20 F Quilt – Options & Opinions

Hi Russ,

I have a Hammock gear Premium Burro 20 that works well on the ground but doesn’t have a draft collar option. I was looking at the Underground Quilt XL Bandit which does have a collar option but for whatever reason decided against it. It looks very nice. I also own a Loco Libre Ghost Pepper 20 but its for hanging only. Too narrow! Your choices look fine but it all comes down to a personal choice after looking at pros and cons.Good luck!

Not for everyone but I ordered a custom Sastrugi zipperless bag from Nunatak as I really dislike drafts…..

This is another new quilt manufacturer that seems to be getting good reviews and the owner just put one up on gear swap.

https://elcoyotequilts.com/

May want to look at the Thermarest Vesper 20.  Sub 20 oz, has a draft collar, 900+ down fill.

The pad attachment system is what makes low temp quilts either work or fail. Plus foot boxes big enough to accommodate real feet. I got rid of my Z-packs quilt and now own 3 different Katabatic quilts (Chisos, Palisade, and Sawatch) for these reasons. They don’t have draft collars though, so your list of ‘must have’ features seems a bit loose.

Rather than an ounce or two of down overstuff, get an insulated balaclava like the MLD Apex. Total head furnace. (Edit: I see you are familiar with the E E Hoodlum)

Many consider EE’s pad attachment system the best, liking Katabatic quilts but not their fiddle factor “cord” attachment system.  Now UGQ offers an attachment system pretty much identical to EE – & in an exchange I had with Philip Werner over at Section Hiker the Bandit (& XL) are absolutely top notch – especially if you get the updated attachment system & their new Dynamic Tension Control which works to keep the opening more closed (& seems to work).  I was about to buy one of these but the FF Tanager has garnered my attention.  But if I go quilt, it’ll probably be the UGQ Bandit XL with a closed footbox.

I’ve had an EE quilt since like 2012 and retrofitted it to their current “flat clip” based attachment system a few years ago, and I just had extra down added to it.   I think their pad attachment is excellent.  I purchased a Hammock Gear Burrow Econ in early 2019 and thought their mitten clip/shock cord system was terrible.  I retrofitted it to be just like the EE pad attachment straps.

For truly chilly weather where drafts can be an issue, Katabatics attachment system is superior.  It absolutely locks you it and eliminates drafts.

I’m not sure I see much of a difference between Katabatic’s clips on cordage vs the flat tabs on flat elastic used by EE.  Both allow you to move the attachment point along the cordage or strap so that the quilt can be snugged up underneath you, or configured more loosely toward the edge of the sleeping pad.  In my experience, once the flat elastic strapping has been stretched around a pad, there’s a good amount of friction on the tabs and they don’t slip around.   I also find the flat tabs on EE’s system easy to operate in the middle of the night.  Press the center and the tab pops apart so that I can get out and make a bathroom run.  The Katabatic attachment appears like it would be reasonably easy to pop off the cordage, but it’s hard to judge without first hand experience.

All I can say with certainty is that plastic mitten clips are a nightmare and I curse any top quilt maker who’s using them for their pad attachment system.

Where I will give Katabatic a distinct advantage is the way they’ve sewn their clip onto the quilt.  It’s not at the edge with a plain bit of grossgrain webbing, but rather its inset from the edge a bit so that the quilt seals against the pad better.   That’s a nice design touch.

EE has also added a draft collar as a $10 added option, but it looks like Katabatic’s is executed better.  It’s also my understanding that EE still doesn’t use a differential cut, which is disappointing.

I’d agree that the Katabatic quilt is built better than an EE but it also cost about $130.00 more for similarly configured 20 degree quilts in the 15/20 range.