Winter (0F) Quilt Suggestions

Anthony,

Just an FYI. the hammock Gear long is 79" where our Reg is 78". Our long is 84". Not sure if that plays into your choice but just wanted to point that out.

-Tim Marshall
Owner: Enlightened Equipment

I'll keep that in mind. I'm 6'4" tall so the hammock gear might be too short if I go with the snap model.
I think I really want the open foot box as 0 will be too warm some nights but not others.

Anthony

I was looking at their site again and they list the length as 83"

Anthony

I was thinking of their 20* specs I guess, sorry about that.

-Tim

Was thinking of getting a winter quilt myself.

Wondering if it makes sense to size up in width and length to improve the "burrow" factor.

Anyone use a 0 degree quilt in cold conditions with success? Certainly a good sleeping pad is a big factor.

I'm going to use an Exped Downmat UL 7 and a bivy that I can fit around both the bag and the pad

From what I hear if you are going to make it work you really need the bivy, which is fine, since I was going to use a floor-less mid and a bivy anyways.

Anthony

"Wondering if it makes sense to size up in width and length to improve the "burrow" factor.

Anyone use a 0 degree quilt in cold conditions with success? Certainly a good sleeping pad is a big factor."

I think the wider quilts are a good idea, especially for someone thick up top.
My Katabatic Palisade has a cord system that attaches the quilt to cords around the sleeping pad, and clips on the quilt that let it slide freely, or lock down so it's held in place. The Wide is big enough that I can touch the clips behind me, completely eliminating drafts, and I've actually used it to 0F with heavy layering. Only problem with the Katabatic stuff is that it's very expensive.

Underground Quilts has come up with an attachment system that looks even quicker and easier to use. Lighter construction on the quilts, but much lower price than something like Katabatic, and excellent service(my 50F quilt is from UGQ).
Be aware of their sizing, as they show on their charts that a 72" quilt is good for a person up to 5'9". I'm 5'7", and it's about right for me. Just enough to stretch out my toes.
The time for their November sale on 0F quilts is past(see the Gear Deals section), but they'll have a Black Friday sale.
Here's the video of their pad attachment system from their site:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwbOtNDuvOI#t=212

On the sleeping pad factor, I switched from a r4.1 Insulated Air Core to a r5.9 Exped Downmat UL7 M when going to a quilt, to insure the pad wasn't a weak point in the system, and have been very happy with it.

Ok, planning for an overnight low of 15, but lets say I was going down to 0 to be safe (for example, bad forecast was given).

I don't have a winter bag, but I have the following to make 1 bag ->

40* EE revelation regular/wide
30* EE Revelation regular/wide
Montbell UL super spiral #3

The lightest weight would be the two EE bags, but I would have to use two pairs of straps (or I could probably rig a system that might work)…

Or, I could do the super spiral, not worry as much about drafts, and then take the 30* or the 40*…just not sure how much each one would add?

All of this would be wrapped in a katabatic gear bivy, and I would probably use a ridgerest sol and an xtherm together.

Based on the amount of down in each of the bags

I think that the super spiral and the 40 degree revelation should take you down to about 5 degrees as it has about 20 ounces combined fill
I think the super spiral and the 30 degree revelation should take you down to about -5 degrees as it has about 23 ounces of down

I would probably take the bag and quilt unless you already have an insulated balaclava as your head would likely get quite cold without fairly thick insulation

Anthony

John,

One pair of straps and clip in the outer quilt. It will lock drafts do the inside quilt doesn't need the straps.

-Tim

Tim,
Excellent point…not really sure why I didn't think of that. If I do use both quilts (lightest weight option) then I'll just clip in the outer quilt.

I do have several head options ->

Blackrock gear limited edition down hat
EE Hoodlum (2.1oz apex)
Zpacks/Goosefeet Down balaclava
Merino Wool Buff (I do like buffs a lot)

I just need to pick 1-2 of them…not sure what is quite warm enough for 0-15*.

For use down to 0F, I like about 25oz of down. A quilt with just enough coverage might be warm enough with 20oz, while a larger diameter sleeping bag would need closer to 30oz to have the same warmth per area.

I'm a big fan of quilts, but I prefer a bag once temperatures are dipping much below 15F. When it's really cold, you can't have much skin poking out so you need something with a lot of coverage. That typically means a quilt with generous girth and length, plus a down hood. Once you get all that, you're often not saving weight over a quality sleeping bag. I'm not against using a quilt, but one of the main advantages of quilts (weight savings) diminishes while one of the cons of a quilt (drafts) becomes a bit more problematic. For me the balance tips around 15F.

"I just need to pick 1-2 of them…not sure what is quite warm enough for 0-15*."

For myself, I think just a little insulation (like 2oz Hoodlum) in front of my face is good, and when it's colder I really only need more on top, so I'd pair a beanie with a Hoodlum for 0-15, (although I also have a 0-20 Hoodlum, so normally it's not necessary). It might be just a personal preference thing though, so ymmv.

I'm about to pull the trigger on a winter quilt and one can't be amazed at the price of the Underground quilts- it's nearly half the cost of a Katabatic (I love Katabatic, have a Palisade, but the price of a winter quilt is north of $600!!!)

Would love to hear about the quality of any Underground users

thanks

Mike

Mike,
No complaints about my 50F Flight Jacket circa Spring 2014, except one of the attachment points popped out when I crawled in the first time I tried attaching it to a pad. They said to send it in, and they'd replace it and double stitch all of them.
They have since changed to a new "quilt anchor system" with different attachments, so that appears to have been addressed.
I never sent it in. Have no plans to attach my summer quilt to a pad in actual use, and I sleep under it at home and in hotels(where I go, it goes).
It's rated 50F, and I've taken it a bit lower when temps dropped below forecast in the NC mountains last year, but haven't intentionally pushed it since <50F is where the Palisade takes over. Rating seems about right with baselayers, but I can't relate it to the lower rated quilts.
It's not a Katabatic, for sure, but the overall construction is good, and similar to the Hammock Gear quilt I've seen.

I have an underground 40*F that I bought last spring. Mine is rectangular /no taper with the traditional foot box and overstuffed a few ounces. It's quite warm in appropriate conditions and I haven't found any flaws with the build.

I enjoy it quite a lot. Enough to have recently placed an order with them for a new 20*F quilt in essentially the same configuration.

Those guys make nice stuff. I have no others to compare against, however.