Does anyone in the UK include surgical tubing in any of their kits?, I would like to but don't know where to look for it. Also shrink tubing?
thanks

I carry surgical tubing in my (incomplete) hiking PSK. I get it from my dad (doctor). I live in South Africa, but maybe if you asked a friend/ someone involved in the medical profesion NICELY, they could organise some tubing for you.

good luck! <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I'm afraid I don't know anyone in the medical profesion. My sister is going to be a nurse but she hasn't even started uni yet and i'm not waiting that long! Any other ideas?

Try fishing tackle stores.Fishermen use it in different tackle rigs.I've seen it there when I visited Portsmouth back in 1986.
Boatman
John

I had surgical tubing in my PSK for a while, but on balance I chucked it out because I carry a platypus hoser that would sort of do instead. I got a ruck of shrink tubing from the Service Engineer who lives over the road. His van was full of it, or try a friendly electrician?

Hey Pete,
I use commercial Teflon tubing, just because it was easier to find. Also, on this forum, Presumed Lost once mentioned he used aquariium tubing. Either of these may prove easier to find.
Stay safe,
J.T.

B and Q or Homebase!


Mark

really? thanks

I do indeed carry aquarium tubing when backpacking, and consider it essential... last time I took some of the new, soft (vinyl, I think it was) type that seems to pack even smaller. I do have a short length of teflon tubing in one of the PSKs. Surgical tubing seems very bulky by comparison, but perhaps I'm missing something? Tracing this thread back to the beginning didn't seem to reveal what the intended use was...

Many years ago I noticed a surplus store that had a roll of surgical tubing... they told me it was to replace the tubing used in "wrist rocket" type slingshots. It's a thought..

Yeah! It's with the chain, rope etc. on roles-in homebase it is often near the security items-in B & Q if not a 100% where it usually is!!! My dad used to be an advisor for the buying operations of Homebase

Mark

I carry tubing for:
1) water procurement/ as a straw
2) as an emergency replacment for my hydration system

I carry SURGICAL tubing for:
1) the sling elastic for an emergency catapult (slingshot?)
2) it can be used to make a very nice lashing
3) i've fixed elastic cord onto various items (tent guy lines, a few lanyards...) as shock absorbers. the tubing can replace them if necassary.
4) if i am REALLY desperate, a tourniquet.

Let me just clear up that i carry the elastic/rubber surgical tubing. there MANY other kinds, (big small, thin, thick, rubber, plastic). maybe we are talking about different kinds of tubing?

I carry the rubber tubing for the alternative/emergency uses. if you simply want tubing for water-related purposes, perhaps a non-elastic, less-bulky tubing would suit your needs better.

No, your right. You hit the nail on the head. They are all the reasons why I want surgical tubing.
Thanks for all the replys everyone, very helpful.

Right- I do use the tubing only for water retrieval.. mostly for setting up siphons to fill containers from a stream or spring that may be no more than a trickle. For that use, the longer the better- sometimes there's not much slope, and the lower down the container is below the mouth of the tube, the faster it fills.

Also, though I tried the new, more flexible typpe of aquarium tubing and it does work and packs a little smaller, I found that it was more difficult to anchor the top end in the trickle- I usually just put a small rock on top of it to hold it down into the water stream, but with the flexible tubing, the rock pinches the tubing closed. A minor thing, but annoying.

try get a short, rigid plastic tube/straw that sits inside the tubing. you can then anchor the tubing with a rock/weight without compressing the pipe.
BTW, the surgical tubing can be anchored without compressing the tubing. I think that it's just quite thick.

Another great reason to carry a paper-clip. makes a great U shaped anchor for tubing in a stream bed.