11.4 oz 78x20x2.5″ Sleeping pad :)

Soon they'll weigh negative weight!

John a little hydrogen and these will start floating away!

Hi Bender

> The two outer tubes are slightly larger so it cradles you.
Now that IS smart! Way to go.

Cheers

wow, im envisioning an 11.5 oz full length DAM. And christmas is just around the corner :) Great job, and congrats on getting the website up

Oh yeah, did you order all the white 30D stuff or do they have some left?

David, the 30D white material is all gone. I bought the last 8 yards. They tell me they don't even know where they got it so they wont order it again. I have a lead on a place that may be able to custom laminate fabric to my specs but its going to cost a LOT due to minimum run length.

Thanks for the complements David & Roger :)

Been fun watching this all unfold Bender. Really great work and craftsmanship. Very impressed with the out of the box thinking. I am currently trying to make my entire kit from gear I make and some for family and friends. If you get around to ordering some custom stuff I would be interested in picking up quite a few yards if it would help you out.

Keep up the good work

Jeff

Just checked out your site. Do you plan to make any 25" wide pads and do those pads insulated with down or are you going to sell those later?

Cesar with the blue material I can do 26" wide with the tubes going horizontal. I have a very small amount of the white material left and that could go 40"+. You should see some down pads showing up if you keep your eye this thread!

I went back through this entire thread twice and couldn't find the URL of the new website… Are you allowed to post that here on this forum? If so I'd love to check it out!

It’s on his profile.

Kookabay

My 60" mummy cut pad just arrived today… 6.7 ounces! Awesome job Ben.

I'd be interested in a 26" wide version also – preferably 75" long. I'll keep an eye on the site.

John I'm glad you like it! At 6.7oz its the lightest one I have made to date.

Scott I can do 75×26 just send me a PM and let me know what you are thinking.

Bender–any progress with creating insulated versions (either down or synthetic) yet?

Yes I have. I just did a 70" rectangular pad with 3.6oz of 750FP down insulation. Side by side you can quickly feel a difference between the insulated & non insulated version. A BA Pumphouse works great for inflation. My standard 72" down pad would weigh just under a 16oz. Synthetic insulation would be much easier to work with. I may try something like Climashield for a less expensive option.

Cool! I'll be interested to see pricing on the down and XP versions once that is more fully developed. The uninsulated versions seem like they'd be great for warm-weather backpacking, but even my mid-summer nighttime lows are usually in the 40's or lower, so an insulated pad is kind of a must.

Here are a few recent creations!

I think it's awesome when people work together to develop an "open-source" project, just like this project when it started off. The Linux operating system (an alternative to Windows or Mac) is a beautiful example.

Since this is a MYOG forum, will updated instructions on how to make a similar sleeping pad and pillow be available soon? If not, are the instructions in the first post the recommended "design document"?

Thanks,

Nick

Nick I run Kubuntu on my computers & OpenWRT on several wireless routers :)

I can be of more help if anyone has specific questions. Once you get the sealing temperature down (trial & error) its not difficult, just tedious and time consuming. To get started the bare minimum requirements are heat seal-able nylon, a valve, a household iron, scissors, Sharpie, ruler, and patience. If I have time I may be able to start writing a more thorough how to guide.

How are the insulated pad tests going? I have an Exped Downmat 7 I want to replace and I was going to go with a Stephenson's DAM but am waiting to see what you are able to come up with first.

Things are a little hectic this time of year so I haven't had as much time to work on tweaking the down version. I have been trying no-see-um mesh sewn to strips of heat seal nylon to make internal baffles. All of my sleeping pads thus far have been sealed through. Think sewn threw sleeping bag versus I beam style baffled construction. I have tested mesh baffles in my pillows and it works great. It only saves 1.5g on my standard sized pillow but for a full sized sleeping pad its in the neighborhood of 30-40g. The only down side is construction time goes up substantially. By request I have custom made several down and synthetic pads thus far. So far they have all been tailored to each users specific needs instead of more standardized like the uninsulated pads. I'm looking into having a custom fabric made for these but its still a long ways off.

bender,
very nice stuff you got going on here. I am oh so inspired to try this out myself, building a DAM and some air beams.

I'm a hammock camper so coming up with a custom design would be HUGE for me (us). It's the shoulder area that needs a bit more coverage so a couple of extra tubes off that direction would be just great! also, my hammock (warbonnet blackbird) has a foot box so few small tubes off that direction would complete a perfect design. I'll have to play around with my existing pad, adding those extra components, and get the exact dimensions for the new shape.

even though I have zero experience with down material I'm willing to give this a try, or better yet have someone with experience (you) give it a go first. I still have to make my own air beams for another project (related) so I'll be starting out with that first, then work my way up to the tougher ideas (dam).

so you're trying to make baffles? I'm having a bit of trouble seeing that being done and what material you're using.

it's time to get a sewing machine and other equipment, I finally got most of the pieces of my puzzle and now it's time to put it all together!

thanks again!
dennis

Dennis let us know how your project turns out if you decide to do it. What do you mean by air beams? I have been trying out no-see-um baffles sewn to nylon. It works great but takes forever to make.

I completely ran out of valves & material after the holiday rush. I just had the latest material delivered today and the weight is slightly better than before. For the standard 70d material a 60" mummy pad is now only 9.8oz! I will be adding XP insulated air mats & more standard sizes to Kooka Bay shortly.

Bender,

Do you think it's possible to make a double-wide version (say 44 or 46" x 72") for two? Girlfriend and I want to eliminate the hassle of trying to strap together two sleeping pads, only to always have a cold spot in the middle anyways. Down-filled at least R6 is needed.

Also, I'm in the process of drawing up some ideas for a foot pump. Not sure what it will weigh but I must say that after using an Exped Pump mat there is no way I want to go back to filling mats with a BA Pumphouse if I can avoid it. Maybe there is some way of incorporating such a pump into your mat's design to save the weight of a separate pump?

What about using a bicycle pump. This one, the zefyl x-light carbon, is 50 g.

You could make an attachment to the valve or perhaps just mount the bike tube valve directly into the mat?