This is to all of you like me who are on a budget and are sick of hearing that the gear you have is not going to make it if the SHTF and you need to survive with it. If you can afford the nicest gear, no disrespect here as I'm actually envious. But this rant is about those people lecturing on media how you need the latest and greatest to survive and you will die without it.
Prepping is important to me living on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Tropical Storms, tornados and of course hurricanes are something we have to prepare for from June to October. A price to pay for living in paradise. I do a lot of research before buying something to add to my gear and it is important to test it out to make sure it performs the tasks it was intended for without causing me to go into debt because after all, going into debt is not prepping (financially). There is a lot of good budget gear out there that if used as it was intended for, will be more than enough to get you by. Only you can make this decision of what is good enough for you. Like I stated, research it, price it out to your budget, and test it once you get it. Again, for what it was intended for. Example, I didn't buy a knife for batoning wood. Personally, I've never had to baton wood as there are these things called tinder and twigs I use. But on a very wet day I could see someone having to baton wood. I've just never had to so I didn't buy a knife to do what my hatchet does. If you're ultra light I can see you getting a more expensive knife also.
Always prep within your means, don't feel inadequate because you don't have the latest Custom knife or a three hundred dollar sleeping system. These people that promote these things are usually given free stuff, credit, and sometimes paid outright and will make you feel like you just have to have this stuff or you might as well not prep. Look at history. What did the frontiersmen, the Cowboys and explorers use as a sleeping system? More than not a rough shelter, a wool blanket and hot rocks. Even a super shelter you can make is less than 30 dollars
You can learn a lot by following how our ancestors made it without expensive gear. They had to. It was a life and death situation and it was either adapt and improvise or certain peril. Plus, learning how things were done and picking up those tricks they learned will definitely make you a better Prepper. Yes, even I get frustrated out in the swamps when I forget to bring something but I take that frustration as a challenge and try to figure out how to get by.
Everyone preps differently. We prep according to our experiences/skills/knowledge, our environment, and what we happen to pick up on the way. Be careful on what you pick up from others. Research what you hear or read. There are alot of people giving bad info out there. These are the people I call backyard Preppers. They don't camp, they don't go hiking, they read or hear something and just tell you it's advice without ever testing.
Here's my advice to you and it's to learn challenges and frustrations you may encounter. Go camping. Leave your tent in the car. Leave your stove in the car. Only use what you plan on using if you had to bug out. See what you need to improve on and if it gets rough you can always unpack the tent, stove, and other comforts Make some mental notes and I bet you that you'll leave with more knowledge than you came with.
If anyone actually reads this, I'd love to know what other useless gear you see these merchants pedaling, or misinformation you've seen given as advice. Here's one for me. Those useless tiny stoves that can only boil water. It's not hard to make a small fire and use a stainless steel canteen or Billy Pot to boil water or make a soup/tea. Just my opinion of course.