Multipurpose gear

[my_vantasy]

My Kindle! Like Willy said about his laptop, I use it for all those things plus it is also a library and a bookstore. It is small and lightweight so it can go everywhere.

Not very original, I know, but that's all I got for now.....

 

[highdesertranger]

great ideas.  how about my dog,  car alarm,  garbage disposal,  camp guard,  good conversation never talks back,  great co pilot never a back seat driver,  personal protection,  great bed warmer,  low maintenance.  he does all these and more and doesn't need batteries.  highdesertranger

 

[my_vantasy]

Highdesertranger--best answer ever!! Thanks for reminding me!

 

[twokniveskatie]

Stargazer- don't know if you are familiar with Pinterest, but I get alot of my ideas from there. Very inspirational! Lots of vandweller oriented stuff. Some amazing rigs!

 

[Willy]

 My dog Coco is also my dishwasher.. one less onerous chore for ol' Willy to do!

 

[caseyc]

At a local Bed Bath &amp; Beyond store, I recently bought this cutting board that can double as a serving tray. The website even promotes this product for the dual purpose of cutting and serving.&nbsp; I bought it either on sale, or on clearance at a good price.&nbsp; I should have bought 2, because when I went back to the store, it was already sold out.<br><br><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">Dexas® Chop and Serve Cutting Board</span><br><a href="http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=18591855" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=18591855</a>

 

[zemio]

Swiss army knives, for sure! I have 6 or 8. Duct tape needs no justification, one of my friends is the mother of seriously noisy brat, her faverite expression is "Silver duct tape, yellow tennis ball, golden silence" I dont know if she's joking or not. Haemostats I have also, a good strong one makes an excellent fly tying vice when you are hiking.<br><br>My best piece of unsual kit left over from my hiking days is a cheap Frisby. Non-spill chopping board, plate, flat surface for working on things, emergency sand and snow shovel and in case of boredom, I spose you can always...well...throw it. Get the softer plastic kind, not the brittle sort.

 

[RJCooper]

Wow so many of my things are double duty.&nbsp; I am going to take some time and make a list.&nbsp; Great ideas above folks.

 

[TxGypsy]

My utility trailer is my most versatile piece of equipment.&nbsp; I use it to transport my motorcycle and 4 wheeler.&nbsp; I have a small chest freezer and can set up a kitchen in there when the bikes aren't in it.&nbsp; I have clothes lines strung across the ceiling for drying clothes.&nbsp; Keep my clothes washing buckets in there.&nbsp; I rotate items out of the van depending on what I'm using at the time so that I'm not crowded.&nbsp; I'll eventually have my solar system set up out of the trailer.&nbsp;

 

[marineprepper]

Ammo cans, I use them to store, well....ammo, tools, dry goods and I recently made a charcoal grill out of a 20mm ammo can. I think someone mentioned it allready, "shemagh", I use mine frequently. Hand towel, around the camper, If I go out on the boat or camping it comes with. Ive used it to hold rasberries, veggies from the garden, eggs, a scarf when it was cold and to cover my neck when I was in the sun all day. <BR><BR>Great thread BTW to the OP!!

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

That rubbery mat stuff pictured above on the cutting board is awesome and proven very valuable to me in the van, it holds every in place...i haven't built an electrical cabinet yet and couldnt find a place for the inverter and my little volt reader, i threw that stuff on my luggable loo seat and put them there and they haven't moved an inch!&nbsp; I put it under everything now.&nbsp;

 

[Unchained]

Another use for binder clips- Over the 4th of July, I found myself tent camping at the Visalia, CA KOA (don't ask), where it was getting to about 100 degrees by 9AM. I was in a 3 pole 7' x 8' dome tent with rainfly, but no shade in sight. After being driven out of my tent by the heat at 6AM the first miserable morning, I took my ever present 6' x 8' tarp with reflective lining and used binder clips to secure it (reflective side out) under the rain fly and high on the other 2 poles facing the sunrise, then staked it out. The following morning, my campmate had to roust me out of bed sometime after 8AM because my tent was still cool while his (same tent, no tarp) had become a sauna <img src="/images/boards/smilies/cool.gif" class="emoticon bbc_img"><br><br>Also, I have to put in a plug for the lowly bandana. I bought an oversized one (29" x 29") and it saved my butt on the above mentioned trip. Sweat rag, sunburn shield, wash rag, hair band, pad to keep the broken glove compartment door from killing my shins (yeah, that sucked), improvised carry bag, you name it. Like the shemahg or sarong, a bandana has 1001 uses. Pretty amazing for a simple piece of fabric <img src="/images/boards/smilies/biggrin.gif" class="emoticon bbc_img">

 

[caseyc]

That's a coincidence about the ammo container.&nbsp; I recently got a small rectangular size ammo box container not to hold ammo, but to hold my large Penn 8000 Battle spinning reel for fishing.&nbsp; Fits just right and a little extra room for padding if needed.&nbsp; I also like that the container has 2 holes at the corner end that line up so you can add a small padlock to it.

 

[LucyImHome]

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[Patrick46]

I use that same tub Casey, and Stargaser's binder clips are cool too<BR><BR>I use a TON of these guys...<BR><IMG style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 8px; PADDING-RIGHT: 8px; PADDING-TOP: 8px" id=il_fi class=bbc_img src="http://dualityentertainment.com/mike/Tools/clamps.jpg" rel="lightbox"><BR>Bought a big mixed bag of 'em at the hardware store on sale, and use them for everything from clothes hangers, to clamping tarps (which we use alot), to keeping potato chip bags closed to name a few...

 

[twokniveskatie]

i love this thread! new ideas to try out all the time!<br><br>lucy- that link or whatever didn't work for me, did it work for anyone else? i am curious! what is it!<br><br>unchained- i found 36" square bandanas on ebay once. love them. i kept one and threw the others on the give away blanket at the RTR. somebody took 'em, so the big size appealed to someone besides me.<br><br>my latest discovery for uses for pieces of fabric is called furoshiki, a japanese method of folding cloth into bags, giftwrap, knapsacks, produce carriers.....<br><br><a href="http://furoshiki.com/techniques" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://furoshiki.com/techniques<br><br></a><a href="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><br><br></a><br><br><br>

 

[yesican]

Wow!&nbsp; So much you could do with a square piece of material!&nbsp; Thanks Katie.

 

[Unchained]

Awesome link, Katie! We really need a '1001 uses for a random piece of fabric' thread.&nbsp; <img src="/images/boards/smilies/biggrin.gif" class="emoticon bbc_img"><br>Speaking of thread, here you go:<br><img rel="lightbox" src="http://www.funnypictures.se/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/i-love-this-thread-so-much.jpg" class="bbc_img">

 

[LucyImHome]

The pic I tried to post was of a woman that was on a giant scavenger hunt. That particular scenario was that you were short on time to get dressed so had to find an super hero outfit fashioned from what was available in the garage. She wore electrical wiring wrapped around her bottom in the look of a skirt, wound up to the top. Not sure what the top was, orange insulation? A binder clip held things in strategic locations. Vinyl gloves, welding helmet, some small power tool. Shoes looked like small cement blocks held by orange tape? Clearly, orange is the new black! Looked pretty hot! I'm thinking ahead for Halloween! Well, except for the cement block shoes.

 

[twokniveskatie]

Lucyimhome, I would do anything to see a photo like that! This is a google challenge if ever there was one....

Unchained- love that pic! Someday I want to start a thread thread. As a spinner and a knitter I am in love with all kinds of thread. I love making cordage and have just added milkweed to my multipurpose hall of fame....food and cordage. AndI just found out how to make a fishing lure out of paracord....

I will be adding pics when the new forum goes live.