Duck vs Goose Down

Looking at a Sawatch?  I’d get the goose over the duck.  Over the life of the quilt $80 is inconsequential.  I can smell the difference between the two in damp conditions.  It isn’t a deal breaker but I figure why bother. It’s the diet of the duck that is thought to cause the odor.

I’ve got a 49 year old Snow Lion sleeping bag.  Duck down, it’s lost a bit of loft, but it is still my ‘go to’ winter bag.  So at the end of the day you are comparing 850 fill vs 900 fill.  If the weight savings are worth the extra $$ or, if same weight of fill, a bit more warmth is worth the extra $$ then go with the goose down.

But I’d pocket the cash and get a head start on my next major purchase.

Steven, not to derail the thread but I have a Snowlion Toursack with the “tulip bulb” foot oz from 1973.  Burnt orange shell and purple lining… hey, it was the 70’s. $39.95 on discount through the shop my brother worked at, which was a lot of lawn mowing at the time and one sweet bag.

Interesting you note that damp duck down has a different odor.  Never noticed that.  Mine cost about 2 months of throwing newspapers.

I have a pair of 45-year-old REI duck down bags (sewn-through) that have worked fine all these years, and I still use them.  No smells, fill-power not as good as what you can get today, but good enough.  I use them for car-camping, staying in cabins, etc, they are too heavy for backpacking any more.  I’ve washed them a few times over the decades.

What reps have told me over the years is that ducks and geese have different diets, true, but neither should have an odor if the down is properly cleaned.  Not sure how to check that in advance of purchase.  Maybe check the vendor’s return policy….