cheap and light winter sleeping systems

Craig, Rather than craigslist or [fl]e[a]Bay, go here: lwhiker . Sign up for a free account and setup notifications for the gear you desire. Good luck.

Please pick two:

1. cheap
2. light
3. warm

:)

I have the Marmot Never Summer 0F bag. It's 650 fp down and 4 lbs. I think I got it at campmor.com for around $250.

Well said Andy :-)

You're most likely only going to get cheaper + lighter if you go the MYOG or used route. Argon combined with a lb and a half of Wilderness Logic 850 fp down made into a quilt will still cost a pretty penny, around 250 or so, but be fairly warm and fairly light. However, you can find used quilts for around this price.

If you don't mind a bit more weight, for a lot less money, keep your eye out for 650 to 700 fp down pillows. Sometimes you can get them fairly cheap, however, you can't always be assured of their quality and that the fp is what they say it is.

I just bought a down pillow with 20 oz of 600 fp down at Costco for 37 dollars (i trust Costco a bit more than some other companies). I have a 40 degree quilt made with 850 fp down, but decided i want to permanently boost it's warmth, but at low cost.

I'll be saving some weight, by only adding a core panel that tapers to the feet, and using Argon. I'm not that concerned with weight.

Conversely, you could also think outside the box some. You could use some wide Evazote foam (there is a site that sells 48 inch wide stuff), taper it some, sew it in some nylon tulle, Argon, or the like, and use it as a VBL for under a less warm quilt. However, it will be bulky.

Like Andy says, it's hard to get all three. You can noticeably cut down on cost with only a slight gain in weight if you look at used gear. Geartrade is my favorite as it's basically returned goods to backcountry.com (think BC.com's REI garage sale). A lot of folks are dumb, or abusive of return policies but you can reap the benefits.

The only problem is that spring and summer tend to be the best times to buy winter gear, right now you're looking at peak season for demand.

I'm really just replying so you'll know that Alex isn't the only one who actually bothered to read your post, but think you might want to elaborate on "winter", as our idea of that varies by region.
Are you staying close to DC, or making trips somewhere colder?
Sounds like you're already on the right track with your shopping. I've only looked at clothes there, but you might also check out geartrade.com and even eBay. Sierra Trading Post occasionally offers some nice bags, though their coupons don't always apply to them.
What's "cheap" to you?

Inexpensive UL insulation is the Holy Grail of UL gear shopping. Sit and wait like a spider for a deal to come along.

Throw out the 5 pound summer-y base weighs for real winter backcountry travel. You still want to apply the same concepts, but the cost, weight and volume all increase. No free lunch!

The weigh volume death spiral starts all over again for assembling a winter kit. It is a disappointment after getting your 3 season list whittled down to nearly nothing, but it is that, stay home, or head for the Southern Hemisphere :)

I am new to winter hiking, with my first overnight just last year. I hope to do 2 to 3 overnight trips this season. Getting my head around the weight and bulk of winter gear is tough for me. Everything is bulkier and heavier and there are the same weight/safety/comfort/cost issues, only more so. I am still committed to UL and minimalist principals, but it is harder to solve then with my summer kit. If someone finds a cheap/light/warm winter sleep system, please post it! Right now, my plan is to incorporate my shoulder season bag with my summer quilt. Cheap, as I don't need to buy a dedicated winter bag just yet, warm, but not light at all. If winter camping sticks, I will likely break down at some point and buy a good, light, but expensive bag from Feathered Friends. Until then, I will lurk around looking for a deal.

The Kelty Cosmic Down sleeping bag is one I normally recommend to people who want a decent down sleeping bag but are on a budget. I'm not familiar with your sleeping bag but after some quick googling, it looks like there's no real reason transition from your's to the Kelty Cosmic Down 0*F as they are pretty close to each other spec wise.

I suspect that you're at a point where you'll need to pay some real money to upgrade from what you have without taking a weight penalty.

I ended up buying my three season bag in like new condition off of http://www.geartrade.com. I'd set the filters to screen what you're looking for and just keep an eye open for a good deal on there.

As a short term solution for warmth, you can buy a cheapie lightweight sleeping bag for the time being and just double up.

This is probably the best way to go no matter what. A 3-season down bag plus a summer synthetic quilt is a light and very robust way to get winter warmth.

"Right now, my plan is to incorporate my shoulder season bag with my summer quilt."
Me too.

Plan B is to beef up your wearable sleep insulation with military surplus grid fleece long underwear. Same fabric as Patagonia, sewn by others. All fleece is bulky and heavy, but grid fleece is good stuff. Take your scale to the surplus store, some garments are much heavier than others. None of the features are light weight, but you can choose T neck or not, kangaroo pouch (heavy), thumb holes or not, grid inside or outside.

Loose fitting, fleece sleep socks are as light as down booties, cost $50 less, but not as warm. I haven't tried a breathable nylon cover on them.

A comfortable fleece balaclava is great, but many are made with a snug fit for daytime use and you can't sleep in it all night.

Or a quilt and a sleeping bag, if you prefer. Even working for Enlightened Equipment, I don't spend enough nights in true cold weather to justify a dedicated winter quilt, so having two temp options for quilts easily offers 3 temperature ratings to choose from. If you're out there a lot of nights then something rated for those temps is probably worthwhile, but for the rest of us, layering seems to offer the best balance.

I too have had good success using a 2-person 3-season quilt under a 2-person summer quilt. I made the latter extra wide and long for just this reason. Heavier and bulkier than a pricey winter bag, but way, way cheaper (especially if you make it yourself!).

Using the following relatively inexpensive components in various combinations can give you some flexibility.

Vapor Barrier Liner – coated nylon or silnylon (for temps 25 and below)
Silk liner
Bivy sack/overbag – they range from inexpensive coated nylon to very expensive cuben fiber

Wearing long underwear, balaclava, etc in bag helps. I like to bring down pants, booties, hat/hood and jacket for hanging around camp – by wearing them for sleeping, I can get by with a lighter bag.

Sleeping bag – here's where it's worth it to pay a lot.
Depending on conditions, 850-900 fill down will give you the most warmth for weight.
Synthetic bags will be cheaper, but heavier.