Down/Synth Hybrid Quilt – Nunatak Nebula Discussion

There has been a lot of discussion of late about synthetic insulation and dealing with condensation in a sleep system.  Nunatak just released a new hybrid quilt that has a built in layer of Apex on top to serve as an over-quilt, the Nebula Hybrid Quilt.

The effectiveness of synthetic to resist moisture in quilts is well known but Nunatak makes an interesting claim that implies that the whole is greater than the parts:

Adding up all the above qualities, the APEX layer may offer even more durable warmth than an isolated gram to gram comparison with down would allude to.

May well be if the separation layer is very light as it could be sized to give some free insulation as dead air between the layers. We know it works in clothing and I have long thought that this is why a properly sized double bag system works so well

I’ve been looking at the hybrid quilt for a few weeks now. Looks quite interesting, if he starts offering it in wide I might bite.

Its an interesting idea, but I don’t see my self ever getting one.  The gains of having synthetic and down in one quilt instead of layering two separate quilts seem like they would so marginal that it would not be worth it.  It seems to me that the only weight you would save over two separate quilts would be one layer of fabric since instead of two layers of fabric for the outer shell for the down quilt and the inner shell of the synthetic quilt, which is a savings of about 3.5 ounces.

With two quilts you can separate them to lay them out in the sun to dry out quicker than if it was one thicker unit.  With two separates quilts it would be easier to regulate your temperature in the middle of the night.  And of course if it warm enough you could only take one.

My biggest issue with it is that the synthetic insulation will degrade much faster than the down.  I don’t know for sure but I suspect it is probably harder to replace the synthetic insulation in a hybrid quilt than one that is purely synthetic. With a synthetic quilt you could always just make a new one and sell off the old one or use it as a loaner.

If you do enough of your trips in conditions where you would want to use a synthetic quilt layered over a down one than it seems like a hybrid quilt would be a good way to drop a few ounces, but if I already had a couple of nice down quilts I don’t think it would really be worth it

Good points Joe. If you’re worried enough about down collapse to want an over quilt you would likely want to be separate the wet layer for drying.

I wonder how packing the hybrid quilt impacts the down when the synthetic layer is damp?

I combined an apex 67 overbag and bivvy using rsbtr Robic7d outer and a very breathable inner fabric. Its over long so I can keep my trail runners etc from freezing in the bottom. Well worth the 400g added to my 20 degree quilt if its cold and wet. Nice to have the flexibility.