Pillows

[Jonathan DeYoung]

I have a problem… I usually pack such little gear that at night I have nothig to use for a pillow. My last time out I was hugging a Jet Boil fuel canister (not the most comfy thing).

I am interested in the Montbelle UL Comfy Pillow.

Does anyone have an suggestions or experience with pillow use with the Montbell or any others?

[Jolly Green Giant]

Have you tried the BPL Flex Air Dual Compartment pillow?

It's actually not too bad, although it is a lot like sleeping on a controlled-inflation plastic bag. It can be made more comfortable with a sleeve of a material that you find comfortable on your face.

It's light and cheap which is a nice combination.

If you want something insulated though, this isn't it.

[Jonathan DeYoung]

also maybe the Cocoon Ultralight Air Core pillow… it weighs a bit more but I am looking for a compromise in weight (not much weight) to get comfort.

[Jonathan DeYoung]

I have given though to the BPL pillow… I might end up trying them out because they are inexpensive but I worry about the longevity of them. Do they seem durable enough to hold up for a season?

[Jolly Green Giant]

My first thought was that they would fail after a few uses. Oddly enough, of the pack of three, I used one nearly all of last year and I'm still using the same one. I do take care of it and the rest of my gear though, so if you have a tendency to be rough, it might not last. Don't lose the little straw that comes with it to blow it up which isn't always fun to keep track of.

[Rick Cheehy]

i use a big glad lock freezer bag with the double zip. I stuff it in my pack in the hydration sleeve with my platy. I put a lid on the platy. Sort of comfortable-ish.

[Brad Groves]

A roll-top dry bag, same one you used for your sleeping bag and/or clothes, works sorta well…

[John S.]

Someone needs to myog a dual chambered water container so it can serve dual purpose better.

[Rick Cheehy]

That's a good idea, It'd be useful while waiting for chem treatments as well.

[Jack G]

Just returned the Montbell pillow last week. It is single chamber pillow that looks like a three chamber pillow in the picture. I bought some water wings at Menards and put three sections together. It is much more comfortable IMO.

[Franco Darioli]

The MontBell pillow I suggested is the red one , top right end side.
You can blow up the Flexair without the straw, just separate the plastic ends and blow inside. I use my long handle spoon to deflate it, but you could use a peg as well.
As you can see I have made mine out of wine cask bladders and water wings, however the Flexair and the MontBell are more comfortable for me.
Franco

These are the pillows that have passed the test, many others (failed experiments or too heavy/bulky) have been given away or become land fill.
One that I still used last year and not in the picture is the stuff sack filled with clothing, we all have one of those. Not that comfortable for me but doable.
As pointed out in a different thread, I thought that I had a problem with tents, jackets and mats but apparently I am well rounded nerd.

[Adrian B]

I used to use a MB pillow, they work pretty well for an inflatable.

But now I stick my rain gear in a cuben sack.

[Jonathan DeYoung]

Thank you all for the great suggestions. I especially like the MYOG for the dual chamber water bladder. That just sounds awesome and I love multi use items. I am going to attempt to come up with a pillow out of the gear i already have (possibly blowing up a empty platy bladder and wrapping it in anything soft that i might have availble. I also like the idea of the cuban sack stuffed with rain gear.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I usually have some extra clothing of some sort for a pillow. Often times if it's warm enough, I can take off something I'm wearing and use it as a pillow.

My gloves make a good pillow. And if I need to wear them, my hands in my gloves make a good pillow, too. Which is to say, I can actually sleep with no pillow.

But if all else fails, I've found that taking the empty trash compactor bag I use for my extra clothes and wadding that up and stuffing it under my sleeping pad makes a decent pillow.

If I've brought a novel, that makes a decent pillow, too.

My pack also makes a decent pillow since I use a full-length pad and don't need it down there.

[Franco Darioli]

Jonathan
If that is the way you want to go, the wine bladders (2 or 4 liters) can of course be used as an emergency water bladder. However for a long time nobody has been able to change water into wine.
I modified the valve on the one in the pic, so that it does not stick out as much. (pulled the valve out, cut an 1/2" or so section and re-glued it)
BTW, if you are storing water in it at night, you will get cold…
Franco

[Raymond Estrella]

Jonathon,

I really like my Montbell UL Comfort System Pillow. I have been using it for about 6 months. I am getting a couple more for my kids.

[Dondo .]

Wow, Franco! That IS an impressive collection.

[Dondo .]

Jonathan, I've been using the Montbell pillow since it came to the US almost three years ago. It's really comfortable for me. When scrutinizing my gear list, it's one of the few items that is off limits.

[Jay Wilkerson]

I use a REI pillow a little heavy at 6.5oz but it has a built in stuff sack to ad more clothes for more comfort-SO I use my pillow as my clothes stuff sack. Multi-Use Gear: Pillow-Clothes Bag.

-Jay

[Andy Berner]

Could someone tell me what the thickest pillow is? I sleep with two pillow normally.

Thanks

[Derek Cox]

Dual flexair with a piece of foam padding on top (like from a mattress cover type foam. Super light and just as comfortable as the pillow i use in bed each night. less than 3 ounces. you can make a pillow case or put it in a t-shirt if you want as well.

[Mike M]

I was a little skeptical of the Flex-air, but for the $ I'd figured I wouldn't be out much if I didn't like. Well to my surprise (and my wife's) they are quite comfoy- we're using the large single chamber ones- 0.8 w/ straw (straw doubles as an emergency water gatherer :)) it also takes up no room (deflate it flat, fold and put in a ziplock w/ the straw)

the thing is turning out to be quite durable as well- four 3-4 day trips and it stills looks like new

[Michael Ray]

I use the Exped Pillow Pump. Since it has foam inside it has more substance than just an air pillow. I blow it up just a bit to get the firmness and height I need (side sleeper). I also use it to fill my pad so wild things don't grow inside if I was using my own warm, moist air. It does weight 5.5 oz though – one of my luxury items.

[Simon Wurster]

I've tried:
-Big Agnes Pillow
-REI Travel Pillow (self inflater, bow-tie shaped)
-Horshoe shaped inflatable pillow.
-Sea-to-Summit luxury pillow (2 parts, self-inflating core + soft cover).
-Cocoon Down Pillow

I've matched these with:
-Z-lite sitpad folded in half
-Therm-a-Rest sitpad (orange) folded in half.
-Open-cell foam, one 2" thick with holes for peaches, another about 1" thick. I really wanted this to work as DIY project.
…and various combinations thereof (about 6, IIRC). They were either too wobbly because of the air chambers (no matter how flat I made them), or too hard, or too thick, or too hot, or too slippery, or too bulky, or too fragile, or…

But there was a winner: the Sea-to-Summit self-inflating core (4.9 oz.) with the Cocoon on top (3.0 oz.) (held together with a fabic ribbon). The Cocoon made all the combinations work very well, the hard part was finding a foundation that was height-adjustable, didn't flatten-out, wasn't wobbly, was durable, and easy-to-use. Yup, startling at 8 oz., but this pillow and my BA AC pad aren't luxuries, they're necessities…

[Brian Lewis]

I use the MB pillow along with their UL 90 (35" long) inflatable pad and have been quite happy with this combination — particularly the way they toggle together.

Just ordered a Neo-Air for my wife, but given the weight and added thickness I'm tempted to try it out (since I'll have hers to play with a bit …). With the Neo-Air (size regular, 72") the pillow would sit on top of the pad rather than at the end of the pad, so I guess I'd have to stuff it inside my sleeping bag hood on cold nights. But what about warm nights? Maybe it would stay in place by itself well enough … dunno. Overall, I like that pillow, however.

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