UKC

So my partner has had his trusty old prana t shirt (the one with the boulders on) for about 7 years now. He wears it a lot. It doesn’t need ironing, is soft, washes amazing and looks new apart from the holes now starting to appear with age.
 

He has had other (well known and respected) brands that just go funny at the neck or fade badly within months. It got me thinking - what outdoor clothes and makes do you have that last so well.
 

I know we can all keep wearing our stuff and mend the holes and get over the fade - I’d just rather pay more, environmentally and for less hassle for this kind of longevity in the first place. Cheers! 

I still wear a bog standard cotton T shirt from 1992 for climbing  but then a slightly "funny neck" isn't really a problem for me.  I can guarantee it didn't cost anywhere near what a Prana branded one cost.

I’ve some Patagonia kit that I regularly wear that’s 20 years old. Saying that, I’ve also had shirts of theirs that have bagged out after four or five years. Just passed them on to more… burly mates

I still have an original S7 pad that gets hauled out for duties when kid comes out too. More due to the 4 year old wanting her own for her “project” (tiny 1m overhang that she dangles off) than its actual stopping power

I have an ancient North Face Pumori fleece jacket bought in the mid 90s.

Although it’s wearing a bit thin now, it has no holes, zips still work and elastics are still stretchy.

I still wear it around the house.

I have a pair of Helly Hansen Lifa long johns which must be at least 30 years old which I still wear from time to time. I've replaced the elastic at the waist once (maybe twice) but otherwise still in good condition. Also 2 fleecy polo style tops from Odlo which are 15 & 20 years years old & still worn frequently in winter (wore the older one today).

Buffalo! 

Patagonia Houdini seems indestructible. 

Helly Hansen baselayers. 

Trangia. 

Ha, that reminds me what my longest serving outdoor thing could be. A few contenders!

Probably, since I can’t think of anything else of outdoor clothes I’ve got older, (and had been used a lot with a hard life), is my North Face Jammer fleece jacket (windbloc) bought late 1987 and it’s still fully usable and in good condition,  though doesn’t go near mountains or hills now a days. Wind-proofing is still first class and it repels rain for a long time. Hard to believe it’s in such a great condition considering what it’s been through over the years.

Pity the accompanying NF waterproof I bought at the same time didn’t survive that long before leaking like a sieve!

My longest lasting brands - Paramo (jackets, smocks, trousers, mid layers still going after more than 25 yrs), Scarpa (boots), Bridgedale socks (some getting thin after - a guess - 10/15 years), plus the NF fleece I mention about which will be the oldest garment.

Specifically for T shirt, I’ve also got a cotton T shirt from Timberland (bought in Canada in 2008) and it’s in much better condition than some I’ve got from a high street name than last less than a year.

Edit: To add Leki walking poles. 

As I write I am wearing a Berghaus ACL 100% Polyester long sleeved base layer top which is in better condition than it owner. It has to be at least 27 years old! 

If it lasts another 30 years that will probably be enough.  

 Just as well I don't have two of them.  One's enough.    

Helly Hansen thermals, bought '83, still going strong, though sometimes whiffy...

Helly pile jacket, '84 vintage, more bobbles on the outside than fibres on the inside.

Dachstein mitts, also '80s, washed only twice and still going strong.

I guess the trick is to pick good stuff and have high tolerance for faded and ugly. 😀

The whiff tells you they're genuine

Helly LIFA stuff - well over 30 years old and still in regular use.

ME Ultrafleece trousers - even older, but only get out to play in winter. I also had one of their original yellow-grey fleece tops which proved to be indestructible, but I 'grew out of it', passed it down to my son - who also grew out of it - and now awaits my grandson to grow into it. IMO ultrafleece was the best fleece anyone produced for a balance of windproofness, breatability and toughness. Whatever happened to it?

I've got Patagonia clothing from the late 1980s that is still going strong. I also have a Salewa down jacket from c.1985 which I still use, never felt the need to replace it.

When opening my wardrobe this morning I spotted my ME Annapurna duvet jacket (bought 1976) & a Rab down smock (Kinder ?, bought circa 1990). I still wear both of them.

I'm afraid that I have to point out that I own older non-branded shirts that have faded and gone "funny at the neck" but they have no holes and are therefore still perfectly wearable

My Paramo waterproof jacket(no idea of the model) is about 20 years old and still doing well.

Dave

Why did Rab stop making the Kinder Smock?! It had to be one of their best bits of gear for cragging imho.

On the branded side of things, I have a Buffalo Windshirt that has been heavily used for over 30k years, a North Face waterproof that has survived a lot of abuse for over 20 years and  Patogonia Capilene thermal top of the same age.

I commented on good quality non-branded shirts because it seems strange to highlight 7 year old branded shirts with holes in them as a good example just because they haven't faded.

Specifically T-shirts, I still wear a Patagonia T-shirt that I bought in Chamonix in 2003. The shorts that I bought at the same time are in even better condition, but they don't get as much wear.

I also had a yellow/grey ME Ultrafleece that I grew out of after many years of use; the fabric was still in perfect nick, though the knitted cuffs were starting to look a bit scruffy. I still have some Ultrafleece salopettes, though haven't tried getting in them for a few years! Best fleece fabric ever.

I've not yet worn out any Patagonia base layers or fleece layers. My mini-grid-pattern type Capilene base layers are about 15 years old I think, and until this year, got worn most weekends every winter. I've now bought another set as they re-introduced a similar fabric, and can alternate new and old. I also have a couple of R1 fleece pullovers; the second was bought only because I saw an offer rather than because the first had worn out.

Waterproofs don't seem to last as long, whatever the brand or material, but my 2003 Karrimor Summit Gore-Tex (pre-Sports Direct) is still my winter mountain jacket; it certainly doesn't perform as well as it used to but shows no sign of actually falling apart.

Its not just premium brands though; I have several pairs of Decathlon soft shell trousers that get worn all winter and are still fine, and they take some major abuse being dragged through brambles and kneeling in the canoe.

I suppose it depends how old you are.

 I’m 103 and as I dictate this I’m wearing the horse-hair longjohns my grandfather left me in his will. They haven’t faded though they have gone rather baggy at the knees.

I have an old Patagonia R1 that was a good 5 years old when a mate sold it to me for £15, I've had it for another 5, my Mum recently patched the elbows so should be good for at least another 5 haha!

Rab Latok alpine jacket I bought in about 2007ish that is indestructible. I thought I'd lost it for about 3 years but it turns out my younger brother had "found" it when we were both at home one Christmas and had been using it when he was doing forestry type work all that time. Barely a scuff although the velcro tabs on the cuff have peeled apart and need gluing.

Montane synthetic insulated jacket I picked up for £30 in a bonkers Climber's shop sale in Ambleside in about 2011. It just will not die.

Cheap Gelert knock off of a Terra Nova Solar 2 (I think?) bought in 2005-ish. The doors are utter sh*te, impossible to cook in the porch but the tent is completely bullet proof and still what I use for car camping.

Baggy knees are OK but it's not such a good look when they go saggy around the backside

I guess it depends on where and why they have holes. My climbing T-shirts all have holes where my harness "bites" them when I'm belaying or taking a fall.

I am at this very moment wearing a variant of the Kinder - the Peak Smock.  No idea how old it is, 20 ish? but great. Other brands that last well are Paramo - washing some very old Paramo kit now after a job on Cadair Idris last night. Also got a very, very early Patagonia Down Sweater (orange) but so dirty, difficult to see the colour! 😂

Another superb piece of old kit still in regular rough daily use is a Mountain Equipment Bipolar Fleece/Pile. Unfortunate name maybe, but brilliant jacket.

Odlo thermals from the 80's  A patagonia shelled pile jacket, also 80's.

Lowe Alpine trousers - late 90's

 I have just bought a Hilltrek ventile jacket.  That should still be around in 20 years' time

Wow, 30,000 years has to be the winner…

I have Rab VR tops and Ron Hill Tracksters, from 2003, in regular use.

Whoops I think that is a figment of my 50k year old smartphone's imagination

ME have brought it back. Only a hooded jacket so far. I can't comment on how it compares to the original ultrafleece stuff but I want one.

Berghaus Cyclops roc 2 rucksack (Bergen) bought 1993, still going strong

the elastic top round the lid went baggy (not a problem just irritating) I emailed them recently asking if they recommend someone to repair that saying it was in otherwise good condition. They replied with a recommendation (who unfortunately is busy with work until hell freezes over) but their reply was apologetic that a product failed and that I was disappointed with it. 1993 and still going strong... No Berghaus I am most certainly NOT disappointed with it!!!!

I've still got the old prana boulder T shirt, wear it lots, no holes in mine yet. Great value over the years but I do have a couple of £5 ones going strong too.

Don't start me on band T shirts bought at gigs though. Apart from the memories and the odd exception they get old way too quickly

Karrimor Haston Vallot rucksac bought 1982(?) It too has saggy elastic around the lid. Must be a dodgy batch of elastic used by both firms!

Yep, I can tick that box too! Although in my case it's a Berghaus Delta that I still use weekly. I think it was the first rucksack I ever bought, so probably ~40 years old. Got the baggy lid too.

This is a very timely post ... I have a Rab Latok alpine that I got about 7-8 years ago from the outlet shop, it's served me absolutely valiantly for all that time but now it just seems to let water straight through in heavy rain (I've reproofed it twice in the last 12 months to no avail).

Am I going wrong???

Eh I guess I'm going to ask the obvious, what are you washing it with?

erm I think I followed the instructions, used that Nikwax tech wash stuff 

 A stylish pair of Yvan Ghiardini trousers bought in Chamonix in the mid 80s. Red and purple with no rips or holes.

Rab sleeping bag from the late 70s still gets the odd outing.

Karrimor sack from the mid 70's is still perfectly serviceable.

Plus masses of ancient fleece.. some homemade.

That reminds me - I have an Ultimate 900 sleeping bag from 1980 (one of the first Chinese ones) and an ME Annapurna duvet jacket from 1981

I have a Craghoppers half-zip fleece that I bought in 2009. It's seen a lot of use and is still going strong.

I also still have an early 80's Karrimore rucksack that I bought from Joe Brown's in Capel Curig during a Scouts summer camp in Nant Peris. Granted, I haven't used it for a very long time but it is still in useable nick (complete with original "Joe Brown" patches).

Edit: Almost forgot - there are some black Prana bouldering pants from about 1999 here somewhere. A few "designer rips" here and there but they'll be 'reet for a few more years yet.

I still have a Berghaus fleece that I bought in roughly 1992-3. It’s maroon with a mustard edge on the collar. It is very loose and baggy, looking a bit more Happy Mondays than technical outdoor gear, but for some reason I’ve never since found a fleece of same comfort.

It almost got binned (not by me) several times but I rescued it each time, and now it’s my gardening top, but my teenage son loves it and puts it on for training in our woody. And the collar nicely matches his E9 three quarters!

I'm 30 and I can't remember what year I got any of my clothes. It seems like the fastest wearing thing I have is my memory. 

Karrimor goretex jacket from 1995, still waterproof, North Cape coolmax T shirts from at least 1990, Joe Brown (the shop) dryflo T shirt from the '90s. original La Sportiva Nepal Extremes from 1997.

Most of them I remember because it involved saving and thinking carefully before dropping the cash.

Sprayway purple fleece from 1993. Got it cheap as it was an insurance write off due to being in a shipping container on a ferry that caught fire and was discoloured on the inside lining. It's now my painting and decorating fleece and needs new zips on breast pocket and main zip, but is still functional.  Am still using a 1973 Vango Force 10 for my car camping .

I wonder how old the oldest Vango Force 10 still in regular use is ?

I've got some ten year old Tu, t-shirt and undies.

With regular use, I wonder how the canvas would hold up. I imagine any trace of orange would have long since faded.

OP: Old school clothing which I never owned as I was too poor at the time; Rohan Striders breeches and salopettes in Schoeller fabric, the original softshell.

My force ten lasted four summer alpine trips and most weekends for four years before the canvas fly gave up.

Made a new fly in 5oz nylon from Pennine Outdoor and it was good for at least another fifteen years until I gave it away having bought a Quasar.

I have a Mountain Equipment ultrafleece jacket from 1993 that's still going strong.  Plus several pairs of tracksters that may be even older.

T.

Hardshell jackets are waterproof because of the membrane, not the DWR coating. The coating is there to help them shed water more effectively which prevents it from saturating the surface and thereby preventing the membrane from breathing properly.

With this in mind, reimpregnating the jacket will help it shed water more effectively but it will still leak just as easily if/when the material wets out so long as the membrane is compromised. Unfortunately there is very little you can do about this as the jacket is constructed from sheets of membrane which are laminated together, meaning you cannot repair it short of replacing a whole sleeve or similar (unless the issue is very site-specific in which case you can patch it). 

The 2014 model of the Latok used an eVent membrane - this membrane is far less common now in the outdoor scene, primarily because of durability when exposed to dirt/friction. It's very breathable but unfortunately doesn't hold up as well as Gore Tex or Pertex membranes and so doesn't see as much application from manufacturers anymore. In general though you'll notice the majority of people on this thread aren't discussing hardshells and this is because they tend not to last for more than 5-10 years unless used infrequently. They are the outer layer and have the hard job of generally being quite lightweight layers whilst also taking the majority of the beating from environment/weather/rucksacks.

With this in mind it's not surprising that they don't hold out as long. If you want something that will stand the test of time then consider one of the G1000 offerings from Fjallraven where you can simply rewax the outer material and sew any tears shut etc - but they of course don't offer the same level of bombproof waterproofing as Gore Tex does. 

However it is worth pointing out that Tech Wash isn't a reproofing wash and what you should actually be using on your hardshell (unless it is also dirty in which case Tech Wash first) is Nikwax TX Direct which will refresh the DWR coating and help it shed water better. For this to work well the coat needs to be tumble dried at 30 degrees to help the coating bed in properly - drip drying does work but nowhere near as well. 

Hope this helps explain  

Best reply of all time 🏆! Thanks v helpful.

I'm looking at the Mountain Equipment Lhotse now which I've seen for about £270, it's Gore Tex pro - if I get that and it lasts >5 years I'll be reasonably content.

I will say that the Rab jacket with eVent was one of my all time best purchases of any object ever, I have no regrets that it's not working after 8 years of very faithful service in some fairly extreme (for a British hiker) conditions. It was a good fit, great pockets, great hood, great collar, sleeves... aaah I miss it already. Old faithful.

Afaik Patagonia’s old H2N0 Storm membrane was Event. I’ve had a few of them and I found them more waterproof and durable, though a bit less breathable than Goretex, in humid Scottish conditions at least.

I'm surprised nobody seems to have mentioned Arcteryx.  I have loads of their stuff (some around 12 years old) and everything has held up - other than one jacket, where the bonding on the cuff has come unbonded.

I have a lot of Rab stuff that is holding up well too.

Much of my kit is used multiple times per week.

Sorry you’ve lost me there? Presumably you are trying to make a joke about tracksters.

Rugby shirts for climbing in the summer are pretty good, though they can be quite uncomfortable, but when doing stuff like grit in the peak district or huge cracks where stuff is guaranteed to rip and tear, a rugby shirt won't!

I also like the Mammut Eiger extreme Nordwand pro jacket and pants, burly as hell! Very pricy though going for around £625 brand new for the jacket, I got mine through eBay so was a good deal.

Mountain Equipment Snowline duvet bought in 1975 from Tanky Stokes, still going strong,  wearing it as I type this in my heating free house. Seems increasingly like the best £40 I've ever spent.

I guess it’s stating the obvious, but my 1st Buffalo mountain shirt lasted me 25 years, and I only replaced it because of repeated trashing topping out on grit boulders. The replacement is 11 years old and going strong.

A notable mention for Arcteryx. I have an Atom AR jacket that’s around 15 years old I think, and also a Cerium down jacket of similar vintage. Both still in great condition. 

Mammut.

Expensive, but my fleece jacket, softshell, and climbing backpack are all >20 years old. The jackets start looking a bit scuffed at the sleeves, and the backpack is also nearing the end of its life (some seams at the bottom start wearing through), but all three have been surprisingly resistant given the level of abuse I subjected them to!

CB

Yes, I would definitely vote for Buffalo.  I am 50 years old and I have got a Super 6 shirt and a belay jacket which I got when I was about 18.  Both still get used, the belay jacket especially, as it is good for thrashing up gritstone chimneys in.  You can see the spots of blood on it!  The shirt has lost a lot of pile over the years so has been replaced with a new one for when it matters.

I also got an Ultimate Equipment hollowfill duvet jacket for when I climbed Mont Blanc aged 16.  You can tell it must be old as it has this weird tag inside it with the words 'Made in England' printed on it.  It is still hanging up by the back door, with a somewhat grubby patina and gets used every day in winter for nipping out into the garden or garage.

I also have a Rab down duvet that was hanging up outside Outside in Hathersage when I was 19.  It was the start of summer and was marked up at half-price at £50.  My birthday was coming up and I pointed it out to my parents and suggested they would like to give it to me for my birthday.  It is a bit baggy and not the most efficient design but it does still get an airing and I like the retro design of it.

As for Ron Hill Tracksters, what are you meant to eventually do?  Burn them?  They just never give up!