What gear would you never buy again?

[Bonk]

Vortex scopes.

Had 3 or 4. Never lived up to the hype.

 

[Deleted member 40394]

I like my two vortex scopes. I’d say squealing hen turkey call. And you fellas knocking the cough muffler. It helped me kill a few turkeys back in the day when I had coughing spells and was close to turkeys.

 

[CBH Australia]

Land Rover?!

Close but I think he was meaning more firearms related.
Dies the name Roy give you a hint?

 

[meigsbucks]

I like my two vortex scopes. I’d say squealing hen turkey call. And you fellas knocking the cough muffler. It helped me kill a few turkeys back in the day when I had coughing spells and was close to turkeys.

Glad the Muffler worked for you but deer definitely hear it. They busted me several times using it.

 

[Sika98k]

The “Butt Out” supposedly for taking the back passage out of your game

 

[ActionBob]

Most cheap stuff, especially optics and yes Vortex is right up there just above Simmons and Burris. The reason for that great warrenty is it's needed!!!

Red Head clothes. Almost anything Bass Poo.

Some of the new cheap but accurate rifles are actually accurate. But what crap to hold in your hands? Or to look at the ugly things...

 

[fourfive8]

The “Butt Out” supposedly for taking the back passage out of your game

Oh my!-- almost spit coffee onto my keyboard! Hadn't thought of the Butt Out in a long time! In about 2004-5?, a friend of a friend shows up with one on a deer hunt. I had to hide my strained and red face when I first noticed it. I avoided even acknowledging seeing it... knowing if the subject were brought up, there'd be no way I could hold in the inevitable loud, rude and obnoxious belly laugh in front of someone I didn't really know

 

[fourfive8]

As to the OP? I'm sure I've made quite a few junk purchases over the 60+ odd years of hunting and gathering equipment on my own. Some of small money and consequence and some worse than others. In times of not having any money, you simply have to make do with what you can afford or with things you are not educated about. The good part is you then can truly appreciate the better quality stuff later when you're older and can afford it. But, like many, I think I was slow on the education part about the "high" price of cheap optics- mainly binocs and scopes. Buying some so-called mid-priced optics well after I could afford better and should have known better.

 

[Tra3]

I had a pair of Irish Setter short boots start to come apart after two weeks of light wear for break in. Unfortunately it happened while I was in Africa. Managed to limp them through but that was the last pair I've had.

+1 with @375Fox I bring mini super packets for when something goes wrong. Duct tape, electrical tape and paracord are also in my kit. Thankfully most stuff is holding together. Superglue also doubles as a wound adhesive and can close a good cut. The medical grade super glue is mostly similar (as I’ve been told).

I bought a bipod with extra long legs, not useful and too flexible. I’ve only used them at the range, once. They are still shiny in their unused state of solitary confinement in my closet.

A cheap scope: if the glass isn’t good enough, you will hunt with a different rifle.

cheap rifle slings: your hand spends a lot of time on the sling, nice material makes a difference and the price is not much more for a good one.

a cheap folding knife that flexes too much or doesn’t lock reliably. This is a super-glue-needing incident waiting to happen.

Light and cheap arrows for bow hunting: just like good bullets, a good arrow is crucial.

 

[fourfive8]

Vortex scopes.

Had 3 or 4. Never lived up to the hype.

The posts about Vortex reminded and cleared my memory of some of my indiscretions of judgement on optics. I still look back and say to myself, "self, how could you be so blind and stupid!"

I never bought a Vortex anything as they came to market well after my full educational process was complete. I think my awakening really began when I could have afforded better quality binocs but read a glowing review of Burris binocs. I called Burris and listened to the sales rep's spiel. And since the outfit I worked for got an employee discount with Burris, I bit. First look through the glass and then that sinking feeling, I knew I'd been had. Then, knowing better... the blind and stupid part had yet to be purged... I bought one of their high end scopes, which are actually within the mid-price range of scopes. Been had again! That may have been when I finally received my Doctorate! I did have a couple of good scopes at the time and kept them but I started taking optics to gun shows and selling. Got rid of them all, not just the Burris but ALL the odds and turd ends optics- spotting scopes, binocs, rifle scopes. The cleansing

I purchased a good pair of binocs from one of the big three and added to the couple of good scopes I already had. I now have decent scopes on all my rifles.

 

[Ray B]

I don't recall the purchases or gifts that I've received that didn't work as advertised since they were put in some corner and forgotten about or given away- but I do recall the services of several "gunsmiths" that didn't live up to the title. so much so, that when I found a good one, such as CP Donnelly, they became a friend for life. Replacements when he retired and passed away were given one chance to show their skill. The reasons for fail have been mis-aligning scope mount screws, improper opening a standard length action to magnum length, then claiming that the reason it wouldn't feed was a result of improper stock bedding. Or the one that really got me was a pre-war M70 300 H&H that had been drilled but the base that I wanted had holes with different separation, so despite my directive for him to drill the mount to fit the rifle, he drilled another hole in the bridge, and to boot, he cross threaded the screw, Names of these hacks available on request, but I doubt that they are still in business.

 

[nztimb]

Cheap optics. I've learned my lesson the hard way.

I think all of us went through that early on. Quality always pay for itself in the long run.

 

[Bule Jagter]

Name brand Camouflage. It's overpriced, and not needed. Now that I'm older, I only purchase name-brand camouflage when it's the only option on an item I want to purchase. The marketing has really fooled millions of hunters. I'm sure I'll always own, and use something with a trademarked camo pattern, but it won't be due to being sucked into the fallacy of becoming less visible to the animals I hunt. I do like the look a few camo patterns, but again, it's not helping me any more than any other earth tone item. I don't believe a deer, kudu, of steenbok is going to be fooled when it sees me wearing a t-shirt with leaves and limbs printed on it.

 

[Johnny reb]

Binoculars and spotting scopes are not the place to buy cheap.

 

[rookhawk]

I laughed and cried reading this thread. I think this thread is largely fact, rather than opinion. Too many of us bought the same marketing hype on the same products it appears. One or two complaints is an anecdote, but dozens of thumbs up under the comments is leaning towards statistical probability.

Amen to the bad optics comments.

One final comment: I really enjoy seeing fellow hunters that are of simple means but not simple intellects. I’ve seen some people of humble means that had some outstanding hunting gear. Thrift store wool hunting clothes. An old Zeiss Jenna pair of binos from a garage sale. A mauser sportier they got at a pawn shop. A patient man with good taste and a frugal budget can own the best, it just might not be the newest.

The rest of us bought a ”butt out” and a Vortex and learned the hard way. P.T. Barnum had a saying about us.

 

[Tanks]

Wives 1 - 3.

 

[Ryan]

Burris optics of any sort. Bought one scope, gave me more problems than I want to recall. Sighted dead on, went hunting and shot over a deers back twice with it, etc. etc. Chucked it, haven't had any such issues since.

 

[Jörg Krüger]

A Hawke telescope. Even in a 30mm Tube they don't last.

 

[nztimb]

Always buy up to the quality you need, even if you have to save and sacrifice to get it as it will pay dividends many times over as you continue to use and enjoy repeatable dependability. Many time it is age and experience that teaches this but it is a lesson once learned is never forgotten.

 

[Johnny reb]

Buy once cry once it will save you money in the long run.