UKC

Hi, 

I was wondering if anyone has any pointers on restoring old linings to rucksacks?

I am wondering as i have 2 old berghaus rucksacks what i love. 

I read some where about using neat fabsil on the inside and was wondering if anybody had any experience/tips to restore the linings 

If it's a PU waterproof coating, things like Fabsil won't work, as they are water repellent treatments only.

Some had had success reproofing tent groundsheets with diluted silicone sealant; google for details.

Have you considered an appropriately sized lightweight drybag inside the rucksack?

...or the cheap and cheerful option, a rubblesack.

or the even cheaper, cheerfuller option - binsack. It's worked for my scouts and I for years.

I would suggest the bin-liner/drybag option. I always use one anyway. I have tried the diluted silicone sealant approach on a tent flysheet. It works but the end result was a rather sticky finish which is not ideal. That may have been my poor technique. Spraying the outside of the sack with a waterproofing agent is likely to give a better result as the old fabric may absorb less water.

Hi,

Yeah ive tried dry sacks and i don't get along with them.

Or use a rucksack cover.

Quasi-serious question: how can you not get on with plastic bags or drys bags in a rucksack? First, what is there to not get on with? And second, it feels verging on being unpatriotic - we're British. We pack things inside our rucksacks in waterproof bags because it rains and because that's what we've always done. 

If you really want the aggro then Barbour thornproof dressing works if applied on the outside. I’ve done it to restore the appearance of an old rucsac. Seams will still leak though. Functionally a liner works better. 

Fair point I'll give them a stab aswell 

Yup absolutely. I've got a few small drybags that have set things in them that I can pack depending on what I'm going to do. Eg, one has headtorch, batteries, gaffer tape, tic tweezers, a wound dressing and a very compact bivvy bag and almost always goes in. Another one is a more complete first aid kit, another one has an emergency shelter and a blizzard blanket etc etc. Waterproofs, gear etc goes in loose. It makes it really easy to pack and to find things when I need to. If I'm with a group I can tell someone "look in the orange drybag" to find something specific.

A drysack to me is something different - a drybag with shoulder straps, a drybag rucksack, in other words. Very useful for portaging, or making a shore landing in a RIB, but not particularly comfortable compared to a modern rucksack (at least the 60 litre LOMO ones that we used weren't).

Is this what you mean?

Colour coding bags works a treat when wild camping, too.

As an update I have used fabsil on the inside and outside of the ruckack after using a proofing wash and it seems to have worked relatively well as water now beads off. I have yet to test it in driving rain but in drizzle and light rain it seems to work nicely