Quilts?

[Becca]

http://www.rokslide.com/2012-01-09-05-09-42/sleep-systems/302-quilt-review-the-accomplice

Never thought I would be a quilt fan but I am sold. The Wiggy's still get the nod for coastal hunts where the probability of getting wet is greatest, but otherwise the quilt with treated down is a great choice for minimal weight penalty. The above review is for the "Accomplice " or double quilt, but most of the same principles apply to the individual version. Quilts have a foot box, but eliminate the weight and bulk of the bag that would otherwise be underneath you (and thus compressed and minimally effective).

 

[mtnclimber]

Why wouldn't you use one in Alaska?

haha i was waiting for this. i can't say much because i haven't tried it. but a couple buddies that are way more hardcore than i that hunt in alaska and kyrgastan over 100 days a year in the field steered me away from it.

I could be totally wrong, I'm just not willing to spend $200-$300 to find out right now.

 

[dotman]

haha i was waiting for this. i can't say much because i haven't tried it. but a couple buddies that are way more hardcore than i that hunt in alaska and kyrgastan over 100 days a year in the field steered me away from it.

I could be totally wrong, I'm just not willing to spend $200-$300 to find out right now.

Ah common, where's your sense of adventure

 

[colonel00]

haha i was waiting for this. i can't say much because i haven't tried it. but a couple buddies that are way more hardcore than i that hunt in alaska and kyrgastan over 100 days a year in the field steered me away from it.

I could be totally wrong, I'm just not willing to spend $200-$300 to find out right now.

Fair enough but what was their reasoning on why to steer clear of quilts?

 

[jherald]

I've got both a EE quilt and sleeping bag and use one just as much as the other.

With the quilt you have to be sure and cinch the bottom up tight or else warm air will escape, and make sure you are sealed al around the edges of your pad or else warm air will escape. The quilt does open up like a regular blanket if you want to use it like one.

Sleeping bag, pretty simple just zip it up around you. Only thing I like about the quilt is being that its held to your pad by just thin elastic straps, you can burst out of it quickly of you happen to get a bear in camp. I always feel like a human burrito in my sleeping bag when its zipped all the way up to my face.

 

[mtnclimber]

along the lines of what jherald said. quilts aren't sealed so they aren't as efficient as a sleeping bag. Like a 0 degree bag isn't the same as a 0 degree quilt. Especially for those that move in the middle of the night can end up waking up to a freezing cold sprawled out quilt/blanket.

 

[luke moffat]

Quilts aren't the end all be all certainly. For cold single digits or colder or extremely wet I will go with a bag of one sort or another. But the majority of my hunting and hiking I will gladly reap the benefits of added comfort with less weight of a quillt. It's a no brainier for me for more comfort and the same warmth for less weight I will choose the quilt nearly all summer and into late fall. A 10 degree quilt is still lighter than a 20 degree bag and IME gives you a better warmth to weight ratio. But I am just comparing to western mountaineering and marmot heliums and such.

 

[mtnclimber]

Quilts aren't the end all be all certainly. For cold single digits or colder or extremely wet I will go with a bag of one sort or another. But the majority of my hunting and hiking I will gladly reap the benefits of added comfort with less weight of a quillt. It's a no brainier for me for more comfort and the same warmth for less weight I will choose the quilt nearly all summer and into late fall. A 10 degree quilt is still lighter than a 20 degree bag and IME gives you a better warmth to weight ratio. But I am just comparing to western mountaineering and marmot heliums and such.

dang luke wish you had a long size quilt for me to try

 

[Matt Cashell]

I use a quilt, bag, or both depending.

Once you get used to figuring out how to stuff the edges, it isn't too hard to keep the drafts out, IME. In warmer weather, it is awesome to just use it like a comforter. Quilts are MUCH better for hammok camping, although hanging is probably not very popular in Alaska.

I prefer a traditional bag for sleeping on a cot, and for really cold temps, but I really liked using the quilt for extra insulation with the 0 deg. mummy when temps went below zero.

 

[BRWNBR]

So a quilt doesn't actually go all the way around you? Foot box is enclosed then it opens near the knees and you lay right on your sleeping pad?
I'm looking at 0 degree quilts of different brands in the 20-24 oz range
And sleeping bags rated to 15 degrees in the 40oz range. A 20oz weight savings when it comes
To where you spend 1/3-1/2 of my time
Don't sound like a real winner. But like say, never tried one and dropping that kinda money on something that costs 400 dollars a pound.....ugh

 

[colonel00]

You can tuck the quilt in around you quite well or most have some sort of strap that allows the quilt to be cinched down to the pad to reduce drafts. Think of it just like if you were sleeping in a bed with just a down comforter. The point of the quilt is to remove the "unnecessary" material and insulation that you are usually laying on and thus eliminating any benefit.

 

[BRWNBR]

Gotcha. So the weight savings is in that there is less material there...hmmm I can see in warmer weather this would be nice. I can see in colder weather this would be annoying, I'm not a still sleeper is be forever trying to retuck my edges.

 

[Justin Crossley]

I toss and turn all night and I sleep way better with my quilts than I do with my mummy bags. I would always wake up really sweaty in my mummy bag and then when I unzipped it, I would end up cold. With the quilt I can regulate the temperature much better and sleep way better. I know a lot of people who have tried quilts and I would say 80-90% still use them more than their bags. I started using a quilt a couple years ago and haven't used a mummy bag since.

 

[Manosteel]

I will never go back to a bag after using a quilt this past season. I move a lot and am a hot sleeper. I had no problems staying under the quilt (got 20^ wide version of EE) and didn't get any drafts on nights it hit single digits. Being able to stick a leg out to help regulate heat on warms nights or during mid-day naps is a blessing. So impressed I bought quilts for my boys.

 

[Poser]

I'm a serious tosser and turner. In a mummy bag, I wake up with the zipper wrapped around my body 3x and would have problems staying on pads, sometimes ending up with a part of the bag sticking out of the tarp tent.
With a quilt, I toss and turn with the quilts remains "freefloating" (EE with the straps under the pad). The straps and tucked corners help to keep me on the pad (and inside of the tent).

 

[luke moffat]

Jake for the majority of your hunting season (April-end of Sept) a 10 degree quilt will be all you need in my experience.Heck I used my 10 degree quilt last spring on Kodiak in March They work whether the $$$ is worth the weight savings and more comfortable sleep thats another issue.

 

[7mag.]

I toss and turn all night and I sleep way better with my quilts than I do with my mummy bags. I would always wake up really sweaty in my mummy bag and then when I unzipped it, I would end up cold. With the quilt I can regulate the temperature much better and sleep way better. I know a lot of people who have tried quilts and I would say 80-90% still use them more than their bags. I started using a quilt a couple years ago and haven't used a mummy bag since.

I agree 100%. If you use the straps to attach the quilt to the pad, you can toss and turn all you want. You won't be turning the quilt with you. I used to end up in a twisted, mummy bag straight jacket, after switching to a quilt, I sleep much more comfortable.

 

[BRWNBR]

So is there specific pads that need to be used under a quilt
To make them work right?
Sounds like it's kinda a toss up on using a quilt, pros and cons for either one. It's just a several hundred dollar experiment at first.

 

[dotman]

So is there specific pads that need to be used under a quilt
To make them work right?
Sounds like it's kinda a toss up on using a quilt, pros and cons for either one. It's just a several hundred dollar experiment at first.

I would say the quilt has way more pros then cons when compared to a mummy bag if you move around at all. Really you have to try it to fully understand it.

For a pad just look at Therm-a-rest, Big Agnes's and exped. Look for the r-values in their different pads but generally you'll want a 3 or higher r-value.

 

[7mag.]

So is there specific pads that need to be used under a quilt
To make them work right?
Sounds like it's kinda a toss up on using a quilt, pros and cons for either one. It's just a several hundred dollar experiment at first.

No, you can use any pad you want. The straps wrap around the pad and are adjustable for different size pads, and they also adjust how much quilt you want tucked under you.