Just a quick post about how I turned a sleeping bag into an underquilt in less than an hour with no sewing machine.
Eurohike Junior Voyager sleeping bag £2.40 from Millets (150cm x 70 cm)
40cm shock cord (spare I had lying around.)
Sewing needle & thread.
Grosgain 30cm (spare.)
4 70cm shock cord with hook £3 from Nevis Outdoor.
Spread open it measures 150cmx 150cm. (60x60") Has a 10 to 30C rating with an extreme low temp of -7C. (50F -> 86F extreme low 19F.) Ripstop nylon shell, poly fill and poly lining.
I sewed an 1 inch length of grosgain loop in each corner for the shock cord to attach to the hammock line.
The sleeping bag itself had a shock cord running along the top where the head would be. It wasn't adjustable. I cut a small hole in the middle of the top channel where the cord is to create a middle adjustment system for the foot of my UQ.
There was no channel of shock cord at the other end, I opted to simply sew a total of 14 loops of grosgain along the edge instead of creating my own channel since I don't own a sewing machine and would like to keep my sanity. You can see it in the first pic but it's clearer here:
I ran a 40cm length of shock cord through, tying it at the last loop on each end and cinching it from the middle. I will put in cord buttons for both ends when I get around to buying some (£1 for 4).
Here's what it looks like in action... in my hallway.
Because the zip is cheap and apparently not YKK, you can zip the whole thing up and then split it from the bottom to make it into a tube. It can be used as a peapod this way but I sewed one of the loops on too tightly and the zip wouldn't pull through. Oops.
The head of sleeping bag is being used as the foot of the UQ. I can wrap it right around my foot thanks to that velcro attachment.
It packs down nice and small:
0.6L Sigg bottle for comparison. Weighs 850g in total (including stuff sack and all cordage.)
Total cost out of pocket = £5.40. Would cost less than £8 if you didn't have shock cord, needles/thread & grosgain on hand.
Eurohike Junior Voyager sleeping bag £2.40 from Millets (150cm x 70 cm)
40cm shock cord (spare I had lying around.)
Sewing needle & thread.
Grosgain 30cm (spare.)
4 70cm shock cord with hook £3 from Nevis Outdoor.
Spread open it measures 150cmx 150cm. (60x60") Has a 10 to 30C rating with an extreme low temp of -7C. (50F -> 86F extreme low 19F.) Ripstop nylon shell, poly fill and poly lining.
I sewed an 1 inch length of grosgain loop in each corner for the shock cord to attach to the hammock line.
The sleeping bag itself had a shock cord running along the top where the head would be. It wasn't adjustable. I cut a small hole in the middle of the top channel where the cord is to create a middle adjustment system for the foot of my UQ.
There was no channel of shock cord at the other end, I opted to simply sew a total of 14 loops of grosgain along the edge instead of creating my own channel since I don't own a sewing machine and would like to keep my sanity. You can see it in the first pic but it's clearer here:
I ran a 40cm length of shock cord through, tying it at the last loop on each end and cinching it from the middle. I will put in cord buttons for both ends when I get around to buying some (£1 for 4).
Here's what it looks like in action... in my hallway.
Because the zip is cheap and apparently not YKK, you can zip the whole thing up and then split it from the bottom to make it into a tube. It can be used as a peapod this way but I sewed one of the loops on too tightly and the zip wouldn't pull through. Oops.
The head of sleeping bag is being used as the foot of the UQ. I can wrap it right around my foot thanks to that velcro attachment.It packs down nice and small:
0.6L Sigg bottle for comparison. Weighs 850g in total (including stuff sack and all cordage.)
Total cost out of pocket = £5.40. Would cost less than £8 if you didn't have shock cord, needles/thread & grosgain on hand.
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