Essential Outdoor Gear Manual: Equipment Care, Repair, and Selection Paperback - 2000

From the rear cover

"I could have used this book when I snapped my kayak in half descending the Niger River. I could have used this book when I busted my water filter bicycling across Siberia. I could have used this book on Mt. Everest when all ten of our stoves were either in flames or had already exploded. Save yourself crocodile attacks, dysentry, and singed eyebrows--read this book!"--Mark Jenkins, columnist, "Outside," and author of "Off the Map," "To Timbuktu," and "The Burma Road" (forthcoming)

Considering the cost of outdoor equipment these days, it only makes sense to repair, rather than replace, your carefully chosen gear. Regular maintenance is the key to maximizing the performance of your investment.

Veteran outdoorsfolk Annie and Dave Getchell have bought, used, abused, worn out, and repaired tentfuls of outdoor equipment. This second edition of "The Essential Outdoor Gear Manual" combines their 35 years of experience to help you choose the right gear, use it wisely, and repair it in the field or home workshop. During countless adventures, Dave and Annie have accumulated an encyclopedic collection of cutting-edge care and repair tips from manufacturers, innovators, and outdoor gurus. The new edition adds time-tested guidance on how to choose exactly the right gear for your outdoor needs.

"The Essential Outdoor Gear Manual" is an abundantly illustrated, multisport reference that offers clear, concise suggestions to help you care for everything from tents, cross-country skis, and hiking boots to kayaks, canoes, climbing equipment, backpacks, stoves, and more. To handle those inevitable repair jobs, you'll learn--among other things--how to patch a canoe, clean a sputtering campstove, fix a busted zipper, sharpen ice-axe teeth, and mend a leaky rain jacket. Annie and Dave have packed "The Essential Outdoor Gear Manual" with advice on adhesives, environmentally friendly cleaning solutions, repair kits, specialized tools, and useful knots. An extensive appendix of repair services and resources will guide you to the nearest expert should your own repair skills come up short.