Help with Sleeping Bag Selection please

[Spacemonkey]

Well, I give another vote to the RAB down bags. Mine is the Quantum 400 Endurance model which comes with a water resistant pertex outer, but I always keep it in a gore tex bivvy bag anyway. I have never had trouble keeping it dry as I look after my investments, and as someone else said, if your bag is getting wet and muddy, you're doing something wrong! (and I do sleep in bushes on occassions..) I'm a cold sleeper but have always been nice and warm in this. I always use a silk liner, but more to keep the bag clean than anything else- the liner is easier to bung in the machine than the bag! It packs down to about the size of a cotton wool roll and weighs sod all.

 

[Too Much Kit To Carry]

Fist off - thank you all so much for your input :You_Rock_

I have just been in contact with Andrew of www.outdoorcode.co.uk - what an amazing resonse from this chap - spot on

I have ordered Nanok Endurance SF 0 °C and Nanok Endurance SF -10 °C for delivery WTHIN 48 HOURS and I place the order at 21:04 - amazing!!!!!

Should be using it this weekend in the woods if things go well

I'll post some pictures of the bag and a few words re: outdoorcode and the Nanok bags earliy next week if things go to plan.

Thanks once agian everybody for you help and advise.

Phil.

 

[AndyW]

Can't wait to hear how you get on and what you think of them.

I need a new bag/bags and can't decide whether to get Buffalo (inner and outer) or these two. There isn't much difference in cost

 

[Too Much Kit To Carry]

It now looks like that I won't be able to give the new bags a trial run this weekend in the woods.

So I guess that a review on the Nanok bags will have to wait - watch this space.

Phil.

 

[Too Much Kit To Carry]

I really should have posted this here first,

I'm looking for a lightweight sleeping bag rating between +10 to -10 to -20 needs to pack up nice and small and cost no more than about 80 quid.I'm not worried if it is down or man made fibers.

Hi,

I've been looking for a new bag for a while and I started a thread on the 19th of November called "Help with Sleeping Bag Selection please"

I have been given some good advice and thought that you might like to read some of the posts.

In was after pretty much what you were looking for and decided to go for a bag system from Nanok that I purchased from www.outdoorcode.co.uk - a great buying experience (thanks Andrew) and there was a promotion running that also secured me 2 FREE silk Nanok sleeping bag liners!

I my mind I was happy to trade some weight and size for a bag that will "do the business", take some wear and tear, get wet and still be warm, can be chucked in the washing machine, etc. But most of all I believe that these bags will cope with the temperatures that they state they can cope with.

The quality of manufacture looks to be superb. The compressions sacks are a little on the small side - would have been nice not to have to put so much effort and thought into being able to pack the sleeping bag away. The compression sack also have a quite flimsy plastic locking devise - I managed to break one with little effort, but it was supplied with a spare - makes me wonder if this was slightly under-engineered and the manufactures expected to be an issue, but this are the only slight faults I can find.

The 0 Endurance is a truly luxury sized bag, it is designed to take the -10 Endurance bag as an insert - which is does adequately. This make the 0 Endurance slightly larger which I find very comfortable - I finally found a bag that I can get into with my arms inside where I can still move around! Even with the -10 inserted, so you get into the -10 inside the 0, there is still plenty of room.

I have not yet slept out in this sleeping system - looks like its first run out will be at the Christmas Moot. Once I have used it in the field I will give it a better appraisal.

Hope this helps anybody else that is selecting a new bag.

Perhaps I should have posted this to my own thread first

Cheers,

Phil.

 

[Mikey P]

I get the feeling you are being persuaded away from what you originally stated. Sleeping bag systems can be very flexible if you are prepared to be clever about things.

Yes, down is warmest by weight and - as an alpinist - I know it is fantastic for cold dry conditions. The alpkit bags are really good value and perform relatively well - but they are bulky and, even if used in goretex bivvy bags, they need to be aired or your body moisture will keep them damp. In summary, down bags are superb in the right conditions.

Hollow-fill synthetics, like Primaloft, are not as efficient - but we're in the UK, not the Himalayas! How about using a lightweight, 2-season, hollow-fill bag, and, when it's colder, use combination of: goretex bivvy bag, thermal liner (eg, meraklon), and - wait for it - wear more clothes in the bag! I have used a 2-season bag with the aforementioned liners/bivvy bags, etc, layers of thin thermals, then a duvet jacket (either wear it or put it over the top of you). This will keep you warm even in conditions close to zero degrees Celsius. And, the best thing is, in cold conditions you'll be carrying warm clothes anyway - so no 'extra' stuff required.

There are certain things that will also make you feel much warmer - insulated socks (down/synthetic) keep your feet toasty, which makes the rest of you feel warm. Try and plug the gap around your shoulders to keep warm air in - use the bag baffle and draw-cord, or some spare clothes. Finally, don't breathe into the bag! The moisture in your breath will make the bag damp - leave a small hole to breath through or - even better - wear an insulated balaclava.

Furthermore, ensure you are well insulated underneath - the weight of your body crushes the bag filling, reducing insulation, so you will ose a lot of heat through your lower surface in contact with the ground. An inflatable mat (Thermarest, Alpkit Airic, etc), or closed-cell foam mat will provide that extra isolation you need.

Buffalo sleeping systems are good - like the clothing though (and I should point out that I love my Mountain Shirt!), they are heavy and bulky.

Snugpak/ME/North Face synthetic bags are outstanding but ensure that you store them out of the stuff sack - let them loft, or the fill gradually loses its insulating properties.

Army bags are good too, but too hot for summer and they are bulky and heavy.

At the end of the day, it's horses for courses - and you won't get one bag that does it all. Decide where you want to compromise and then make your choice. You may end up buying two bags - one for summer and one for winter. You may find that a poncho-liner or lightweight duvet blanket will be fine for summer; then you can spend more on a winter bag.

Sorry to be getting a bit preachy - forgive me - but I got the feeling things were getting a lot more complex than they actually should be...

 

[demographic]

"Must pack down small" and "Must be warm" is quite a contradiction in my
opinion. (Except down bags which are useful for short high altitude trips)
I was always on the heavy side with the old Ajungilaks.
If you have the chance to get one Ajungilak Tyin from the old production, I would
still buy one. In my view the only successor is Nanok. Best bags available.

I have an Ajungilak Tyin which as mentioned isn't the lightest bag out there but it sure as hell is warm, even when its not dead dry which is more than can be said for down bags (IMO like) as they don't insulate as well when wet.
Don't even try and tel me that they don't get moist when in a gore tex Bivi bag either cos I have a couple of those as well.

Years ago I figured that everytime I went camping the weather closed in so I planned my kit accordingly, Also a bag thats too warm can be unzipped and you can stick a foot out to cool down but one thats too cold is complete pants.