eco-friendly or decomposable material.

When my TasGear gaiters finally walk their last walk, I'll be getting another pair of WE Bush Gaiters as in my opinion they're the best choice for serious bushwalking in Tasmania.

[johnrs]

Tasgear is back in the gaiter business
with new owners
order on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/tasgearbushwalking/
John

[chippy]

Tasgear is back in the gaiter business
with new owners
order on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/tasgearbushwalking/
John

Well there you go! Unfortunately the link to the website doesn't seem to go anywhere. Will I have to make a Facebook account to oder some? Oh dear! Perhaps a small price to pay for excellent gaiters.