MYOG – SUL 40° Quilt ??

[John Haley]

David… It's my understanding that Pertex Quantum comes in two distinct weights, the standard 0.9 to 1.0oz sq/yd and the new microlight 0.7 to 0.8oz sq/yd that my recently purchased Nunatak quilt is made with. There can be slight variations in the weight of either due to the calendering process. I know that you work with fabrics far more often than I do, though.

[David Olsen]

Good to know. I have been getting that wide range already,
perhaps they have refined the process to offer differences
in weight?

I have been using the taffeta weave recently.

[Thomas Conly]

Greg, I won't be testing it for a while. I'm in Winnipeg, Canada and it's still really wintery here. It probably won't be warm enough until until May or even June.

[Bill Fornshell]

My Pertex swatch book lists 12 different style numbers for Quantum. the weight of each style is listed with the sample. They list a plus or minus of 2 grams per sq meter. The listed weight for the 12 styles are:

27 grams per sq meter
28
29
30
35
36
37
39
44 grams per sq meter

The samples are large enough to take out of the book and weigh if I wanted to check them but I have never done that.

I have two different Quantum styles on hand, one is 0.89 ounce per sq yard and the other is 1.03 ounces per sq yard.

All of the Pertex Microlight is heavier than the Quantum. I have a Microlight Down Sleeping Bag and water runs off of it. It is just a bit heavier than I would like it to be.

The Quantum line is the lowest weight fabric they list in my swatch book.

[Woubeir (from Europe)]

Hi Bill,
how did you get that swatch book?

[Lynn Tramper]

If you are set on using down fill, then I would strongly recommend you go with the Momentum. The extra 2oz will not put you over your weight limit, and the bag will last *forever*.

I'm with Bill in that I now use only a 'top bag'. My WM POD30 uses Quantum shell and 8oz of fill to achieve a rating of 30F. But partly it achieves that rating by having a hood. For a side sleeper you could install a full length zipper, or just have giant wings along the edges.

There's a full review here that might help you with some design features:

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/western_mountaineering_pod_30_review.html

[Bill Fornshell]

Hi Tom,

I am an approved buyer for Pertex products. After my first purchase I asked a lot of questions and I was asked if had a swatch book, No I didn't. They sent me one.

[Tim Marshall]

Greg,

I just today made a quilt using your dimensions of 55wide for top half tapering to 38 on the foot @ 80long. I used the 2.5oz XP and 1.1ripstop fabric. I used a 26" long separating zipper to form the footbox (saving 16 grams over a 5 snap/loop closed footbox) and still allow it to be opened flat for drying , it has drawcord footbox and head. The drawcord foot box allows it to be used over other bags to increase warmth without restricting the loft of the lower bag.

It weighs 16.2oz so using the silk or momentum would give you a weight a good bit under 16oz. The area that you were most concerned was how much space it would consume. I stuffed it into a sea-to-summit 4l ultra-sil dry sack and was able to close it with 1 turn. I would consider this the max of compressibility, and i wouldn't stuff it that small often as it would degrade the loft. However that isn't much bigger than my 40* down bag (600 fill) and not much bigger than the 45/50* quilt i made Rog T using Ed's 900 fill down.

I just wanted to have a 1 to 1 product to give you an idea of what XP can do.

If you want this quilt i will sell it, but i made it mostly to show how XP can make the weight and still be pretty small in your pack. ( i will be selling it at some point)

-Tim

[Greg Mihalik]

Tim,
I like your style… lets quit talking about this and just try it! And with Awesome results.

I'm still searching for the Holy Grail on fabric and holding out for that SUL -you can't get there from here- down quilt.

I did take to heart what you and others said about width and have done a few mock-ups. I might be willing to lose 5" which would help a bunch, but I'm not 100% sure yet.

Thanks for the first-right-of-refusal, but I'm not there yet.

[Greg Mihalik]

Thanks all here for a lot of good input. It made the decision process easy.

Thank you Backcountry.outlet for an outrageous $123 Montbell Alpine #5, Long, rated to 40°.

After stripping out the zippers, stiffeners, cordage, and hood, I now have a 14 ounce 40° quilt. I reduced the width about 2" removing the zippers and stiffeners. I scavenged the down from the hood and added it to the midsection. Other than that is was 8 hours of rip and sew.

I also took a page from the Montbell SuperStrech book and added two 1/16" shockcord across the bottom of the quilt. I used a shockcord hook on one side for removeability, and a LineLock on the other for adjustability. I think elastic under-straps on a quilt will go a long way to minimizing gaposis in a narrow quilt, but still allow a lot of movement.

Again, thanks to everyone for a lot of invaluable information.

[Tim Marshall]

Thats a great deal. Congrats on getting exactly what you wanted, it's hard to do.

-Tim

[Tim Marshall]

pics?

[Greg Mihalik]

Tim,
Really nothing to see.
It looks a lot like an Arc Specialist.

[Vick Hines]

Here's my experience in making quilts:
Little things add up. Less is more.
Momentum is a reliable, light shell fabric.
Nanoseeum netting from Thruhiker is perfect for baffles because you don't have to hem it and it is even lighter than Momentum.
If you use a barrel shape, tapered at both ends, you will save some weight. The top corners are wasted anyway. I use the same dimensions you are describing, but with a 36" top. Not only does this eliminate the corners, but it shortens the drawstring casing and drawstring, saving weight.

Be careful not to space the baffles too wide. They are needed for down control and adding 2 or 3 will not add more than 0.15 oz.

Give thought to the foot. I like the Jardine-style rounded, flat foot because it opens flat for easy, fast drying. I think Thruhiker uses a separate oval foot piece. The Jardine style is easier to make. They probably weight about the same. The oval is roomier but I don't miss it.

Velcro is a lighter foot closure than even a #3 zipper, but a little more trouble to close properly. OTOH, you can kick the Velcro open if you want ventillation. Having a quilt that will open for drying and ventillation is important enough, IMHO, to provide for it.

[Michael Chudzinski]

Thanks all here for a lot of good input. It made the decision process easy.

Thank you Backcountry.outlet for an outrageous $123 Montbell Alpine #5, Long, rated to 40°.

After stripping out the zippers, stiffeners, cordage, and hood, I now have a 14 ounce 40° quilt. I reduced the width about 2" removing the zippers and stiffeners. I scavenged the down from the hood and added it to the midsection. Other than that is was 8 hours of rip and sew.

I also took a page from the Montbell SuperStrech book and added two 1/16" shockcord across the bottom of the quilt. I used a shockcord hook on one side for removeability, and a LineLock on the other for adjustability. I think elastic under-straps on a quilt will go a long way to minimizing gaposis in a narrow quilt, but still allow a lot of movement.

Again, thanks to everyone for a lot of invaluable information.

Quoteing Greg…

Sounds like you made a great mod from that Montbell,at a GREAT price.

Congrats!

[Rog Tallbloke]

Just to add a thought I had the other day while playing with some 20g/m2 row cover. In a SUL quilt a layer of it either side of the down would add some insulation, assist with down retention, and stop the down shifting around in the baffles. This last point is worth thinking about if using shiny shell materials and minimal amounts of down. Box quilting is laborious.

Thanks to all for the info on this thread.

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