Thread: My Backpacking Setup

Hi!
I'm going to South East Asia (Cambodia and Vietnam) tonight and I've been looking for an acceptable way to pack my shaving gear.

Now, first. Let's get this out of the way
Q) Why take my straight razor stuff away with me?
A) Because I don't want to be shaving with **** for 16 months!

I wanted to take a double razor set, with two strops (one lightly pasted to maintain blades over a long period of time with no reliable way to get them honed.) So I've pasted my Renindler so I have linen AND pasted. This slips inside my Black Beauty (Australian made strop).

I found a pretty good shaving case - as I couldn't afford the Dovo one! - and it's all snug.
I've tested taking strops backpacking before and it works well if you simply lay the strop against the back of your pack and pack clothes around them. Mine didn't bend and stayed in good condition.

Here are some photos of the kit. Hope you enjoy em.

Unpacked shaving kit.
shave-setup on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Packed shaving kit.
packs-down-to on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

To protect my shaving brush, I've slipped it inside an empty toilet roll after shaking it out very well. Perfect!!!

Thanks to all who've given me advice on shaving kit, and if you want to check my travel blog, feel free to check it out at Rose and Sam’s Excellent Adventure
Adios!
Sam

very nice set up i will have to keep this in mind when i go camping

Very cool!

Seems lilke you've got it down. One thing I do when I spend my 2 weeks on the AT evey year is I pack my brush in a prescription pill bottle with a couple holes cut in the top to vent. In your case though I don't know what customs would make of that.

Also a tube made for packing toothbrushes holds a razor well.

Have a safe and fun trip.

Are you worried about sweat getting to your strops through your pack, or do you wrap them in plastic or something?

I would worry about the humidity! Better get some neatsfoot oil and keep that baby lubed or the jungle rot will set in and eat your strop. I would replace pasted strops with a barber hone. I hope you enjoy the trip!

Looks like a good kit to travel with, probably just the same as Stanley and Livingstone traveled with in their days
And by the way, you should try some local barbers down there, I first started thinking about str8's after an Indian barber gave me the shave of a lifetime.

But what are the two disposables doing in there.

Originally Posted by flyboy

But what are the two disposables doing in there.

To shave parts of my body that I don't trust with a straight razor.

Regarding the humidity. I've been thinking about this. It was ok in Broome, (sub tropical soup-air) but I did get razor rust which I've combated this time, keeping the blade oiled.

I haven't wrapped my strops in a plastic bag, as I don't think sweat will get into my backpack as it's got a layer of rigid stuff between my back and the pack, and the sweat will have to get through that and some layers of clothes but I will monitor this closely. Thanks for that suggestion.

I've been rubbing strop conditioner through my strop for the last few weeks and I've taken a small tube of conditioner with me so hopefully that rot should keep at bay.

Re: the barbers there. I will keep my eye out for them there. It'll be cool.

Thanks again for all the replies! Muchly appreciated.

Yes, pack frames are a wonderful thing. Good luck to you.

no mug, bowl/sink, or towel? no mirror? An Orikaso folding bowl makes a handy sink

personally i would lighten up in the strop department, repackage the products, use a small hone with a few strips of microabrasive, and use a brush knot with no handle- but then i obsess

I hope you enjoy your travels! Best Wishes

Originally Posted by jigme

To shave parts of my body that I don't trust with a straight razor.

Regarding the humidity. I've been thinking about this. It was ok in Broome, (sub tropical soup-air) but I did get razor rust which I've combated this time, keeping the blade oiled.

I haven't wrapped my strops in a plastic bag, as I don't think sweat will get into my backpack as it's got a layer of rigid stuff between my back and the pack, and the sweat will have to get through that and some layers of clothes but I will monitor this closely. Thanks for that suggestion.

I've been rubbing strop conditioner through my strop for the last few weeks and I've taken a small tube of conditioner with me so hopefully that rot should keep at bay.

Re: the barbers there. I will keep my eye out for them there. It'll be cool.

Thanks again for all the replies! Muchly appreciated.

What are you going to do in cambodia for 16 months backpacking? That sounds nuts. You should watch the latest rambo before you go.

The Seals use this stuff called Marine Tuf Cloth. IT is a micro-fiber cloth that will remove rust and leave a shield behind. It is very backpackable since it is only a cloth with stuff in it. They use it on the guns and knifes to clean it and protect it. Might look into that, since it is a lot cleaner than dealing with an oil bottle that might burst or something.
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