I have just tested a Swedish Army Trangia Stove and British Army 24hr ORP Balti Chicken Curry from a 24hr ORP pack. The Curry was pretty good (no Naan Bread though ),well lets say that I've had a lot lot worse from some local Curry house restaurants and the Swedish Trangia worked well in cool and windy conditions unlike some other alcohol stoves I could mention.







So along with the 58 Pattern Sleeping bag and the 100% Wooly pulley what is your favorite cheap and cheerful ex mil surplus survival kit?

Trangia always made/makes top of the line gear..i wish i could get the UK MRE's.i have seen some on the the surplus sites across the pond but they are sort of spendy with postage and all,if they will even sell to the US.for my favorite bit of surplus survival gear,and i do mean survival as it stays in the car over the winter and i don't use it camping,i would say it's that German sleeping bag with the arms.it got a few bad reviews when i posted it here a few years ago but i like it.i have a old jungle hammock but i don't see or use that as a survival item.

I am very fond of a US Army Mountain Cookset, two 2 quart aluminum pots with bails, and a stainless steel fry pan/lid with folding handle. Quite light and useful for backpacking with groups of four to six.

It has a date of 1951. I bought it about 1958 or so, probably for about $2.


It is old enough that, just possibly, Canoedogs might not have one in his collection, but I am not sure I want to bet on it.

May I ask were you bought your ratpack from? I'm interested in getting some for backpacking/off roading

Wow, that looks delicious. (I'm hungry) Trangia for me too. Love 'em.

You can get the very latest British 24hr Rations direct from the manufacturer called Multi-Climate Ration Packs.

http://rations.vesteyfoods.com/ration_packs.asp?ptypeID=4&packID=6

The older style rations can are available here (but these rations will most likely be a 1-2 years older than the MCRs.

http://www.surplusandoutdoors.com/shop/a...ent-687979.html

I used to get my 24hr ORPs locally for £5 each but are now not available. I would probably go direct the supplier at Vestey foods as the additional extra cost will get you the newer rations. Many of the older items have been replaced as described here,

http://www.army.mod.uk/news/14369.aspx

So no more biscuit browns, biscuit fruits (which I actually like), chocolate bars, powdered soups and Oat Biscuit etc which are more adapted to colder weather northern European environments.

The MCRs do look quite good though.

For me, the USGI poncho.

Posted a long piece covering the issue but it got lost in the ETS machine. After spending time and effort once I'm not going to recreate it.

French mess tin. Right size and shape to put a decent "belt order" kit, tough, and reasonably light.

EDIT
And 550 cord and P-38 can openers. Never leave home without either one.

Canoedogs, I had one of those and didnt care for it at all-I found it too drafty, and the middle slit opened up on me too much (I toss & turn a lot).

I dont know if I have a FAVORITE piece of issue gear, but, I do use a lot of it in my jeep. I have the current issue military sleep system (almost time to take the winter black bag out, yay!), issue poncho, and the Swedish Trangia. All 3 have stood the test of time for me-two were kept when I left the military, so they have been field test, extensively.