Argali sleeping bag review in the works

[HighUintas]

We will probably do a quilt at some point, but personally I'm not a big fan of them in any type of cold weather. I've used them several times on late season hunts and they just don't perform like a full sleeping bag when it comes to drafting. My last experience I took a 0 degree quilt and shivered through the night for a week in early November and temps were around 15 at the lowest point. I think quilts are fine for early season and moderate weather though. I'd need to have a design I was confident didnt draft! The last thing I'll say is you can't run a standard ISO temp rating test on a quilt due to drafting, so when it comes to temp ratings on quilts it's the wild west.

Thanks for the insight. Can you share either here or in PM the details of the quilt and sleeping pad you tried? I'd like to get as much detailed info on the successes and failures before potentially jumping into one.

 

[Brad@Argali]

Thanks for the insight. Can you share either here or in PM the details of the quilt and sleeping pad you tried? I'd like to get as much detailed info on the successes and failures before potentially jumping into one

I'll shoot you a DM.

 

[Fins_N_Tines]

Thanks for the insight. Can you share either here or in PM the details of the quilt and sleeping pad you tried? I'd like to get as much detailed info on the successes and failures before potentially jumping into one.

I used the exact same quilt as exo guys the Katabatic and although it was a quality product I just didn’t like it in cold temps. I still use one for early season hunts August and sept but once temps are below 32 a real sleeping bag is still king. This past season I had a Katabatic flex 22 in temps 25 - 18 degrees and kept having to mess with the attachment straps. And even still would get a cold draft when I moved. Plus the attachment straps are annoying. When I’m tired, it’s late and I get camp setup I just want to throw my sleeping bag out and go to bed. Also if you use both straps (which you should for best draft management) it’s kinda of annoying getting out of the quilt. A zipper is much easier and faster

 

[mtwarden]

I’ve owned (and still have a couple) close to a dozen quilts, including a 0 rated quilt. I found quilts to be problematic (drafts) anything much below the freezing mark. It might be that I’m a side sleeper and turn over quite a bit.

That’s with a wide quilt, learned early on you want to go wide with quilts.

Other than early season, I didn’t find the juice worth the squeeze, of course ymmv.

 

[Brad@Argali]

I’ve owned (and still have a couple) close to a dozen quilts, including a 0 rated quilt. I found quilts to be problematic (drafts) anything much below the freezing mark. It might be that I’m a side sleeper and turn over quite a bit.

That’s with a wide quilt, learned early on you want to go wide with quilts.

Other than early season, I didn’t find the juice worth the squeeze, of course ymmv.

Same eperience for me.

 

[Brad@Argali]

@Brad@Argali you mention Dry Loft but you said shell is Pertex. I thought Dry Loft was a product similar to gore-Tex made by gore. Sounds like you are referring to the actual name of the down.

Yes, Dry Loft is the name of our down. I didn't know that Gore had used a similar term years ago, but that's just what we call our down.

 

[Fins_N_Tines]

Yes, Dry Loft is the name of our down. I didn't know that Gore had used a similar term years ago, but that's just what we call our down.

I am really happy you chose Pertex as the shell. Can’t wait to see the bag tomorrow. I was about to buy another Feathered Friends but hoping spec wise yours fits bill as I like supporting small hunting brands.

 

[mrbillbrown]

Only way I’d consider it is with a center zip. I’ve already got a WM with a side zip I love. No reason to buy another bag that doesn’t have the center zip.
Be bold, be different, otherwise it’s just another side zip sleeping bag in a market saturated with excellent side zip sleeping bags.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Brad@Argali]

I am really happy you chose Pertex as the shell. Can’t wait to see the bag tomorrow. I was about to buy another Feathered Friends but hoping spec wise yours fits bill as I like supporting small hunting brands.

All of the pages now live: Argali Alpine Sleep System

 

[Brad@Argali]

Only way I’d consider it is with a center zip. I’ve already got a WM with a side zip I love. No reason to buy another bag that doesn’t have the center zip.
Be bold, be different, otherwise it’s just another side zip sleeping bag in a market saturated with excellent side zip sleeping bags.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I can certainly respect and appreciate your opinion. But, I think our bags are different. Wouldn't have made them if I didn't believe they were. IMO, WM makes a phenomenal bag, but their hood and foot shape is old school, as are their fabrics. Couple that with our pillow and pillow attachment system and it's a bit different. Doesn't have to be for you, but just wanted to clarify! You can check it out here: https://argalioutdoors.com/alpine-sleep-system.

 

[passinggas33]

@Brad@Argali - With bag design, why do designers put so much (or any for that matter) down on the bottom half of the bag when it mainly gets compressed and loses any insulation properties? Why wouldn’t they just move all the down to the top half and make a super cozy bag and possibly shave weight? Is there a reason for this part of the design that I don’t understand?

I used to love my old big Agnes that had a sleeve for my pad, and no insulation on the back of the bag. I wish a high end bag company would do this so I quit rolling off my pad at night!

 

[Brad@Argali]

@Brad@Argali - With bag design, why do designers put so much (or any for that matter) down on the bottom half of the bag when it mainly gets compressed and loses any insulation properties? Why wouldn’t they just move all the down to the top half and make a super cozy bag and possibly shave weight? Is there a reason for this part of the design that I don’t understand?

I used to love my old big Agnes that had a sleeve for my pad, and no insulation on the back of the bag. I wish a high end bag company would do this so I quit rolling off my pad at night!

I can't speak for anyone other than our design, but from a strictly theoretical sense, putting all of the down on top is a great idea. But the problem is it doesn't work because of the shape of the human body and the fact that people move during the night and it sucks waking up because you're cold.

Putting down on bottom and around your sides really a function of trying to do two things: 1) account for the fact that many people move in their sleep, and the sleeping bag will move with you and the bag won't stay with the "bottom" portion glued to the sleeping pad; and 2) down prevents drafting, which is one of the key ways heat escapes. Meaning when you're laying down, your back doesn't form a perfect barrier with your pad, and air escapes around the space between your body and the pad. And, not all bodies are shaped the same way, so by putting all of the down on top, you wouldn't account for the real world way in which people sleep. Also, the down between your back and the pad doesn't have 0 thermal value. It still helps insulate, but not nearly as much as if it were lofted.

To mitigate this, we sized our bags wide, so as you move, the bag doesn't roll with you, which allows us to put less down on the bottom of the bag and still maintain our temp ratings. This is why we also used baffles oriented in different directions along the back and chest to put more down where you need it (i.e. on top) and less down where you don't need it as much.

 

[98XJRC]

Looks like a great bag and something else to consider when it comes time to add another bag for my son. It reminds me a lot of the Stone Glacier Chilkoot which isn't a bad thing.

 

[fatlander]

The pillow looks awesome. I was just thinking about how much I hate my inflatable pillow the other day.


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[Justin Crossley]

Mike's review just went live on the homepage! Check it out!

Argali Alpine Sleeping Bags Review

 

[mtwarden]

^ Thanks Justin!

 

[Fins_N_Tines]

I consider myself a sleeping bag nerd and this bag is definitely very close to what I would build if I did it myself. - Both regular and long offered.
- Pertex face fabric. 15D. Great compromise of light weight but still durable. I've used 10D Pertex and it was good but 15D will be better.
- Non-treated 850 plus fill goose down. There is a reason the best sleeping bag manufactures in the world do not use treated down. I've used both and found zero benefit to treated down. In fact I found less loft with treated down.
- 64" wide shoulder girth. 64" is the magic number after I have used 58" - 67" width bags. Unless you are football linebacker you 64" allows you to move without the bag moving with you.
- Body mapped down is a great idea. I have no experience with this, but it makes sense given the thermal body testing Brad did which shows where the body loses the most heat.
- snag less zipper. This should be standard on all sleeping bags, but it is not. I can't believe how many high-end bags I used and zipper sucks.
- Integrated pillow. have not used it but looks awesome.
- Differential cut. Again, not the first bag to use this, but should be standard.
- Foot box designed to fit your feet. This is huge so many bags feet get cold due to compressing because the design does not allow feet to sit in natural position with compressing down.

Overall, this looks like a homerun and I am excited to try one out.

 

[JohnB]

Mike's review just went live on the homepage! Check it out!

Argali Alpine Sleeping Bags Review

It looks like you've got a typo on the amount of down in the 0 degree bag. It should have 31oz of down in the regular length 0 degree bag, not 45 oz.

 

[Jordan Budd]

I used the 20 degree late August/September for scouting and a sheep hunt. The warmth and quality right up there with my Western Mountaineering bag but with better features. The pillow system works great and the zipper feels much more robust.

 

[Montane]

@Brad@Argali - Great looking bags! Interested in how low would you take the 20 degree bag before switching to the 0?

I agree with what some others have said regarding quilts at lower temperatures. I have a 10 degree wide EE quilt that I've been cold in at 25 degrees with a good r value pad. I'm a "rotisserie" sleeper and change positions a lot throughout the night which may have something to do with quilts being cold to me. Love them for summer backpacking trips however.