New Troop Inventory Suggestions

• Troop Flag and American Flag, poles and flag stands
• Youth and Adult application forms
• A small supply of basic items new Scouts can get directly from the Troop rather than trying to find and remember at the Scout Shop or local retailer: Boy Scout Handbooks, one-piece unit numerals (order from National Supply), Council patches, Patrol patches, red shoulder tabs, neckerchiefs
• The four-volume Troop Program resources set
• Guide to Safe Scouting
• Annual Health and Medical Record
• Tour permit applications
• Money Earning applications
• Junior Leader's Handbook
• Junior Leader's Training Kit
• Fast Start video
• Scoutmaster Handbook
• Boy Scout Requirements book, current year
• Troop Committee Guidebook
• Advancement Committee policies book
• Some good knot-tying rope
• Troopmaster or similar record-keeping software
• Blue cards
• Your District's Merit Badge Counselor list
• Your Unit Commissioner's name, phone number, and email address
• The day, time, and location of your monthly District Round Table

Tents:

1 tent for every two Scouts. (Not Wal-Mart $79 specials. They won't hold up, and their most likely time for failure is during a rain/wind storm in the middle of the night. This will turn the occupants off of camping.) Eureka makes a good tent.  There are other manufactures too.

Dining Flies, Poles, Stakes, and Ropes:

The Scouts need somewhere to go other than their tents if it's raining; they'll definitely need shelter when cooking and eating; and they keep the sun off the boys during meals if you have hot weather. You'll need extra rope for drying out wet gear/towels/sleeping bags, etc., which can get wet for many reasons.

Cooking Gear:

Cook kits and chef kits (i.e., pots and pans and utensils) make sure that you accommodate the 13th point of the Scout Law: "A Scout is Hungry". You can actually cobble together this from the Scout's parents often enough. As you get going, though, it's convenient to have the official stuff, as they nest together well and are convenient to carry and handle.

Stoves:

Unless you intend to cook all your meals on wood fires, you'll need some kind of camp stoves. Some of your parents are likely to have the standard two-burner propane or liquid-fuel stoves. Sometimes the latter require some maintenance, replacing the fuel caps and the generators, but those parts can be picked up in most sporting goods stores. Be sure that you have a small funnel or two (said stores sell some with built-in dirt filters) for filling the tanks. Propane is somewhat easier to handle, but they're not as good in cold-weather or backpacking situations (you may not be worrying about the latter for a while).

Cleaning Gear:

For each patrol, pick up 3 Rubbermaid wash tubs, a sponge backed with scrubbers, a small bottle of dishwashing liquid, a scrub brush and some SOS pads. Get some small bottles that can be capped tightly and fill them with bleach. The brush allows the boys to clean off the gross layers left when scrambling eggs and other such stuff that would otherwise immediately and irretrievably clog up the scrubber on the sponge. They'll need to be taught how to use the SOS pads (don't get the SOS soap in with the dishwater). Finally, you'll need a metal bucket you can heat water in.

Patrol Box Inventory may help

Page Revised 03/27/2010