11.4 oz 78x20x2.5″ Sleeping pad :)

[>> Bender <<]

Here is a pillow I made for Denis Hazlewood. The dimensions before inflated ended up at 14.5" by 12.5" with some nicely rounded corners. Weight is 29g or 30g as pictured with string. Rolled up its about the same size as a film canister. I am very pleased with the pillow, especially how nicely the valve area turned out.

[Steven Evans]

The valve placement on the pillow looks alot cleaner then the pad…I was actually going to make a mating piece to fit the valve to the material, but yours is obviously a better idea. :)

Nice work again…

[Denis Hazlewood]

Thanks to all the creative members here @ BPL,my pack just keeps getting lighter. And my nights sleep just keeps getting more comfortable.

[Backpack Jack]

Denis you always get the cool stuff! Way to go! Jack

[Denis Hazlewood]

But, though I fly low and slow, I get to camp with the BPL Eagles.

Great work Bender. Thanks again.

[Mark Andersen]

Could you bond the synthetic insulation to the bottom piece of 30d with some sort of adhesive prior to adding the top piece of fabric, and then forgo sealing in the tubes, to create something similar to a Thermarest (albeit much lighter)?

What's the puncture resistance of the 30d? I use a Thermarest, and it's resisted punctures for several years now, even though on a number of occasions I've found thorns (think "roses") coming up through the floor of my tent.

[>> Bender <<]

Mark assuming that would work, using 1.2" loft XP would weigh the same as a down version because it uses less fabric. Using the .6" loft XP the pad would be about 10.5-11oz for 72×20". Now to find an incredibly flexible adhesive to put it all together!

[Tim Marshall]

if you try XP without tubes you could use the iron to heat seal the XP to one side, assuming it doesn't melt, not sure if it would or not. Or you could put the xp in and seal the edges then just run the iron a bit over the top and bottom to heat up the glue so the XP doesn't shift.

-Tim

[>> Bender <<]

Tim just from playing around with the material I don't think I'll be able to seal the insulation like that. I have already tried sticking other materials to the seal side of the nylon with no success. I wanted use no-see-um mesh as baffles but it doesn't want to stick at all. Now I wonder if 15d sylnylon would stick for baffles.

I have an awesome impulse sealer on the way!

[Tim Marshall]

bummer.

-Tim

[Mark Andersen]

What about hot glue to join the XP to the fabric? Maybe just in 4 or 6 spots? Hot glue is flexible, and I would imagine you could push the XP down into a blob of it to secure it. Or, maybe you could apply the blob through the XP by pushing the tip down into the XP and onto the fabric. If hot glue won't stick to the heat sealable side well, maybe you could add small round patches of sealable, so you're working with the non-sealable side for the hot glue spots…? Or, maybe you could heat seal thin strips of the sealable stuff in 4-6 places on the bottom fabric, poke those through the insulation, and heat seal them to the top piece, so that the insulation is secured in several spots…?

I don't know anything about the fabric or the insulation, so just tossing out ideas. I am really interested in this thread because I'd like to see an insulated air mattress that is as comfortable as my big fat Thermarest, but at maybe 1/4 the weight. 10-11 oz. for an insulated, 1.2" thick air mat sounds great. Or, even better, a 2.4" pad for ~ 1 lb.

[Mark Andersen]

I think I misread your weight figures. It looks like a 2.4" (two layers of 5 oz. XP) pad would be closer to 20 oz.? Even so, I'd be interested to see what you find, in terms of what's possible.

[Michael Ray]

How about Aquaseal by McNett that another person reported good results with on his homemade cuben tent?

[>> Bender <<]

Mark 2.4" of XP insulation would be about 19-20oz (72×20).

Michael the Aquaseal sounds promising but there are some other options I can try that are more readily available. I will probably try UHU Por thinned out and brushed on.

[>> Bender <<]

I just received dark blue and black 50D material today. I have another source for 50D still on its way so fingers crossed! I like the idea of a full 72" mummy pad at 8.6oz! A 60" pad I would have to calculate but it is getting down to nothing. I also have nearly a kilo of 750+ FP down ready to go hehe! Down will add about 3.5oz for 72" and even less for mummy style.

Here are my estimates for each pad.

Square 72x20x2.5"
White 10.4 oz
Blue 14.7 oz
Black 21.8 oz

Same but mummy style
White 8.6 oz
Blue 12.1 oz
Black 18.0 oz

[>> Bender <<]

I received my sealer today and as you can see it is working exceedingly well. This pillow has internal baffles for stability. The baffles are spaced just right to cradle your head. The pillow is shown fully inflated but it is much more comfortable with just a little less air. Weight is 1.3 oz and it rolls up ridiculously small. The final version will likely weigh a fuzz less due to rounded corners. Dimensions are 3.5" by 7.5" by 12" when fully inflated. Now who else besides me would get so excited over a pillow :)

[Steven Evans]

Dang, that thing looks beautiful! Seriously, it looks like you bought it from a store – what kind of sealer did you use?

[Denis Hazlewood]

Bender,
How much do you estimate it would weigh if constructed of the white material? Are the baffles sealed tubes, like the mattress? If so, might my pillow be modified with one centered "baffle"?

[Joe Clement]

Looks great to me, I'd buy one. Can I?

[>> Bender <<]

Denis the pillow uses I beam construction so there are no tubes like the sleeping pad. With the white material it would weigh roughly 1 ounce but it is slightly smaller than the one I made for you. Check your PM :)

Steven the sealer is a Harwil bar sealer. They are not cheap but it's the perfect tool for the job. Well anyway it's the perfect tool now. I have modified it already.

[Kyle Purcell]

So…when are you going to start selling these?

[David Lutz]

I'd get in line for one of these….

[Richard Gless]

I'd buy one as well. This looks like a winner.

[Steven Evans]

I could be persuaded to purchase one aswell…but can we make them just a tad smaller? Just so they're under 1oz? Yes, I'm that crazy. :)

[Joe Clement]

I want mine the size in the picture. Although…..it would be cool to have one that fit in the hood of a mummy bag.

[Author]

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