Sewn through or baffled ?

[William Zila]

I am going to be making a quilt using m90 and 6 ounces of 900fp down I am estimating this will get me about a 30% quilt should I sew straight through the 2 layers of fabric or do a different form of baffles? What's a easy way to baffle ? I have sewing experience but would like to keep the quilt simple as I want it light

[Tim Marshall]

sew through is good for above 40-45* not 30, baffle that beast! No-see-um baffles will add under 2oz to your weight but they are worth it. I use .33 cuben for my baffles to keep the weight to the min and they are way easier to work with, they add a few tenths of an ounce depending on quilt size. 6oz of down won't make 30* unless you are planning a very small quilt.

-Tim

[David Cohen]

Hi: I used 900fp down and made a quilt that *might* have been ok down to 30*, but I used 13 ozs of down. My baffles were 2.5" and overall loft of the quilt was a little under 3 inches. I'm 6-1, and the quilt was a little small for me. I recommend making it a little taller and wider than you think you need. You won't regret the extra coverage on an icy morning … I promise you that.

By the way … what is "m90?"

[Jerry Adams]

m90 = Momentum 90 – 0.9 oz/square yard – nylon – DWR finish

[David Cohen]

Some more info: I recently bought the Western Mountaineering "HighLite," which has a combination of sewn-through and baffled stitching. Horizontal seams are sewn-through, and vertical seams are baffled.

I've slept in that bag under an open tarp at about 30* (there was freezing rain and slushy snow coming down). It felt a little cold. And I was wearing inside the sleeping bag every bit of clothing I had, including hat, knit gloves, long polypro underwear, socks, fleece sweater and breathable rain gear.

I just think the baffles and more down will give you a better experience that will be well worth the extra weight, expense and labor.

And … not to hijack the thread, but does anybody have a source for m90?

Thanks!

[te – wa]

my standard size 30 degree top quilt uses 10 oz of 800 fill, with 1" baffles overstuffed to 2". you may use these qualities as a rough guide, if you wish.

[William Zila]

I know you guys know way more about quilts then me as I have never owned or made one but my MH phantom 45 has 7 ounces of 800fp and I am warm down to freezing with it just wearing a thin baselayer "under armor cold gear 2.0" how is it that a quilt would need 10-14 ounces fill ? I am happy in mummy bags but thought it would be a good experience to make a quilt and it wouldn't break the bank but with 10ounces of down the weight would be right up there with my phantom if that's so I don't see the point for me personly to try a quilt since I have always been happy with mummy bags

[todd]

David,

You can order Momentum from thru-hiker.com…great company.

[Javan Dempsey]

More like sub-1oz difference once linear shrinkage is taken to account. Normal length sew thru quilts from my observations loose ~8-10" in length from rough dimensions vs ~4-5" (including hem allowances) when using baffles of ~70% desired loft height. That's a lot of extra fabric and insulation to off-set the baffle material.

I made a baffled 40deg quilt, and a sewn-thru, with the exact target specs, and nearly equal finished dimensions, that only weighed .5oz heavier in the baffled version. Bear in mind that .5oz is within the margin for error of material and build variation with two identical items. i.e. if I made two identical (as much as I can), quilts, there's a very high chance they'd be -/+~1oz different in final weight.

Simply put, if you're using down, and you're not in a huge hurry, better safe than sorry, baffle it. That way, if you decide to take it 10 deg or more lower by supplementing with insulative clothing, you can easily.

[billy goat]

So I'm thinking of making a bag (not a quilt fan) out of M.50 and am debating lightweight Cuben baffles vs. netting. If I use something like .33 oz Cuben, the baffles will be lighter and stronger than netting, correct? For those who have done this, do you sew the Cuben baffles or use adhesives or tape? Any problems with Cuben baffles tearing?

Another question: I've been thinking of running all my baffles vertically. It seems to me that this would greatly simplify cutting the baffles (they could be long, straight strips). Any thoughts about this? I don't see too many bags designed this way. It seems that cutting curved, horizontal baffles would be exceedingly complicated.

[Javan Dempsey]

Using .33 oz cuben for baffles is only stronger if you fold the edges and sew through the doubled layer. With nano-see-um type mesh, if you can sew straight, it's unnecessary to roll the edges. Sewing will be a must, taping or bonding wont give you enough peel strength in any configuration I can think of.

Tearing is only a concern at the edges, and by rolling them, and thus doubling the material at that spot, they're much stronger than mesh.

Linear baffles would likely be more expensive, since you would need a longer piece of cuben to cut the long strips. Say 2 yards atleast, where-as you'd probably only use one linear yard if you cut them for lateral baffles. Radial baffles aren't necessary on most quilts, and honestly, unless you're making a really cold weather bag, I don't they're essential there either, you can just cut straight strips for lateral baffles also, so i don't see the point unless you just want something that looks different. Another disadvantage of linear baffles is that you'd only be able to shift down from head-to-foot, instead of side to side.

[Tim Marshall]

no need to fold over .33 baffles and sew through 2 layers. single works fine, I do it every day with never an issue

-Tim

[Javan Dempsey]

Tim,

Not saying it's not fine, just saying that it's not quite as strong as nano-see-um in tear strength. However, if folded, it's much stronger.

I agree 100% that unfolded is plenty strong for the application, although I prefer to fold them, to avoid potential repairs for customers. Strictly a matter of choice, YMMV.

[billy goat]

It seems to me if you don't cut the baffles with curves, then you'll defeat the purpose of a differential cut? Won't the baffles either bunch or compress the down once you wrap your quilt or bag around your body?

[Author]

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