need a new bag ya’ll

thanks again for the various insights and inputs. If anyone still wants to talk about bags I’ve taken Michael’s suggestion and looked at the WM alpenlite which looks good as well and I know their gear is top notch and the down fill is higher rated. My question is for anyone who has used a mont bell with the “superstretch” feature I’d like to hear about the effectiveness of that.

Here are a few pics of my mont bell superstrech #2. I have been very happy with it, I think I have already mentioned the acurate temperaturee ratings in this forum and would also like to praise the generous size of the bag, it is very large and comforatable before the strech and after you add this feature it is as close to your own bed as you can get on the trail

comparing the bag to the stuff sack

a streched baffle in the shoulder area

and near the foot box

the foot box adjuster

compared to the same bag without the adjustment

see the full length zipper and down coller and draft tube

double sided zipper for foot box ventilation
(and a close up veiw of my Shag Rug :-)>)

I think they call this sleeping bag porn. :-)>

You did not include the requisite photo of a Montbell SS bag—showing those baffles being stretched by someone within the bag.

Here is two pics comparing streched bag to a none streched


you can also from this picture see the vertical baffles used to keep down in place

I think that the stretch baffles are Montbell’s strong suit in their bags, besides the consistent Montbell high quality.
Two things prevent me from getting one (there is the fact of having a bag too many,already).
The down quality—which is a long step down from
Feathered Friends, Western Mountaineering, Marmot 900 series, Nunatak, and few other’s premier grade bags. The result is slightly heavier bags for the amount of loft and a shorter bag life.
and…
A big one for me in LW bags (in particular)– it has Closed Side Baffles, which prevent me from moving the down where I need it ( more on top when colder, more on bottom when warmer). It’s one more device beyond the zipper for temp. control.
Not having a CSB helps me use my Marmot Hydrogen in ungogly low temps.

Other people complain about zippers snagging easily, something a climbing mag complained about in the past, i believe.

This is the new “mont-Bill” – Home-Made “0” degree combination DAM/Down Top Cover Sleeping System for my Hammock. The DAM air tubes are pulled out for the picture. Picture this inside my Hammock hanging in the snow and me inside warm as toast. The Down hood is detachable and can be worn around camp or while hiking if necessary. The material used for this version was some $1 a yard stuff from WalMart.

Grant,

I have a Montbell bag with superstretch and it does what it was designed to do–provide plenty of stretch in all directions for those of us who tend to thrash around a bit at night while at the same time keeping you warm. The elastic stitching holds the bag against your body and eliminates cool convective currents within the bag.
Keep in mind that Ben and I and presumably Ryan F. are not big guys. Over at The Light Backpacker, Bearpaw, a frequent poster, said this recently: “If you’re a big guy like me, Montbell bags just won’t do…” Maybe other big guys who have tried Montbell can chime in here with their impressions.

I dont know if I am a big or small guy, you decide, I am 5’10 1/2″ 160lbs (7% body fat :-)> ) and i have said many times that mont bell makes excellent bags and I dont see why the wont work for anyone unless they are over 6’4″ (or over 500lbs)

Ryan,

I like the obvious freedom the stretch baffle system offers but if the baffles are pushed/stretched to their limit will you create cold spots?

Roger

the bags have a large size before the stretch so I dont stretch the baffles at all if I am sleeping motionless, they only come into play when rolling around. and the stretch pulls the bag close to your body to keep you warm and the multi nox construction keeps down in place and eliminates cold spots
so you will never push to the limits untill you strech out your arms and legs and as soon as you restore them to a normal position the elastic pulls it back close to your body.
dose that answer your question?

Bill have you ever made a stretch bag?

Ah-Yeah (multi-nox construction)??? (even more guestions) Thanks Ryan,

Sounds good on paper, I guess you just have to give it a try to fully appreciate/understand the bag.

Roger

Ryan, Mont-Bell is one of my favorite companies. I have a Therawrap vest, the new Parka, and the new Pants.

I have looked long and hard at the Mont-Bell Super Stretch idea and do have a couple of ideas about how it might work for a “do-it-yourself” project. I think I can sew elastic into each baffle. I even took a class at my local sewing center on how to sew elastic. I showed the lady teaching the class the Mont-Bell catalog and told her what I wanted to do. She didn’t think it would be to hard and had a couple of really good tips for me to try. I have the “gathered” elastic on my “change” list for the next version of my Top Cover.

can anyone tell me why it’s pretty much “hit-or-miss” whether or not the Pics will display? sometimes i see the Pics. Other times just a msg “Image hosted by Photobucket”, or less frequently, an IMG “place-holder”. refreshing the web page with the Posts and Pics, or clicking on an IMG “place-holder” does NOT cause the Pics to appear.

signed,
Pic-less in Poughkeepsie
(sorry,… recently watched “Sleepless in Seattle” with my wife).

---

Montbell seems to size things for a slightly smaller/trimmer Japanese physique – or so it seems to me (not an issue for me, since i’m diminutive even by Japanese standards). Maybe they need a “Sumo” line???

Paul
if the image says “Image hosted by Photobucket” the the poster has probably deleted the image from photobucket,(this happend to me in this forum)(1st page) and if the tag appears then it is probably incorrect

RyanF,

you’re good. many thanks. understood. once again, you’re proving to be an invaluable resource. take care.

are you sure you’re only 13(?) (or 14?)???

.

Don’t know much about cold weather bags in bangkok, but Merry Xmas to you if that is the same Grant Sible who lived in Quito in the early nineties. This is Jeremy (english photographer also 6’3″).I hope life is good for you and if you are ever out in asia get in touch. http://www.jeremyhorner.com

I also have a Super Stretch by the way… the #3. I love it. It’s a little heavier than a quilt option or some of the Western Mountaineering bags… but the ratio of function to weight is damn good. For 23 oz, I have a 0° C (usable to -10° C they claim) fully insulated bag (which I find I need since I turn around alot while sleeping) with lots of room AND warmth (the best of both worlds), a full zipper and a hood. My only compaint is that the zipper is not a locking zipper. That’s just dumb.

I also like the built-in “stuff sack”. You can use the drawstring in the bottom of the bag to stuff the bag into itself… into the foot box. I find it’s a really nice compomise between volume and compression. I find… especially with a full bag… that I can’t just put the sleeping bag loose in a plastic bag… uncompressed… as many ultralighters do (for fear of damaging the insulation). Especially if I want to fit all my gear into something like a G6 or a Prophet 30. But I find the stuff sack that comes with the Montbell bag is crazy small… and it makes me nervous cramming it all in to that tiny package. So with the foot box stuffing option… I have a package that’s still fairly small without being overly compressed. Plus I save weight by not carrying a stuff sack :)

By the way… I have the regular size bag. I’m 5’7″, 160 pounds (about 5 pounds overweight at the moment).