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Ul pillows that don’t feel like a ballon
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Home › Forums › Gear Forums › Gear (General) › Ul pillows that don’t feel like a ballon
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Aug 20, 2011 at 11:38 am #1771412
I must have terrible luck. Bought a box of Ziploc double-zip quart FREEZER bags last night to test for pillow and 8 of the first 10 I pulled form the box leaked. 6 of the 8 at the bottom corners and 2 actually had tiny holes you could see near the bottom edge away from the corners.
I'll be sure to test all future bags now after this since I FBC. I normally take a spare or two in case one does have a leak but 80% failure rate?!?!
I'm going to see if Walmart will let me exchange for a different box from hopefully a different lot.
Aug 20, 2011 at 12:13 pm #1771417Michael – I've had the same experience. I tried Mike C!'s idea with 7 Ziploc brand quart freezer double seal bags. By morning 3 or 4 were flat. I tried this on 3 different nights with the same result, even though I was careful to really zip them shut thoroughly. I only filled the bags about 3/4 full with air. It's a comfortable rig, if only the bags would hold the air! So I'm back to using raingear and tomorrow's socks as a pillow.
Aug 20, 2011 at 1:30 pm #1771434That's about what the other non-Ziploc bags I had tested were like. Most would be flat after a few hours. The Ziploc ones were flat within 5 minutes (5 of the 6) – I could hear the air escape. Mine were maybe half full to start (~1" thick if pressed flat).
Aug 21, 2011 at 1:09 pm #1771644I'm a stomach/side sleeper and also don't like inflated pillows. I use a piece of generic, large-cell foam, 8 x 11 x 2 inches. Weight: 48 grams / 1.7 ounces. I stuff it in the sack with clothes to compress for packing.
Aug 21, 2011 at 1:12 pm #1771645I literally had this same idea while in bed last night. Do fabric stores sell open cell foam by the yard or will I have to cut up an eggcrate mattress pad?
Aug 21, 2011 at 1:53 pm #1771660Don't know. My pillow was cut from the foam from an old, bigger REI pillow that had a cover. I know that there was a kind of army-navy surplus store where I live that used to, and probably still does, sell foam sheets. I know they sold them in mattress sizes, but I'm not sure if they sold them in other sizes. A fabric store sounds like a good idea to try, though.
Aug 21, 2011 at 2:58 pm #1771686Yes. Joanne's sells fairly small sections of that foam. I saw it there yesterday.
Ryan
Aug 21, 2011 at 3:33 pm #1771697awesome, Ryan, thanks for the info.
Aug 21, 2011 at 4:47 pm #1771718My most successful trail pillow has been one child size water wing, also called arm floats. I cut the ring open along a seam, and it has two chambers with valves to use for inflation. Wrapped in a shirt and tucked into a buff, its not bad at all. They cost $ .97 for a pair, and can be found in dollar type shops.
MarciaAug 22, 2011 at 11:57 am #1771922The pillow is one area that I, as a stomach sleeper, refuse to compromise. The best pillows I have ever had are natural latex foam pillows. There are manufacturers of travel-size latex foam pillows, but one can easily sacrifice a standard size pillow and cut out a travel sized chunk, and use a travel-size pillowcase with it. Not UL, per se, but worth it for me. Of course, what do I know…I carry a standard size latex pillow in a 100% wool sham. It squishes down fairly small, and springs right back up when you pull it out of your pack. Currently, I'm investigating a pillow I heard of that's made of natural latex foam with bamboo charcoal mixed in, apparently made by Foshan Lecong Tumei Home Textile Co., Ltd., in Guangdong, China.
Aug 22, 2011 at 5:58 pm #1772038Another vote for Exped. Mine is 2.75 ounces in the stuff sack, 3 with patch kit. I like the shape and that I can adjust the firmness. I've also found that it is good about not sliding around.
Aug 6, 2012 at 1:54 am #1900545Exped Ul pillow 1 something ounces.
Aug 6, 2012 at 11:09 am #1900633Mother Nature. I have used dried leaves, grass, and rush inside of a stuff sack with good results. When on sand, I build a mound pillow under the head portion of my shelter. I have used a large rock under the head of my sleeping pad before as well (used my shoes in the same way lots of times). A sack of cattail leaves and tule would be a dream….but I've never camped near them.
Aug 6, 2012 at 1:48 pm #1900659I highly recommend the goosefeet pillow (we have two in medium now as my wife liked mine a little too much). The 10d fabric feels nice (though an occasional small down filament will work itself out) and the additional optional pocket makes it easy to stuff a shirt for some extra support. I've tried numerous others (big agnes, exped, even a heavy tempur pedic travel pillow) and so far this one bests them all.
Aug 6, 2012 at 2:57 pm #1900668+1 for the Cocoon UL Air Core. It is soft on one side, so partially inflating it leaves it pretty close to a traditional pillow in feel.
Aug 6, 2012 at 3:08 pm #1900669I have a Flexair pillow that I purchased from ebay. Inflates/deflates with a drinking straw and weighs a mere 25g. It can be loud when tossing/turning, so I made a little pillow case from scrap M50 and Climashield 2.5. Works great, very comfy and very light.
Aug 6, 2012 at 10:03 pm #1900766Fly Lufthansa. They have small, down pillows that must weigh 1.5 oz. tiny things. I have used two for the last ten years and now they are done. But, I'd anyone can check – they are yellow – google images looks like they're still in use. That said, the ultra light Cocoon at 2.5 oz. with a mix of air and synthetic, would prefer down – is promising. Fortunately, my bag is still heavy enough that my one non-cuben stuff sack will have enough clothes / gear inside for a pillow. But I really want a down + air solution. Bet of both worlds and lightest weight.
Aug 8, 2012 at 7:49 am #1901137The pillow has been a major pain in the butt for me over the years, but I think I found a solution.
Recently, I recently stumbled onto the Ikea travel pillow which at least for me seems to be the best pillow I have used. It's an inflatable pillow that costs $5, but it doesn't have that waterbed balloon effect that I hate so much from inflatable pillows. The inner pillow bladder weighs 1.1 ounces. The pillowcase which comes with it is rather thick and weighs 2.9 ounces and is really comfortable. I had a long debate with myself whether or not to carry those extra 3 ounces because the stock pillow case is very nice, but chose not to. I had a few of those little blankets from flights (Delta) and cut one up to make a lightweight pillowcase, so the total weight is dropped down to 1.5 ounces.
I just got back from a segment on the AT and used it head to head against the Exped and there was no comparison. I got home and gave my Exped to my daughter.
Pillow blown up next to 2 liter bottle for reference:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/mwndfzyi0buebom/2012-08-08_10-45-47_930.jpgTwo parts of the pillow:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/eipxacl1tlkoweb/2012-07-03_01-00-08_982.jpg?mOh, I also picked up a 3 ounce pair of flip flops from Ikea in the travel section which worked out well as my camp shoes.
Aug 8, 2012 at 8:05 am #1901142HI Ryan,
Did you find the pillow in the travel section also (where the luggage is?)Also, is it a neck pillow?
Thanks!
Aug 8, 2012 at 9:44 pm #1901333Daniel, yes it is the neck pillow in the travel section. I bought it originally for a car trip to NC, but after getting home and blowing it up and seeing the size of it, I decided to give it a try out on the trail. It's rather large for a traditional "neck pillow" IMO. I'm glad I did because it's great. As a side-stomach sleeper (legs down, shoulders side), finding a pillow has been quite the chore.
Here's some comparisons to the large sized Exped. Not as big, but thicker.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/l0eyuldvosjspqt/2012-08-09_00-47-18_59.jpg
https://www.dropbox.com/s/j5mnq92c6lga3vh/2012-08-09_00-47-33_142.jpg
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