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13/6/2015 at 11:20am
Location: Severn Valley
Outfit: Aztec Galeria 4 Outwell Virginia 5
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Joined: 22/8/2009 Diamond Member 
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Camping gear is terribly exciting. Just looking at it and buying something new reminds us of all the wonderful times we have in our tents and gears us up for the next trip.
But where new gear is concerned, after 50 years' camping, I've reached a plateau. Firstly we're semi-retired, and really can't afford to splurge. Secondly we're committed, for financial reasons, to a medium-sized car and OH loathes roof-racks and trailers, so space is at a premium, thirdly buying more kit now we have our set-up perfectly fit-for-purpose would be counter-productive. Thanks to my bad habits, we're climbing over clutter at home, so the last thing I want to do is clutter up the tent!
Also I really HATE parting with the old stuff, and some of our kit we've had for 40 years. I grow fond of things, especially if they're still doing worthy service after decades, and don't see the point of replacing them.
So I can safely go to Milletts now for a bar of Kendal Mint Cake and come out... with a bar of Kendal Mint Cake...
...unless of course they have a clothing sale... 
FoO
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FoO
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13/6/2015 at 12:54pm
Location: Derby.
Outfit: Karsten 350+Awnings
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Quote: ...So this means constantly shopping for gear wether that be G.O,eBay,amazon,Aldi,Lidl or even the camping section in tesco...
Or God forbid, a dedicated (and often independent) camping and caravanning supplier, who sell nothing but camping and caravanning gear, have staff that know their products, and have more than likely used them themselves, quite literally "Out in the field", and are happy to advise/demonstrate accordingly.
The likes of GO, and the others you mention are ok if you have done your research, and convinced yourself that the said item is precisely what you want/need. Expert advise/product familiarity/customer satisfaction can be somewhat thin on the ground, if my experiences are anything to go by!
There used to be a saying about peanuts and monkeys, back in the days before PC!
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14/6/2015 at 1:21am
Location: notts
Outfit: Outwell Oakland xl & Bear Lake6
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Quote: Originally posted by Mucker1884 on 13/6/2015
Quote: ...So this means constantly shopping for gear wether that be G.O,eBay,amazon,Aldi,Lidl or even the camping section in tesco...
Or God forbid, a dedicated (and often independent) camping and caravanning supplier, who sell nothing but camping and caravanning gear, have staff that know their products, and have more than likely used them themselves, quite literally "Out in the field", and are happy to advise/demonstrate accordingly.
The likes of GO, and the others you mention are ok if you have done your research, and convinced yourself that the said item is precisely what you want/need. Expert advise/product familiarity/customer satisfaction can be somewhat thin on the ground, if my experiences are anything to go by!
There used to be a saying about peanuts and monkeys, back in the days before PC!
My father in law was a marine engineer and in many ways you remind me of him. Everything he did was precise and down to the last mm. All your posts are detailed (don't get me wrong, I love it) and you like everything just so.
He would suggest better ways of doing things but at a cost.
Now luckily, before we started camping using our own tent, we used to camp with Eurocamp, Eurosites, Keycamp etc. for many, many years. (We virtually did most of the coast of France). Because of this we got a feel for the equipment used which tended to be of a good standard (it had to be because of all the people using it). So, with hindsight, when we came to buy our own stuff we had gut feelings and instinctively knew what was a good product. Also, for about two- three years, I used to spend hours on this web site researching and reading reviews etc. before I actually joined - it was the technology thing. Because of these things, I think we made choices that were a) a quality product b) good value c) user friendly and d) met our needs - we like our gear and wouldn't change it - some of it will out live us!
So I agree with you about going to an actual camping shop and dealing with people who have, most likely used the products and are knowledgeable (a must).
But I'm sure you must agree (yes, you did) that places like GO, Lidl, Aldi etc. do have some decent camping gear and for basics and sometimes quirky, they are good value.
For beginners GO etc., is a good place to start (if you don't want to make expensive mistakes) as it has everything you need. For the more experienced campers who, most likely have most of their gear, they are a source of "newness" and what's next (and bits and bobs).
There appears to be a new "GO" called Outdoor Experience (I think) opening in Nottingham soon - I assume its' stock will be pretty much the same. But might have a gander....probably won't buy, but it's good to look!
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14/6/2015 at 8:27am
Location: Derby.
Outfit: Karsten 350+Awnings
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Don't get me wrong, Floppers, I totally agree there's a place for the like's of G.O. We got a fair few items from there when we set ourselves up 3 years ago. The likes of camp beds and (our first) SIMs, tables, food cupboard and cooker stand spring to mind, as well as a few lights and other smaller items. I'd also say that, off the top of my head, all 4 plastic clips that hold the table top to the frame of the food cupboard have now all broke off, and our dining table top is now cracked and needs to be covered (may see the skip before this season is out). But I'd add that both of these are more due to circumstances (the way we use/load them etc) and wouldn't particularly accuse them of being poor quality. I think we've had our money's worth out of them, for sure.
Don't think I can say the same about the likes of B&M, in all fairness, but we are talking small items, many being mere afterthoughts. But again, if you calculate a £4 item lasting 2 x weekend trips, a pound per night may still offer "value for money"!
I'd say places like Aldi & Lidl fall somewhere in between. Again, we've bought camping stuff there. Certainly didn't have a problem with our second pair of SIM's and I would even recommend them, for folk who are maybe "on a budget". They were less than 10% of the cost of our third pair(!!) but I'd say they were at least 50% of the quality, if not more, so certainly good value for money. I'm even tempted to use the term "excellent", as far as they were concerned!
The problem for newbies (and quite a few of the rest of us too!), is that sometimes we don't actually know what we want. Ok, we may need a table, for eg, but do we know which is most suitable for our needs? Let's face it, there's a million options. I just don't have faith in the staff at the likes of G.O. to talk me through their available options and offer me the most suitable table, as they seem to have little knowledge/experience of their products. Let's not forget, they also sell gear for cycling, fishing, hiking, horse riding etc. Not exactly "specialists" in one activity. I may be wrong, of course, but that's the impression I get whenever I'm in there.
That, of course, is where the internet, and particularly these excellent forums come in. We can get all the advice we need from here... but it's still good to speak to an expert on the shop floor, and have demo's of said options!
I do remember buying our first sleeping bags from G.O. too, after consulting "a sales assistant" about our needs. It's a decent brand, and we still use them in better climes, but they don't cut it in winter (which we specified in our requirements) and they didn't even mention fleece lined 5 season fishermans sleeping bags... even though they had them on the shelves... over the other side... in the fishing dept!! A perfect example of my thoughts above!
We went back and got them a few months later... without UKCS, I wouldn't have even known they existed. Maybe that initial sale should have been the perfect opportunity for G.O. to have suggested these as an option for winter camping.
My niece mentioned this new place over at Riverside (Notts) only last night. She gave the impression it is already open (?). I'll certainly be taking a look sometime soon. Like I say, there's a place in the market for these "warehouse" places... as long as we have done our research, and know what we want!
Post last edited on 14/06/2015 08:34:33
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2024: 38 nights thus far...
2023: 47 nights
2022: 40 nights
2021: 30 nights
2020: Just 24 nights
2019: A personal best 50 nights
2018: Just the 30 nights
2017: 34 nights
2016: 32 nights
2015: 38 nights
2014: 34 nights
2013: 36 nights
From July 2012: 23 nights
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