Yes... Wal-Mart but do not get the "removeable" stuff in the hunting and gun supplies that is meant for gun stocks and removes very easy without any residue.

get the camo DUCK tape (a brand name I think it all go it's start as duct tape before the brand name)

At my local wal-mart it is kept in hardware with all the other duck tape colors (they have brown, green and black too) but they move the camo when the seasonal hunting season section goes up for display. Now it is near the "hot hands" and "trail tacks" and "deer urine"...but it gets moved back to hardware with the tapes, glues and silicone adhesives closer to spring and sometimes it is in both places.

I saw a roll at Lowe's (different brand) and it was more than $6. OUCH

dixie

Yep I know the office supply addiction! I've also learned that all rubberbands break down over time - heat, cold, sunlight are murder on rubber. The material itself just breaks down becoming useless. Even the wider ones....

So, use them for stuff you keep (your personal logbooks, etc) and can replace as needed, but I wouldn't recommend putting them in boxes. One thing I've found that does work longer out in the field is hair ties, especially the kind without the metal bands and ade of all rubber and the covering thingy.

My personal office supply addiction: binder rings!

preboxed

<The rubber band I got is the #84, purchased from Staples in a bag of about 50, I think, dimensions of 3 1/2" X 1/2". That 1/2" makes a huge difference, as it really keeps the book closed and is much more sturdy than a thinner band, so isn't prone to break>

Is it a special type of rubber band? I ask because I have used rubber bands in the past for things and when they get old they get gummy and stick to what you have them on. It's pretty hard to get the gooey gumminess of the old rubber band off? I was just wondering if it's a new type, and if not wanted to give a heads up that rubber bands usually get gummy and icky after awhile.

I love the idea of keeping things together. Especially the laminated flowers:)

Trish(another person who loves office products;)

Quote

Is it a special type of rubber band? I ask because I have used rubber bands in the past for things and when they get old they get gummy and stick to what you have them on. It's pretty hard to get the gooey gumminess of the old rubber band off? I was just wondering if it's a new type, and if not wanted to give a heads up that rubber bands usually get gummy and icky after awhile.

I love the idea of keeping things together. Especially the laminated flowers:)

Trish(another person who loves office products;)

Nope, just a regular rubber band. Thank you for the heads up. I do know that sometimes rubber bands get brittle after a while, but I figure that when this one gets tricky, I'll just replace it. Hopefully, that will happen before gooey stuff starts.

I've also been looking at book bungees. You can view them at the Levengers.com website. I absolutely adore Levengers.

http://www.levenger.com/PAGETEMPLATES/PRODUCT/Product.asp?Params=Category=17-848%7CLevel=2-3%7CPageID=105%7CLink=Img

Quote

I've also been looking at book bungees. You can view them at the Levengers.com website. I absolutely adore Levengers.

http://www.levenger.com/PAGETEMPLATES/PRODUCT/Product.asp?Params=Category=17-848%7CLevel=2-3%7CPageID=105%7CLink=Img

Cool:)

Thanks for the link:)

Now to go and look for things:)(insert evil laugh)

Trish;)

Quote

So, use them for stuff you keep (your personal logbooks, etc) and can replace as needed, but I wouldn't recommend putting them in boxes. One thing I've found that does work longer out in the field is hair ties, especially the kind without the metal bands and ade of all rubber and the covering thingy.

Whoops! That's what I meant--for your personal logbook, NOT the ones in a box. I forgot that "logbook" could mean more than one thing in this hobby!

I love binder clips--so much better than paper clips, which end up clipping together the wrong pages.

Pied Piper

Quote

My personal office supply addiction: binder rings!

I am with ya' on that one!

I put in a requisition at work (I'm a teacher) for a box of 100 1" binder rings. My boss asked what the **** I was going to do with 100 of them. I just smiled and said "Everything!"

"And the mini-binder clips"

I like these even more than ever because I just learned that you can squeeze the wire and pop it out.. I have used binder clips to make a wooden picture frame stand up by placing one in each corner and flipping the wires down. Annnnd, I have baked the wires into clay sculptures to provide a hanger. I like the multicolored round pack I found at Staples about the best. The plastic boxes are nice for storing small craft items because you can see inside.
Eaglewatcher

I laughed out loud last night while walking through the Sharper Image store at the mall. I was surprised to see them selling a pricey (yellow!) version of Lock n Locks at this high-end store:

http://www.sharperimage.com/us/en/catalog/product/sku__ZN024

oooooh, pretty.

But I am still waiting for the camo colored LnLs

Mysitc Dreamer

I actually had a run-in with these over Christmas. I went over my girlfriends parents house for the family sit down and gift exchange. Her mom got her all kinds of candy, but each type was seperated into yellow or green lock'n'locks. My eyes sorta bugged and I kept trying to trade my presents for the boxes hers came in. Nothing Doing.

She did get me a large gift certificate to the local art store, so I guess what I would normally have to spend on the pink stuff will now go to the new sexy lock'n'locks.

Mr. Yuk of Team KPI

I got camo duct tape at the Super Walmart near me, in the camping/hunting section. We have the largest Walmart in the Midwest though, so it's possible our dept has a broader selection. Bass Pro Shops also had it, and they had a fabric version.

My husband received a "gift pack" from 3M (he's a pediatrician, ???) and it included a PEN that has post-it flags IN it, as well as special post-it's that come out of a dispenser. Way cool.

Quote

as well as special post-it's that come out of a dispenser. Way cool.

EW, EW Mr. Kotter;) Maybe it should be Oh, Oh, who knows how Horseshack spelled it, anyway I digress;)

I have these and I use them in my notebook that holds the printed clues. I tag the lb's I'm looking for on that day. They work GREAT:)

Trish;)

everywhere in my life.

Is there one place on this website, that has all the good purchasing locations, put together? I have searched all the threads, or so it seems, to no avail.

I have amazon and misterart and stampeaz and lock n lock. Is there anything I am missing that is imperative?

Personally I think Stampeaz and Lock n Lock are all you need anyway. :)

Shiloh

You gather them, and I'll put them on my website that's linked to AQ. Then you can bookmark it if you like.

~MC

Another option . . . you gather the list, post it on AQ, and bookmark your post.

~MC

Initially, I guess that would be a longcut!

~MC

What a good Samaritan you are!

Pied Piper

I appreciate all your help. Thanks to each of you!!

I like using the "Cooking Rubber bands" for items I know will be in storage or be used in the elements such as gardening. These are used for holding roast together in the oven or veggies together in the steamer.

They can be found at Walmart, usually during the holidays, saw some yesterday, or a restaurant supply store. They come in a mixed batch of red, green, blue and white, I think 20 for $2.99 and are about 4 inches long. They don't seem to ever get brittle. Heck they are in the oven at 350 degrees for 3 hours during Thanksgiving!

In the last three months or so, I have read about Camo tape, pens, log books, tape, paper, LnL and various containers. But what I haven't seen yet is what is your favorite tackle box? What do you carry your pens, ink pads, sig stamp, and whatever else with you while your out letterboxing. What works for you? I know there will be lots of answers, but I'm trying to find a suitable tackle box to carry everything. Must have a shoulder strap, compartments to keep my ink/pens seperated, etc.

Good topic! I have a favorite lumbar back by SwissGear that holds quite a bit of stuff, but I have accumulated too many supplies. It was fine until I added a LnL of CatsEyes. It has to be dumped out to find everything at each letterbox. Santa brought me a new backpack and I am looking forward to using it at the Winter BBQ. Has several separated compartments and a spot for a hydration pack. I think it's actually a snowboarding backpack. The waist strap helps support the pack and my arms swing freely. There is a strap that crosses my chest so the back will not wiggle off.

Depending how you like to carry your supplies, I found a very nice tool caddy at Sears the other day. It was at the checkout counter. Blue CRAFTSMAN canvas tote/caddy? It is zippered. I plan to use it to carry my travellers and supplies to events and gatherings, but not on the trail. It was $5.99. If you want the Sears number I will have to hunt for the tag.

speedsquare

Most of the time I am a minimalist. A small leather shoulder bag holds my logbook, signature stamp inside a soft leather pouch with my preferred ink( Brillance's Lightning Black) my PT's ( both of mine do not have logbooks and fit together inside an altoids tin), a small lock in lock which holds 6 of those 1" square Versa Color inks, a pen, my cell phone, my carkeys with tiny flashlight, emergency whistle, compass and medical info ( rolled up into a tiny tube and fits inside the whistle). A couple of wet paper towels in a ziplock( and a separate pouch of dry ones) and a couple extra as a fix it kit for boxes I find. Also a small length of duct tape for the same reason and a couple tiny bungees. It's very light and has gotten me through many harrowing situations. The strap is long enough to go across my chest to so it doesn't dangle and leaves my hands free. The strap is wide and soft so comfortable on the body and the shoulder. The stuff I use at every letterbox ( my stamp, my pen, my inks, my logbook) are in the outer zipper pouch and are easy to get to and pack up. Everything else is in the bigger main section, and most of the supplies do double duty. ( papertowels as stamp cleaners, wet box-dryers, something dry to sit on, bleeding cut cleaners, toilet paper in a pinch)

All the rest of my supplies like ( bug stuff, first aid kit, extra socks, my gps, food stuffs, bottled water, extra clothes, a blanket, maps, more inks,a walking stick, a pad to sit on, etc. are in my hiker's backpack which stays in the car and only comes out for the longer hikes and/or unfamiliar territory. Same rule though..easy to get to stuff in the outside pouch..everything else in the main compartment. I don't like to carry more than I have to.

LW PhD
"Nice Counts"

I found a scrapbook holder that works great. It's shape is like a pic nik basket that has no top on it. The bag has 15 pockets each divided so there is space for cell phone, inks, logbook, clue, stamps, first aid, car keys, and all the extras we take. It has everything in order right up front without the hassel of unzipping 42 zippers.....lol.

I carry an Eddie Bauer backpack with three main compartments and two netting-style bottle holders, one on each side. Sometimes it is a little heavy, as on long jaunts I need two bottles of water and may also bring a picnic lunch. On quick jaunts, it is much lighter. It even has a CD/MP3 holder in the large compartment at the top with a slit in it to allow for the use of headphones. In the winter, using this backpack is great, because it actually helps my back to stay warmer than it would otherwise.

I'm very much about compartmentalizing these days. So I have everything separated in various sizes of cosmetic bags. My logbook, compass, brush markers, pen, box with cat's eye ink pads, and personal stamp are in a single clear cosmetic bag so that I can grab them all at once when I get to a box. Other cosmetic bags hold things like sugar and Splenda packets and a travel-size Republic of Tea tin, one contains a first-aid kit, another serves as my wallet, and so forth. The nice thing about all of these separate bags is that it is very easy to transfer things from backpack to shoulder bag after boxing, and it also means I spend less time looking for small items at the bottom of either bag. Need a bandaid? I just pull out the little blue zippered pouch.

All of this compartmentalizing originates from my sister, fat lady, who a couple of years ago gave me a Nancy Drew get-away bag (a really nice soft-sided Samsonite overnight bag) with much of this stuff in it. Whenever we read the stories as young girls, we loved the fact that Ms. Drew carried a packed bag with one change of clothes in it so that if a mystery required an overnight stay, it didn't matter, and resolved that someday we would do that, too. So now, at a moment's notice, if we want to do an overnight letterboxing trip, it's easy as pie.

One other idea stolen from fat lady is the use of Levenger boxes as ink pad and personal stamp container. Levenger (levenger.com on the web), if you haven't encountered it before, is this wonderful--if pricey--company that caters to readers with just about every kind of accesory you can imagine. Everything you order from them comes in these little olive green boxes with lids and an elastic strap attached to the outside of the box. The smaller flat ones are great for keeping everything very easy to find.

The Levenger box I'm using right now is the one that came with their "pocket briefcase," but my great-nephew is using my older inkpad/stamp carrier which originally held the 50-card-capacity leather business card holder, and is therefore smaller. (We use small blank business cards on which to write notes, in addition to the index cards which fit into the pocket briefcase.) Personally, I like these boxes so much, I would be tempted to order something of a particular size just to get the box. ;-)

Pied Piper

I have a little pack from EMS. It has two compartments, a large compartment for my wallet, snack and logbook, and a smaller compartment with my ink markers and stamps. On the outside, it has a pouch for my cell phone and a water bottle. It has a shoulder strap which I use diagonally around my torso when I box. It's much lighter than a backpack and holds everything together.

Unfortunately, it's so small that I accidentally left it in my mother in law's car in PA last week! Thankfully, she is shipping it home UPS!

Music Woman

For my letterboxing adventures, I use a "Forward Observer," or F.O. bag that I had in the Army. You can likely find one at an Army-Navy store for roughly $10-20. I prefer the older ones that have metal fasteners, and are likely less expensive than new ones with plastic parts.

I like it because:

1. It's Army green and doesn't show dirt.
2. It's very very durable
3. It has a shoulder strap
4. Under the flap, there are several loops for pens and pencils.

This bag is made to carry all the supplies of a Forward Observer, a person on the battlefield that spots enemy targets and directs artillery (indirect) fire. That position requires map reading and computations and this bag was designed to accomdate these.

Okay, now I think I need a new backpack for my trail stuff.

Can anybody recommend one that opens up flat so you can see all your stuff at once without having to dig through the bag? Obviously, it also has to be comfortable to carry.

Thanks!

-Murray7