New to Quilts

Stephen,
I also have the Revelation X and love it so far. I use a hammock and can get away with less coverage than someone on the ground because it's easier to tuck around you. I think most people on the ground would want no less than 50-52 inches across at the top. That being said, I think the X is good for me on the ground. I had Tim make mine with a little bit more width than his usual model, but only a couple more inches. However, everyone is different and has different body types. Do you use the snap for enclosing it around your neck and cinching the drawstring to help get around your shoulders? Also, you might find playing around with the straps under your pad give you some different ways of tucking the quilt around your pad or on top. Mess around with it.

I hope this helps.

Michael

Hi Micahel,

Thansk very much for the reply.

I measured the width at the top of the quilt last night and it just over 48" so might be too short for.

The lenght is Ok for me but I say I will need to test sleep in the quilt at home to see if its Ok.

When I bough the quilt I was told it would be Ok for my body size so hopefully will work.

I had a play around with the sraps under my Pad but it seemed a bit of a faff.

Cheers,

Stephen

Hi Stephen
Try it with the straps under your body, rather than under the pad. It's warmer and easier to adjust. Like a lot of people, I prefer it like that, or without straps at all if the temperature isn't close to the quilt's limit. The width of my quilt at the top is 56 inches though, so what works for me might not work for you.
Edited for punctuation

I had a quilt that was 48" and it was much too narrow for me. With a quilt, I have found that 58" works best in cooler weather or 3 times the width of my shoulders.

Stephen

I am also new to this quilt thing (have an MLD one) methinks its also critical HOW you tuck it in around you?

I have a standard MLd which is also 48" IIRC and fits me fine (im 5'9" and 220lb with shoulder girth of 51"….not small :)
So what has worked for me (YMMV of course) and its mainly relevant where temps are chilly (cause obviously @50F you can do whatever)

1)I only use it on top of my pad (that is the pad is not with me in the quilt) so that might be diff
2)i have found that with a quilt (as opposed to mummy bag) there is a temptation to keep it open longer (its comfy) BUT you get cold 2 hrs later and hard to recover from it. So if temp is close to limit i always make a point of closing down tight right off the bat (cinch the straps and close behind my neck)
3) I have found that when my arms drape besides my body (back sleeping) they tend to push at the quilt and untuck it. i therefore try to "take control" of my hands by either positioning then hands on my torso, holding hands or putting them into pockets
4)If you for some reason dont close the snap behind the neck (say cause you are layering with a thick jacket or whatnot – I put another elastic cord there with a cordlock so i can leave it unsnapped but still tight (use it mainly when i layer with another sleeping bag inside it

M

+1 to a wide quilt. 48" is far too narrow IMO for even slender folks, you have to cinch up the collar and be a solid back sleeper to keep out drafts. Forget layering a narrow quilt.

A variable tapered quilt with a wide shoulder dimension allows for a lot of flexibility in your sleeping system- you can always tuck excess under your sides. There is some additional weight in a wider quilt but I think it is warranted when you factor in the extended range of use and ability to layer underneath.

Like David, I had a narrow 48" quilt but didn't get all of the benefits of using a quilt (flexibility) until I went up to a 56" width for a 20F Nunatak Arc Alpinist, but at those temps (20's) I found i still wanted additional shoulder girth for layering and now have a 58" wide Sawatch quilt that is spot on for 3+ season. For reference, I am 6', 168lbs, and have average width shoulders.

My summer weight quilt (30F) is 56" wide and about as narrow as I would go even for mild temperatures. I think some quilt makers cut narrow finished shoulder dimensions to save overall weight and still maintain minimum functionality, but at 48" the margin is really too tight IMO and a few more ounces goes a long way.

When I made my own quilt I was concerned about making it too narrow. I looked at all the cottage sites and used the largest dimensions possible (length,girth, etc.) in my design. I ended up using the full with of the fabric and doing a 2/3 taper reducing the foot end 12" from the head end. The extra width allows the quilt to drape over me creating a draft stop. I can tuck in the sides if needed for some additional warmth and can easily wear a down parka underneath to boost it's cold weather performance.

I can always make the quilt smaller if my preferences change.

Before seam allowances the quilt was 84" Long, 58"/46" Wide. For reference I'm 6'-0", 185lbs.

Hi All,

Thanks for the information.

I tend to sleep on my side a lot would need a wider quilt alright.

I should of asked the question before I bought the quilt, the guy I bought from had said it would good for me.

I will try it at home and this evning in the garage and if it does not work will put back on gear swap.

Cheers,

Stephen

On my third or fourth quilt built now.

The 1st was a test out of cheap materials. Learned a lot of construction, but more after I bought a golite ultra 20 and saw how it was built.

2nd was a SUL summer M90 2.5 climashield. Too narrow. It was 48" at the top, 38" at the foot with a drawstring footbox. On that one I duplicated the golite ultra 20 drawcord setup which I like. Although okay in a hammock, too narrow on the ground. I turned it into a jacket.

Now since I am a side sleeper and my butt and knees stick out, I do this.
Sewn in footbox, if a drawstring add that to the length.

Sort of an hexagon shape. narrow top, wide body, tapered to a big footbox.
I like to cross and move my feet a lot.

This is what works for me….

Length of quilt = your height, IE for me 6'-3"
At the neck about 44" or so.
Widen out down about 14" from the neck to body circumference (around arms) which for me is 54"

Stays at 54" wide for 20" down the quilt. More width for knees and butt when side sleeping.

Tapers down to the footbox which is about 13.5" in Diameter.

Not SUL but it is really comfortable. Its 3.1 yards in area and a M50 shell weighs 5oz with a short zipper so I can get to the insides.

Here is a link to the pattern if you are interested. I made the neck smaller than this pattern.
http://i195.photobucket.com/albums/z300/tammons3/New%20Mod%20Quilt/QUILTS.jpg

Hi Troy,

I only measures the quilt at the neck, I didnt do so at the rest of it.

Cheers,

Stephen

Looks like you got a slim, its for skinny back sleepers or hammock users. I can use it in a hammock but like a wide on the ground.

-Tim

Cheers Tim,

My own fault, the guy I bough it form said it would do me fine.

Oh well.

Tim graciously made mine a little wider (52" by my count) when I asked because I sometimes have to go to the ground when not able to set up my hammock. He was great to work with, BTW. Answered all of my silly questions and worked hard to give me what I wanted. This size has been working for me, but I'm 6'1" and about 160 lbs so slimmer stuff is not a problem for me.

Sounds like you should try it out and see what works for you.

Michael

That might be an optiom for me Michael.

I will try it out at home in the garage tonight to see how it goes.

Thanks,

Stephen

Pretty sure yours is a reg, but before that was an option

Hi Tim,

Here are the specs of the quilt, Could this be somthing that coud be altered.

Thanks,

Stephen

Like new. 6' quilt, regular taper. Built last summer. It has 2" baffles (2.25 inches loft) filled with 11.5oz of 900 fill power down. Mine is 2" narrower at the top and 1" narrower at the foot compared to the current specs of a regular. Weight on my scale is 18.7oz. Fits me well at 5'9", 175 lb. Blue outside, black inside.

Ok I was wrong about what you have. I just assumed it was one made since oct. I think it is 50" wide with a half taper. (old reg I think). Yeah it's a good size for back sleeping but not wide enough for most side sleepers.

As far as altering it the easiest thing woul be to add wings but I really can't take this on. I am the only one here who can do custom stuff but I am not able to add anything else to my plate. My suggestion is to find it a new home and get a wide. Sorry.

-Tim

Hi Tim,

Thats no bother :-)

Will put it on gear swap.

Cheers,

Stephen

Hi folks,

Hope all is well.

Ben Smith from Gooses Feet made me up a quilt to the below specs.

I used the quilt for two nights last weekend on the Pictured rocks trail in the Michigans Upper Peninsula.

I was using a Tarpent Stratosphire and slept on an Exped UL 7 and tempeartures didnt get much below 30F.

The quilt functioned very well and I teamed it up with my Gooses feet Parka, trousers and booties.

I do tend to move about a bit at night so I had a few drafts, it was no big deal as I was wearing down clothing, Ben also made me up a box Balaclava so I can use the quilt by itslef.

– 20F
– 13.5oz of 900 fill down
– drawstring footbox with draft plug
– zipper and snaps for footbox closure
– shaped shoulders and neck
– 56" at shoulder, 50" at waist, 40" at foot, 76" length
– Pertex Quantum 0.9oz inner and outer
– 20.4oz finished weight
– Vertical baffles

Any advice on minimising drafts would be great.

Cheers,

Stephen