I was thinking about a Feathered Friend’s Flicker, but….

“Be sure to post it up”

Doubt it would interest anyone as there won’t be much to it – that’s the whole idea!

The FF Tanager is a near miss – great colour and good reviews. But it’s only got 357g fill, and I’m looking for more like 550g. Sleeping colder as I slide into decrepitude…

I’m sure they would add some down to their Tanager for you (at $19.50/ounce) :)

Thanks for the suggestion, but it doesn’t really work like that – you need to widen the baffles proportionately and resize the shell, which I doubt would be viable for them.

I’ll ask them for a quote, but by the time I pay shipping and tax and I can do it myself for less than half the price, and have the fun of using my own kit…

Hi Geoff,

FF will add up to 2 oz of down to any of their bags.  To your point, they won’t add more as that would require wider / larger / longer shell, etc.  But 2 oz is possible without compressing the fill and would likely add maybe 5F.

Mike,

Are you still liking the flicker? Am debating getting one as well. Did you go 20deg or 30deg?

John- Hi.  I’ve actually two of them now :)  The first one I purchased was a 20 degree with 3 oz of overfill- so more like a 10-15 degree bag and recently purchased a 30 (w/ no overfill).  Those two cover a pretty wide range and if need be I can add a 50 degree Apex quilt over the “20” and be good to 0 or even a little lower.

A nice compromise between a bag and a quilt.  No draft worries with the Flicker vs a quilt, yet can fully unzipped like a quilt.

So yes, still liking the flicker :)

Mike

Mike,

Sounds great, think I’ll pull the trigger.

thanks,

john

Dug this up researching the Flicker.  Any follow up reviews?  What are the better cord locks vs what FF uses?  Thanks, ~RL

I haven’t changed mine- yet.

On another note, I used my 20 degree Flicker (3 oz of overfill, so more like 10-15 degrees) recently on a 7 day snowshoe trip across the Bob Marshall- did outstanding!

Glad it worked out for ya.  I called FF yesterday to order a two day rental of a 20* Reg so as to check fit. I’ve been a fanboy for three decades.  My hang up.  Peace, ~RL

Glad it worked out for ya.  I called FF yesterday to order a two day rental of a 20* Reg so as to check fit. I’ve been a fanboy for three decades.  My hang up.  Peace, ~RL

that’s a great option- try before you buy :)

It’s nice they offer this service.  I used and abused one of their swallows from thirty yr ago. Then about two yrs ago, or thereabouts, dunno due to covid cranium crush, I rented a hummingbird.  It resulted with a purchase and they deduct the rental fee.  Shipping and return of the rental is easy enough.  Anywho…

FF has the highest quality, durability and service of all the brands I’ve tried over the past 50 years, and their temperature ratings are honest and realistic, unlike those of many other brands and a few UL brands in particular. You can rest assured that anything you purchase from them is a lifetime purchase if you take halfway decent care of it.

The rental came today.  20* Reg Marine.  Soza….  why didn’t yinz tell me about the Flicker before?  What a nice fit.  Almost better than , or at least equal to, the Hummingbird I’ve been beatin up on for the past year or so.  sigh.  Do I see yet another bag in my near future?  Oh, you betcha.  My jam.  Peace, ~RL

Oh, you betcha, was right.  Took purchase of a 20* reg YF.  She’s a beaut.  That’s all I want to say.  ~RL

Flicker people – can you describe how well it works in quilt mode, unzipped? I’m wondering if it’s wide enough to drape and still mostly prevent drafts or cold spots when you roll over, etc.

I imagine the narrow cut heats you up quickly when fully zipped. And at the warmer end of the range (50’s and above) you can open it up into full blanket-mode. But I’m wondering how well it works for those cool but not cold night in between.

Take a look at the Flickers dimensions; I think it’s on par with most quilts

62” shoulder, 48” hips, 39” footbox

I have the wide version and it works well for me.

I’m considering the Flicker and wanted to dig up this old thread.

I’m trying to decide if I should get the long version or not. If I want to use it as a blanket, would getting the long version be a good choice? I’m thinking in terms of making sure to always be covering my feet. That’s the biggest pet peeve while sleeping, feet not being covered. I’m 5’10” so don’t need the long for zipped up use and don’t know if the extra length would be annoying zipped up.

Any thoughts on this?

Joey did you make a decision? I’m facing the same dilemma.

I’m also curious if you considered the Katabatic Flex 22?

Not Joey, but I’m 6’ and went with the long. It’s a ~1 oz difference in the ul models (20-40 deg). My sleep system  is one area I don’t care to much about weight anymore because I want to be comfortable sleeping, so for me it was worth it. I love having a blanket that’s a little to big versus a little to small for only a 1 oz difference.

I went with the long. A couple things thing extra to I considered was if I every need to put anything extra in my sleeping bag ( like a Nalgene with warm water in it )  it would be nice to have the extra room.

Not sure I did it right, but I went with the Flicker in “wide”. I was looking for a solution to cover a wide range of temperatures. In the desert, I throw it over like a blanket. At altitude and colder, I zip it up like a sleeping bag. Lastly, If needed, I layer up and the “wide” does not compress my sun hoodie + alpha fleece + down anorak. So far it’s worked from the 60s to the 10’s.

Anyone have the Tanager in a wide size? I just noticed they have that and in 30 degrees so I think I’ve finally found my bag! Curious how people like the width. I think it would help in warmer weather to dump heat but also allow you to be able to wear down gear inside in colder conditions. I really just need a bag primarily from 50-20 degrees. Also, I’m 5′ 8″ and they recommended to me the 68″ bag but wondering how other people with that size find the length?