LuxuryLite Extreme-Lite Cot (16 oz… 11 oz packed)

David, I’ve too have been intriqued by his cot, but like you realized that it was far too heavy. I have no trouble sleeping on the ground, but sometimes I need to do some site prep, or choose another location other than the one I would prefer. The cot may make this a bit easier.

My two questions about a 3/4 length cot is what do you do with your lower legs and feet? and…Is 3/4 length 44″ – i.e. the same length as the trekking poles, or is it a couple of inches longer than the shortened TrailSiks? Yes, please keep me posted with updates to this Thread.

i have the UL cot. love it, very nice. the 3/4 length one seems/looks kind of small. did he shorten the poles?

Paulo, David mentioned that they are shortened to 44″ (from ~61″, IIRC).

44″? i don’t like the idea of any body parts hanging off the ends. seems like it would defeat its purpose. i was kind of worried about the weight of the UL (full length), but once i had it in my hands, it really does’nt weight that much. i weighed all parts to give an idea

plastic feet – 8.39oz (not sure what to call these)
alum. poles – 5.96oz
fiber poles – 8.53oz
material – 3.8oz

It appears from the pictures at the site that it is 44″ long. and it is designed for the pillow to be on the ground.

backpack / bag should easily support your feet.

Definitely keep us updated on your experiences.

would be interesting to use with the new tigoat crazy diamond tarp

Just an edit to my original post… Bruce tells me that he was unable to secure enough of the right type of carbon fiber to make trusses from. The carbon fiber he has it too prone to breakage in that application. So he’s going back to the aluminum. It only adds 1 ounce total to the weight… so not bad… and aluminum would certainly be more resilent.

Thanks so much for the weights breakdown Paulo. That’s awesome!

I’m 155 lbs. and 5’7″… so for me I think the size will be ok. My head will be supported by my 1.2 oz dual chamber flexair pillow (maybe with some gear or natural material to prop it up more) and for my feet… at my height… I figure my feet will only overhang by maybe 8 inches or so… my calves will be well on the cot. So I think it will be ok. Otherwise… I could use something to prop them up. Also… I mostly sleep on my front anyway… so I figure my toes would naturally rest on the ground in that position… inside my bag and on top of a thin insulation pad of course. I’d go with a full length option with trailstiks… but then you’re adding the weight of a 4th truss… and I don’t think it will be necessary.

BTW… the height off the ground is 4 inches. One thing I like about this is also just the idea of being off the ground… from the point of view of water and crawling bugs… the idea of being off the ground under a floorless tarp is pretty sweet.

Paulo… do you have the regular UL cot… or that one that uses the long trailstiks for the side poles?

Interesting concept. The real trick would be to incorporate the cot into a one-person shelter. With all that nice connected framework, all you would need to do is add a couple carbon fiber hoops and you have a free standing shelter. Now, if the cover over the hoops could be a poncho, you’re really cookin’. Perhaps some end panels with screened vents and sleeved onto the hoops and the poncho ends could just overlap the top of the hoops. A little more product development on those side poles as hiking poles would be nice. It would drive the price up, but the feet could be lightened with some more engineering.

I *love* the idea of water running under my shelter– without stopping!

>all you would need to do is add a couple carbon fiber hoops and you have a free standing shelter.

Then use the hoop poles (maybe in halves) as a pack frame, the cot fabric as a pack body, add two shoulder straps (and maybe a waist belt) on the bottom…

How is the cot for insulation value? Does it need a supplement with a Thinlight or similar, or is it 3-season worthy as-is? I’ve hammocked and grounded, but never cotted, so just wondering how cool the bottom side will be.

-Mark

Mark… you’d need to add insulation for ‘shoulder seasons’. The cot offers no insulation at all. I’m planning on using a gossamer gear 1/8″ thinlight pad…. only 2 oz.

David-
i have the regular UL cot. last summer on the jmt, i met someone who snapped their fiber trailstik, not sure if it was LL, so i’m kind of leery about those poles. i’m really happy with my poles, so i never gave it a second thought.

Dale-
I *love* the idea of water running under my shelter– without stopping!

Yes!! i hiked last summer with a floorless cloudburst. those sierra summer storms can dump some impressive amounts of water. lets just say i got really tired of dodging running water. this cot should fix that problem :)

David,
Any updates? I’ve been looking at this cot for a while now, but would like to hear an owner’s opinion.

Ryan

I just got it today… I’ll report back in a few days.

Hey,

Ok… I have the cot now. I’ll start with the specs…

Detailed weights:
1 two section 46″ trailstik: 92 grams / 3.25 oz
1 plastic foot: 30 grams / 1.06 oz
1 two section aluminum strut: 73 grams / 2.57 oz
1 complete support unit (2 feet plus aluminum strut): 102 grams / 3.6 oz
Fabric: 73 grams / 2.57 oz

Packed / carried weights:
Cot minus side poles: 382 grams / 13.5 oz
Two 46″ trailstiks: 184 grams / 6.5 oz

So the packed weight is 1.5 oz heavier than advertised according to my scale but the trailstiks are pretty much right on. In Bruce’s defense… I think the 12 oz weight on the site may be a left over from an original prototype that used carbon fiber struts. The carbon fiber struts didn’t work out unfortunately.

TrailStiks:
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These things are pretty cool. The joint is amazing. Very tight. No wiggle at all. This will make transporting the poles very easy.

The length with two sections is 46″ from tip to tip. However, with the straps, the bottom edge of your hand will sit about 8 inches down from the top of the pole. With the straps pushed right up to the top of the pole (just below the metal collar) this puts your hand in the same position it would be in with a 110 cm (43″) pole with a grip. In other words… your hands sit lower in the trailstik straps than they would on a grip. I’m 5’7″ tall and so this is just right for me. Although for going downhill… it would be nice to have more length. I also like ‘palming’ the top of the grip on a regular pole when going downhill… so I may miss that… we’ll see. For more length, you could either add the optional baskets to gain a few inches or add the optional middle third section. The super tall poles are pretty cool to use… but you may look a little silly with these two towering poles… if you care about that :P

Changing the position of the straps on the fly is insanely quick and easy… literally seconds. However… again… with the limited length… I would probably only gain an advantage from this when shortening the length for going uphill. For going downhill… I have nowhere to adjust to as the straps are already as high as they will go. Again, using the longer poles and/or baskets may solve this.

The weight of the poles is amazing. Very light. The only downside, I would say, is the length. For a tall person, the 46″ poles may not be long enough… and you may want to buy the optional basket tips and/or third sections.

Also… I found the straps very comfortable and easy to use. I have never liked straps on traditional poles because I find that with the big grip and the wide straps… you feel kind of “locked in” to the poles. The straps are meant to be used with a simple straight-on entry (i.e… not entering your hand from below and wrapping the strap in your hand… as with a regular strap / grip combo). That, plus the small diameter of the pole (compared to a grip) seem to give you the best of both worlds… the security and push off strength of a strap combined with a freer feeling than a strap+grip.

The Cot:
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Set-up is very easy. Take the straps off the pole, thread them in the pockets, put the struts together and clip them on. Easy. This thing is VERY taut without weight on it. But it flexes a lot and you can step right on it without damaging it. It deflects a lot more than I thought it would under my weight. I’m 5’7″ and 155 lbs. and when I lay on my back so that my butt is in the middle… shoulders at the top end and mid calfs at the bottom end… my butt almost touches the floor. For that reason, I would say that you should not use this cot if you are much more than 150 lbs. At 155lbs… I’m pushing it. If you do weight more, you could add a 4th strut to the middle… but that will increase your pack weight of course. When I lay on my front, the high points of my lower ribs also come close to touching the floor… but not as close as my butt does when I’m on my back. On my side, my hip bone also comes very close to touching and I suspect that this is the worse case sleeping position for this cot at my weight. All of that said, this means that I’m getting a full 4 inches of sleeping depth… so the comfort level for me should be as good as it gets with this cot. So the bottom line is, if you’re much more than 150 lbs… you may want a 4th strut.

As for comfort… I have to say, I was a little disappointed. This is not a negative comment though… it’s just that my expectations were soooo high! Don’t expect it to be as comfortable as your 18″ pillow top mattress at home… or even as comfortable as a hammock. It is not. However… it is MUCH better than sleeping on the ground. Also, the comfort will be affected by whatever you use with it… so a foam pad and your sleeping bag will add more comfort.

Lastly… everyone (myself included) was quite concerned about the length. I have not tried this thing in the field yet… and I have not slept on it at home either… but from my quick tests laying down on it it doesn’t seem like this will be an issue in the slightest. It’s only 4″ off the ground with no weight on it!!! Once you’re on the thing… your shoulders and calfs will probably only be about an inch from the ground. So the cot to ground transition should not be a problem at all. Of course… if you are a 110 pound female… that may be a different story. Personally though… I found it not to be an issue in the slightest.

You will need a pillow of some kind… but for the feet… you really don’t need a thing. Honestly. For a pillow… I’m using two small flexair’s sewn together… so they form a cradle for my head. I just tried out the cot with my twin flexair pillow, an 8-section z-rest and my montbell super stretch #3… and on my back… it is pure heaven. I can see falling into this thing at the end of a long hike and just passing out instantly :) Totally.

On your front… the lack of cot under your head is actually MORE comfortable I’d say… at least for me… because it gives you room to drop your elbows down to the ground on either side of your head (assuming you don’t sleep on your front with your arms down by your sides… does anyone do this?!?!). On your front… the drop off makes it just like laying on a massage table with your head in that hole thingie… except the “hole” is the ground (covered by a pad and maybe a thin pillow and/or sleeping bag hood of course).

I do believe that I’m sold! I was wondering about the extra strut, think I’ll be ordering one when I order my cot. Thanks again for the review!

Ryan

Now all you need is one of these http://www.venturacampsystems.com/ made out of cuben fiber. I have one that I use for traveling, works great but it weighs 3.59 pounds with out the 10 lb cot.

David –

Do you plan on useing your LL cot inside your tent? Or do you plan on placing it under your tent, like Bruce recommends?

If inside your tent, do you think that the struts will damage the floor of the tent at all?

I’m a big LL fan – have the pack and long trailstiks, but so far, have put off on purchasing the cot. But after your review, I am really, really tempted…..

I don’t use a tent… unless I’m sharing space with someone… then I use a TarpTent Squall with a floor. The feet are plastic. They don’t hurt a thing. The edges are not sharp at all.

Are your sticks the ones that come appart? If so, I wonder if Bruce would sell you just the fabric and the struts? Otherwise… you will end up with an extra set of trailstiks… and short ones at that… unless you buy the extra 18″ sections to make them long poles.

David –
Bruce just changed the way he sells the Cot-EL. The 46″ Trailstiks do NOT come with the Cot-El – which now sells for $88 by itself.

That’s confusing since I don’t see the 46″ trailstiks for sale anymore. Also, according to my scale… the cot is 13.5 oz without the sidepoles… not 12 oz.