alpkit

[leon-1]

has anyone got the Filo down jacket? I was thinking of getting one when the weather gets a bit colder. The price is brill compared to down jackets such as the North Face ones.

You're not the only one thinking along these lines. I do have a number of Alpkit bits (the head torch, sleeping mat, pegs, bivvi bag, gourdon and a few other bits) and all are very good quality and very good value for money.

The Gourdon's come with repair patches as do the sleeping mat's, the pegs are what either TNF or Terra Nova used to call power pegs and charged £5 each for and you get 6 for the same price, the appollo stuff sacks are pretty robust still remaining lightweight and reasonably water reppelant. The gamma headtorch is the best value for money head torch you can buy at £12.50 especially when you consider they include delivery and batteries in the price, when you add all the other features they are hard to beat at most any price. The Hunka Bivvy bag is small, lightweight, highly breathable and comes with it's own stuff sack stitched in.

I have chatted to people who have their sleeping bags and all say they are top quality.

On the strength of that I would say that the Filo jacket would be right up there with the best at pretty much half the price.

 

[Deleted member 4605]

has anyone got the Filo down jacket? I was thinking of getting one when the weather gets a bit colder. The price is brill compared to down jackets such as the North Face ones.

No idea about the Filo jacket, but I've had my TNF Nuptse Jacket (and Vest) for over 10 years now and it's still going strong. It's got to be one of my favourite pieces of kit.

 

[Gailainne]

I used the Filo in Sweden in Feb on the winter WEISS course, really nice bit of kit, and the hood is good to, didnt see really cold temps, ave about -7 to 8, got down to -20 one night, coldest was the day we left, -13. Its not the highest rated down jacket out there but for the price you cant beat it, my only niggle was the zip ,its quite small, so fidely to fit with gloves on.

Stephen

 

[scanker]

It sounds like I have as much Alpkit kit as Leon! I also have a AD500 sleeping bag and a filet vest, which I think is basically a filo jacket without the sleeves. I really like the filet vest - packs down small (small yellow exped bag) and is very, very warm. Pretty much the same can be said for the sleeping bag as well. My only tiny criticism of my Alpkit stuff is that the window of my gourdon bag has clouded a little, but it's not the end of the world.

 

[Mikey P]

I noticed on Saturday night that I had to pump it up a little bit, not much but it wasn't as
firm as it had been the night before - I realised I'd managed to gouge it on Friday night,
rather embarrassingly with the hook from my bra I think! It was a warm night...

Oh my God! I'm so glad I'm not courting anymore - it sounds dangerous...

 

[Jodie]

Haha Mikey - not that bad really

Now then, the lovely Alpkit have sent me a spare repair kit so that I can fix my regular
Airic which I intend to do today. Since I've never done this before, and want to get it
right - a comfy sleep next week depends on it - my plan is to make sure I know what
I'm doing. It's probably obvious, but not to me and Google has failed me.

So... I have patches and the adhesive and the mat.

Do I
(a) put a thin layer of glue on the patch and stick it on to the (obviously) deflated mat.
(b) put a thin layer of glue on the patch AND on the mat and leave it to dry / leave it
for a minute / some other time and then stick it on to the mat.

I need advice on amount and location of glue and timing between gluing and sticking
the patch.

Do I need to put a heavy book on top of the stuck patch to help it stick better?

(I might pack duct tape just in case )

Thank you
P.S. The mat is gamely trying to stay inflated where it can - I like its determination!

 

[NatG]

My regular airic has done me great service, it's not like sleeping on a mattress but it's better than one of those foam kip mats, and 100 times better than the floor

 

[Jodie]

Agreed - until I damaged it I'd had a few perfectly comfortable nights on it. Don't suppose
you know how to repair one though do you?

 

[Nagual]

Hey Jodie, these are the instructions from my Gelert mat, I reckon they'll be standard.:

Small Punctures:

Locate small punctures, pinhole type. mark puncture, clean and dry area. deflate mat. Work a drop of adhesive into puncture, let it cure for 30 mins or more before use.

Larger Punctures:
Clean and dry area. Sparingly apply adhesive to puncture, with circular motions spread adhesive outward from puncture. trim patch 1" beyond damaged area, round corners. remove paper backing(if any) lightly coat patch with adhesive. avoid touching glue surface. once patch and mat are dry to touch (approx 3 mins) center patch over puncture and press together gently smoothing patch to remove bubbles or wrinkles. allow patch to cure for at least 10 mins before re-inflating.


If item is damp, allow at least 30 mins to cure. If using in freezing temps warm up adhesive with body heat first ( not flame as it's highly flammable ) Allow at least 30 mins to cure.



Hope that helps a bit.


Nag.

 

[bikething]

were there no instructions with the repair kit????

what sort of glue is it? does it have any name / label on it?

I'll go dig out the destructions for my thermarest repair kit.... back in a mo..


EDIT: it's similar to Naguals write up, but uses SEAMGRIP adhesive, and involves wetting the area and using a pot of boiling water for larger patches... (and a 24hr wait IIRC)

 

[NatG]

depends, what type of glue is it? if it's rubber cement then i think it's jyts like fixing a puncture on a bike innertube, clen, scratch up, smear both surfaces with cement, allow to dry and squeeze together

 

[Jodie]

The adhesive contains:
MEK 49.95%
Toluene 0.05%
Acetone 10%
Polyurethane 30%
Ethyl acetate 10%

There weren't instructions - Alpkit kindly sent me some adhesive and patches at no
charge cos I can't find mine and thought I'd try and get a replacement in case the
neighbour's bicycle repair kit wasn't quite the right thing.

Thanks to nagual and bikething - I'm going to try the option for 'large punctures' - it's
a bit less than an inch long tear.

:You_Rock_

 

[bikething]

bicycle repair won't work if the material has a cloth type facing to it (guess how I know )

Doesn't give a full list of ingredients on the tube in my thermarest kit.. but it IS seamgrip.
(and it seems the 24hrs i referred to relates to something else )

sorry for the poor scans - it's a new scanner :

just a thought, but if you have time could you try a patch on a non-punctured part of the mat to see if it sticks properly? Because if you try the patch on the puncture site, and it doesn't work, you're then going to struggle to get a patch to stick on top of old glue...

just a thought like

 

[Nagual]

The adhesive contains:
MEK 49.95%
Toluene 0.05%
Acetone 10%
Polyurethane 30%
Ethyl acetate 10%

...

Yer glue is fairly similar to mine, so you should be fine. If you think you might be camping out in warm weather again, perhaps take one of them 'tube' like garments to stop puncturing yer mat again.. ?


Nag.

 

[Jodie]

Good point bikething - might try that first!

Nagual -

Logging off to do stuff with adhesives...

 

[bikething]

If you think you might be camping out in warm weather again, perhaps take one of them 'tube' like garments to stop puncturing yer mat again.. ?


Nag.

or don't wear a bra

 

[bikething]

just found this on the Alpkit site :

Checking for leaks

If your sleeping mat continues to deflate overnight you could have a slow puncture. The hole can be hard to identify, even with a large magnifying glass, so we recommend testing your mat in the bath. The process is exactly the same as testing for a puncture in your bike tyre.

Locating the leak
1. Inflate your mat to the max and close the valve.
2. Submerge the mat in a bath or large bucket. Start at the valve and work around the edge of the mat.
3. Keep looking for a steady stream of bubbles

Surface puncture
Apply first aid patch: Make sure the area around the puncture is clean and dry. Deflate the mat and place it over a flat surface. Apply the glue provided and leave it for 30 seconds. Apply one of the patches and press firmly leaving to dry fully before reinflating the mat.

Leaking from the valve
Clean the valve cap: Unscrew the cap fully and then pull sharply or prize it off.. it can be a bit stiff. Remove the rubber o-ring and give the valve a good clean making sure there is no grit inside the valve. Check to see if the o-ring has perished, if not pop it back in making sure it is truely alligned and replace the cap.

Leaking from the seam
Everyones worst nightmare: Seam leakage is the most difficult fix. You may be able to fashion a short term solution with the puncture repair kit supplied but it is not likely to be very durable. The best way to fix small leaks is to very carefully run a iron around the edge. Done correctly this can reseal the mat, done badly you could finish your mat off for good.

There's a .pdf manual too with some more repair hints : here

 

[Jodie]

Tried and failed the first time (was leaving things to cure for a few minutes) and the
second time I just whacked on lots more glue and didn't wait for very long (more or
less what Alpkit happen to advise from the info you found bikething - ta) and then
added bonus glue round the join (and in the tear itself).

So basically - more glue!

• Valve open,
• reasonably deflated mat...
• I placed the patch over the area and dotted glue round the four corners to mark
  the position.
• With the patch out of the way I glued the full area, and in the tear.
• Then I glued the patch.
• While still damp I pressed patch onto mat and smoothed it down, adding glue
  around the edges and corner to make a seal.
• Put a heavy book on top, with mat on floor.
• Left....
• Re-inflated. Manipulated mat to try and get the seams to burst on the joins - didn't

Can't hurt to pack spare glue and a bit of duct tape though!
Thank you everyone :You_Rock_

Invariably in the distant future I will need this thread again, hence some keywords...!
Keywords: repair, repairing, mend, mending, puncture repair kit, adhesive, glue, alpkit,
regular airic, mat, sleep mat, sleeping mat, self-inflating, how to, how to repair a mat

 

[bikething]

Good to hear you're sorted....

probably a bit late now, but when you cut the patch - round off the corners. It'll be the pointy bits that catch and start the process of the patch lifting..
(this also applies to plasters, blister padding under socks, etc... )

 

[Jodie]

Bother. Good point. Too late

I'm hoping my extensive use of glue might delay the inevitable unfurling...