Old sleeping system advice please.

[Pattree]

This British army sleep system is pretty old. I believe it’s a Type 38 but others may know better.

An old soldier told me that the end caps on the crush sack should meet. I store the bag loose to preserve the poly filling. Even with my full weight on the sack and pulling like a goodun I can only get the caps to within 80mm and I can’t help thinking that it isn’t good for the bag inside. It’s a magnificent old thing and still good as a three season job. I could move into that bivi sac with a sofa!
Does anyone know if the advice is good? Can you close up the end caps?

He also said that there was a manual for the system. Has anyone seen this? I’d like a look at it.

(The pink liner that mummified you overnight went to the moths years ago)


pee ess @Tony. I could have attached a poll to this post very easily at the point where I posted it.
@everyone: default is “discussion”, alternative is “poll”.

 

[H2497]

If its the previous to current issue doss bag (with little mesh bags midway and either side of the zip) then you won't get the ends to meet. You just won't! It's a very robust stuff sack though and I've never seen one broken, so go for it!

 

[Toddy]

I've got one of those.
If you fold and roll, and there's a knack to that, you can with great effort get it tight as it's supposed to be.....I don't think it's good for the insulation though, so unless I was packing and had no spare space, I didn't bother.

Mine's opened up and stored in a barrel in the loft.

 

[Pattree]

Thanks folk.

Yes @H2497 that’s the bag. A great piece of kit. I can undress and dress inside it and use those mesh bags for my clothes. A bit rumpled come morn but who’s looking?
I normally stow each of my sleeping bags in a 120L dry sack with a neoprene mat wrapped around it. I was told long ago not to store in a crush sack.

Well done indeed @Toddy After a number of Herculean attempts over the years I don’t think I’ll try to close the crush sack again.

Edited to add:
I was also told that standing orders were not to fold and roll s this put folds in the same place at each packing. Apparently I was supposed to shove it in at random.

 

[Toddy]

That's what I was told too when I bought mine, but there was no way on this green earth that I was ever going to manage to compress it enough to get the sack properly closed unless I tidily laid it out, folded the edges in, made it straight and just as wide as the sack and no more, then rolled it up squeezing all the air out as I went.
It is a Herculean effort, fair gets you warmed up and out of breath, and my hands (okay, they are small, I think huge mitts would help) ached. The next trick is to keep that tight roll while squeezing the end into the stuff sack....turn the sack down like a sock and sort of roll it up while hanging onto the compression on the rolled up bag.
It's in and then you can tighten down the straps.

Is it worth this ?

No, I don't think so, I reckon it's too much blooming hassle.

I bought a bigger drybag and just used that for mine

 

[Watch-keeper]

The way I used to do it was to stuff it in the stuff sack and put the end cap on and tighten it a fair bit.
Put one end on the floor so the other end is sticking up, like a tictac standing on its end.
Put your knee on the end to crush it down in to the floor along its length.
Position a strap so you can pull up on it against the pressure of your knee and tighten to first strap a couple of cm.
Work your way round, turning the bundle a quarter turn so you can pull on each strap in turn a couple of cm each time and you should be able to do it.
If you put all of your weight through your knee on the end cap of the bag you will take the pressure off the buckles and also squash the bags filling.
I hope this makes sense!!!

 

[Pattree]

Thanks @Watch-keeper
That’s sort of what I tried. I even sat on it and hauled two straps at a time. You are absolutely right about pulling them in sequence.
I just found that once the gap got down to about 80mm (4ins) either the straps wouldn’t move any more or I was reluctant to put any more strain on the buckle/insulation.

Even with the gap, it is impressive to see how small the kit shrinks.

I’m guessing that the liner was kept separate. There is no way those caps would meet with the liner inside the bag. I suppose it was kept with the bivi sack.

I really would like to find the manual.

 

[Toddy]

I reckon there's something wrong in a system that takes all this effort when it was intended for squaddies who at times need to bug out in a hurry.
It's certainly very neat and a 'packable block' when done, but every day ?

Dry bag, stuff it in, squish it down and down and roll as you do squishing the air out, then roll down the top and clip it shut.
Works for me.

ARRSE might have better information on this because a lot of those lads used the bags.

M

 

[matarius777]

I reckon there's something wrong in a system that takes all this effort when it was intended for squaddies who at times need to bug out in a hurry.
It's certainly very neat and a 'packable block' when done, but every day ?

Dry bag, stuff it in, squish it down and down and roll as you do squishing the air out, then roll down the top and clip it shut.
Works for me.

ARRSE might have better information on this because a lot of those lads used the bags.

M

I've heard quite a few squaddies on youtube state they just used to stuff the loose sleeping bag in the bottom of their Bergen, using the issued bivi bag as a dry bag for everything in there, ditching the compression pack.

 

[H2497]

Just punch the bag bit by bit into the stuff sack and cynch it closed. It takes more effort to get it in the stuff sack with the bivvy Bach on, but it is possible. If you're in a hurry just smash the bag and bivvy back together into the bottom of your bergen and throw the rest of your kit on it. The stuff sack is better mad than anything I've seen sold commercially, principally because it's been allowed to be made heavier in order to survive the abuse it will get. Stuffing a Softie 12 or even a down bag into it is an absolute pleasure, and you can crank it down very easily.

The bag that has replaced the one we're talking about here is lighter and more compressible if you can get one. I agree that its great to have a wide bag to move about in, although it does make it less efficient

 

[Chris]

I've heard quite a few squaddies on youtube state they just used to stuff the loose sleeping bag in the bottom of their Bergen, using the issued bivi bag as a dry bag for everything in there, ditching the compression pack.

Sleeping bag inside bivvy bag, then stuff that in to the top or bottom of your Bergan/daysack depending on preference (basic training they said top, but people all do it differently later on). Much better for packing in my opinion, as you don’t have a giant Tic-tac restricting the shape of other things you’re packing.

 

[Watch-keeper]

Thanks @Watch-keeper
That’s sort of what I tried. I even sat on it and hauled two straps at a time. You are absolutely right about pulling them in sequence.
I just found that once the gap got down to about 80mm (4ins) either the straps wouldn’t move any more or I was reluctant to put any more strain on the buckle/insulation.

Even with the gap, it is impressive to see how small the kit shrinks.

I’m guessing that the liner was kept separate. There is no way those caps would meet with the liner inside the bag. I suppose it was kept with the bivi sack.

I really would like to find the manual.

I've heard quite a few squaddies on youtube state they just used to stuff the loose sleeping bag in the bottom of their Bergen, using the issued bivi bag as a dry bag for everything in there, ditching the compression pack.

Yes this is how I used to do it too, never used the compression sack except for certain occasions when it was required.
Most of the lads would just stuff sleepingbag/bivi in to their bergan loose.
Also most lads bought their own sleeping bags to reduce weight and bulk but the issue sleeping bag is a good bag especially for UK winter just a little bulky and heavy.
I still have one and also have the carinthia version that i use if i know its getting some abuse.