Sleeping Bags

ASL wrote: Look at Marmot, Feathered Friends, Montbell and Western Mountaineering for a few companies that produce bag better than MHW...REI igneo is probably the best value winter bag if you keen to import. The spec is ridiculous!

The REI Igneo looks like quite a bag, I did have a look at some of those other brands - they do have some good stuff (far better than what we have locally anyway). What strikes me about the Torch is that it is very light for a -17 bag - and being synthetic, it is much better suited to [wet] Berg conditions.

MHW seems to have few great down bags, but their stats on their synthetic bags are not in the same league as other manufacturers.

On an unrelated note, the name "REI" has always bugged my OCD accountant self - 3 letter abbreviations starting in "R" usually denote ratios, e.g. ROE is Return on Equity. REI would stand for Return on Equity Invested, which I guess would be ROE with an adjustment for non-core assets such as excess cash or investment properties.

Josh of the Bushveld wrote: I haven't had the chance to put it through the paces yet, but I'm still betting on my down Quilt (Hammock Gear 0F/-17C Burrow), which weighs under 800g (cost me USD260 or so). Needs to be coupled with a proper pad though (which you should be taking anyway)

I like the concept - but I rate this won't work well for people who move a lot while sleeping.

On an related note, I just got a new Thermarest with an R-value of 4.9, 3" thick and weighing under 600g. It also folds up to only a bit larger than my Klymit Static-V. Looking forward to testing this out soon!

I have been on a similar (and sometimes intersecting) path of sleeping bag desk-top research as ghaz, and concur with his observations regarding Mountain Hardwear synthetic bags: lighter & warmer than US & European competitors. The MHW website is well laid out with a lot of detail to help with comparisons between products.

Two further observations to add to ghaz’s: firstly, MHW bags come in different sizes (and in addition, the women-specific sizes are smaller than the unisex sizes), with the max recommended height for men’s regular being 6’0” (183cm), so taller hikers will need to go for the long versions. Secondly, the Lamina 0 is a similarly specced but cheaper option to the Hyperlamina Torch 0 favoured by ghaz. Neither options appear to be available locally, although I am still awaiting feedback on this.

ghaznavid wrote:

Josh of the Bushveld wrote: I haven't had the chance to put it through the paces yet, but I'm still betting on my down Quilt (Hammock Gear 0F/-17C Burrow), which weighs under 800g (cost me USD260 or so). Needs to be coupled with a proper pad though (which you should be taking anyway)

I like the concept - but I rate this won't work well for people who move a lot while sleeping.

Interestingly a lot of self-identified restless sleepers report that they sleep better with a quilt. I move quite a lot in my sleep and often get tangled and twisted in my bag. Most quilts come with loops that allow you to strap the quilt around your pad or around your body (for colder weather)

Josh, could you please post some pics of the quilt - open, in action and packed, for comparison to sleeping bag... I tend to sleep splayed, in what past girlfriends have referred to as the Swastika sleeping position and usually end up wrestling with my narrow bag to such an extent that it is miracle I haven't torn through one yet...

Shot.

I don't have any photos of it on me, here's the website which has some. I'll try remember to take some comparing it to my FA Ice Breaker

Just found a brief review of the Hyperlamina Spark online. It is the 35F (2C) sleeping bag in the range. The Flame (20F/-7C) and Torch (0F/-16C) are the other bags in the range.



There is also a video showing the features of the Hyperlamina Flame:



I said a while ago that the Lamina 20 that MMO has on sale should be an awesome bag, here is a product description of it:

Josh of the Bushveld wrote: I haven't had the chance to put it through the paces yet, but I'm still betting on my down Quilt (Hammock Gear 0F/-17C Burrow), which weighs under 800g (cost me USD260 or so). Needs to be coupled with a proper pad though (which you should be taking anyway)

I went to the Hammock Gear website, they do look great. Considering I almost always sleep with my bag unzipped and over of me (even once in a "cave" next to Ledgers cave where the mud froze solid overnight), this seems like a prefect way to save some grams.

Please let me know how to go about importing one.

Vellatj wrote: Please let me know how to go about importing one.

Have a look at the Enlightened Gear website as well.
I got a friend to bring one back for me.
If you do buy from Hammock Gear, phone or email them, they gave me a 10% discount code (say you need help with shipping costs)

That's a pretty good deal! Marmot sell a bag in the USA that that rating and weighs 1.2kg but cost over double that I'm sure

Hi Mike
Your down bag should basically last you a life time if you keep it ventilated and uncompressed when not in use. The other thing is it must be washed very few years. The washing not only cleans it but replaces the natural oils on the down fill and which in turn gives it loft. Loft = warmth. Down soap has these oils in them. If you go to my website it tells you how to do it. peakhigh.co.za/tips/hiking-tips/sleeping-bags/
Gavin Raubenheimer