Before you add gear, it helps to know the four ways Gear can keep track of it. You choose one for each item when you add it, under How is it tracked?
The four tracking types
Items and units
An item is a kind of gear, like "Tandem canoe" or "Sporks". It holds the make, model, category, vendor and notes.
What sits under the item depends on how it's tracked.
| Tracking | Use it for | What Gear keeps |
|---|---|---|
| Tracked individually | Canoes, kayaks, stoves, PFDs, tents: anything where you'd want to know who last had that one. | One unit per physical thing. Each unit has its own tag (like CANOE-03), serial number, condition, purchase details, repairs and trip history. |
| Counted (pooled) | Sporks, dry bags, paddles, tent stakes: gear where any one is as good as another. | A number on the shelf (per base, if you use more than one). Every change to it is recorded in Inventory. |
| Consumable | Fuel, batteries, first-aid refills: gear that gets used up. | A count, like counted gear, plus a reorder point. At check-in, whatever doesn't come back is recorded as used. |
| Kit | A kitchen bin, a first-aid kit, a canoe kit: gear that travels together. | A list of what each bin should hold, and one unit per physical bin you pack. Gear checks each bin against the list and shows whether it's complete. |
Which should I choose?
- If it has a serial number, or you'd write a number on it, track it individually.
- If you'd just count them on the shelf, choose Counted.
- If trips use it up, choose Consumable.
- If you pack the same bin the same way every time, make it a Kit.
You can't change the tracking type later once an item has units or a kit list. Pick carefully, or delete the item and add it again.
Bases
A base is where gear lives between trips: a warehouse, a boathouse, a trailer. Most outfits use one, and Gear works that way by default. If you run from more than one place, switch on Use more than one base in Gear's Gear settings and multiple bases. Units then have a home base, trips leave from a base, and counted gear has a separate count at each base.
Next
- Adding gear to your gear list
- Kits and bins
