Born Outdoor Badger Bed Review

Justin Crossley

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I met Stuart, the owner of Born Outdoor, at the Western Hunt Expo in Salt Lake City this February. Born Outdoor is a small family business in Colorado. Their main product is a 4-season bedroll that comes in two sizes. Throughout this season, I'll be using the Badger Bed 25 Siera Bundle on any trips where I'm not backpacking.


The thing that got me interested in this is the modularity they offer. With different quilt and sheet configurations, you can use it from summer, through winter. I hate being too warm when I sleep so I'm interested to see how this works.

Let me know your questions, and I'll do my best to answer them.

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Donk

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Justin,

The specs show 78 inches on the length. How accurate is this? I wonder if it would fit in my truck bed, so I could sleep under my topper.
 

sndmn11

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"The outer shell provides protection from the elements to keep your sheets, mattress and insulation layers dry. It’s simple, durable, and flexible."

Test it!

My topper isn't water tight and it always seems to rain the day before I might sleep in the bed. Sounds like this might solve that problem.
 
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Justin Crossley

Justin Crossley

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"The outer shell provides protection from the elements to keep your sheets, mattress and insulation layers dry. It’s simple, durable, and flexible."

Test it!

My topper isn't water tight and it always seems to rain the day before I might sleep in the bed. Sounds like this might solve that problem.
I will definitely find out!
 
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Justin Crossley

Justin Crossley

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"The outer shell provides protection from the elements to keep your sheets, mattress and insulation layers dry. It’s simple, durable, and flexible."

Test it!

My topper isn't water tight and it always seems to rain the day before I might sleep in the bed. Sounds like this might solve that problem.

I talked to Stuart today and this is what he said.

"The top layer has a DWR treatment on it so it will handle morning dew or spilling water on it but it isn't waterproof. It's a design balance between being waterproof and breathable and you only get one. We opted for breathability because you can always build a shelter. The bottom material has a PVC coating and it is waterproof. We opted to not seal the seams because it added a lot of cost into it and we just didn't see a scenario where it was needed. If you're getting that much rain, chances are you aren't actually sleeping!

For water coming into a camper shell, the Badger Bed would be a good option. Water in the truck bed wouldn't really effect it. Like in a tent, if there is an actual hole in the tent allowing a stream of water, the top layer won't stop it. 

Worst case, you could see some moisture come through the seams, but not enough to impact the performance. Also, the sheets and quilts can easily be removed and dried if needed".
 
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Justin Crossley

Justin Crossley

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Not an extreme test by any stretch but I'm looking forward to trying out the Badger Bed this weekend.

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mtn.hunt

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What has your experience been so far? Did you sleep cool enough?
I'd be interested in having a modular system like this - the sleeping pad I've used before and it's supremely comfortable.
Do you see options to make it more cold weather worthy beyond wearing more layers? Using it in winter and snow on cold ground would be an upgrade from closed cell foam pad + NeoXtherm
 
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Justin Crossley

Justin Crossley

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What has your experience been so far? Did you sleep cool enough?
I'd be interested in having a modular system like this - the sleeping pad I've used before and it's supremely comfortable.
Do you see options to make it more cold weather worthy beyond wearing more layers? Using it in winter and snow on cold ground would be an upgrade from closed cell foam pad + NeoXtherm
It was comfortable and cool enough for me on my last trip which was three nights sleeping in my camper.

The system allows you to layer the quilts for cold weather which is how mine is set up. I have the down quilt and the synthetic quilt and plan to use both for cold conditions.
 

Scoot

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I'm not trying to pee on Cheerios here, but with tax it'll be over $800 for a 650 fill sleep system. Am I off base by being skeptical of that?

I'm really not trying to be a jerk here-- I think that's a reasonable question given the price and the details of the product. Please feel free to tell me why it's not a valid concern.
 

Team4LongGun

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Justin-what size is it rolled up? And when you roll it, does it go back to lining up nice or do you fight it with all the components staying inline/inside?
 
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Justin Crossley

Justin Crossley

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I'm not trying to pee on Cheerios here, but with tax it'll be over $800 for a 650 fill sleep system. Am I off base by being skeptical of that?

I'm really not trying to be a jerk here-- I think that's a reasonable question given the price and the details of the product. Please feel free to tell me why it's not a valid concern.
It's definitely a chunk of money all together. Each person will have to decide if the cost is worth it for them.

At first I thought it could be out of line until I broke it down to all the pieces and then it seemed more reasonable to me.

Just the sleeping pad is $240 on Amazon.

The down quilt is $130, the flannel sheets are $60, and the Badger Bed 25 is $390.

None of that seems out of line to me. Some still may find it to be too expensive.
 
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Justin Crossley

Justin Crossley

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Justin-what size is it rolled up? And when you roll it, does it go back to lining up nice or do you fight it with all the components staying inline/inside?
I'll get you some measurements when I get a chance.

There are loops at the bottom of the top sheet and the quilts that attach inside the Badger Bed to keep everything in place. They seem to work well to keep everything in the right spot.
 

svivian

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Met with these guys at the hunt expo as well. Love that there are some companies starting to make "swag" setups like the aussies.

Only concern i see is long term storage of the down quilts compressed inside the bedroll.
 
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Scoot

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Justin, it's not really the total expense I'm reacting to as much as the total expense for a 650 bag. But... it sounds like it's pretty nice and worth a shot. Thanks for posting with the review.
 
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