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Broke my ankle strap on the PCT last month and it almost ended my trip
Was hiking near Muir Pass when the buckle on my pack's hip belt just snapped clean off. Had to rig it with paracord and duct tape for 4 days until I got to Bishop. Anyone found a reliable replacement for those plastic buckles?
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faith_schmidt11d ago
Paracord and tape will get you through, but that's a bandaid fix not a solution. Those buckles are basically all the same standard size, you just gotta measure the width right before you buy. REI carries them but check the weight rating too, some cheap ones snap just as fast as the original. Skip the generic hardware store buckles, they're garbage for load bearing straps. Get a proper replacement from a gear shop and you'll be good for years.
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Duct tape and paracord is the hiker special, but those plastic buckles are actually pretty standardized on most packs. You can grab a replacement from REI or any gear shop that sells repair parts. Gotta check that it matches the width of your strap though, they're not all the same size.
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